By David White
Local fitness center owner and personal trainer Stephanie Poole recently led a small group of her clients on a tour of the H-E-B Plus grocery store in Kyle to teach them how to shop in a seminar she refers to as the Grocery Store Survival Guide.
Grown adults learning how to shop?
Shopping may seem like common sense to most folks, but Poole shared a lot of uncommon information that may drastically change some of her clients’ shopping habits for good.
She covered topics like looking past deceptive market jargon and how to read nutrition labels and identify fillers and processed sugars that manufactures try to sneak into your foods.
“Natural is an unregulated term,” said Poole to the group. “It doesn’t mean anything.” And terms like “light” – “Light is a four-letter word,” she added. Poole explained that when manufacturers take out that little bit of extra fat or sugar, they are putting other unwanted fillers back in.
These are just the tip of the iceberg of tips that Poole had to offer.
To the right are just a few more basic tips for smarter, healthier shopping.
Some of Stephanie’s Grocery Store Survival Guide Tips
• Shop on the perimeter of the store. The less processed foods, like produce and meats are on the outside of the store, while processed foods with more fillers tend to be on the inside aisles.
• Look for items with only 5 to 8 ingredients. “If you can’t pronounce the ingredients, you should probably stay away from them,” Poole says.
• Buy a colorful blend of produce. The colors of the produce represent different nutrients, and the more variation of colors equals more variation in nutrients.
• Learn the PLU codes in the produce section. If you or your family are concerned whether your produce is organically grown, conventionally grown or genetically modified, the numerical PLU (Price Look Up) code will tell you. See chart.
• Save money on produce by buying in season. When your fruits and vegetables are in season, the prices drop to a price comparable to the organic version of the same item.
• Again, stay away from terms like “natural” or “light.” The term “organic” on the other hand is a legitimate term regulated by the FDA. H-E-B now has organic offerings in most food categories.
• Don’t shop hungry. Come with a list, stick to it, and have a protein snack before shopping so you don’t crave those items that aren’t on your diet.
