How to Win the Grocery Store Game

It’s the classic trade-off. You want to fill your body with all-natural, wholesome food, but finding it can mean multiple trips to various stores and a walletful of fat receipts. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Mainstream supermarkets are wising up. They’ve realized that natural and organic products—besides being pesticide-free, good for the planet and potentially more nutritious—are also good for business.

So many of the brands that once you could find only in specialty stores are now available at your local grocery, and often for less. And some mainstream manufacturers make products that are as low in fat and calories as their natural counterparts. Finding these foods may take a little digging—they’re often hidden amid sugary junk—but they’re there.

Still, if you’re used to shopping at natural food stores—where everything is pretty much free of refined flours, trans fat and artificial colors—supermarkets can pose a bit of a challenge. That’s where our treasure map comes in. Use it to steer yourself toward fabulous food finds and away from health hazards . . . all in the name of turning your supermarket into your personal health food store.

DELI/BAKERY (Yellow Light)
Pass Pass on the croissants, cakes and muffins—all are heavy in saturated and trans fats. Instead, feast on these:

Great Choices

• Whole grain breads
• Fresh mashed potatoes
• Fresh marinara sauce
• Fresh salsa
• Hummus
• Fresh vegetable and bean salads
• Fresh sliced fruits

ALERT: Most cheeses have too much saturated fat. Try to stick to reduced-fat cheeses such as Alpine Lace Swiss, Cabot’s 50% and 75% reduced-fat Cheddars, part-skim mozzarella and soy cheese substitutes.

PRODUCE (Green Light)
For most of us, this is where the real riches are. But it’s easy to get in a produce rut. To remedy that, choose an item every week that you’ve never tried before. Worst case: You find a dud. But chances are good you’ll discover some new favorites. In winter, look to the frozen aisle, too, for packaged peaches and berries.

Great Choices

• Apricots
• Blueberries
• Broccoli
• Cantaloupe
• Carrots
• Cauliflower
• Kale
• Peaches
• Spinach
• Sweet potatoes
• Swiss chard
• Tomatoes
• Winter squash (such as acorn, butternut, spaghetti)

GOOD TO KNOW: You don’t have to sacrifice convenience. You may pay more for peeled carrots, but it’s worth the extra money if it means you’ll eat them. Also worth the money: prewashed salad greens, cored pineapple and cut-up stir-fry veggies.

ALERT: Full-fat, creamy salad dressings—often tucked in with the produce—are often very high in saturated fat.

AISLE 1: Natural Foods, Special Diet (Green Light)
While natural products lurk all over supermarkets, here they’re front and center.

Great Choices

• Low-sodium soups and condiments
• Organic pasta sauces and salsas
• Whole wheat pasta, rice and couscous
• Whole grain crackers, cookies and granola bars (made without hydrogenated oils)
• Soymilk and rice milk
• Whole grain breakfast cereals
• Rice cakes
• Natural sodas and juice blends (Buy sparingly and be choosy; while they don’t contain artificial flavorings or colorings, many are loaded with sugar or corn syrup. Some brands, such as The Switch, are pure fruit juice with carbonation.)

GOOD TO KNOW: There’s no legal definition for the term “natural.” Within the natural foods industry, though, the term implies that products are as close to their natural state as possible—no hydrogenated oils, artificial flavorings, colorings or preservatives.

ALERT: Natural junk food is still junk food. Limit cheese puffs and chocolates, even if they are organic.

AISLE 2: Peanut Butter, Soups, Canned Vegetables, Canned Fruits (Green Light)
There may be a few yellowand red-light foods here, but it’s mostly all green.

Great Choices

• Peanut, cashew and other nut butters (check labels for trans fat and sodium)
• Fruit-only and low-sugar spreads
• Pure maple syrup and molasses
• Whole wheat pancake and waffle mixes
• Vegetarian bean and lentil low-sodium soups
• Dried fruits and fruits canned in juice with no added sugar
• Canned pumpkin pie filling All forms of beans, dried or canned (rinse canned ones before using to remove excess salt)
• All canned vegetables (rinse before using to remove excess salt)

GOOD TO KNOW: If you’ve ever considered pouring off the oil at the top of a jar of natural peanut butter, don’t. The peanut butter that remains will turn rock-hard, and you’ll need a chisel to get it out. Although conventional peanut butter lists partially hydrogenated oil (trans fat) as an ingredient, it contains only a miniscule amount.

