Grocery Shopping Tips

There are many choices in the grocery store to help you effectively manage your diabetes. The following shopping tips are designed to give you an aisle-by-aisle overview of nutrition and food choices in the grocery store.

Produce

Fresh is the best buy for vitamins and minerals.
Naturally low in sodium, low in fat and higher in fibre, if skins and seeds are eaten.
Packaged convenience items eliminate the hassle of chopping vegetables.
Choose more dark-green and orange vegetables and orange fruit, which are rich in important nutrients such as vitamin C and A, and folacin.
Many stores offer organically grown produce (grown without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides).

Salad Dressing

Regular, light and non-fat salad dressings offer lots of choices. Taste is the deciding factor for most. Regular versions will be highest in fat, followed by light, then non-fat. Most non-fat dressings have sugar added, so depending on how much you use, you may or may not need to count it.

Breads

Look for "whole wheat" as the first ingredient on the bread label for a high-fibre bread.
"Wheat flour" without the word "whole" is plain white flour and lower in fibre.
Naturally low in fat and a good source of carbohydrate.
Low-in-fat or fat-free muffins are good choices, but may still be high in calories and carbohydrate (sugar).

Meat, Fish, Poultry and Luncheon Meats

Look for luncheon meats that contain three grams of fat or less per serving.
Cuts of meat from the rib section tend to be higher in fat.
Shoulder, rump, loin, round and leg cuts tend to be lower in fat; look for less marbling.
Ground meats are available with reduced fat content.
Ground turkey may not be lower in fat, as fat may be added during processing.
Specialty cuts of poultry are available that require less preparation.
Removing the skin from poultry before cooking will help to decrease fat.

Canned Vegetables, Fruits and Juices

Canned vegetables are traditionally higher in sodium.
Generally low in calories and fat.
Canned beans and peas are excellent sources of soluble fibre.
Legumes such as lentils or kidney beans add variety to meals as an alternative protein source, and require little preparation.
Fruits in syrup will have a higher carbohydrate content. Look for fruits canned in their own juice or water.
When selecting fruit juices, look for 100% juice with no sugar added to save on carbohydrate content (referred to as "unsweetened").
Juice "drinks" usually contain more carbohydrate from sugar.

Soups, Pasta and Sauces, Canned Meats and Dinner Mixes

Soup manufacturers have lowered the fat and sodium levels in many varieties, and have even added vegetarian choices.
Creamed soups can be made with water or skim milk to help reduce fat.
Pasta is available in a variety of flavours, is naturally low in fat and sodium and is a good source of carbohydrate.
Sauces offer a version for every palate; cream and cheese-type sauces tend to be higher in fat.
Look for water-packed seafood and meats canned without oil.
Boxed dinner mixes can reduce meal preparation time, but may be higher in sodium.
Pasta salads, casseroles, rice dishes and bean mixes make meal preparation more convenient.
Omitting margarine saves fat calories. For example, the typical noodle dish in a box calls for margarine to be added to the boiling water before adding the noodles. You will save up to 30 grams of fat without losing the flavour if you don't add the margarine.

Cake/Dessert Mixes, Sugar/Sugar Substitutes, Flour and Oils/Shortening

Regular desserts can be included in the healthy diet for people with diabetes when the food is counted as part of the total carbohydrate for the meal. Sugar and foods with added sugar, such as chocolate and other sweets, should be consumed in moderation and should make up no more than 10% of your daily caloric intake.
15 mL (1 Tbsp) of sugar contains 15 grams of carbohydrate.
Low-fat versions of cake, icing, pudding, cookie and muffin mixes help trim calories, but can be high in sugar.
Gelatins are available in sugar-free, carbohydrate-free versions.
Sugar substitutes are a matter of taste; only certain types are suitable for baking, and substitution guidelines may vary.
Most diet foods such as fructose-sweetened cakes, cookies and candies offer no real benefit over regular desserts. Diet foods contain a carbohydrate sweetener such as sorbitol, mannitol or fructose.
Flours are available in plain white and whole-wheat versions; whole wheat has more fibre.
Oils that are high in monounsaturated fat, such as canola and olive oil, are good choices.
Shortening is high in saturated fat and can contribute to elevated blood cholesterol.
Herbs and spices add variety and flavour to lower-fat dishes and will not raise your blood glucose levels.

Cereal and Breakfast Bars, Pancake Mixes, Syrup and Peanut Butter

Vitamin- and mineral-enriched, high-fibre, and low-fat cereals are the best choices. Some cereals contain almost half of their carbohydrate as sugar.
Breakfast bars are quick and easy. Most are a fruit variety, and provide about 30 grams of carbohydrate per bar; low-fat bars are available to help save calories.
Pancake mixes are available in lower-fat versions; regular versions often taste fine with less oil or egg whites substituted for whole eggs.
Syrups are available in flavoured, regular, light and "no sugar added" versions; not all varieties are low in carbohydrate. Check the label for the serving size and grams of carbohydrate.
Peanut butters can vary in the amounts of total fat and saturated fat.

Frozen Dinners, Vegetables, Meats, Pizza, Breakfast Foods and Juices

Many convenience foods offer low-fat products that provide easy, fast meals. Many low-calorie frozen dinners provide nutrition information on the food label. You may wish to add a salad, milk, bread or fruit to complete some of these meals.
Look for frozen vegetables packaged without a sauce or butter to save fat calories.
Frozen meats may be breaded and have a higher fat content. Check the food label for carbohydrate and fat grams.
Frozen pizzas will vary in fat and carbohydrate content depending on the brand. Consider adding a salad to a pizza meal for more balanced nutrition.
Low-fat frozen waffles, pancakes and breakfast sandwiches are readily available. Sandwiches with breakfast meats such as sausage and bacon are higher in fat.
Look for frozen juice concentrate labeled "no sugar added" or "unsweetened," for less carbohydrate.

Frozen Desserts, Pies, Ice Cream and Cookies

Regular products can be counted as part of the total carbohydrate in the diet. The fat content will vary depending on the type of dessert.
Low-fat dessert products made with sweeteners may still contain carbohydrate.

Snack Chips, Pretzels and Crackers

Low-fat versions are abundant and most are quite tasty. Often the problem with snack foods is that we eat too large a portion. When looking at the food label, examine the serving size and determine if you can restrict yourself to that amount.
Pretzels, saltines, plain popcorn and whole-grain crackers are good low-fat choices.
Nuts and seeds are good sources of protein, B vitamins and vitamin E, and they contain good oils with heart healthy benefits. As nuts are high in calories, only small quantities should be eaten.

Milk, Eggs, Margarine, Cheese and Juice

Skim milk or 1% are recommended because they are lower in fat and cholesterol than 2% or whole milk.
When selecting yogurts, look for low-fat. Fruit yogurts made with Nutrasweet^® and Sucralose will be lower in carbohydrate.
The yolk of the egg contains cholesterol. Egg substitutes are egg-white products with the yolk and cholesterol removed. They are good alternatives to whole eggs if you have elevated cholesterol. Your dietitian will assist you with this decision.
Liquid vegetable oil and non-hydrogenated soft-tub margarine contain less saturated fat than solid or stick margarine.
Low fat, 2% or cheeses such as cottage cheese, ricotta, part-skimmed mozzarella or light Parmesan are good lower-fat choices.
Juices containing 100% fruit juice without added sugar (unsweetened) will be lower in carbohydrate than juice drinks, which have sugar added.