7 Store-Bought Breakfast Foods To Eat And 5 That Aren't As Nutritious As You Might Think

When it comes to breakfast, you may prefer something healthy and clean, or you may prefer meals with a bit more "oomph." Either way — whether you're a yogurt-and-oats type or a sausage-egg-and-cheese type, a muesli eater or a meat devourer — there's one thing you don't want from your breakfast: hunger. After all, you have a day to tackle.

Many grocery store items look like they'll be a filling first meal. However, what actually keeps you satisfied until lunch is much more than meets the eye. Items that don't have enough protein, fiber, or even fat won't keep you satiated, even if they come wrapped in a pancake. If there's too much sugar in a meal — which gets absorbed into your body very quickly — you might feel like you never ate in the first place, no matter how many carbs or whole grains you pounded. That said, who really wants to pore through every nutrition chart in the breakfast aisle? No one. That's why we created this list. Which store-bought morning foods will leave you hungry, and which won't? Let's find out.

Sometimes you just wake up, and need something with the word "meat" and the word "lovers" on the package, in that order. Maybe not every day, but every so often, when activity, diet, or life in general leaves you wanting. In such times, an omelette might not be practical, and a sandwich might not satisfy. This product, however, finds a happy, meaty medium.

The Just Crack an Egg scramble kit — yes, specifically the "Meat Lovers" version –- will do right by you. You get a hatful of sharp cheddar cheese, pork sausage, and bacon. All you have to do is add a fresh egg, mix it up, and then pop it all in the microwave. It's great for low-carb diets, but unlike other similarly styled foods, it will assuage your appetite well into the afternoon. You might not be whipping up a refined meal, but it's still a pretty packed one. The elevated total fat count, and beefy 14 grams of protein, along with the virtual lack of any sugar whatsoever, will fill you up, and keep you going. Well, at least fill you up.

Pancakes are polarizing. There, it's been said. For some, they're a nostalgia-tinged, smile-inducing, puffy pillow of breakfast wonderfulness, especially considering how easy pancakes are to whip up at home. For others, it's more like eating an actual pillow. If pancakes are indeed your thing, you might sneak them into your meal rotation whenever possible. As such, maybe you'd think something like Eggo's protein-ized version of miniature pancakes would provide a balance of satisfaction, and something resembling a healthy meal. Not so fast.

Although they're pancakes with a protein punch, there's really not much in the way of nutrition to neutralize your hunger. It might be surprising that a pancake product would still leave you yearning for more, but the seven grams of straight, unapologetic sugar is a major reason for that. What doesn't help, either, is the lack of fiber, despite still containing 17 grams of carbs, even considering the promise of protein, and modest serving size. Is it too much to say these pancake minis will leave you feeling flat? Both practically, and pun-wise: No.

Oh, banana bread. Just invoking the words alone puts that amazing, warm, oven-y aroma into your nostrils. Enhance that already-awesome banana bread with special ingredients, and the hungry drooling can truly commence. Usually, when you're having banana bread for breakfast, it's the day after a cozy get-together, and you're sneaking it, fresh from the oven, spilling crumbs on your bathrobe. Let's thank Simple Mills for creating a banana bread breakfast bar that removes logistical difficulty, and adds nutritional substance.

This bar offers a nice hit of carbs, while still giving you a bit of fiber to balance things out. The three grams of protein is a pleasantly surprising infusion, as is the relative lack of added sugars (five grams) for what you're getting. Because they're made with good, clean ingredients, these bars provide a burst of satisfaction at the start of the day, especially for something quick and on-the-go to begin the morning's journey. You might still miss the train, but you won't feel like you missed breakfast.

You can thank the Balkans, for that is where kefir first originated. By mixing livestock milk with kefir grains, a naturally probiotic yogurt-like food is created, filled with (actual) life, and all sorts of gastrointestinal goodies — though there are major differences between kefir and actual yogurt. The great thing about kefir? It's very filling. Another great thing: Telling people unfamiliar with kefir that it's drinkable might make you sound like a bad-ass.

