Start Your Grocery List With Healthy Foods
By Rachel Carver
It happened again. You procrastinated on your grocery store trip, and now you are staring at an empty fridge.
You know creating a grocery list will help you resist impulse buying. You want to fill your kitchen with nutritious foods, but where do you start?
Most dietitians will tell you to stick with whole foods, fresh vegetables, and protein. But other key foods can get you closer to your nutrition goals.
Read on to find out what foods should be on every grocery list.
Frozen Berries
Fresh produce tastes great and is full of key vitamins and minerals. But berries are picked at the peak of their ripeness and are then flash-frozen. Research suggests frozen produce may give you more nutrients than fresh produce.
Frozen berries are versatile, and they will last a few weeks in your freezer. Add them to your favorite breakfast smoothie. Mix some into your Greek yogurt. Whip up some homemade blueberry muffins or pancakes.
Seasonings
Trying to cook more vegetables? Cooking up a new recipe you are not quite sure about? A good seasoning can add great flavor to almost anything. Many seasonings at the grocery store also come with food guides on their labels. This guide tells you what the jar's contents might be best with. Find seasonings low in sodium and without MSG and other harmful compounds.
Nuts
Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1993 revealed that walnuts are great for overall heart health. This discovery removed nuts from the list of forbidden foods and added them to many grocery lists. Nuts give you lots of healthy fat, fiber, and protein.
Add them to yogurt or to a trail mix. Portion a handful to take to the office as a snack. Try almonds and walnuts.
Cereal
Cereal has been given a bad reputation over the years. Many Americans do not get enough fiber. In addition to fruits and vegetables, cereal can increase your fiber intake.
Read labels. Choose a cereal high in fiber and protein and low in added sugar. Multigrain Cheerios and Fiber One are two great options.
The Bottom Line
A variety of foods should be a part of any healthy diet. Get plenty of vegetables, healthy fats, and proteins. Add some unique foods to the mix. Use this approach to create that grocery list, and you might not procrastinate as much when it comes to going to the store.
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