Making Healthy Food Choices
Food Guide: Fruits Buy Fruit In Season When Available
Take Advantage Of Sales:
| Best Choices | Apples, apricots, bananas, blueberries, cantaloupe, cherries, grapefruit, grapes, guava, kiwi, mango, nectarines, oranges, papaya, peaches, pears, pineapples, plums, raspberries, strawberries, tangerines, watermelon, dried fruit (dates, figs, raisons) |
| Choices to Avoid | Canned or frozen fruit packed in syrup; juices, punches, ades, and fruit drinks with added sugars, fried plantains |
Vegetables
| Best Choices (a variety of each group each week) | Dark green vegetables: Broccoli and leafy greens such as arugula, beet greens, bok choy, collard greens, kale, mustard greens, romaine lettuce, spinach and turnip greens Orange and deep yellow vegetables: Carrots, carrot juice, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and winter squash (acorn, butternut)Other vegetables: Artichokes, asparagus, bamboo shoots, beans sprouts, beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbages, cactus, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, egg plant, green beans, ice berg lettuce, mushrooms, okra, onions, peppers, seaweed, snow peas, tomatoes, vegetable juice, zucchini |
| Choices to Avoid | Baked Beans, candied sweet potatoes, coleslaw, French fries, potato salad, refried beans, scalloped potatoes, tempura vegetables |
Grains
| Food Guides: | Make at least half of the grains selections whole grains. |
| Best Choices | Whole grains such as amaranth, barley, brown rice, buckwheat, bulgur, millet, oats, quinoa, rye and wheat; Low fat breads, cereals, crackers and pastas; popcorn Enriched bagels, breads, cereals, pastas (couscous, macaroni, spaghetti) pretzels, rice, rolls, tortillas |
| Choices to AVOID | Biscuits, cakes, cookies, cornbread, crackers, croissants, doughnuts, French toast, fried rice, granola, muffins, pancakes, pastries, pies, pre sweetened cereals, taco shells, waffles |
Meat, Poultry, Fish, Legumes, Eggs and Nuts
| Food Guides: | Make lean or low fat choices. Prepare with little or no added fat. Choose seafood twice a week such as salmon, tuna or herring |
| Best Choices | Poultry without the skin, fish, shellfish, legumes, eggs, lean meat with fat trimmed, lowfat tofu; tempeh, peanut butter, nuts (almonds, filberts, peanuts, pistachio, walnuts) or seeds (flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds) |
| Choices to AVOID | Bacon, baked beans, fried meat, fish, poultry, eggs or tofu; refried beans, ground beef, hot dogs, luncheon meats; marbled steaks; poultry with skin; sausages, spare ribs |
Milk, Yogurt and Cheese
| Food Guides: | Make fat free or low fat choices. Choose lactose free products or other calcium rich foods if you don’t consume milk |
| Best Choices | Fat free and fat free milk products such as buttermilk, cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt; fat free fortified soy milk; (look for yogurt and pudding that are less than 100 kcal per serving) |
| Choices to AVOID | Cheese; 1 % low fat milk, 2 % reduced fat milk and whole milk; low fat, reduced fat and whole milk products such as cheese, cottage cheese, and yogurt; milk products with added sugars such as chocolate milk, custard, ice cream, ice milk, milk shakes, pudding, sherbet, fortified soy milk |
Oils: Limited Amounts : 1 serving per meal
| Food Guides: | Select the recommended amounts among these sources. |
| Best Choices | Liquid vegetable oils such as canola, corn, flaxseed, nut, olive, peanut, safflower, sesame, soybean, and sunflower oils; mayonnaise, oil based salad dressing, soft trans free margarine Fat Free Salad Dressings Unsaturated oils that occur naturally in foods such as avocados, fatty fish, nuts, olives, seed (flaxseed, sesame seed) and shellfish |
| Choices to AVOID | Hydrogenated shortenings, trans fatty acids, coconut oil, palm kernel oil, palm oil, popcorn oils, non dairy creamers |
Solid Fats and Added Sugar: Must be avoided to promote weight loss
| Best Choices | None |
| Choices to AVOID | All: Foods with added sugar and or fat such as: Soda, Candy, Cakes, Cookies, Pies, Pastries, Non dairy creamer, Solid fats that occur in foods naturally such as milk fat and meat fat Solid fats that are often added to foods such as butter, cream cheese, hard margarine, lard, sour cream and shortening Added sugars such as brown sugar, candy, honey, jelly, molasses, soft drinks, sugar and syrup |
READ YOUR LABELS
Dairy Products:
Nonfat Milk is served at mealtime
Yogurt: use fat-free sugar-free variety of approximately 100 or fewer calories per servings
Cottage Cheese: use low-fat cottage cheese when on menu
Pudding: use fat free and/or sugar free only-look for 100 kcal per serving
Ice Cream: use lowfat or fat free sugar free only- look for 100 kcal per serving
Cheese: choose lowfat varieties – approximately 80 calories per 1 oz serving.
