Simple Shopping: Healthy Aisles and Healthy Choices

Healthy Aisles and Healthy Choices. Most of the healthiest foods are located in the outermost aisles of the supermarket, especially in the produce department. Different colors of fruits and vegetables offer different nutrients, so just by making colorful selections you’re automatically increasing your chances of getting a wide variety of healthy nutrients. There are also many varieties of prewashed, precut lettuce and other vegetables available, making it easy to prepare interesting salads and side dishes.

Here’s where you splurge, because if a variety of pretty, precut vegetables are available at home, your may reconsider eating pre-packaged, processed junk food.

Vegetables: Go for a rainbow of vegetables. Each color provides important nutrients so just by choosing many colors you increase your chances of getting the nutrients you need. Load up on pre-cut, pre-washed, bagged salads, etc.-making it easy may increase your intake.

20 Insider Secrets to Look and Feel Better ASAP! Fruit:  Choose a variety of fruits, including berries for an antioxidant boost. Limit fruit juices, which provide concentrated calories without the benefit of fiber.

A Word on Organic Fruits and VegetablesOne of the greatest differences in organic fruits and vegetables lies in how the food is grown, handled and processed. Because organic foods aren’t treated with preservatives and waxes you may find that organic fruits and vegetables spoil more quickly than nonorganic varieties.Organic fruits and vegetables also aren’t sprayed with herbicides and pesticides, which leave a residue on the food; something many people want to reduce their exposure to. Healthy Aisles and Healthy Choices

Organic farming methods are also designed to conserve water and soil while reducing pollution; making organic foods more environmentally friendly. There is a price for these farming practices however. While these methods encourage the growth of fruits and vegetables free from herbicides and pesticides, it often means that the farming method is more labor intensive which increases the price of the food.If you’re interested in shopping organic and there’s a limited supply at your local supermarket, here’s where you can find local farmers markets, organic foods, and community-supported agriculture near you.

Rinse, gently scrub or peel the fruit or vegetable to reduce the amount of residue that may have accumulated on the skin. You may lose some nutrients this way however because many fruits and vegetables contain valuable nutrients found within the skin. If choosing only a few organic options, these choices (known as the “dirty dozen”) are the ones to splurge on.

Peaches Nectarines Imported Grapes Apples Strawberries Spinach

Sweet Bell Peppers Cherries Lettuce Celery Pears Potatoes

The Dirty Dozen

Fruits and Vegetables

(These fruits and vegetables have been dubbed the “cleanest” so it’s ok to go non-organic for these choices)

Onions Bananas Asparagus Frozen Sweet Corn Broccoli
Kiwi Mango Avocado CabbageFrozen Sweet Peas Pineapples Papaya Healthy Aisles and Healthy Choices