>>>Click here to see the interview<<<

You don’t need to go on a diet or spend a ton of money of “health food” products. Eating healthy can be as simple as swapping out staples food item for healthier versions.

Let’s take a look at common food items that we can upgrade that can have a long-term positive impact on our health!

Upgrade to whole grains!

Bread: Go with 100% whole grain whole wheat bread over white bread. Why? 

White bread is refined and has the nutrient-rich germ processed out, as well as beneficial nutrients, vitamins, minerals, protein, fibre and healthy fats. 

Did you know that not all whole wheat bread is whole grain?

Whole wheat bread is made with whole wheat flour. As sold in Canada, whole wheat flour may have much of the germ removed. Therefore, 100% whole wheat bread may not be whole grain – however, it remains a nutritious choice that provides dietary fibre not found in white bread. Source: Health Canada http://bit.ly/1pCAa6p

So here is a visual on the upgrade

White bread —> Whole wheat bread –> Whole grain bread

Grains and starches: Go with whole grains like brown rice, wildrice, oats, whole grain pasta, wheat berries or ancient grains like quinoa!

Research is also showing that diets rich in whole grain foods improve cholesterol, blood pressure, improve digestive health and helps manage your weight better!

Swap out foods that have hidden sugar

Yogurt – There a way too many yogurt products on the market right now. The big offenders are flavoured yogurt. Did you know that many flavoured yogurts have the same amount of sugar in them as ice cream? Some have 20 grams or more per-serving. What would you rather have for breakfast, yogurt or ice-cream?

Best option, keep it simple –> Go with plain yogurt, add fruit. Save flavoured yogurts for a treat or dessert.

Granola bars  -Most granola bars that you buy at the store have a lot of added sugar in them and are more like candy bars. Try to find granola bars at the store that have less than 10 grams of sugar per bar …its pretty hard. These are my favorites.

Peanut butter–  Not all peanut butter is created equal! A lot of peanut butters are filled with added fat, salt and sugar. Go with ones that only have one ingredient …peanuts. This goes for all nut butters. *note: stir them up and keep them in the fridge once you have opened up the jar.

These are just a few “Upgrades” & “Swap Out’s” that I do at home with my family that I find are easy to implement.

Try to upgrade one item at a time, and by no means demonize the foods that you have swapped out. White bread is not evil, it’s just not an everyday food choice. I love to make homemade white bread, and I find it next to impossible to make sushi with quinoa, lol. So take it slow and each time you go shopping decide to try something new by upgrading or swaping out to one of these healthier version!

Take care!

~Susan

Note: A big thank you to Natures Path for sending me product for this interview!