The Science Behind Cereal FACTS
Cereal FACTS was developed by the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale University, in consultation with a steering committee of experts in nutrition, marketing, and public health. The research results are based on the best available data on nutrition and food marketing, specifically, the Nutrient Profiling System developed by Rayner and colleagues at Oxford University and marketing information from the Nielsen Company and comScore Media. The methods are described in full detail in the Cereal FACTS Report and a Cereal FACTS Report Summary. Nutrition scoring methods and marketing scoring methods are also available.
Cereal FACTS will continue to evolve to reflect marketing techniques that constantly change in response to social networking and cell phone use among children, and other technological advances. Feedback on Cereal FACTS and the data presented here is encouraged.
The public health community must work with the food industry and media companies to achieve population health goals and protect society's most vulnerable citizens, our children.
The Rudd Center completed another study on childrens' consumption of low- vs. high-sugar cereals. The study found that when low-sugar cereals are served, children eat the recommended serving size; the table sugar that children add to low-sugar cereals is not nearly as much as the industry adds to high-sugar cereals; and overall breakfast nutrition is better when eating low-sugar cereals due to lower sugar consumption and higher fruit and juice consumption.
