Is it healthy?
How to find healthier foods in the store
It's hard to find healthy foods in the grocery store. First, because there are so many unhealthy choices. Second, because these unhealthy foods are routinely marketed as healthy! Think veggie straws, nutragrain bars, snackwell cookies, fruit snacks, etc. Many foods are deceptively marketed to make you think they are healthy, when in fact they are far from it.
So - how do you tell the difference?
1. Choose foods with one or few ingredients, all recognizable and pronounceable. Or, better yet, no ingredients label at all because they are produce. There's no ingredients label on a green pepper because it is a green pepper.
2. Understand nutrition labels: Calories, though the largest number, is not the most important number. Fiber and added sugar probably are. Choose foods with the most fiber, and the least added sugar.
3. Get good at the 'Carb/fiber + added sugar calculation. For grains (pasta, bread, cereal, rice, oats, flour, etc), or foods made from grains like granola bars, crackers, pretzels, etc, follow this formula:
Carbohydrate (g)
--------------------- + Added Sugar (g) = 12 or less (and the lower, the better).
Fiber (g)
If you follow these guidelines while shopping, you'll make healthy choices.
the nutrition label
The guide above demystifies the numbers
When I look at a food label, my eyes go directly to three numbers: carbohydrate, fiber, and added sugars. Healthy food balances carbohydrates with lots of fiber, and don't have added sugars.
To find out if a food is healthy, get good at this calculation:
Carbohydrate (g)
--------------------- + Added Sugar (g) ≤ 12
Fiber (g)
12 should be considered an upper limit. The lower, the better.
Another way to look at this is for every 100 calories, there should be 2 grams of fiber. This is an easier calculation that also works well.
If you have heart disease or hypertension, sodium is also important and should be avoided.
Fats matter, but the kind of fat is important. Saturated fats are generally bad, but some healthy foods like nuts and soymilk have a little. Unsaturated fats (poly and mono-unsaturated fats are sometimes listed separately on the label), are good, but calorie dense. Good in moderation. Trans-fats are bad in any amount.
Calories is only a useful number if the serving size is realistic. Often it's not. Calories alone are a very poor indicator of healthfulness. 250 calories of walnuts is much healthier than 250 calories of cheezits.