Healthy Shopping Tips *Always ensure you read labels. Look for hidden fats, chemical preservatives, colours, added sugar & salt. Don’t just trust a label saying “Trans Fat Free”, “Low in Fat”, “Sugar Free” – become label conscious about what goes into food choices. *General Rule – do the majority of your shopping in the produce section and on the outside of the market – avoid most inner isles, as this is where convenience products, fast, refined, processed foods are. *General things to avoid – hydrogenated oils, BHT, BHA, artificial colours (i.e. FD & C #4), aspartame, MSG. *Whenever possible, buy Organic. To ensure no pesticides, chemicals, hormones or additives, as well as helping to create sustainable agriculture practices. The earth will repay you with good health. Frequently these products have shorter ingredient lists, as well as containing healthier ingredients with little or no preservatives. Local Food is also a great choice to support economic, social and energy of your community. BUY PLENTY OF Fruits & Vegetables
Should be the majority of your purchase – try to fill the largest part of your shopping cart
Choose bright colours, lots of variety with different textures and tastes
Frozen veggies & fruit are handy when in a pinch for time
AVOID CANNED VEGETABLES as much as possible.
BUY ADEQUATE/LIMITED AMOUNTS OF Grains, Breads, Wraps, Bagels, Pasta
Choose whole grains, sprouted grains & different kinds of grains
There are lots of healthy whole grain options that are tasty and full of variety in texture
Try picking up some barley, quinoa, millet, spelt kernels, brown & wild rice
AVOID WHITE FLOUR & WHITE SUGAR (includes enriched products, derum semolina, 60% products, icing sugar, brown sugar & items containing these)
BUY LIMITED AMOUNTS OF Dairy, Eggs, Cheese & Related Products
Buy Organic as much as possible to avoid hormones, additives & chemicals
Look for lower fat options with few ingredients on the label – like cottage cheese, light options of goat cheese feta, sour cream, yogurt (live culture with no added sugar)
Try rice, coconut, oat or almond milk instead of dairy – they can be used as you would use regular milk
Free run eggs – happy chickens, make happy eggs!
OKAY TO HAVE ON HAND Frozen Food items
Frozen Berries & Fruit for when making homemade desserts, muffins or as toppings for whole grain cereals, etc.
Frozen vegetables for in a pinch or when making soups and stews
Lean meats (un-breaded)
Fish (un-breaded)
Popsicles can easily be made at home from fresh fruit & or vegetables juices and purees.
Try Limited amounts of organic varieties of ice cream
Rice, cashew and Coconut milk based “ice” cream are tasty and contain much less saturated fats & sugar than traditional ice cream.
LIMIT Frozen yogurt which contains much less fat than traditional ice cream – but use sparingly as it contains high amounts of sugar.
AVOID FROZEN DINNERS & MICROWAVE MEALS
HAVE ON HAND, BUT USE WISELY Condiments, Dressings & Miscellaneous items
Mayonnaise – try the “light” or vegan varieties - if not able to make your own
Mustard – limit to plain which you can dress up with unpasturized honey, maple syrup or cayenne for a little extra zip (once you’re at home)
Ketchup should at least be organic, but keep to a minimum
Avoid salad dressing – it’s easy to make your own
Look for Natural varieties of Peanut butter, nut & seed butters without added sugars or hydrogenated oils.
Instead of sugary jams try Apple Butter, or no sugar added varieties (be sure to read the label to avoid artificial sweetener
Unpasturized honey is much more nutritious
Oils – good buys – olive, grapeseed, sunflower, coconut – look for a dark bottle, refrigerate once opened and use within 3 months.
Butter is better – avoid margarine & products made with modified or hydrogenated oils. Ghee is also a great food that can be enjoyed by many who are otherwise dairy intolerant.
Vinegar should be apple cider, balsamic, wine or rice vinegars – Avoid traditional white variety
AVOID commercial pickled items as they use white vinegar & lots of sugar to manufacture
Meats & Fish
Look for organic or free run options as often as possible
Choose lean cuts, skinless and lean ground meats
Try turkey or chicken burgers instead of hamburgers
Canned tuna and salmon can be used in a pinch – try looking for wild caught, and dolphin friendly.
LIMIT OR AVOID RED MEATS, DELI MEATS (avoid nitrates, nitrites)
Treats & Desserts
Try popping your own corn – avoid microwave popcorn
Look for baked chips – avoid fried chips with added artificial flavors (despite the label saying they are “Trans Fat Free” – this may not actually be the case as this is prior to “frying” the potatoes)
Trail mix (no salt) is a nice snack – dried fruits, nuts & seeds (avoid sulphites)
Choose organic, fair trade dark chocolate in limited amounts
Baking supplies are essential for whole foods home baking.
AVOID Convenience Foods
Chips, Pop, Pretzels, sugary “juice” drinks, sports drinks, chocolate bars & snack items
Pastries, cakes, cupcakes, bakery items containing white flour, sugar, hydrogenated oils. Instead discuss with Jo-Anne how to work with natural ingredient to make healthy treats & snacks!
