25 Unhealthiest Breakfast Foods With the Most Added Sugars

Since most of us get far more than the recommended amount of added sugars in our diet, there's really no good reason to start your day with a sweetener-laden, unhealthy breakfast food. Choices like cinnamon rolls and toaster strudels may be tasty, but besides adding to your daily total of sugars, they can spike and drop your blood glucose. The result: you feel lethargic and sluggish by mid-morning. It's not exactly a winning start to the day.

Our national love affair with dessert for breakfast means it's not hard to find sweet offenders to choose from. Here are 25 of the unhealthiest breakfast foods with the highest levels of added sugar. Read on, then check out the 25 Unhealthiest Grocery Store Foods.

Sugary Cereals

Malt-o-Meal's Chocolate Marshmallow Mateys

Some cereals don't even try to hide the fact that they're unhealthy. Malt-o-Meal's Chocolate Marshmallow Mateys, for example, not only contains multiple artificial colors and flavors but also sugar is its first ingredient. At 23 grams of added sweetener per serving, they're a sugar bomb you're better off avoiding.

 12 Unhealthiest Cereals—Ranked by Sugar Content

Pastries

Great Value Cheese Danish

Danishes are famous for their creamy or fruity fillings surrounded by flaky crust. And while you might think choosing a cheese filling over a fruit one would spare sugars, that's not always the case. Great Value's Cheese Danish contains 22 grams of added sugars—significantly more than their cherry cheese variety.

Donuts

Little Debbie Strawberry Shortcake Mini Donuts

Donuts are the epitome of sweet breakfast, and Little Debbie's Strawberry Shortcake Mini Donuts are a prime example. Eighteen grams of added sugar mean these bite-sized pastries are definitely better as a dessert than the day's first meal (and, you might want to watch your portions even when you eat them for dessert).

 8 Worst Fast-Food Donuts in America

Frozen Pancakes

Hungry Jack's Frozen Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Not all frozen pancakes are ultra-sugary, but extras like chocolate chips, cinnamon flavoring, or blueberries can ratchet up the sweetness to a serious degree. Be sure to read labels to know what you're getting. A high-carb, low-fiber choice like Hungry Jack's Frozen Chocolate Chip Pancakes could wreak havoc on your morning blood sugar.

Frozen Waffles

Kellogg's Unicorn Cotton Candy Waffles

Pulled out of the freezer and popped in the toaster, frozen waffles are certainly an easy breakfast option. But beware of frozen waffles with hidden (or not-so-hidden) sugars. Kellogg's Unicorn Cotton Candy Waffles contain 6 grams of added sugar per waffle—and who eats just one? If you're looking for a healthier frozen waffle, choose a whole wheat option with minimal sweetener.

 12 Best & Worst Frozen Waffles on Grocery Shelves

Frozen French Toast Sticks

Great Value's Cinnamon French Toast Sticks

You don't even have to slather them with syrup for frozen French toast sticks to be too sweet. Take Great Value's Cinnamon French Toast Sticks. Over 20% of their calories come from added sugars.

Pre-sweetened Yogurts

YoCrunch Oreo Yogurt

Though yogurt contains healthy protein and probiotics, some brands' added sweeteners outweigh these benefits. You'll want to especially watch out for any yogurts with sweet toppings. YoCrunch Oreo Yogurt, for example, has more added sugars than a serving of Breyer's Vanilla Ice Cream.

 The 15 Unhealthiest Yogurts—Ranked by Sugar Content

Granola Bars

Kroger Chewy Dipped Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

Wait, aren't granola bars healthy? When they contain mostly whole grains, yes. When they're wrapped in a chocolate coating and studded with chocolate chips, not so much. Kroger's Chewy Dipped Chocolate Chip Granola Bars are one to skip in the morning (and possibly any time), as these make the list of unhealthy breakfast foods.

 The Best & Worst Granola Bars in America—Ranked

Fruit-Flavored Instant Oatmeal

Quaker's Apples and Cranberries Instant Oatmeal

Don't get us wrong—oatmeal is an amazingly healthy breakfast. Its whole-grain goodness is rich in fiber, protein, and antioxidants. But highly sweetened fruit-flavored options like Quaker's Apples and Cranberries Instant Oatmeal leave a lot to be desired nutritionally.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Since one packet contains a mere 180 calories, you might choose to double up to two. Doing so will land you with 24 grams of added sugars. That's 1 gram shy of the American Heart Association's recommended limit of 25 grams per day for women (and two-thirds of the recommended limit for men).

 15 Healthiest Instant Oatmeals on Grocery Shelves

Cinnamon Rolls

Pillsbury Grands! Hot Cocoa Cinnamon Rolls with Marshmallow Icing

A lazy weekend morning might occasionally call for cinnamon rolls. But choose these pastries wisely. Opting for Pillsbury Grands! Hot Cocoa Cinnamon Rolls with Marshmallow Icing will set you back 21 grams of added sugar, 53 grams of carbs, and 4.5 grams of saturated fat.

Muffins

Otis Spunkmeyer's Whole Grain Banana Muffins

Don't be fooled by the fact that Otis Spunkmeyer's Whole Grain Banana Muffins are made with whole wheat flour. They actually contain significantly more sugar than the refined flour version. If you have the time, home-baking your muffins guarantees control over their sugar content.

