All food is not created
equal. It isn’t much fun to cook for one
or two, but eating well is more important than ever when you get older. Unfortunately grocery shopping has become an art form. A healthy diet helps you
to age well, but terms like antioxidants, bioflavanoids, omega-3, phyoestrols,
probiotics and prebiotics are enough to make your head swim.
Unfortunately we spent many
of our formative years worrying more about weight loss than about proper nutrition. You may have been able to get away with
eating poorly for a few months or even a few years, but sooner or later years
of poor eating habits will catch up with you.
The long term effects are known to contribute to serious diseases like
heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, osteoporosis
and even cancer.
As you age your body does
not absorb nutrients as well. This means
that you need to take in more nutrients in order to absorb the same amount. Our old friend the food pyramid has been
around for a long time. New and revised
versions are showing up regularly but it still boils down to multiple servings
of grains, veggies, fruits, oils, milk, meat and beans. You need fewer calories but at the same time
you need more servings of the right foods. The hard part is figuring out the
formula? Let me know if any of you have
mastered this yet. I can keep track of
needing to eat fish, increasing calcium, and decreasing sodium, but everything
else is pretty much a blur as I speed through the grocery aisles.
Food labels
have moved way outside the supermarket; everywhere from fast food chains to
upscale restaurants are informing us of calorie counts and nutritional values. They say that there is no excuse for not
knowing what we are eating, but I think it is a little harder than that. Yes,
you need to read the labels, but what are you actually looking for?
One of the first things to take note of is
what constitutes a serving size. A can,
bag, or box may actually contain multiple servings so before you consume that
whole bag of chips, be sure you know how many servings it contains. Look at how many calories per serving and
what percentages of those calories are from fat. Don’t forget to check out the fiber, vitamin
and mineral content. If you aren’t lost already; try paying attention to total
fat, carbohydrates, proteins, cholesterol and sodium.
For most of us this is a
little more information than we are prepared to process, but you should still
be thinking about what is good for you and what isn’t. Mindy Hermann, R.D. (Heart Healthy Living,
summer 2010) came up with a few timely suggestions about what to look for when
you make your shopping rounds.
- Make a list.
Look up some low-fat, low-sodium recipes that you want to try and
jot down the ingredients. Compiling
a list can help you make the most of your shopping time.
- Read labels:
Know the difference between no added, low or reduced when it comes
to calories, sugar, sodium or fat.
- Check out the nutrition facts: Look at serving sizes, serving per
container, calories, total fat, dietary fiber and sugar in all of its
forms.
- Load up on fresh produce; look at multigrain and
high fiber breads, low sodium offerings and seasoning additives. Select cereals high in fiber, lean cuts
of meats, canned fruits packed in water or juice, low or no added salt,
low fat dairy products etc.
Okay, ready to go shopping? Think about the food pyramid and remember to
read those labels, while pretending that you didn’t just eat half of a Snickers
bar for lunch.
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