HEALTHY SHOPPING CHECK LIST
Filling your Pantry and Fridge with Supplies
Baking Supplies
o Whole Grain flours: spelt, brown rice, oat, barley, kamut, rye, etc.
o Whole flours/meals: buckwheat, flax meal/flour, cornmeal, quinoa, amaranth, coconut, hemp meal etc.
o Oat flakes, spelt flakes, quinoa flakes
o Raw cane sugar or sucanat
o Aluminum free baking powder
o Baking soda
o Sea Salt (fine grind Brittany Grey or Himalayan are nice)
o Pure Vanilla, Maple and Peppermint extracts
o Coconut, grapeseed, sunflower and olive oils, butter
o Ground cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger
o Fresh or frozen fruit
o Grated coconut, raisins, dates (unsulfited)
o Chocolate chips (fair trade/ organic & non-hydrogentated)
“Everyday Checklist”
Vegetables
Carrots
Parnsips
Cucumber
Zucchini (green / yellow)
Squash (summer / winter)
Turnips or Rutabaga
Celery
Broccoli
Cabbage
Peppers, Sweet (avoid green)
Peppers, Hot
Potatoes
Sweet Potatoes
Spinach
Rapini
Swish Chard
Kale
Artichoke
Asparagus
Romaine Lettuce
Salad Greens
Onions
Leek / Green onion
Garlic
Green Beans
Wax Beans
Brussel Sprouts
Rhubarb
Vegetable juices
Sea Vegetables
Sushi Nori
Dulse
Kelp
Wakame
Kuzu
Kombu
Hajiki
Herbs – Fresh & Dried
Basil
Parsley
Chives
Cloves
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Sage
Oregano
Thyme
Rosemary
Lavender
Cumin
Coriander
Ginger
Ground Mustard or Mustard Seed
Tarragon
Cilantro
Mint
Herbal Teas (selection)
Fruits
Apples
Oranges
Bananas
Kiwi
Strawberry/Blackberry/Raspberry
Blueberry
Peaches/Nectarines
Pineapple
Papaya
Mango
Lemon / Lime
Grapefruit / Pomelo
Cantaloupe, Honey dew melon
Watermelon
Plums
Pomegranate
Grapes
Tomato
Avocado
Fruit Juice (not from concentrate – limited)
Nuts & Seeds (& their butters)
Almonds
Walnuts
Pecan
Filberts
Cashews
Hazelnuts
Brazil nuts
Macadamia nuts
Pistachios
Sunflower seeds
Pumpkin seeds
Sesame seeds (white/black)
Tahini (sesame seed butter)
Poppy seeds
Chia seeds (white/black)
Flax seeds (brown/golden)
Whole Grains & Cereal products
Spelt kernels
Oat groats or steel cut oats
Buckwheat grouts
Wheat berries
Kamut kernels
Quinoa seed
Amaranth seed
Rye kernels
Barley (pot)
Brown rice
Wild / red / japonica rice
Millet seed
Granola cereal (no sugar added)
Puffed grains
Shredded grains cereal
Whole grain flat bread / tortilla wraps
Sprouted grain bread / muffins
Whole Grain crackers (no preservatives or additives)
Lentils & Dried Legumes
French lentils
Red / Green Lentils
Chick peas (garbanzo beans)
Black eyed peas
Pinto beans
Kidney beans
Lima beans
Navy beans
Split peas
Peanuts (peanut butter)
Poultry, Fish, Meats & Fermented Soy Products
All protein sources should be free range &/or organic whenever possible
Whole chicken
Chicken breasts (skinless)
Ground Chicken
Whole Turkey
Ground Turkey
Fresh Fish (wild caught)
- salmon, tuna, mackerel, cod, halibut, etc.
Canned fish (wild caught & eco-responsible)
Lean Ground meat (limit quantities)
Tofu
Tempeh
Miso
Frozen or Canned Foods
Choose organic whenever possible
Frozen berries
Frozen mixed vegetables
Canned diced tomatoes
Canned tomato paste
Canned beans (for in a pinch)
Dairy, Eggs & Alternatives
Choose free range & organic whenever possible and raw dairy if accessible
Butter (unsalted / salted)
Eggs (brown & free range)
Milk (cow or goat – limited amounts)
Almond milk
Brown rice milk
Soft / hard goat cheese
Soft / hard cow cheese (limited amounts)
Yogurt (goat or cow – plain – no additives)
Yoghurt starter
Kefir grains
Condiments, Oils & Sauce Items
Apple Cider vinegar
Red wine vinegar
Balsamic vinegar
Rice vinegar
Black strap Molasses
Unpasturized Honey
Blue Agave Nectar (Raw)
Maple Syrup
Tamari (wheat free)
Herbal Bouillon (cubes or powder)
Apple butter
Ketchup (fruit sweetened, organic)
Salsa
All oils should be in dark bottles – look for cold pressed, organic & store in fridge or freezer
Olive oil
Coconut oil (solid at room temp & okay to store at room temp)
Grapeseed oil
Sunflower oil
Sesame oil
Cold only oils (do not cook with these)
Flax seed oil
Hemp seed oil
Pumpkin seed oil
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