So, Michael Phelps, fresh off of his record-haul of eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, has signed a deal with Kellogg’s to appear on boxes of Frosted Flakes.

Heavens, no, says the NY Daily News and nutritionists around the world.

I say, it’s actually a smart move on his part. This is a good thing, especially for children.

Traditionally, athletes looking to spread the word about the benefits of exercise and a healthy diet have made their deals with Wheaties. The cereal was first introduced in 1924, and began its association with sports in 1933, sponsoring radio broadcasts of minor league baseball teams. Soon thereafter, Wheaties began to market itself as ‘The Breakfast Of Champions’.

The slogan stuck. In 1958, Olympic athlete Bob Richards became the first of seven spokespersons for the Wheaties brand. Walter Payton, Chris Evert, Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods would feature in later years.

The Wheaties brand seemed an obvious choice for Phelps. So why make the deal with the Devil – aka Tony the Tiger – instead?

Could it have been the money? Let’s not be naïve about this. I’m pretty sure Kellogg’s offered a sweeter deal (if you’ll excuse the pun). I’ve yet to see any discussion about exactly what kind of package Phelps has received but despite all of his success, swimming doesn’t exactly pay the bills. First and foremost he’d have been looking to cash-in. You can’t blame him for that – I’d say he’s earned it.

But that doesn’t mean he’s taken the money over common sense or decency. And here’s why – all cereals are, when you get right down it, basically the same, certainly when it comes to calories. An average-sized bowl of Wheaties (about 30 grams) has 110 calories, 1 gram of fat, 3 grams of protein and 4 grams of sugar. A similar-sized bowl of Frosted Flakes has 114 calories, 0.1 grams of fat, 1.3 grams of protein, and here’s the kicker, 12 grams of sugar.

This is the part the nutrionists don’t like. "I would rather see him promoting Fiber One. I would rather see him promoting oatmeal. I would even rather see him promoting Cheerios,” says Rebecca Solomon, of the Mount Sinai Medical Center. And it’s true that those alternatives have less sugar than Frosted Flakes.

But here’s the thing – kids won’t eat Fiber One. Kids won’t eat oatmeal. And most kids won’t eat Cheerios – without putting sugar on top.

And most of all – kids won’t eat Wheaties. Kids hate Wheaties. Phelps hates Wheaties. And with good reason – Wheaties suck.

Kids, meantime, love Frosted Flakes. And I’m going to let you in on a little secret. We might have to keep this amongst ourselves for a bit. If you feel the need to share with a friend, whisper it real, real quiet, otherwise you’ll have to fend off all manner of dirty looks, tsks and raised eyebrows from the folks at the next table.

Sugar doesn’t make people fat.

Sugar isn’t bad. Sugar isn’t ‘evil’. Sugar isn’t some kind of monster. Sugar is… sugar. In and of itself it’s a harmless little white rock that tastes kinda good.

Sugar doesn’t make people put on weight – inactivity does. People make people fat.

That’s right. Legend has it that Michael Phelps consumes eight to twelve thousand calories per day. Legend also has it that Michael Phelps works out for six to eight hours per day.

If a bowl of cereal has 110 calories, it doesn’t really matter where those calories come from. A calorie is a calorie is a calorie, certainly when it comes to weight control.

Calories are a measure of energy. If you expend more energy than you consume you will lose weight. If you consume more energy than you expend you will gain weight. If you keep things about the same, your weight will stay where it is.

It’s that simple. A daily bowl of cereal – any cereal – won’t do your child any harm at all. Sure, if your kids love Wheaties, then let them eat Wheaties. But if the only cereal they’ll eat is Frosted Flakes, wouldn’t you like the guy starting out at them from the box to be Michael Phelps?

Consider the math. How many boxes of Frosted Flakes are sold for every box of Wheaties? It’s probably in the thousands. Doesn’t it make more sense for a million kids to wake up to the image of Phelps and everything he represents than a few thousand?

I say, put Phelps’ image on every box of chocolate frosted sugar bombs made by every cereal manufacturer in the world. I say put Phelps on packets of Oscar Meyer bacon. I say put Phelps on hot dog buns, cookies, pancakes, sausage patties, Pringles, Tater Tots, Twinkies and Coca Cola.

I say, when you open a Hershey’s bar, Phelps should be smiling up at you from the chocolate.

Go ahead and enjoy your food, kids. That’s what Michael Phelps wants. Because maybe – just maybe – when you’re done, you’ll go outside and play.

Now, you tell me – isn’t that worth a little sugar?