The organic cultures and nutritional elements in Lifeway's whole milk kefir make it especially substantial. 10 grams of protein is a ton, especially from what amounts to a dairy half-beverage. Pair that with 18 grams of carbs, and eight grams of total fat (despite the 18 grams of sugar, most of that not added) and you may not need to put a fork in your hand, or chew at all, until midday. Adding a piece of fruit quickly enhances this compact, quality breakfast.

When Nutri-Grain's soft-baked breakfast bars first hit shelves in 1991, it felt like a considerably nutritious meal was finally packed into something portable, and delicious. The latter qualities are still there. The bars remain tasty, and you can take them anywhere. But the former? Times have changed, and people have realized that Nutri-Grains are no healthier than most candy bars. Bummer. The Fake-Healthy Industrial Complex has struck again.

There are a few problems with Nutri-Grain bars, besides the epic crumb residue they can leave behind. They are very low in total fat, which we now know is a strike against keeping hunger at bay for an extended period. Strike two: The fiber content, oddly enough, is also low at two measly grams. Strike three is the 12 grams of added sugars (a quarter of the recommended daily intake), which will be annihilated by your metabolism while giving very little back. All of this may explain why it feels like you're eating a piece of cake rather than a health bar. Hey, maybe they should change the name of Nutri-Grain to Not-Your-Gain (Cue audience groans.)

Kellogg's is certainly taking a few body blows on this list. The scant health benefits are ironic, considering the zealously ethical, and religiously restrictive history of Corn Flakes. Invented at a sanitarium in the late 1800s, the cereal was at the root of a bitter sibling dispute between the founders. Basically, Will Kellogg decided to introduce sugar into the breakfast product that he and his brother, John Kellogg, invented. John hated it, they fought, and Will broke away to start the Kellogg's company. The rest is breakfast history.

Today, Corn Flakes are a classic. Everyone knows the green rooster gracing its asylum-white box. But really, are these flakes an ineffective eliminator of hunger? The cereal's low fiber and fat return (one gram and zero grams, respectively) along with 14 grams of highly-absorbable added sugar (and that's if you use a cup of skim milk instead of whole milk) will ultimately leave you wanting. Yes, the crunch is iconic, and the taste is retro joy, but your appetite will be looking for more after a bowl of Corn Flakes.

Avocado is a great filler-upper at any time, day or night, and has all sorts of dietary benefits to boot. These are some of the reasons why this leathery-skinned fruit has been practically deified. Having once been considered regional or ethnic to much of America — if known about at all — the avocado is now more mainstream than Coldplay. Once the fruit was paired with toast, it was as if breakfast was forever solved, and a hipster cliché was born. Topping your avocado toast with grated, hard boiled eggs, and drizzling balsamic vinegar over avocado toast are both delicious ways to level-up the breakfast favorite.

Sabra read the room. It created a smart, zeitgeist-y, pre-packaged avocado-toast offering that'll put your hunger in a conscious-dissipating headlock. Lots of good fats going on here (of course), but the toast crackers also boast a healthy dose of carbs (18 grams) with a relatively low fiber count (five grams). Four grams of protein is a nice amount as well, especially since the minuscule sugar count won't interfere with a sustained flow of absorption. Maybe a.m. should now just mean "avocado me."

Jimmy Dean is Americana. A former country singer, TV host, and founder of a cured meat conglomerate, his smiling face has graced the frozen food aisles of the U.S. for decades. It's trusted, true, and tested. If Jimmy says he's going to feed you good, then why wouldn't you believe him? Well, the nutrition label is why. Also, not everyone thinks that Jimmy Dean sausage links are the best-tasting option.

With Jimmy Dean's Pancakes & Sausage On a Stick, you may think you're getting a compact, stick-to-your-ribs meal. Who could blame you? Sure, you get a heap of carbs (24 grams) and protein (six grams). However, the very, very low amount of fiber (one little gram) and surprisingly high grammage of sugar (nine) cancels out any prolonged satisfaction. One look at this meat-and-flapjack stick, and you might think you'd be set till dinner. Don't be fooled. To boot, the sodium count in a serving is one-fifth of your recommended daily intake.