 5 Healthiest Muffins at the Grocery Store—and 6 To Avoid

Toaster Strudels

Pillsbury Mega Icing Strawberry Toaster Strudels

If you were a kid back when toaster strudels were new, you might have fond memories of drizzling these pastries with squiggles of gooey icing before jumping on the school bus. There's a reason the fruit-filled treats appeal to kids and grown-ups alike: they're chock-full of sugar and definitely considered an unhealthy breakfast food. The Mega Icing Strawberry Strudels from Pillsbury contain 80% more icing than other varieties, ramping up their sweetness even further.

Breakfast Cookies

Simple Truth's Cinnamon Breakfast Cookies

Let's not kid ourselves—cookie is right there in the name! Though it's possible to make breakfast cookies with healthy components, even the organic ingredients in Simple Truth's Cinnamon Breakfast Cookies don't save this one from being an unhealthy breakfast food loaded with sweetness.

Bottled Smoothies

Bolthouse Farms' Amazing Mango

Bolthouse Farms' Amazing Mango may not have added sweetener, but its sugar content is a whopping 56 grams. If you have blood sugar issues, there are better ways to start your day. Try a breakfast that's high in protein and fiber instead.

 10 Healthiest Store-Bought Smoothies—and 4 To Avoid

Sweetened Nut Milks

Silk Dark Chocolate Almond Milk

Not all nut milks are created equal. Even if they're unflavored, some contain surprisingly high amounts of sugar. And when you add flavor like chocolate, the sweetness factor raises even higher. Seventy-five percent of the calories in a cup of Silk's Dark Chocolate Almond Milk come from added sugar.

 The 8 Healthiest Non-Dairy Milk Alternatives—and 3 To Avoid

Chocolate Milk

Nesquik Chocolate Milk

Keep dairy milk as healthy as possible by drinking it sans added flavors. Making your own chocolate milk or buying a premade version will only start your morning with excess sugar. And when you buy an entire gallon, you'll feel like you have to use it all up before its expiration date.

Packaged Croissants

Favorite Day Chocolate Petite Croissants

Even unsweetened croissants can harbor sneaky added sugars—but things get especially over-sweet in chocolate or fruit-flavored varieties like these from Target's in-house brand Favorite Day. Save your croissants for eating in the streets of Paris, not an average breakfast.

Breakfast Parfaits with Sweetened Granola

Walmart Strawberry Parfait

Yogurt and granola parfaits definitely have a "health halo." With their protein from yogurt and whole grains from granola, it's easy to believe they're good for you (and sometimes they are). That's not always the case, though, when they're pumped with added sugar, as in this strawberry single-pack breakfast from Walmart.

Sweetened Cream Cheese

Tillamook Seriously Strawberry Cream Cheese Spread

Want a creamy spread for your morning bagel? Skip the sweetened cream cheese. It could bump up the sugar in your breakfast to a surprising degree. Strawberry, honey, and other flavors invariably have sugar added.

 5 Healthiest Cream Cheeses on Grocery Shelves—and 3 To Avoid

Fruit Juices

Langers Mango Nectar

To reap the benefits of fruit juice (like increased vitamin and antioxidant intake), look for brands without added sugar. At 21 grams of added sugar, a choice like Langers Mango Nectar is a little better than sugar water.

 The 9 Unhealthiest Juices On Grocery Store Shelves

Energy Drinks

Rockstar Original Energy Drink

What's the difference between energy drinks and soda? Other than their content of caffeine and other stimulants, not much. Many energy beverages are just as sweet as—or even sweeter than—a can of regular Coke. Rockstar Original packs 63 grams of added sugar into a 16-ounce can.

 13 Energy Drinks With the Most Sugar—Ranked!

Sweetened Coffee Drinks

Coffee Mate's French Vanilla Iced Coffee

Sure, store-bought sweetened coffee drinks cost less than coffee shop ones. But either way, is it really worth spending your cash to start your day with so much sugar? Flavored, premixed bottles like Coffee Mate's French Vanilla Iced Coffee are famously high in added sweetener.

 11 Unhealthiest Bottled Coffee Drinks—Ranked by Sugar

Coffee Creamer

International Delight's Almond Joy Creamer

Ever actually looked at the sugar content in your coffee creamer? It might be more than you think. Try measuring out the amount of creamer you pour into your cup. With a choice like International Delight's Almond Joy, sugars can add up fast (to the tune of 5 grams per tablespoon).

 9 Unhealthiest Coffee Creamers on Grocery Shelves

Pancake Syrup

Pearl Milling Company Original Syrup

Pro tip: pancakes don't have to be an unhealthy breakfast food that gets covered in syrup to be delicious. For a tasty topping that won't break the sugar bank in the morning, try adding fresh berries, sliced peaches, or a puff of whipped cream. Even if you use all three, you won't get the same added sugar content of pancake syrup.

Breakfast Cereal Bars

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Treat Bars

Besides being high in sugar, breakfast cereal bars often don't contain nearly enough protein or fiber to sustain morning energy. Cinnamon Toast Crunch Treat Bars, for example, have less than 1 gram of each of these nutrients. Without fiber and protein, their 8 grams of added sugar will go straight to your bloodstream.