Last Updated on 11 March 2022 by Colette
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We all know that breakfast is said to be the most important meal of the day, setting us up for the challenges ahead. Studies have shown that people who eat breakfast are less likely to snack, find it easier to concentrate, are more productive, live generally more glamorous lives . . . OK so I made the last bit up but I think it’s fair to say that the benefits of getting a good breakfast inside you are far reaching.
I’ve always loved my breakfast and I’m pleased to say that Ben, Chloe and Amy do too. In fact I would go so far as to say all three of them are cereal fiends! I’m really conscious of the cereals we buy, opting for what I would call fairly standard, plain cereals – Cornflakes, Weetabix, Cheerios. You won’t find anything obviously “rubbishy” and super sugary like Frosties or Coco Pops on our breakfast table. However, over recent years we’ve all become much more aware of how the cereals we thought were good for us (I’m looking at you Branflakes) are actually more sugary than we would expect. Oh great. Thanks for that. This article from January of last year lists the top 10 most sugary breakfast cereals and is a sure fire hit list of ones to avoid in my book!
With this in mind I was interested to try out Alphabites with the kids as part of National Breakfast Week. Now for a start they look like a bit of a novelty cereal (tell me that being able to spell your name out in breakfast cereal doesn’t have novelty factor?) which means you might just get away with the kids not even realising you’re trying to replace their usual breakfast with something a bit healthier! But, more importantly, they genuinely are a healthier option than the high sugar offerings which are often marketed towards our children. With no refined sugar, salt or “any other nonsense” I was keen to see if Alphabites would be well received in our household!
Sweetened with coconut blossom nectar (which as an added bonus contains double the calcium of milk – yes I know, you really do find calcium in the most unexpected places!) rather than refined sugar, Alphabites are subtly sweet and crunchy. Ben and Chloe are both quite keen on the idea of “sugar swaps” at the moment, this is clearly something which has been discussed at school as part of the Change 4 Life “Sugar Smart” campaign. I chatted to them about how Alphabites are a healthier option, one with less sugar and they were keen to try them. (Probably so they could go to school and tell their teachers how healthy they had been!)
Ben ate the lot and asked for seconds! Chlo wasn’t quite so keen but she can be more fussy with her breakfast anyway so I wasn’t so surprised. The second time she tried it she went “crunchy” (which is code for no milk!) which she much preferred. Whilst I’m not sure any of them would pick Alphabites out of a cereal line up – they were all happy to eat it when given it which I think is a win for a healthy option much of the time! For me, I’m just happy to know that they’re eating a cereal of worth, something which would set them up for the day and thanks to it’s naturally low GI status, would maintain a steady blood sugar level through the morning.
We love Alphabites,we have been eating them since we got sent one of the first boxes. They are very tasty and so much fun xxx
Great that this cereal is sweetened in a more natural way, and that it appeals to children. I love bran flakes and sweeten it with raisins.
Sebby loves these but sadly the older ones heads have been turned by more chocolatey concoctions
these are a big hit with my kids too. Love that they are naturally sweetened x
Coconut Blossom Nectar sounds rather exotic! Quite fancy it myself. When we finally get through the mountain of boxed of oats that our cupboards hold, we may try some Alphabites.
Aww a very cute new cereal! I hadn't heard of Alphabites before, but I'm a huge cereal fan and it looks yummy 😀 x
We LOVE Alphabites. Yummy and it's so reassuring knowing that they are SO much better for our children than the other cereals available on the shelves. x #BlogSleepRepeat
The kids are big fans of Alphabites – they tend to have Os (multigrain hoops) but for a treat we love these – so much fun now that A knows her letters too! x
My little girl absolutely loves these, just wish they were a little cheaper. We are usually on a tight budget so get them when there on offer x
I will have to try these, I really struggle to find cereal suitable for my little boy due to his nut allergies.
Oh I haven't heard of these before, will have to give them a whirl!
