5 Secrets To Buying Healthy Groceries

When it comes to buying healthy groceries, it can be easy to be misled by nutrition labels and packaging claims shouting things like "multigrain" and "all-natural," tricks meant to convince us to buy unhealthy products masquerading as good-for-you grabs.

Luckily, FitSugarTV has some fool-proof tips for healthy grocery shopping. A good rule of thumb is to shop the outer walls of the grocery store first; that's where you'll usually be able to fill up your cart with fresh produce before hitting the aisles of packaged foods.

Speaking of packaged picks: Look for labels with less than five ingredients, all of which you should be able to pronounce.

Watch the video above for more tips about picking the right veggies and meats, as well as the whole grains and fish you aren't eating, but should!

Comments

[makingsenseofthings]

08:43 AM on 01/23/2012

Healthy groceries are easy to find... stop going to the supermarket as we've done... read about it here:
http://makingsenseofthings.info/2011/01/why-weve-decided-to-stop-buying-food-from-supermarkets/

[C Sparkman]

01:44 AM on 01/23/2012

1. eat local
2. don't eat any processed foods
3. only eat grass fed or pastured, natural meat
4. only drink raw milk
5. don't comsume soy
6. only use turbinado sugar or local honey
7. eat organic - buy it and grow it!
8. don't shop at big chain stores! (unless they have good coffee on sale)
9. make your own ketchup
10. consume lots of probiotics, in the form of kefir
11. don't eat rancid grains or cheap wheat, or too much
12. don't eat genetically modified organisms (gmo's)
13. eat lots of eggs and butter - from naturally raised animals
14. eat a variety of things
15. figure out which foods cause you inflamation, and cut those out
16. easy on the nightshades - tomatoes, potatoes, peppers....

[andre2112]

05:33 PM on 01/23/2012

Soy is fine in sensible amounts. Just ask the Chinese and Japanese. 4000 years is a pretty good test period. I think what you mean to say is "Avoid excessive OVER PROCESSED SOY", like the soy meat analogs, TVP, soy cheeses, soymilk , tofu etc.

If people stick with edamame (whole soybeans), and barely-processed soy like tempeh, natto, miso and tamari, they will be fine. These are parts of a healthy Japanese diet (not all japanese diets are healthy & I don't just mean the govt).

But -- as usual in america we OVERDO it. We learned that there were good soy foods...then we overate them. I've seen countless vegetarians who LIVE on soy products - -NO GOOD!! These are people who simply replaced all their old foods w soy -- so they have soy bacon & cheese or soymilk at breakfast, soy butter, soy based meat alternative at lunch, etc.

also kinda hard to argue against good, organically/locally grown ripe tomatoes. Excellent food. Ask the Romans and Italians how that's worked for them. Also - EDUCATE YOURSELVES- don't be afraid of the word "processed" -- natural cheese or sauerkraut is processed and it's fine. OF COURSE avoid OVERprocessed food -- use your instincts-- the old "if you can't pronounce most of the ingredients" rule stands.

But don;t be paranoid about soy. EDUCATE. and learn the difference between highly extruded, OVER processed, denatured soy....and the clean, natural soyfoods available for centuries.

[Jennifer Kley]

08:56 PM on 01/22/2012

Are these really "secrets"?
I'm annoyed. Very annoyed. I think I need some produce.

http://thecubiclerebel.wordpress.com/

[ridethewave]

09:51 PM on 01/22/2012

Ha! I know, when did common sense become a 'secret'. We have to stop acting so dumb people.

[urkiddinme]

06:11 AM on 01/23/2012

Unfortunately, a lot of people *aren't* acting when they whip out the "eating healthy foods is too expensive!" excuse for feeding themselves and their families from boxes. Also, the ignorance about basic nutrition in this country is STAGGERING, with otherwise-savvy consumers still thinking a good way to lose weight is the "Special K diet!" or Slim Fast or packaged goop like Jenny Craig supplemented with diet soda and "lite" or "fat free" products. Big Food's colorful packaging splashed with nutritional claims and deceptive statistics are too easily bought into by too many people. This video is a little simplistic but reminding people that they would do better to buy apples rather than some packaged snack food with a label saying "as much fiber as an apple!" is a start.

[William Anderson LMHC]

10:34 AM on 01/22/2012

You missed the #1 most important thing to do to make your grocery shopping healthier.

Patients and clients trained in The Anderson Method and Therapeutic Psychogenics all lose weight, 100% successful. They are successful on a permanent basis over 1000% times the national average. They are trained in a behavioral approach, changing habits to make it easier to maintain successful weight control. One of the behaviors we relearn is grocery shopping.

