Last week I met again with our assigned dietitian, Janet Macon, from the West Locust Hyvee. We chatted about our food diaries--some of her comments will follow...then we toured the store in search of "gems" of information to further my quest to make further healthy changes for my family.
First her comments...
Meal replacement drink (Steve has been dabbling) not good to use on a regular basis.
Alcohol burns first. I am not sure I knew this! Alcohol eaten with a meal...burns first. The meal portion is stored as fat! My take home message (might seem obvious to you) 1) save up calories to consume alcohol 2) if you drink don't eat but be smart about it. Hence the reason for beer bellies.
Discovered gems on our tour....
There is a loaf of bread with a decent NuVal score! Its in the freezer section of the Health Market. 81 NuVal for a Genesis brand blue loaf. There is a low sodium version as well for a NuVal of 93! The kicker is they are $4 a loaf. Too high for my family. But what if you were single or not big bread eaters and could just keep it in the freezer, plan, and remove it for the next day...definitely health worthy. AND save 10% on "sack sale" days in the Health Market!
In the bread aisle Village Hearth Light scores 45. And Pepperidge Farms Ancient Grains a 47 NuVal. Better... Also Thomas Light Multigrain english muffins with a score of 42. I love english muffins. But because I love them, I best be careful. I did not know a multigrain version existed. Speaking of multigrains--Quaker makes multigrain oats...something else to try!
I did not know Kashi also sold frozen entrees. Great for lunches at the office. 2 for $6 on sale. Could even divide for a healthy lunch at home among smaller children. Another thing to buy with the bag sale date.
Cariyana is lactose intolerant. We buy her Almond Milk from my mothers food coop. The brand we use is not the highest NuVal available via Almond Milk. We can do better. Good to know! Also, we could mix Almond Milk and cows milk for the kids and boost them nutritionally. We could also stir in powdered milk for increased protein and calcium. Xavier could use the calories and nutrients.
The Health Market has some wonderful looking wraps on the shelf. Some with green onion, some with garlic flavors. Lower in calorie, higher NuVal.
I have been wanting to make fish tacos. The Health Market sells a flavor packet for this! Might get us off to a good start with my first trial of fish tacos.
She suggests mixing greek yogurt with conventional yogurt in place of ricotta and cottage cheese (higher in sodium) for my lasagna and stuffed shells recipes. I did not know greek yogurt would hold up...never thought of it. Speaking of greek yogurt. I inquired about Yoplait's 2x greek yogurt and if it was just a gimmick. No it is not, twice the protein, higher NuVal. It has 17 grams of protein (hence, the 2X claim – conventional yogurt contains 6-8 grams and most Greeks contain 10-12 grams) and 45% DV of calcium (most Greeks contain 15-20%). Weight Watcher plain yogurt will also be one to watch, no NuVal yet but she expects it will be very high. Its traditionally cheaper too!
Janet cannot explain why but instant rice has the same NuVal as longrain rice. Hard to believe instant anything could rank a NuVal of 82!
My kids like juice, healthy juice is hard to come by. Orange juice is the better way to go with a NuVal of 30. AND Minute Maid makes one that ranks a 52!
Last suggestion. Every week let the kids discover a new vegetable or fruit in the produce department. Take it home, google how to prepare, experiment and enjoy! Turnips, hairy fruit (an exotic fruit called rambuton--$6 each!), and persimmons are in view.
No comments:
Post a Comment