10 Secrets You Didn't Know About Your Favorite Childhood Cereals
No. 2 is cerealsly freaky.
By 
Admit it: Deep down, we're all a sucker for cereal, whether it's served with milk, or remixed as popsicles, ice cream, even boozy cereal milk shots. But, no matter how addicted you are, you probably had no clue about these fruit-loopy little secrets your favorite cereals are hiding.
A Bowl Of Honey Smacks Contains As Much Sugar As A Dunkin Donut
Though a classic cereal-bowl favorite, Smacks consistently ranks first on the list of bad-for-you cereals. And with more sugar in one cup of the coated puffs than in an entire Twinkie, the idea of having a bowl of Smacks for breakfast seems pretty wack.
The Mascot's Creepy Stare Is No Accident
Ever notice how the characters on sugary cereal boxes always seem to be looking down at something? Rumor has it that advertisers use this technique to put the box mascots at eye level with kids roaming the aisles in supermarkets. Some execs call it mere coincidence, and say the characters are just looking at the cereal on in the box's image, but when you add in the fact that most sugar cereals sit on the lower shelves, the theory gets harder to shake. You be the judge.
Tony The Tiger Had Tough Competition — Even Lost Out At One Point
That's right — Tony went up against a host of characters for the role of Frosted Flakes' mascot. He nabbed the job in 1952, but Katy the Kangaroo stole his spotlight for a minute in 1953. He muscled his way back onto the box shortly thereafter, and has promoted the Flakes with Gr-r-eat! enthusiasm ever since.
There Was A Fourth Brother In The Snap, Crackle, Pop Trio
The Rice Krispies Clan actually had a fourth elf named Pow! at one point. The brother made a brief appearance on boxes in the 1950s, and was dreamed up as a nod to the explosive nutritional value of the cereal's whole grain rice, and to the outer space obsession of the decade. Pow! only appeared in a couple commercials, and fell off shortly after his debut.
Cornflakes Were Invented To Squash Masturbation
You read that right: Cornflakes were originally intended to kill your sex drive. During the pious 1800s when everyone and their dog was discouraging anything sexual or remotely pleasurable, a physician named John Harvey Kellogg thought that bland foods could actually curb sexual appetite. Thinking that sexual activity was unhealthy and the root of all physical and mental ailments, he created a 'health treat' of flavorless, ground-up bits of oatmeal and cornmeal to serve to his sanitarium patients. He called it granola. Today, we call them Cornflakes.
You Can't Un-see This Creepy Post Cereal Commercial
As successful as the cereal giant has been over the decades, this is one advertisement that probably didn't go as planned. Post Cereals would likely prefer you never find it, but thanks to the Internet, it gets to live on foreverrrr. We're not quite sure what to make of this spot. Fair warning: There's a clown involved.
Cocoa Krispies Contain Almost No Chocolate
That's right — the "chocolatey" version of the cereal that snaps, crackles, and pops only contains 2 percent or less of semisweet chocolate, per the nutrition label. That "chocolate" flavor you're picking up is mostly sugar, vanilla, and malt flavoring, but the brown color tricks our brains into thinking it's chocolate.
There's Story Lore Hidden On The Lucky Charm Box
Or something like that. According to fans (and more or less confirmed by General Mills execs), the marshmallow shapes bear a secret meaning. From hearts that symbolize an ability to bring things to life, to horseshoes that can speed things up, an hourglass that controls time, and a balloon that can make things float, the catchy jingle is full of magical hacks.
Those Froot Loop Flavors Are A Total Lie
Although the loops in your bowl all look different, the idea that the red, green, orange, and yellow circles have individual flavors is a big hoax. Blind taste testing revealed that each bear a vague 'fruit' flavor, regardless of color.
TRIX now look like KIX.
That's right. Gone are the days of brightly colored fruit shapes in your cereal bowl. General Mills replaced the shapes with dull, muted balls (which bear a striking resemblance to Berry Berry Kix ...) in 2016 as part of their first wave of artificial ingredient-free cereals. Silly Rabbit — TRIX are for health nuts. Sort of.
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