Is Cereal Bar Acidic or Alkaline?
Cereal bar (prepared) is slightly acid-forming: Positive PRAL: acid-forming after digestion.
Classification
Cereal bars come in at +3.0, in the acid-forming range: rolled oats and nuts supply protein and phosphorus, and the syrup that binds them adds nothing to the balance. The value says nothing about sugar or the 428 kcal per 100 g. A 25 g bar adds just under +1 and hardly matters for your acid-base balance.
In the Sweets & Snacks category, cereal bar (prepared) ranks #64 of 91, sorted from alkaline to acid-forming. More alkaline options include Chocolate chip cookies (+3.0), Crumb cake (+3.0), Breadsticks (grissini) (+2.8). More acid-forming are Popcorn (+3.4), Cookie dough (+3.5), Chocolate muffin (+3.5).
Acidic or alkaline: PRAL, not pH
On this site, acidic and alkaline refer to the PRAL (potential renal acid load). It estimates what a food leaves behind once it has been digested: a positive value is acid-forming, a negative value is alkalizing. That is different from the pH of the food itself: a lemon tastes sour, yet its PRAL is −4.0, so it is alkalizing. Your diet does not change your blood pH. It does change how much acid your kidneys have to deal with.
What balances cereal bar
A small serving (40 g) of cereal bar adds +1.2 to your daily balance. These three bring it back; the grams shown offset exactly this serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is cereal bar acidic?
It depends on what you mean by acidic. The pH describes the food itself, for example how sour it tastes. The PRAL describes what it leaves behind after digestion: Cereal bar (prepared) has a PRAL of +3.0 per 100 g, so it counts as slightly acid-forming in your daily acid-base balance.
How much lamb's lettuce offsets a small serving (40 g) of cereal bar?
A small serving (40 g) of cereal bar adds +1.2 to your daily balance. Lamb's lettuce (fresh) has −8.3 per 100 g, so about 10 g of lamb's lettuce offset this serving.
Do I have to avoid cereal bar on an alkaline diet?
No. What counts is the balance of the whole day, not a single food. Cereal bar is slightly acid-forming; with enough vegetables, potatoes and fruit on the same plate, the meal stays balanced.
Cereal Bar logged, balance checked.
Basentracker adds up every meal automatically and shows whether your day is in the alkaline range. The same values as on this page, all 977 foods, photo scan, recipes.
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Compare all Sweets & Snacks: Sweets & Snacks table. Common questions are answered in Acidic or Alkaline?, and the PRAL calculator adds up a whole meal.
Source: Basentracker food database (PRAL according to Remer & Manz, calculated from protein, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium per 100 g). This information does not replace medical advice.