Healthy Swaps To Revamp Your Grocery List - Page 13

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It’s easy to fall into patterns when it comes to grocery shopping. When you need to save time, you hit your usual corners of the market because you can’t be bogged down by exploring the other aisles. But, it’s not a bad idea to periodically assess every area of your life, from your finances to your friends to your food, to see if there are any upgrades to make, old habits to get rid of, or changes worth making. Life is about constantly learning, evolving, and improving, and you can do that with your diet, the way you do with everything else.

When it comes to buying groceries that satisfy you and your family, you have certain bases you want covered. You want comforting baked goods, filling proteins, crunchy snacks, sweet desserts, fruits and veggies, yummy beverages, and other categories. You want to make sure that when cravings hit or certain nutrients are missing, you can find what you need in your refrigerator or pantry. But it’s important to know that there are many ways to satisfy all of those needs – and some are healthier than others. Maybe it’s time to consider a new crunchy snack or fizzy beverage. Here are easy healthy swaps you can make to revamp your grocery list.

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Ditch sugary yogurt; get cottage cheese

Many packaged yogurts offer little more nutrition than ice cream – they just have a thinner consistency and packaging that makes them appear healthy. You eat them so you can get filling protein, calcium, and other nutrients. But what you often get is tons of sugar, very little protein, and hungry again an hour later. Cottage cheese, however, packs 28 grams of protein in a cup, very little sugar, very little sodium, and substantial amounts of calcium. And it pairs with all the things yogurt does, like honey and fruit.

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Ditch soy burgers; get better veggie burgers

There is a lot of debate in the medical community about the pros and cons of eating soy. One such con is that certain soy-containing products have chemicals that can cause hormone disruptions. If you are trying to eat more veggie burgers instead of real burgers, you’ll find that a lot of them are soy-based. And even if the jury is out on that ingredient, isn’t it best to eat something that the jury is decided on? When picking out veggie burgers, look for ones made with some combination of quinoa, black beans, and brown rice. These are all-natural ingredients that, together, offer protein and fiber.

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Ditch chips; get dehydrated veggies

If you need something salty and crunchy to have as a side to your sandwich or to snack on during a movie, move away from (most) chips. Certain high-heat cooking processes, including frying, create a chemical called Acrylamide which can worsen cholesterol levels and has been linked to heart disease. If you’re in the market for something salty and crunchy, grab some dehydrated veggies like carrot “chips.” While some nutritional loss can occur when veggies are dried, they actually retain most of their nutrients in the drying process.

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Ditch candy; get dates

Americans eat around three pounds of sugar a week. Imagine seeing that on a table, all at once. It would probably have you rethinking many of your food choices. It’s much more than nutritionists recommend. But, we all know the undeniable call of a sweet tooth. Next time you want something chewy and sweet, grab a few dates (just a few). One has around four grams of sugar (a Mars Bar has 20 grams), and if you have a few, you’ll get a good serving of fiber, as well as potassium and magnesium.

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Ditch soda; get sparkling water + juice

Americans are drinking far too many sugary drinks, says the CDC. Black adolescent males are some of the largest consumers of the stuff, and the habit is linked to other unhealthy habits like smoking and not sleeping enough. If you want something fizzy and sweet to drink, get simple sparkling water and add just a bit of pure, non-concentrated juice. Aim for a ratio of 1:4, juice to sparkling water.

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Ditch processed meats; get carved meat

The International Agency for Research on Cancer put out a statement with the World Health Organization announcing that processed meats such as cold cuts and hot dogs pose a significant risk for colorectal cancer. So while they’re convenient to layer onto bread with some cheese and mustard when you’re in a hurry, they’re not worth it. Go old-school on your sandwiches, and get sliced meat carved off of roasted or baked turkey/chicken/or the meat of your choosing. If you make oven-baked chicken at home, save some carvings for your sandwiches, rather than getting processed cold cuts.

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Ditch white rice; get cauliflower rice

Rice is not naturally white. When you pick up white rice, it’s been stripped of the healthy components in brown rice that typically give you important nutrients and fiber. What’s left is a starchy food that has been linked to obesity and blood sugar issues in groups that consume high amounts of the stuff. If you want something fluffy and nutritious to have with your stir-fries or as a side dish, get cauliflower rice. It’s high in many nutrients including vitamin C, and even lower in calories than brown rice.

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Ditch white pasta; get quinoa noodles

White pasta, like white rice, has also been refined. While that sounds sophisticated, it just means all the good stuff has been removed. Eating high amounts of refined carbs has been linked to heart disease, along with other issues. Meanwhile, whole grain pasta is not only lower in calories than white pasta, but has also been shown to be more satisfying.

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Ditch bottled dressing; try this simple combo

If you’re eating more salad as part of your efforts to cut back on things like sugar and fat, then adding bottled dressing to it may undo all of your hard work. While it’s not true of all bottled salad dressing, many varieties contain high amounts of sugar, sodium, and saturated fat. If you want a consistently tasty and healthy salad dressing, keep these ingredients on hand: Dijon mustard, extra-virgin olive oil, and lemon juice. Combine about two tablespoons of olive oil and two tablespoons of lemon juice with a teaspoon of Dijon mustard for a zesty, heart-healthy dressing.

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Ditch sour cream; get tahini

Sour cream isn’t inherently bad for you – it’s about how much you eat of the stuff. It is high in saturated fat, which has been linked to higher cholesterol levels. But, typically, one just puts a spoonful on top of a potato or bowl of chili. However, if you’re someone who likes it on nearly everything you eat, you need a healthier option. Try Tahini. Made of ground sesame seeds, it may actually improve cholesterol levels, while providing that creamy something-extra you want on your dishes.

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Ditch (most) burgers; get this beef

You don’t need to stop eating red meat, but you do need to be aware of the types of red meat you purchase. Aim for cuts the USDA defines as lean or extra-lean. Lean meat contains less than 10 grams of fat, less than 4.5 grams of saturated fat, and less than 95 milligrams of cholesterol. Extra-lean meat has about half the ratios of saturated fat and total fat, with around the same amount of cholesterol.

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Ditch boxed cereal; get oatmeal

When it comes to boxed cereal, there are obviously hundreds of varieties, and some are better (or worse) for you than others. However, if you look at the ingredients list of many, you’ll see the first two ingredients are refined grains (which we know are bad from the white rice/white pasta slides), and sugar. So, they can lead to blood sugar spikes and crashes that have been linked with obesity. If you want something easy to make in the morning, get rolled oats. Oatmeal helps manage, rather than disrupt, blood sugar levels, and its high fiber content keeps you full for a while.

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Ditch chips (again); get popcorn

If you’re really into chips, then you may need a couple of alternatives as you break the cycle. Popcorn is another great salty, crunchy snack. In addition to being extremely low in calories, popcorn can improve digestive health and circulation, and potentially reduce the risk of certain cancers. Plus, it keeps you feeling full on very few calories.

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Ditch artificial sweetener; get Stevia

Now that we’ve scared you away from all of that sugar consumption, you may be looking for other ways to sweeten your beverages and other items. Unfortunately, many artificial sweeteners can come with their own problems. Like soy, the jury is still out on them, but again, why not just choose something that’s decidedly good? Stevia comes from plants, has no calories, and can improve insulin sensitivity and blood sugar levels in diabetics.