Sugar and arsenic levels in baby cereal

[LaRockera]

So I've been desperately trying to find cereal for my bubba that don't contain high levels of sugar. According to our very well informed and educated pedi, anything that contains more than 10gr sugar per 100 grams should better be avoided.

I was surprised to find that in most baby products the sugar levels exceed this amount. Even in products that read 'no added sugar' etc, the nutritional information labels actually demonstrate high levels of sugar (Cow and Gate banana porridge comes to mind).

So here I am trying to find products that contain less than 10gr. Happily, I discover holle and plum's. And then I bump into this:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/8440126/Arsenic-and-toxic-metals-found-in-baby-foods.html



And now I'm thinking, weetabix and ready brek contain the least sugar ever found in cereals (yes, less than in baby products). But then they're adult products, so what would the arsenic levels be in them??

HELP!

 

[lozzy21]

If i can remember correctly the arsenic was found in a batch of rice, oats and wheat were fine. TBH i just used readybrek and wheetabix since they contained less sugar and were cheeper than the baby products. £2.50 for 50 grams or £1.99 for 200 g is a no brainer to me.

There will be higher sugar in baby products with fruit in even if they say no added sugar since the sugar in fruit comes out the more its broken down.

 

[LaRockera]

Quoted from the article:

Arsenic and the other heavy metals found in the study are often found in food as they are absorbed from the soil by plants such as rice, wheat and oats.

So, to my understanding, any kind of cereal planted and grown that way has been exposed to the same toxic substances.

I agree about weetabix etc. Cheaper and most often, healthier. I always put a pear/banana etc in my blender with BM and then pour it over the cereal to naturally sweeten it.

 

[LaRockera]

Okay, so I googled journal of Food Chemistry where the article was published and found it here:

https://www.ibfan.org/art/foodchem11ljungmanganeseinformula.pdf

I find all this pretty disconcerting. The context of a scientific journal can be partially printed and the article itself cannot really be easily deciphered by 'laymen' mummies (and by laymen I mean any sort of profession/education/whatever besides those pertaining to microbiology, hematology, medicine etc).

I do think it's clear that rice is the main suspect here but would you buy misc. grains from the same companies?

 

[youngwife20]

Heyy! I give my daughter weetabix. and sometimes crumpits cut up with some natural yogurt. or some bread with butter cut up and she chews it . and i just saw your daugther is 7 months but i thought you were like a month or so behind me, what was her due date? ( bad memory lol) i try not to give her the same thing everyday so she isnt getting to much salt or whatever from weetabix

 

[LaRockera]

Hey hon, Xanthi was born on the 3rd of March by c-section, at 38+5. I too got some organic weetabix for her, and I agree, I don't want to be giving her the same thing every day.

I did read through the article and to my understanding, lozzy is right, it's mainly rice that contained the highest concentrations. I decided to go ahead with the Holle products (LO LOVES their musli, likes their oats, and got her some millet with apple and pear, and some semolina porridge) as they contain the least sugar of all baby products I found out there. That said, adult porridge, Ready Brek included, contains even less sugar.

So I'm doing a mixture of weetabix and the holle porridge selections. I will be introducing yogurt soon- what kind of yogurt are you giving her? Our pedi advised we should give her adult yogurt, goat's or sheep's.

x

 

[DaisyBee]

I've seen in numerous places over the past few years the arsenic issue with rice. Rice is the main issue. And brown rice is worse then white I read as well... It's not just baby food rice, it's all rice.

 

[youngwife20]

Yeh i give her adult yogurt all natural full fat yogurt ( the bitter stufff lol) i sometimes break up some cheese and add that in the yogurt so she can get use to bitter flavours and good idea about the cereal , is redybreak better than weetabix do you think? xx

 

[LaRockera]

Yeh i give her adult yogurt all natural full fat yogurt ( the bitter stufff lol) i sometimes break up some cheese and add that in the yogurt so she can get use to bitter flavours and good idea about the cereal , is redybreak better than weetabix do you think? xx

I think they're equally okay? Our pedi recommended both, so... I have weetabix at the moment.

DaisyBee- yeah, to my understanding, too, rice is the main issue.