With Swine Flu making parents (and others) across the country nervous about even going into public with out tiny bottles of hand sanitizer, of course companies would start taking advantage of them.

Kellogg is beginning to join in on the trend by plastering “Now helps support your child’s IMMUNITY” on boxes of Cocoa Krispies. Cocoa Krispies, along with other Kellogg cereals are not only loaded in sugar, but have not done anything to truly back up such a claim.

The city attorney in San Francisco finds the claim just as false as everyone else and has sent a letter to Kellogg as well as the Food and Drug Administration asking Kellogg to disclose what exactly helps boost immunity in the cereals.

Kellogg has been responding to critics’ attacks saying that it started developing a more healthy cereal last year and actually released them in May 2009 not to capitalize on the H1N1 “flu situation” but to respond to consumers’ needs for a healthier foods and a more positive nutrition value. A spokesperson from the company said that there are more vitamins A, C, and E in the cereals; increased from 10% daily value to 25% daily value.

Here’s an idea, if the company wanted to take advantage of consumers’ needs for a more healthy cereal, why not take some of the sugar out of its cereals?

It is a good thing that this has been given to the FDA for consideration. The FDA is supposed to be the governing body of false and misleading labeling on products. Right now, the FDA isn’t saying anything about this cereal or its strange, and likely false label.

Sugar coated cereals are not good for children in the amounts that are typically given to them. Have you ever measured out a serving of cereal? It’s not as much as many people pour themselves. Not to mention, cereals in general (even though many are made out of whole grain of some kind) are carbohydrates and while they may help keep your child awake for the first little while they are at school, carbs tend to burn quickly…adding sugar to that equation doesn’t help too much either.

Most parents don’t have the time to make a real, homemade breakfast everyday for their kids, so why not give them cereal that will actually help throughout the day or at least a cereal that is a bit healthier than Cocoa Krispies or any of the other sugar laden cereals that have found their ways on to our grocers shelves? I like sugary cereals from time to time. I actually enjoy Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but I also know that it won’t keep me from getting sick and it is DEFINITELY not a replacement for my vitamins.