Always go shopping with a list and buy only what's on the list, nothing else. Make the list up in a calm moment, planning what you want to eat this week or weekend, considering your goals and what you'd most like to eat. Plan to eat well, the most enjoyable way to eat, without the things that make people fat. The tips you describe are an invitation to disaster. Waiting to select what to buy until you're in the store, subjecting yourself to all the sights, sounds and smells in the store, not to mention all the marketing gimmicks, is a real mistake, obesity in the making. You could benefit greatly by learning about my methods.

I discovered these methods when, as a behavior therapist and addictions counselor, I lost 140 pounds after 25 years of weight control failure. I've maintained my ideal body weight for over 25 years and I've been successfully training clients and other therapists since.

William Anderson, LMHC
Author of 'The Anderson Method - Secrets of Permanent Weight Loss'
www.TheAndersonMethod.com

[andre2112]

05:35 PM on 01/23/2012

Great advice!! May I add -- also go shopping AFTER YOU HAVE EATEN !!!! Even a moderate snack or sandwich. That way your BRAIN is shopping not your stomach, and you can focus on smart shopping not impulse buys or too many snack foods.

[William Anderson LMHC]

09:43 PM on 01/23/2012

Thanks Andre. Your idea is good. Planning and using a list is actually taking advantage of the hypnotic phenomenon of suggestion, which operates on subconscious activity, the realm that the grocery stores and food merchants work on when you're hungry. So we are talking the same language, yours a good defense, mine a good offense. Though it isn't obvious to most people, the power of the simple strategies of Therapeutic Psychogenics is effective because it works like hypnosis on the subconscious. That's why clients, when they use these techniques, find it "easy" to succeed, as long as they make the use of these techniques habitual. White knuckling it with "will power" never worked for me.

[arthurmitchel]

12:51 AM on 01/22/2012

You can cut your bills tremendously by visiting "Get Official Samples" website without becoming addicted like some of the people you see on TV, That’s more like hoarding.

[CASnyder]

12:16 AM on 01/22/2012

I have a fat & sugar addiction, so I find it easier to eat healthy by not darkening the door of the grocery or convenience store at all. It is easy to get organic fruits & veggies straight from a local farmer, and having a membership in his CSA means I've got lots of incentive to make my diet 80% to 90% whole plant foods. We actually trade with our farmer, adding their bulk purchase items (including staple foods like organic whole grains and legumes) to our own buying club order. One benefit of buying local foods is we tend to receive a nutritionally balanced selection of veggies in our share (evidenced by veggies of every color of the rainbow), due to the seasonal progression of foods. These seasonal foods match your body's needs for the season- the profusion of fruits in summer helps keep you hydrated & keep your electrolytes up while your body is sweating to cool off, while in winter the root crops have starches & sugars, and nuts & seeds offer fats for your body to burn to stay warm.

[wcsleet]

01:08 PM on 01/21/2012

I always find these articles on eating healtier foods somewhat entertaining, but rather deceptive. The promoting of organically grown foods is a good theory, but it lacks the reality of the environment that we live in.
Our environment is heavily contaminated and has been this way for quite some time. Thus just because organic products don't use dangerous pesticides, they are still watered with contaminated water, grown in polluted air and deplected soil. They are produced with genetically modified seeds. All of these cause serious health issues. Thus just eliminating one toxic element does not make any major health improvement in the foods consumed.

By understanding this, I wrote, Scaleless Dieting, which focuses more on detoxing your body and improving your immune system as the only true way to benefit your health in a contaminated world. Preview Scaleless Dieting on Amazon and start your path for real healthier living.

[CASnyder]

12:34 AM on 01/22/2012

Part of the attraction of organic foods is that farming organically can help restore the soils, water, and even air (to a lesser extent). Also the organic farmers I know would never deliberately use GMO seeds, though there are extremely rare cases where a neighbor to an organic farm was planting a GMO crop that had windborn pollen, and accidentally contaminated the organic farmer's crop, which if caught would cause the loss of organic certification. Farmers I know restore the soils with extensive composting & compost teas, organic manures, regular rotations of legumes that get turned in, and even re-mineralizing of the soil. Their soil is not compacted, has a color like dark chocolate, and is full of earthworms and other helpful microorganisms that keep the soil aerated and break down organic matter so its readily available to the plants. The ponds on the farms are free of algae and clear, with lots of fish, frogs, and the waterbirds & whole web of life that depends on them. I'm all for detoxing your body, but its even better to avoid putting toxins in your body as much as possible. There is room for both approaches. Congrats on your book.

[emperance]

02:25 AM on 01/22/2012

TRUE - But every little bit of BAD POISON elimination does help.

[mia8485]

12:07 PM on 01/22/2012

F&F

[Kenz300]

12:12 PM on 01/21/2012

Cut back on salt, sugar and fat. Exercise a little even if it is only walking the dog.