Special K is part of the Kellogg's company. Products include meal and snack bars, protein shakes, crackers and cereal. Special K.com describes its blueberry cereal as blueberry oat clusters in crunchy rice and whole wheat flakes. You can eat the cereal as part of the Special K Challenge, or you can check its nutritional value and decide whether it fits into your own meal plan.
Special K Challenge
The Special K Challenge is a diet plan whose instructions you can find online. You have one 500-calorie meal, two meal replacements and two snacks per day. The meal should include vegetables and lean protein, and the snacks can be 100-calorie foods or Special K items such as snack or cereal bars or crackers. Acceptable meal replacements on the Special K diet include protein shakes, protein meal bars or cereal, including Special K blueberry cereal.
Benefits
According to MayoClinic.com, possible benefits of eating a healthy breakfast include more vitamins and minerals in the diet, improved productivity and concentration, lower cholesterol and better weight control. A balanced breakfast has a variety of nutrient-dense foods, such as a whole-grain carbohydrate serving, a fruit or vegetable, a serving of lean protein serving and a dairy product. An example of how you can include Special K blueberry cereal in a healthy breakfast is to eat it with milk and fresh fruit.
Calories
A serving of Special K blueberry cereal is 3/4 cup, or 1.1 oz. Each serving has 110 calories, no fat and 2g protein. The cereal has 26g total carbohydrate with 9g sugar and 3g dietary fiber. When choosing a breakfast cereal, MayoClinic.com recommends one with at least 3g dietary fiber per serving and no more than 13g sugar. If you are limiting your calories, choose a cereal with fewer than 120 calories per serving.
Vitamins and Minerals
Fortified breakfast cereals can help you meet your daily need for vitamins and minerals. Special K blueberry cereal has 10 percent of the daily value for vitamin A and 35 percent of the daily value for the B vitamins and vitamin C. It has 45 percent of the daily value for iron, a mineral that can help women avoid iron-deficiency anemia, according to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines. Special K blueberry cereal has 10 percent of the daily value vitamin D, which promotes strong bones by increasing calcium absorption.
Whole Grains
People who eat more whole grains can have higher fiber intakes and better overall diets than people who only eat refined grains. The Dietary Guidelines recommend eating at least three daily servings of whole grains, with the rest of your grains coming from fortified sources. In Special K blueberry cereal, whole-grain wheat is the second ingredient, after rice and before sugar. The cereal also has rolled oats, another whole grain, as the first ingredient in its blueberry clusters. The added vitamins and minerals fortify this cereal.
References
- Special K.com: Special K Blueberry Cereal
- Special K.com: Special K Blueberry Cereal: Nutrition
- Special K.com: Welcome to the Special K Challenge
- MayoClinic.com: Healthy Breakfast: Quick, Flexible Options to Grab at Home
- United States Department of Health And Human Services: Dietary Guidelines for Americans: 2005
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