Sour cream: use lowfat (light on label)
Sour cream: use lowfat (light on label)
Portion size: varies see menu
Breads/Cereal/ Starches
Bread: choose whole grain breads with 4 or more grams fiber per serving
Cereal: choose fat free low sugar dry cereals such as Bran flakes, Corn flakes, Rice Krispee, Fiber one, Wheaties, Cherrios, Raison Bran, Shredded Wheat, or Puffed Rice For cooked cereal choose oatmeal, cream of wheat or even better is whole grain cream of wheat, cream of rice, farina, or other cooked cereal that do not have added sugar or fat.
Tips for Potatoes/ Rice/ Pasta
Avoid fried potatoes, fried rice, pasta with creamy sauces. Follow recipes in cookbook.
Use hot air popcorn (no fat added), Use soft tortillas instead of hard tacos
Portion size: ½ c. or about the size of a computer mouse
Meats or sub:
Choose leans cuts of meat:
Beef- trim all visible fat, choose USDA Good or Choice grades of lean beef, such as round steak, sirloin, and flank steak; tenderloin, Look for low fat cuts such as round or sirloin. Ground meats should be at least 80% lean
Pork- Lean pork, such as fresh ham, canned cured or boiled ham, Canadian bacon, tenderloin, pork loin, roast pork. Trim all visible fat before cooking
Chicken / Turkey / Poultry
Choose chicken, turkey, or Cornish hen without skin
Fish: choose all fresh and frozen fish. Choose tuna packed in water not oil.
Eggs: follow menu and substitute egg beaters for eggs on menu items and in recipes
HIGH FAT MEATS TO Avoid:
Prime cuts of beef, ribs, corned beef, spare ribs, ground pork, pork sausage, any fried fish, high fat lunch meat such as bologna, salami, pimento loaf, sausage, such as polish Italian, Knockwurst, smoked Bratwurst. Bacon Frankfurters unless lowfat.
Portion size: 1 oz. at breakfast, 2 oz. at lunch, 3 oz. at dinner
Vegetables:
Avoid adding margarine or butter to vegetables
Vegetables should be steamed and prepared without extra added fat.
Portion size: ½ c. for cooked or 1 c. for raw
Fruits:
Fruit juice use only 100% fruit juice.
Do not use fruit drinks
Fruit juice is served only at breakfast-watch the portion sizes
You can sub. Fresh Fruit instead of fruit juice with breakfast
Canned fruits should NOT be packed in syrup. Canned fruits should be packed in fruit juice without extra sugar added.
Portion size: about the size of a tennis ball
Soups:
Use broth based soups or low fat cream soups
Fats
Salad Dressing; FAT Free salad dressings should be used.
Mayonnaise: fat free or low fat or light mayonnaise should be used
Margarine and butter should be limited to 1 t. per serving. (about the size of a postage stamp)
Beverages:
Water is calorie free and recommended at each meal – 8 oz.
Coffee or Tea – use sugar free or sugar sub. No creamers. Use nonfat milk
Calorie free beverages should be served:
Water is the best. Sugar free / calorie free beverages are acceptable. (crystal light, kool aid etc.)
Diet Soda: limit to 1 per day
Desserts:
Serve fruit for dessert or
Use sugar free fat free varieties as per menu
Syrup Use sugarfree
Jams/ jellies: Use sugar free
Candy: use sugar free, fat free, calorie free—watch out for candy with sorbitol it may cause gastric distress
Sugar Substitutes should be used in place of sugar; No honey
DO NOT USE FRUIT DRINKS WITH CALORIES-this adds too much sugar and calories.
Use Low Fat Cooking Methods: Saute, Broil, Poach, Steam, Bake, Roast, Grill
Choose High Fiber Foods when Possible:
At Breakfast –Use Fresh Fruit instead of Fruit Juice
Choose High Fiber Cereals: Cream of Wheat is now available in Whole Wheat Form.
Choose Cereals that have 3 or more grams of fiber per serving and are less than 100 kcal per serving
Use egg substitutes for eggs on menu. Use only lean meats.
Lunch and Dinner:
Choose Whole Grain Pastas over regular
Choose Whole Grain Breads- 3 g. fiber or more per slice
Choose Brown Rice instead of White Rice
Leave skin on potatoes, apples, pears, etc. when acceptable
Use Whole Grain Bread Crumbs in recipes rather than regular
Substitute beans and peas (kidney, pinto, black or white, chick pear or garbanzo) for meats 2 X per week
Use brown rice, buckwheat, bulgur, millet, oatmeal, popcorn, rolled oats, quinoa, sorgum, tricale, barley, Whole Wheat bread, Whole Wheat Crackers, Whole Wheat Pasta, Whole Wheat sandwich Buns and rolls, Whole Wheat tortillas, Wild Rice
Instead of refined Grains: cornbread, corn tortilla, couscous, cracker, flour Tortillas, grits, noodles, pretzels, white bread, white sandwich buns and rolls, white rice, spaghetti, macaroni, corn flake.
*** Remember brown color in bread or pasta does not mean high fiber- look for 4 g. fiber per serving or more. Or Whole grain listed as first ingredient