AISLE 3: International Foods and Condiments (Green Light mostly)
This aisle is home to specialty items from around the world, including many condiments that add oomph to meals.

Great Choices

• Salad dressings based on healthful oils such as olive or canola
• Flatbreads and breadsticks
• Unusual vinegars Imported fruit preserves and conserves
• Dark whole grain rye bread
• Sun-dried tomatoes and kalamata olives
• Artichoke hearts packed in water
• “Exotic” canned veggies such as baby corn and bamboo shoots
• Borscht (Russian beet soup)—check the label though; some borscht is made with meat stock
• Aromatic varieties of rice such as basmati and jasmine
• Couscous, quinoa and other grains
• Chutney, relish and mustard Low-sodium tamari

GOOD TO KNOW: Vinegar can take the place of salt in some foods, lending a punch to otherwise flat flavors. For example, vinegar is what gives Chinese hot-and-sour soup its kick.

ALERT: Many condiments are high in sodium, which most of us need to eat less of. Small amounts of condiments can usually fit in a diet that is based on whole foods, which are naturally low-sodium.

AISLE 4: Spaghetti Sauce, Pasta, Coffee and Tea, Mexican Foods (Yellow Light)
Once you speed by the canned mystery meats, this aisle is a mix of gems and landmines.

Great Choices

• Jarred pasta sauces (check sugar and sodium content)
• Salsas
• Coffee beans (organic and fair-trade if possible)
• Green, black and herbal teas
• Whole wheat pasta, tortillas and matzos
• Vegetarian refried beans

GOOD TO KNOW: Fat-free refried beans are free of lard, which means they’re both healthier and vegetarian.

ALERT: Seasoned pasta and noodle mixes can be exceedingly high in sodium, and creamy Alfredo sauces are high in saturated fat.

AISLE 5: Cereal, Oatmeal, Bread, Cookies, Crackers, Candy (Yellow Light)
Grocery carts slow to a crawl on this aisle because there are so many choices—some great and some grim, with the grim mainly due to outrageous sugar content.

Great Choices

• Whole grain cereals including shredded wheat, bran flakes, Os and squares
• Oats
• Whole wheat and multi-grain hot cereals
• Whole wheat English muffins
• Whole grain crackers
• Limited amounts of natural, whole grain cookies and breakfast bars (look for brands such as Barbara’s Bakery, Hain and Health Valley)
• Pectin jellybeans, fruit sours and hard candies made with natural flavorings and colorings

GOOD TO KNOW: The heating, rolling and chopping that turn oats into instant oatmeal may give you more time in bed in the morning, but they also cut the fiber content. Try steel-cut oats. Just cook them the night before, then reheat them in the morning. They’re chewier, nuttier and packed with fiber.

ALERT: Most conventional breakfast cereals not only are made with refined flours and tons of sugar, they often contain artificial flavorings and colorings.

AISLE 6: Baby Food, Canned and Bottled Juices (Yellow Light)
Top picks have no added sugar, artificial flavorings or colorings.

Great Choices

• 100 percent fruit juices
• Baby foods that are low in sugars and ideally have organic ingredients

GREAT TO KNOW: It’s super easy to make your own lowsugar, organic baby food. Simply steam veggies or fruits, then purée in a food processor with a small amount of water. Let cool, transfer to ice cube trays and freeze. Defrost one or two cubes at a time to feed a little one.

ALERT: Fruit juices are a concentrated source of sugar. To avoid cavities and weight problems, kids aged 1–6 should limit juice to 4 to 6 ounces per day; kids 7–18 should stick to 8 to 12 ounces per day, says the American Academy of Pediatrics. Push your cart right past juices containing high fructose corn syrup or other added sugars.

