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Melanie Cole (Host):  You may have heard thatto make the healthiest choices at the grocery store, you really should shop the perimeter of the store. But is everything in those areas really healthy? My guest today is Elizabeth Vander Laan. She’s a dietician with the Bariatric Center at Abbott Northwestern Hospital. Welcome to the show, Elizabeth. Why is it that we’re told to shop the perimeter of the grocery store? 

Elizabeth Vander Laan (Guest):  I think the reason we’re told to shop the perimeter is because it does tend to be more of the healthy, fresh foods. But of course there’s exemptions to every rule. Of course, the bakery and the deli, there’s certainly less healthy options in those areas. But I also think in the middle, there are some healthy options as well, such as beans or whole grains, or whole grain bread that’s not at the bakery, that type of thing. 

Melanie:  Let’s first then talk about the produce section. Very few things in this area have nutrition labels, so what should we be looking for? There are some things that have labels. I’ve seen prepackaged beets in that department and they have a label on them. What should we be looking for? 

Elizabeth: I always recommend eating foods the closer to nature as possible. Those are plentiful in the produce section. There are some other more processed products that sometimes find their way into that area. I guess what I think of is caramel dip sometimes to go with the apples and ranch dressing to go with the vegetables. It’s not cut and dry, but in general, you want to try to stick to things, like you said, that don’t have the label on them. I’m not going to say that there’s any one food such as potatoes or whatever that you shouldn’t eat. It’s just in moderation. You can’t eat everything unlimited. But in general, those are great options if they’re fresh produce. 

Melanie:  Sometimes even nuts and seeds and such are in the produce department, and those come in bags and boxes, too.  

Elizabeth:  That is true. And I would recommend that, of course, in moderation. Typically, a quarter cup serving is all you need on those. And I would watch to make sure that they’re not adding a lot of sodium to those things, as well. 

Melanie:  So the deli is another area where there aren’t always visible food labels. If we buy our deli meat or cheese in this area, what should we be mindful for and should we look? They have them in big bulk. Do we get to look at that label to see if there is added nitrite or too much sodium? 

Elizabeth: You certainly could ask to see the label. I have asked myself, and they typically don’t have a problem with that. Yes, I would avoid nitrate. The less processed that is, the better. In general, I still would recommend you’d go over to the fresh meat, and you can make those quite convenient as well. If you get a family pack of chicken and just cook it on the crock-pot, it’s just as convenient when you do that as the deli meat, really, other than that one step. I usually recommend that if you want some chicken or whatever; use that to make a sandwich.

Melanie:  Now, we’re moving around the store, Elizabeth, the milk and cheese and yogurt in the dairy department. There’s a lot more dairy-free options these days. Is it healthier to be drinking almond or soymilk or eating dairy-free cheese? Should we be looking for caseinon the labels? What should we be looking for? 

Elizabeth:  In my opinion, I think that dairy clearly wins nutritionally. There’s a lot of people out there that are suggesting otherwise. I do think that there are intolerances that people have, and certainly, that is real. But I think a mainstream person that doesn’t have that issue, such as lactose intolerance, I certainly think doing plain dairy gives the best nutrition, best bang for your buck. The way I compare it, it’s kind of like breast milk. What they’re trying to do is make almond milk similar to dairy by adding some protein to it. I’ve seen ones that are fortified to be like that. It’s best to do the more natural thing, but they’re making those other food products similar, if that makes sense.   

Melanie:  Well, it does, and that’s a good answer. So we can really try the more natural. Stick with milks and yogurts and cheese unless we have some insensitivity.  

Elizabeth:  Right. And there is some nutritional benefits to those other things. But again, it’s kind of like breast milk versus formula. They’re trying to make them like those things, but in general, I think nature does better than humans do at making food.  

Melanie:  Well, I know we’re supposed to be talking about the perimeter of the store, but we have those busy nights, and sometimes we like to throw in a frozen dinner. Are there any frozen foods, Elizabeth, that are healthier than others? Because sometimes I walk by those bags of prepackaged chicken and vegetables and they say, “You throw them in a pan and cook them and you’ve got this voila dinner.” But then I think to myself, “I can buy chicken and vegetables and throw them in a pan, too.” But sometimes it is faster to use those bags. What do we do about that?  

Elizabeth:  I think there are some healthier options. Of course, if you did it yourself, it is better. But yes, everyone does have some busy nights sometimes. If it’s chicken or meat or something in there, I’d try to make it so they’re not breaded ideally, because then there’s more processing going on there and more unnecessary carbohydrates, typically not healthy. If you’re doing a frozen meal, I’d maybe look for ones that are low fat, try to have less than 3 grams of fat per hundred calories. I would look for ones that have whole grains in them if they’re starches; try to have them mostly meat and vegetables and maybe a little bit of whole grain. They have come a long way. They used to be less healthy options, but I think you have to be smart about it. Look at the ingredients. Try to have the least amount of ingredients as possible.  

Melanie:  So it’s still all about reading those labels and knowing what you’re getting. What about frozen or canned vegetables? We’ve talked about certainly fresh fruits and vegetables are always going to be the best. But do they have the same properties if we get canned vegetables, peas or corn or asparagus or something in a can? 

Elizabeth:  You do lose some nutritional benefits while they can. However, it’s all relative. I’d rather have you snack on that or eat that than a processed junky cheese puff or something like that. And I’ve had some patients that have food allergies and such that can only tolerate really well-cooked or canned. And there is still some nutritional benefits. If given the option, it’s better to have fresh or frozen. In fact, frozen, they’re pausing the degradation process of those fruits or vegetables, and so they actually have higher nutritional benefit when they are frozen. But you do lose a little bit in cooking if you’re choosing to cook vegetables today. I would just say in general, the more fruits and vegetables you have, the better, and try to keep it fresh or frozen if you can. 

Melanie: So the bakery is definitely one that’s on the perimeter of the stores. It’s usually somewhere around the produce. Does that give us permission to buy cake and cookies, or what should we be looking for in the bread department? If they’re selling fresh bread, fresh-made bread with seeds and things on them, what should we be looking for? 

Elizabeth:  I often hear this with my patients that they think it’s a good bread if there’s all those little seeds in it, I often hear people say. What matters more than if there’s seeds in it is if the actual flour itself is a whole grain. And you might not be able to know that unless you look at the label. I always tell people the important word is the word “whole,” whether it’s whole rye, whole wheat. If you’re talking bread, the best would be if you bought whole grain bread from a bakery. There’s maybe five ingredients in it. The next best thing if you got a hundred percent whole grain from the grocery store, that’s going to be have a little bit more on the preservatives. Then you won’t have to put it on the freezer like you would on processed bread. And then, the next test would be a partially whole grain, and then I wouldn’t even bother with the white, to tell you the truth. 

Melanie:  So if our listeners take one thing away from this podcast, Elizabeth, what’s your best advice for making healthy choices at the grocery store?  

Elizabeth:  I would say the more whole, minimally processed food that you can do and try to make things yourself. There are shortcuts that we don’t have enough time to talk about today, but I gave a few along the way. We’re all busy, but it’s worth our health. 

Melanie:  Well, it certainly is, and you’ve really given us some good tips and workable information so the next time we go to the grocery store, we can really shop smart. You’re listening to the WELLcast with Allina Health. For more information, you can go to allinahealth.org. That’s allinahealth.org. This is Melanie Cole. Thank you so much of listening.