12 tips for grocery shopping for heart-healthy foods

Whenever I start reading about how to eat healthy, I jump to the conclusion that to really do it right I’ll have to give up my job, grow organic fruits and vegetables, and spend hours and hours on my diet. Since that isn’t practical, I love to hear about what will work for people with busy lives. Certainly, a healthy diet is an important part of fighting or preventing heart disease. But as we all know, eating well can be easier said than done! Here are tips for making sure you get the healthiest foods when you hit the grocery store.

1.      Be sure to prepare a grocery list in advance to prevent impulse buying.

2.      Look for fresh foods. As much as possible, stick to the produce, meat, dairy, and bread sections of the store, to avoid the temptations lurking in aisles containing packaged and processed foods.

3.      Remember that the healthiest fruits and vegetables are the deeply colored ones, which are chock-full of nutrients. Choose spinach, for example, instead of iceberg lettuce, and sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes.

4.      Experiment with new fruits and vegetables (perhaps mangoes, papayas, or leeks) for added food choices.

5.      If fresh produce isn’t available, buy frozen; many companies now use flash-freezing technology at harvest to preserve nutrients.

6.      Select heart-healthy proteins like skinless chicken or turkey breast (white meat is leaner than dark meat). Look for fresh fish (without breaded or battered coatings) or canned fish, and give preference to those rich in omega-3 fats, such as salmon, herring, sardines, or tuna.

7.      If you occasionally eat red meat, look for leaner cuts with less saturated fat, such as round, loin, and sirloin. The best choice for ground beef, which is higher in fat than these cuts, is a substitution: ground turkey (even extra-lean ground beef has a fair amount of saturated fat). For pork, the leanest cut is the tenderloin. Stay away from processed deli meat, which tends to be high in fat and sodium.

8.      Look for nonfat or low-fat versions of milk, cheese, and yogurt. (Hard cheeses like cheddar generally have less fat than soft cheeses like Brie.)

9.      Instead of butter or regular margarine, both of which contain unhealthy fats, try a trans fat–free margarine (such as Smart Balance) or one with cholesterol-lowering plant stanol esters (such as Take Control or Benecol).

10.  Looking for a frozen treat? Select a low-calorie, sugar-free fudgesicle or popsicle instead of premium brands of ice cream, which are loaded with unhealthy saturated fat.

11.  Seek out whole-grain products. Check the label to make sure the word “whole” heads the list of ingredients, for example, “whole wheat.” Or better yet, look for “100% whole grain” on the package, as this indicates the product has a high fiber content.

12.  Other fiber-filled options include bran rice, whole-grain cereals, and whole-wheat pasta. Popcorn is another healthy whole grain, but be sure it’s not cooked in butter or in an oil with trans fats. (Your best bet may be to buy popcorn kernels to air-pop on your own.)

I hope these tips help and you don’t feel like you have to devote hours and hours to eating a healthy diet.  There are lots of simple things you can do to take good care of your heart!

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