Now, here's a store-bought breakfast offering that isn't a figurative turkey. Instead, it's a literal turkey. Well, it has literal turkey in it. And it's courtesy of Rise & Puff, which sounds like a very different kind of business, one that would also deal with hunger in a way. Or, rather, munchies.

Enough with the sophomoric innuendo, already. Let's get to the quesadilla. This three-ingredient delight (tortilla, turkey sausage, low-fat sharp cheddar cheese) focuses on all the right stuff to fuel you through the morning. No sugar (yes, zero grams) is snuck in there. A day-seizing 20 grams of protein is folded into its simple makeup, along with 14 grams of fat (with only four of those grams saturated) to pack the rest of the punch. This is a meat-a-licious, tummy-taming choice for your debut meal of the day. You might even forget about lunch.

When "super" is placed in front of something, expectations rise. After all, no one asked the brand to put the word there. It was freely decided by the good people of the company, and Americans do love that word. Superman. Super Bowl. Super Mario. So, the temptation is there. However, the superlative needs some backing-up. Attaching that eye-catching word to another thing Americans love –- the donut –- will have Uncle Sam waiting with folded arms to be, well, super-impressed. That's where Super Donut from Super Bakery falls a bit short.

Don't let the name fool you — or the food fuel you. The 27 grams of carbohydrates dwarfs the one gram of fiber in this ostensible breakfast treat. Throw in a dozen grams of added sugars (which is all of its sugar content, in fact), and this donut will leave a hole in just one thing: your appetite. Though it advertises itself as protein-forward, in actuality, you're getting a nothing-to-write-home-about five grams of the stuff. Lots of bluffing and little benefit. Time to make another choice for breaking the fast.

For folks of a certain age and demographic, Cinnamon Toast Crunch is the greatest cereal of all time. The Michael Jordan or Serena Williams for grains and milk in a bowl. Every crispy, sugary, drippy bite offers the chance for a time-spanning nostalgia moment. Heck, Cinnamon Toast Crunch has even become its own condiment. As is turns out, there was a reason you'd eat five bowls in front of the TV on Saturday morning. (Look that specific activity up on Google, Zoomers.) It's not just because you loved it more than life itself. It was because, nutritionally, you needed to.

Good thing Three Wishes went ahead and made a version of CTC that actually has the stuff in it to keep you properly full, instead of unsatisfyingly bloated, and stained with beige milk. The Three Wishes version is — for what it is — amazingly low on sugar. A ridiculously diminutive three grams of it, to be specific. Wow. That alone makes it a must-breakfast, but the cereal is also high in carbs (20 grams) and surprisingly high in protein (an impressive eight grams). We know Cinnamon Toast Crunch is on the Mount Rushmore of cereal, but this one will actually endure in your belly.

Carbohydrates can be scary. It's the reason keto, paleo diets, and the like have surged in popularity (even though recent diets might not exactly be accurately named). Overdoing it on the carby stuff (bread, muffins, pies, pasta, and the like) can feel as unhealthy as it may actually be, outside moderation. The thing is, carb-light eating habits can lead to their own problems — such as not satisfying your appetite. If an appetite leaves the breakfast table (or desk, or a commuter's lap) still roaring, it sets you up for all sorts of feeding challenges throughout the day. Thankfully, WiO has created an ideal product for this issue.

Offering the best of both worlds, this keto-friendly muffin is loaded with carbs. At 73 grams, one might get turned off. However, when you realize that first, this is a muffin, and, second, it has almost 70 grams of combined fiber, then the carb count is very much mitigated. You're also snagging a nicely-done six grams of protein, which is unheard of for many a muffin. The same goes for the amount of sugar (practically nothing). So, if you just need that morning carb-burst, this might be the way to go. If you don't, you can enjoy it anyway.