Don't label me

I am one of the fastest shoppers I know. I can buy two weeks worth of groceries in the time it takes others to get through the produce section. I'm not terribly great about bargain shopping, and I didn't used to read the labels on items, so that was part of it. I also know my grocery store very well, and I can remember all the items on my list usually without even consulting it.

This is no longer the case.

Well, I still remember the items on my list, but now I'm a label reader, and I research lots of different items to pick the most nutritious. Today we were at the grocery store for an hour, and I only bought $50 worth of food! Everything I purchased was an ordeal, and Darcy stood patiently by as I read label after label. If the roles were reversed, I would have had a fit and probably ran out of the store in horror.

I'm not patient. We know this.

I think/know it will get easier in time. I will get to know which brands and items are the best. Did you know that Campbell's Healthy Request soup has less fat and fewer calories than their 98% fat free version? They are both labeled as 98% fat free, but the Cream of Celery soup, for example, is 2 grams of fat per serving of Healthy Request vs. 3 grams of fat in the other 98% fat free version. How can the Healthy Request have 1/3rd less fat, while they are both 98% fat free? It's not as though the amount of fat in the full fat version is so high that one gram of fat doesn't change the percentage. Strange. Anyway, I usually just get the 98% fat free, but now I'll get Healthy Request going forward.

Another strange thing is that the Whole Grain Barilla Plus (which is supposed to be extra healthy) has more fat and calories and LESS fiber than the regular Whole Grain Barilla, and it's $1 more!

So read those labels, kids! They can't lie on the labels, but they have more wiggle room with the selling points they put on the front of packages. Some items say they are fat free, and they really aren't. In general, I avoid fat free products per the advice of my nutritionist. They are usually chemical bombs, and you need to have some fat in your diet.

For the super bowl, we are having some friends over, and they are on weight watchers, so I'm just making a few healthy snacks. Usually, the super bowl is a big piggy-stuff-your-face fest, so I hope they aren't disappointed. I'm making a delicous home made salsa (I'll post the recipe), and I bought reduced fat whole grain tortilla chips to have with it, veggies and low fat dip and whole grain english muffin pizzas made with healthy choice sauce and low fat cheese.

That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

KC