Published today in Advances in Nutrition, an international peer-reviewed journal of the American Society of Nutrition, the review is the first time the evidence relating to breakfast cereal and its impact on healthy diets, body weight, obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and bowel health has been systematically assessed using the Australian government’s stringent National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) criteria2.
The review also clarifies questions about the contribution breakfast cereals make to sodium and total sugars intakes in the overall diet.
Report author, Professor Peter Williams, Honorary Professorial Fellow at University of Wollongong and Adjunct Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics at the University of Canberra, said the review showed that breakfast cereal eaters are more likely to have a healthier diet and to weigh less, and are less likely to suffer from certain diseases.
“It was clear from the research that regular breakfast cereal eaters have more nutritious diets, which are higher in vitamins and minerals and have a greater likelihood of meeting recommended nutrient intakes,” said Professor Williams.
“Despite common belief, breakfast cereal eaters do not have higher sodium intakes than non-breakfast cereal eaters – a finding consistent with recent Australian Bureau of Statistics data, which shows ready-to-eat breakfast cereals actually provide only around two per cent of the sodium in Australian diets.*
“The review found that for children who consume breakfast cereal, there is no difference in their overall daily energy intake, total sugars# intake or risk of overweight or obesity whether they consume pre-sweetened breakfast cereals or other breakfast cereals.
“In fact, one of the strongest findings was the benefit of eating breakfast cereal for weight management. Regularly eating breakfast cereal is associated with a lower body mass index and a 12 per cent lower risk of being overweight or obese and in both adults and children,” said Professor Williams.
The review also found that high-fibre and wholegrain breakfast cereals help to improve bowel function, prevent constipation, and may lower the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Additional findings include:
According to Dr David Topping, Chief Research Scientist at the CSIRO, the value of this paper is in its scientific rigour and thorough peer-review.
“The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend adults (19-70 years) eat four to six serves+ of grain or cereal foods a day for good health. The review reinforces the significant role that the breakfast cereal category can play in delivering the important health benefits of grain foods to Australian diets.
“The review includes 21 graded evidence statements and in several instances, the evidence statement is as strong as or even stronger than that for fruit and vegetable consumption,” concluded Dr Topping.
The research review was commissioned by the Australian Breakfast Cereal Manufacturers Forum of the Australian Food and Grocery Council, in the interest of understanding the body.
For more information contact Leigh Reeve, Director ABCMF lreeve@afgc.org.au or Bite Communications on (02) 9977 8195.
View the full text supplement published in Advances in Nutrition.
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REFERENCES
1. Williams PG. The Benefits of Breakfast Cereal Consumption: A Systematic Review of the Evidence
Base. Adv Nutr 2014;5:636S-673S. doi:10.3945/an.114.006247
2. National Health and Medical Research Council. How to review the evidence: assessment and application of scientific evidence. Canberra: AusInfo; 2000.
www.nhmrc.gov.au/guidelines/publications/cp69.
The review assesses the evidence based on the National Health and Medical Research (NHRMC) criteria used for the development of Australia’s dietary guidelines. It has developed 21 evidence statements. These are ranked from Grade A evidence (trusted to guide clinical practice), Grade B (trusted in most situation), Grade C (supportive in specific applications) to Grade D evidence (suggestive).
NOTES
* The ABS Australian Health Survey data for sodium from breakfast cereals is reported as being about 2.5% but this overestimates the true proportion of sodium intake contributed by specific food groups. This is because the AHS data only includes sodium naturally present in foods as well sodium added during processing; it does not include salt added in home prepared foods or at the table. An estimated 64% of Australians report that they add salt at home either during meal preparation or at the table.
# Total sugars data includes the sugars naturally present in foods (e.g. from fruit) plus added sugars (e.g. from honey, table sugar). There is no separate data available for added sugars because it is not possible to separate the source of sugars when analysing food content.
+ The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating defines a standard serve of grain or cereal foods as 30 grams of wheat cereal flakes, 1⁄4 cup (30 grams) muesli and 1⁄2 cup (120 grams) of cooked porridge.
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To drive growth, good shopper understanding is essential for retailers and suppliers. In order to deliver effective shopper tactics you need to understand what motivates them, what their needs and behaviours are, and how they change by product category, store type and shopper mission. Importantly understanding shoppers' digital capability is becoming essential to drive growth.
This year's AFGC and PLMA Seminar will focus on these issues and provide an opportunity to hear directly from key trade partners and businesses developing solutions to shopper engagement.
Five Great Reasons to Attend
Program
The program is suitable for private label and brand manufacturers and particularly those in sales, marketing, shopper insights and category management.
The seminar program will be available shortly.
The seminar will commence at 1pm and conculde at 5.15pm, followed by a Networking Cocktail Reception.
Registration
PLMA and AFGC Member Rate - $285 inc. gst
Non Member Rate - $450 inc. gst
AFGC Members can register online
Non AFGC Members can download and complete the registration form below
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Venue
Henry Lawson Room
Sydney Harbour Marriott
30 Pitt Street
Sydney NSW 2000
More information
For more innformation on the annual Private Label and Brands Seminar, please contact:
Alyssa Handy
Events Manager
Australian Food and Grocery Council
02 6273 1466
alyssa.handy@afgc.org.au
The AFGC Annual Industry Leaders Forum (ILF) presents a once-a-year opportunity for members to actively engage with key federal Government Ministers, decision-makers and public policy influencers - and help shape the food and grocery industry policy agenda.
The 2014 Industry Leaders Forum, will be held on Wednesday 1 October, 2014 at Parliament House in Canberra.
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The Forum will commence at 8.45am and conclude at 5.15pm. The Annual dinner and presentation of the Foodbank Awards will be held in Gandel Hall at the National Gallery of Australia. Dinner will commence at 7pm with a cocktail reception and viewing of the Arthur Boyd: Agony & Ecstacy Exhibition.
Confirmed speakers include:
The Industry Leaders Forum will be followed by a members breakfast and the AFGC Annual General Meeting on Thursday 2 October at East Hotel.
When registering, please indicate if you will be attending the AGM.
Accommodation for the 2014 Industry Leaders Forum has been reserved at East Hotel in Canberra. The AFGC has negotiated preferred rates for ILF delegates. As the Industry Leaders Forum is held during a Parliamentary Sitting week, it is recommended that accommodation arrangements be made as soon as possible.
Accommodation reservations should be made directly with East Hotel, delegates must quote the following code DAFGC when making reservations to obtain the preferred rates.
To reserve accommodation, please contact the hotel directly on 02 6295-6925 or email stay@easthotel.com.au
East Hotel
69 Canberra Avenue
Kingston ACT 2604
www.easthotel.com.au
Coach transfers will be provided from East Hotel to Parliament House and The National Gallery of Australia (and return). Delegates will need to make their own arragements to and from the airport.
Transfers for the Industry Leaders Forum are as follow:
Wednesday 1 October
8.00am - East Hotel to Parliament House (underground car park drop off)
5.30pm - Parliament House (underground car park) to East Hotel
6.50pm - East Hotel to National Gallery of Australia
10.45pm - National Gallery of Australia to East Hotel
Registrations have now closed for the 2014 Annual Industry Leaders Forum
For more information on the 2014 Industry Leaders Forum, please contact:
Alyssa Handy
Event Manager
02 6273 1466
alyssa.handy@afgc.org.au
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