GROCERY SHOPPING GUIDELINES AND LIST

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Plan Ahead:

1. Check your pantry to see what you already have. Don't double up on snack items.

2. Plan a menu for the week. Use guidelines for healthy eating.

3. Make a grocery list during the week. This helps you keep "tabs" on staples that you are low on. This also helps to avoid trips to the "local" store, which can cause impulse buying.

4. Eat a healthy snack before you shop. Being hungry may tempt you to buy more than you need.

Be in control:

1. Shop along the outer edges of the store first. Here you will find the four food groups: grain products, vegetables and fruits, dairy products and protein rich foods.

2. Steer dear of the "end of the aisle" specials. Generally these are high revenue items and most always processed.

3. Skip the snack food aisle all together, it is too tempting.

4. Stick to what's on your shopping list.

5. Most bargain and healthier options are on the higher and lower shelves in the grocery store. Most high revenue and processed food items are at eye level.

6. Read a magazine when waiting to checkout. Better yet go through the "no food" lines at the grocery store. This saves you the temptation.

7. Become familiar with the store you go to regularly. This helps with "wandering".

Read Labels:

1. Look for breads, cereals and grains with a minimum of 3 grams of fiber per serving.

2. Check out the low fat varieties of crackers, dairy products and prepared foods. Try to keep these items at less than 3 grams of fat per serving.

3. Look at the ingredient lists. If one of the first three ingredients is salt, fat, oil, sugar or high fructose corn syrup, try choosing a different food or use the food only in very small amounts.

Shopping Cart Guide:

Split your shopping cart into three parts:

1. Think big. Use the big part of your cart when choosing grain products, vegetables and fruits.

2. Think smaller. Use this part when choosing from the milk and meat and alternative groups.

3. Think carefully. Limit your choice of foods from the "other" group such as fats, oils and foods that are high in sugar.

GRAIN PRODUCTS:

Bakery:

. Whole wheat, rye and flax bread. Multigrain breads, bagels

. "Lite" English muffins

. Pita Bread and soft tortillas

. Whole grain bread sticks

Cereal:

. Hot cereals such as rolled oats and oat bran, cream of wheat

. Cold cereals like shredded wheat flakes or bran or corn, toasted oat ring cereal and low fat muesli

Crackers:

. Whole grain saltines

. Stones Wheat Thins

. Whole grain crisp bread

Dry Goods:

. Brown, basmati or wild rice

. Whole wheat pasta - check for whole grain varieties. Barley, bulgur, wheat germ and bran

. Couscous

. Quinoa

Snack Foods:

. Popcorn

. Whole grain, honey wheat and pumpernickel pretzels

VEGETABLES AND FRUIT

. Vegetables and fruits that are colors such as bright orange, red, yellow and deep green.

Make sure that they are crisp and not limp.

. Frozen vegetables and fruit not packed with sugar.

. Dark green leafy vegetables such as romaine and spinach. Avoid iceberg. lettuce.

. Fruit canned in its own juice or pack in pear juice.

. Canned tomatoes or tomato sauce. Check the ingredient list for extra-added sugars.

. Use fresh that are in season only.

MILK PRODUCTS

. Choose skim, 1%, or 2% milk.

. Choose cheeses that are either skim or 2% fat items.

. Avoid all processed cheese, i.e. American, Cheez Whiz and Velveeta, even if they are fat free or reduced fat.

. Choose yogurts that are either 1 or 2% fat. Try to avoid the heavily fruited brands.

. Check out the low sugar; reduced fat varieties of Ice Cream that are sweetened with Splenda.

MEAT AND ALTERNATIVES

Choose lean or extra lean ground beef

. Choose lean cuts of beef or pork, e.g., round or loin.

. Eat the "white" meats, e.g" chicken or turkey breast.

. Fresh or frozen fish, (avoid battered or breaded)

. Canned fish packed in water.

. Textured protein products, e.g., Morningstar Farms and Boca are good choices.

Avoid all products that are genetically modified.

. Choose eggland or organic eggs.

. Try the egg substitutes in cooking and baking.

. Dried or canned beans, split peas, lentils and soybeans.

. Nut butters, e.g., peanut, cashew, walnut, and almond.

