November 7, 2014 at 3:51 p.m.
Wellness specialist shares nutrition tips on healthy shopping tour
Wellness specialist shares nutrition tips on healthy shopping tour
By Kayla Thomason-
Hope Williams, health and welless specialist for Ministry Medical Group, acted as the tour guide. She told the two tour participants to go through their cupboards at home, make a list and look for coupons to use.
"What I typically do is I'll sit down and look at what's in the cupboards, look at what's on sale and then I'll make my list," she said. "It's really important to shop with a list."
Williams started the tour in the produce department.
She said people should try to eat five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day.
From there the tour continued to the meat section where the lesson became more in depth.
Williams asked the men which meats they thought were the healthiest. They both answered poultry and fish. Williams said to choose lean meats and trim off any excess fat.
From there the group continued along the parameter of Trig's discussing the variety of flavors and styles of yogurt. Williams recommended her students buy plain yogurt and add their own fruit as opposed to the yogurt that comes with fruit on top.
In the frozen food section Williams fished out a bag of frozen vegetables and discussed the difference between canned and frozen vegetables.
She also taught the group to read food labels and to watch out for sodium level, carbohydrates and sugar.
As an example, she grabbed a bag of frozen mixed vegetables and read what was in it. Ingredients are listed by quantity, she said, noting that the package she chose contained more sliced carrots than other vegetables.
Next on the tour was the dairy department, followed by the deli. Williams informed the group that many deli meats, such as ham, are high in sodium.
At the bakery, Williams compared two loaves of bread, focusing on fiber content and whole grains.
"Choose natural [foods] whenever possible, don't pay so much attention to low fat, low sugar, just try to pick real foods," she said.
Williams suggests choosing whole grain or wheat over white breads and to make sure the first ingredient is "whole" grain, wheat or rye. It's less processed and closer to how it is in nature, she said.
From the bakery the tour group made its way to the snack aisle and inspected some popcorn.
The participants were asked which popcorn packages they thought were the healthiest. They chose 100 calorie packs and unpopped kernels in jars. Williams said popcorn is a healthy snack, especially if it is air popped. One serving is 3 cups of popped popcorn.
Next came breakfast cereals.
Instant oatmeal packets are high in sodium and low in fiber, Williams said. She recommends steel cut or oatmeal that cooks in seven minutes.
The tour wrapped up with rice and pasta. Brown and wild rice is better than white and flavored rice in boxes, Williams said.
People who like flavor in their rice can make brown or wild rice and add vegetables or herbs, she said.
The average person should consume less than 2,000 milligrams of sodium and 20 to 25 grams of fiber per day, Williams advised.
"In anything that you are buying 30 percent or less of the calories should come from fat," she added.
The last piece of advice Williams gave was to consume eight ounces of water a day, limit sugary drinks, sodas and juices.
"Everyone should go to these tours because you gain knowledge. No matter how much you know while shopping you always learn something new," said participant Dale Caskey.
Healthy Shopping Days are held the first Tuesday of every month at 2 p.m. at Trig's.
To sign up for the next tour, call Williams at (715) 361-4366.
Kayla Breese may be reached at [email protected].
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