Thanks for sharing 🙂 x
My girls love this cereal, although not the best way to teach them not to play with their food 😉 #triedtested
We have had these and really liked them, it scares me how much sugar is hidden in breakfast cereals #triedtested
That does sound good! I'm a bit paranoid about cereals and usually H has baby cereal or weetabix, but I'm aware that soon she'll be ready for 'real' cereal and I need to be prepared for healthy ones – I'll add this to my list! Thanks!!
These sound so good and very tasty! We've never tried them before. I think my girls would like them.
I'm glad this cereal has less refined sugar and more 'natural' sugars. It is tasty too as we have tried these! #triedtested
Love Alphabites, I tend to eat them straight out of the box very tasty.
Great idea to have letters, it would make learning spellings much more fun #TriedTested
Its amazing how difficult it is to find foods that don't have sugar in them – glad to know there are options out there as I particularly struggle with breakfast stuff.
We picked up some samples of these at a festival once and the children loved them. I take them out in little pots and they eat them dry as a snack too #TriedTested
These look like something that I would have loved when I was younger, purely because I could attempt to spell my name out! Great that not only are they novelty but they are also healthy.
#TriedTested
My daughter also loves cereal. Must try this, especially since it would be a great "tool" to use to practice her spelling 😉
These look fab. My son loves porridge and weetabix, but goes through phases of which cereal he will eat for breakfast. It's been porridge with a half teaspoon of chocolate spread mixed in since Christmas. Before that, it was Weetabix for over 12 months! I suppose he likes routine in the morning! I'd love to try those for him though x
I'm not sure whether it was Lollibop or somewhere similar that we were given a sample of these to try. My boys have been hooked since
I'm so glad I read this, I've been looking for low sugar cereal for mine and I'd forgotten about this.
I'm going to check these out as I worry about the amount of sugar my toddler eats now he's eating our cereals, I've never heard of them before so ta for highlighting them! #triedtested.
They sound great, even for us adults! I love the idea of the calcium in the blossom nectar (did not know that!).. maybe it's time to step away from cocopops 🙁
How does she eat cereal without milk though?!
#TriedTested
Hannah x
Son2 is a big fan of Alphabites, but really I think it is motivated by the Fridge Magnets rather than the cereal itself
Oh might have to try this for my daughter. She loves her cereal in the mornings.
My son loves his morning cereal and likes his 'hoops' so I think these would appeal to him. We are doing a lot with letters at the moment so this could make things fun!
My children are cereal monsters and I'm lucky that they enjoy their breakfast every day. We tried some of these and initially my children didn't like them because they tasted different but by trying them over a few days their taste buds changed and now they do enjoy them. It's amazing how much sugar is in other cereals, once you start looking!
#TriedTested
They definitely need a couple of gos to re-educate them don't they x
I'm always on the lookout for less sugary options, and looking for healthy cereal is really hard work! All the ones that claim to be healthy have a ton of hidden sugar. These sound great! We'll be giving them a try!
Thanks, looks worth trying out on the kid 🙂
Never heard of this cereal but like fun and educational too X #triedandtested
They seem to go down well here too and I have 2 fussy eaters!
My kids love Alphabites! And I adore your little milk bottles too!
Thanks for sharing, I think I definitely need to get some of these for my two. As soon as Phoebe wakes up she demands a bowl of Cheerios to keep her going until breakfast and I'm always hesitant due to the sugar content but these look to be a great substitute! x
These sound amazing, Boo has just started to recognize letters and I think she would love these – though I am not sure she would want to eat them as she would be too busy playing with them!
sounds interesting,low GI is definitely a big plus
we tried a small pack of these at LolliBop the other year and loved them. My two like having bowls of them without milk that they can just eat throughout the day! #TriedTested
We brought these on a whim no Monkey really likes them, I like them for all the reasons you have highlighted above. Never thought of using them for letters and spelling out his name though! Wonder what we are going to be doing tomorrow breakfast time! #TriedTested