AISLE 7: Vitamins, Nuts, Cake Mixes, Spices, Shortening (Yellow Light)
There are pitfalls among the bread, muffin and baking mixes, vegetable oils and, sometimes, even the vitamin/mineral supplements.

Great Choices

• Herbs and spices
• Olive, corn, canola and other plant oils
• Whole wheat flour
• Cornmeal
• Whole grains (barley, bulgur)
• Nuts (stick to small servings— the fat and calories can sneak up on you)
• Whole grain bread, muffin and baking mixes

GOOD TO KNOW: Highpotency or “stress formula” vitamins and minerals aren’t advised for most people because of the risks in megadosing certain nutrients. Buy a regular multivitamin/mineral supplement that provides just 100 percent of the recommended intakes.

ALERT: Avoid shortening (it’s full of trans fat) and baking mixes made with white, refined flour. Skip pudding mixes and no-bake pie fillings, which are full of artificial flavors and colors.

AISLE 8: Soft Drinks, Mineral Water, Beer and Wine (Yellow Light)
Water's a no-brainer, and alcohol (in moderation) is healthful, but skip most sodas and their artificial colors, flavorings and sugar load.

Great Choices

• Unsweetened plain or flavored seltzer water
• Club soda (it may not be sodium-free but seltzer often is; check the labels)
• Plain or flavored mineral water

GOOD TO KNOW: Wine gets all the attention, but beer is also good for your heart. Preliminary research has linked moderate beer drinking with higher antioxidant and “good” cholesterol levels, both of which enhance cardiac health. Darker beers have more antioxidants, so try those—in moderation, of course.

ALERT: Say no to more than two alcoholic beverages per day for men, more than one for women.

AISLE 9: Popcorn, Snacks, Potato Chips, Pretzels, Corn Snacks, Tortilla Chips (Red Light)
The majority of snacks on these aisles are loaded with sodium and trans fat.

Great Choices

• Very low-fat or nonfat popcorn
• Pretzels made without trans fat
• Rice cakes
• Bean dip
• Tortilla chips made without trans fat—look for natural brands such as Guiltless Gourmet and Bearitos, but even Tostitos makes some trans fat–free chips

GOOD TO KNOW: They’re still empty calories, but if you just have to have ’em, buy your chips baked (new Kettle Bakes potato chips have great flavor). Baking, instead of frying, cuts the fat and calories.

ALERT: Skip most cheese dips, as well as most chips. Why? One word: fat.

AISLE 10: Frozen Foods (Yellow Light)
This aisle may conjure up images of TV dinners, but many frozen foods are fine substitutes for their fresh incarnations. Frozen veggies in particular can be more nutritious than not-so-fresh produce, and don’t spoil.

Great Choices

• Vegetarian entrées with 1 gram or less of saturated fat per serving (and keep an eye on the sodium)
• Meat substitutes such as veggie burgers, soy hot dogs and burger crumbles
• All plain frozen fruits and vegetables
• Frozen whole grain bagels, whole wheat pita pockets and whole grain tortillas
• 100 percent fruit juice concentrates
• Frozen whole grain waffles and pancakes

GOOD TO KNOW: Carb, fiber and protein content vary from one veggie burger to another. Go for those with the most protein and fiber.

AISLE 11: Dairy, Frozen Desserts (Yellow Light)
Proceed with caution: This aisle has a number of foods high in saturated and trans fat.

Great Choices

• Soymilk
• Nonfat organic milk
• Soy yogurt and cheeses
• Organic nonfat and low-fat plain and flavored yogurt
• Margarine made from canola and other vegetable oils
• Nondairy frozen desserts made with soy or rice milk, such as Soy Delicious
• Low-fat ice creams
• Nonfat frozen yogurt
• Frozen 100 percent fruit bars
• Italian ices made with natural flavorings and colorings

ALERT: Just say no to regular margarine (high in trans fat), butter, full-fat cheeses, whole milk and ice cream.

Suzanne Havala Hobbs has found that shopping on an empty stomach results in more variety in her cart and happier faces when she returns home.