What Happens To Your Cholesterol When You Eat Cheerios Every Day

Among all the cold breakfast options in the cereal aisle, Cheerios remains one of the most popular, going by Google's search rankings from 2004 to 2023 (via Food & Wine). It stayed relevant for generations (thanks in part to creative advertising campaigns, such as the vintage-meets-modern one that left Marketing Dive gushing in 2020).

One of the most memorable aspects of Cheerios is its remarkable claim that it "can help lower cholesterol as part of a heart healthy diet." But is its cholesterol-fighting promise just a great marketing slogan, or can a morning bowl of Cheerios really make a dent in your cholesterol levels?

To find out the answer, let's first head straight for the ingredients and nutritional labels of Original Cheerios. The main ingredients listed include whole-grain oats and sugar. The nutrition breakdown shows that a 1.5 cup serving of Cheerios promises 4 grams of dietary fiber and 2 grams of sugar. Taken as a whole, this information helps paint a positive picture of what could happen to your cholesterol by eating Cheerios daily.

A 2019 study in Nutrients supported the use of dietary fiber to help decrease the risk of cardiovascular problems, noting that adults under age 50 should aim for 25 grams (women) or 38 grams (men) of fiber daily, even if they were undergoing additional cholesterol treatments like taking statins.

Although the 4 grams' worth of dietary fiber in Cheerios is impressive, the 2 grams of soluble fiber could also make a difference in your cholesterol readings. As a 2021 review in Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Diseases showed, consumption of soluble fiber could have a moderate reductive effect on "bad" low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol numbers.

With that said, one would have to eat a lot of bowls of Cheerios just to reach your recommended daily allowance of dietary fiber — which, admittedly, isn't such a good idea when you consider its sugar content (plus the fact that there are other, more nutritious sources of dietary fiber out there).

Although Cheerios does contain some sugar, it isn't overloaded with the stuff, even compared to other breakfast choices. That should be music to your ears, knowing that the American Heart Association suggests that women limit their sugar intake to 25 grams per day and men to 36 grams per day. Cheerios falls well within those guidelines, which means it isn't likely to take you over the limit (as long as you eat the cereal in moderation, of course).

However, you would still want to maintain a relatively low-sugar diet in addition to consuming Cheerios. According to Healthline, eating an abundance of sugar has been linked to a decrease in "good" high-density liproprotein (HDL) cholesterol, as well as an increase in "bad" triglycerides. However, research has found evidence that a long-term diet of eating low amounts of added sugar doesn't improve LDL and HDL (via Medical News Today). Consequently, you might want to watch your sugar intake just in case, and munching on Cheerios mindfully can help you stay within your limit.

Of course, you might find that eating Cheerios like clockwork gets a little dull after a while. If you still want a high-fiber, low-sugar pick-me-up in the morning, you can try hot oatmeal instead. According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, one cup of oats cooked with water offers 3.98 grams of dietary fiber and 0.632 grams of sugar — about the same amount of fiber as a serving of Cheerios, but with less sugar. You could also add raw oats to your favorite smoothie; just start small and gradually increase the oat content until you have the perfect consistency.

Also, you may want to think twice before swapping Original Cheerios with one of the brand's flavored varieties. Although those varieties are also made with oats as the main ingredient, their sugar content can be quite high. For instance, Honey Nut Cheerios Medley Crunch packs 12 grams of sugar into every cup. Seasonal Pumpkin Spice Cheerios contains just a touch less sugar at 11 grams per cup. Accordingly, choose your Cheerios with caution if you're treating it as a tasty tool to help manage your cholesterol.