Grocery Basket Makeover

Here are some simple steps to help you make your grocery cart a vehicle for healthy living. Use these suggestions the next time you shop for groceries:

1. Produce Section: Choose fresh, whole organic produce whenever possible. Fruits and vegetables from all parts of the color spectrum should make up most of your grocery items.
2. Canned/Packaged Foods: Choose no- or low-sodium canned and packaged foods.
3. Grains, Breads, Cereals and Legumes: Choose products made of whole, intact grains, not white or whole wheat-flour products. Stock up on healthy, inexpensive staples like dried beans and lentils.
4. Dairy/Refrigerator Case/Frozen Foods: Avoid anything with carrageenan (which may be irritating to the digestive tract), choose low- or non-fat dairy products without a lot of added sugar, and choose frozen foods that are organic. Avoid frozen meals that are high in sodium, and instead opt for healthier protein sources such as frozen edamame, omega-3 enriched eggs and fresh tofu.
5. Meat/Seafood/Fish: Choose fresh or frozen to widen your selection, and focus on seafood. When buying salmon, always opt for wild-caught Alaskan varieties.
6. Healthy Fats: Choose unsalted or low-salt varieties of nuts and seeds that are raw or dry roasted (store seeds in the freezer for freshness) and always choose a high quality extra virgin olive oil or organic, expeller-pressed canola oil for cooking and baking.

More information on the anti-inflammatory diet.

Comments

[Francois]

Shouldn't that wild-caught salmon be from the Pacific, not the Atlantic?

[Kathryn]

I second Francois' question about the salmon. I always thought WIld Salmon should be from the Pacific. Also, with all the BPA in the lining of cans, wouldn't it be best to try to avoid them as much as possible?

[njrondeau@gmail.com]

I have been told at the fish markets that there is no longer any wild caught Atlantic Salmon. I would think this is probably very true. All Atlantic Salmon is farm raised these days.

[Sara]

Friends don't let friends eat farm fed fish. Eat Alaskan Wild Salmon.

[moderator44@drweil.com]

Francoise, Kathryn, njrondeau, Sara!
Of course you are right. Our bad--it slipped through editing.
Dr. Weil ALWAYS says Wild Alaskan Salmon!!!!!
And re BPA in cans--Dr. Weil is against that as he is farmed salmon but does suggest Vital Choice and BPA free cans.
Thank you all!!! Glad you are reading the blog posts so carefully!!

[Carolyn Spector Gillis]

MAINE CAN LEAD THE NATION IN COMMON SENSE! Adding Sardines to the violent prisoners' diet can reduces violence by 1/3. Why are we closing a Sardine plant in Maine putting people out of work??? We need to get a chef from Fore Street to work with Maine prisoners to find how they can make this appealing by putting it on crostini bread or making into supplements...Are Maine people and government too frozen by corruption and ignorance to stop the shutting down of this sardine plant that can supply the key nutritional component called Omega 3 and help slash prison costs by 1/3?Balancing Omega-3 and Omega-6? - Dr. Weil.http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA400149/balancing-omega-3-and-omega-6.html

[Suzy Staywell]

This is a great guide to shopping wisely. Maybe add that if you stay mostly on the perimeter of the grocery store, you will probably get to the checkout counter with mostly healthy foods in your basket. Thanks!

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