. Nuts and seeds

Name Brands to Watch For:

Breads:

Berlin Natural Bakery - All types

Food for Life - Ezekiel Bread (all types), Ezekiel Tortillas

French Meadow, Organic - Summer Bread, Sun & Flax Bread

Garden of Eatin' - Tortillas

Little Bear - Taco Shells

La Tortilla- Tortillas (all types)

Ozark Country Natural Breads - Seven-Grain Carrot Bread, Sprout Wheat Bread,

Whole-wheat hamburger and hot dog buns

Alvarado Bakery - All types

Stop & Shop Brand - "Lite" English Muffins

Thomas's - Carb Counting Bagels

Arnold's - Carb Conscious Breads

Cereals:

Arrowhead Mills - Amaranth Flakes, Oat Bran Flakes, Shredded Wheat, Spelt Flakes

Back to Nature - Country O's Cereal, Seven Grain Sprouted Flakes

Barbara's Bakery - All types

Bread Shop - Puffs N Honey Cereal

Country Life - Seven-Grain Flakes

Food for Life - Ezekiel Almond, Ezekiel Cinnamon Raisin, and Ezekiel Golden Flax Health Valley - Fiber 7 Flakes, Golden Flax Cereal, Oat Bran Flakes

Nature's Path - Multigrain Flakes, Multigrain with raisins, Oaty Bites, Optimum Slim Cereal, Optimum Zen Cereal, Spelt Flakes

Kashi - Heart to Heart Cereal, GoLean, Good Friends, Good Friends Cinna-Raisin Crunch, Puffed Kashi, Honey PutTed Kashi, Kashi Medley, Kashi Pilaf, Autumn Harvest

Yogurt:

Brown Cow - All varieties

Cascade Fresh - All varieties

Horizon - All varieties

Red Hill Farm Goat Milk Yogurt - All varieties

Stoneyfield Farms - All varieties

Wholesoy Company - All varieties

Dannon - Lite 'n Fit, Dannon Lite

Columbo - Lite varieties only

Snacks:

Kashi - TLC Tasty Little Crackers

Al Mak - Sesame Crackers

Barbara's Bakery - Cereal Bars (All types), Whole Wheat Fig Bars, GoGo Grahams,

Puffins Bars, Rite Lite Round Crackers, Wheatines

Berlin Natural Bakery - Spelt Oatmeal Cookie, Spelt Oatmeal/Raisin Cookie Bible Bread - Cracker Sheets (All flavors)

Blue Diamond - Almond Nut Thin Crackers, Pecan Nut Thin Crackers, Smoked Nut Thin Crackers

Clif Bars - Clif Bar (carrot), Luna Bars

Country Life - Sesame Honey Crunch, Walnut Date Log

Garden of Eatin' - Blue Com Chips, Red Hot Blues Chips, Salsa Red Chips

Good Health - Olive Oil Potato Chips (All flavors)

Hain - Wheatettes, Animal Graham Crackers

Health Valley - Cereal Bars (All flavors)

Little Bear- Corn Chips, Tortilla Chips (All flavors)

Lundberg - Pico de Gallo Bean Rice Chips, Sante Fe BBQ Rice Chips, Sea Salt Rice Chips

Nature's Path - Rice Bars (All Flavors)

Now Foods - Golden Flaxseed Crackers

Oak Creek Farms - White Corn Chips

Sesmark - Sesame Sticks (All flavors)

Hanover Pretzels - Honey-Wheat, Oat Bran and Pumpernickel

Vita Spelt - Pretzels (All flavors)

Vitalicious - Muffins (All flavors)

Soup & Dip Mixes

Amy's Kitchen - All Varieties

Thai Kitchen - All Varieties.

Fantastic Foods - All varieties

Frontier Natural Products - Cream of Chickenless Soup

Health Valley - All Varieties

Pancake & Waffle Mixes

Arrowhead Mills - All Varieties

Bob's Red Mill-All Varieties

Country Life - Sesame Oat Waffle Mix

Great River Organic Milling - Corn N Oat Pancake Mix

Hodgsen's Mills - All Varieties

Useful websites: www.consumerlabs.com

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