smart shopping – The No Salt, No Fat, No Sugar Journal

Healthier items disappearing from Mariano’s shelves???

I really hope this was a one-time out-of-stock case, but I’m not hopeful of that since I didn’t see shelf tags for either product. Please Mariano’s don’t let me down.

The Mariano’s supermarket chain took Chicago by storm a few years ago, generating so much positive buzz that Kroger in 2015 bought it and it’s parent company, Roundy’s for $800 million.

I've found two brands of low-sodium,low-sugar ketchup, Westbrae and LocalFolks Foods. — Localfolks ketchup, on the right, my favorite.

Mariano’s brought an approach to food sales that Wegman’s is known for on the East Coast — stores with more prepared foods and in-store chefs and eating areas, to the Midwest. What I liked about Mariano’s was that it stocked more low-salt and low-fat products than the major supermarket chains tend to do.

But my latest shopping trip to a Mariano’s in Skokie, Il., caused me some concern about whether that’s all changing under Kroger ownership. I go to Mariano’s specifically to buy three products — Kraft fat-free shredded mozzarella, low-salt canned olives and my favorite low-salt, low-sugar ketchup from Localfolks. But Mariano’s had neither the cheese nor the olives on my latest trip. Continue reading “Healthier items disappearing from Mariano’s shelves???”

NoSaltNoFatNoSugar.com achieves all-time high view total in January

More people are finding us and hearing our message. January was a record month, in fact, for views of our site. NoSaltNoFatNoSugar.com had 6,174 views in January from 3,243 visitors.

The mission for this blog since I started it in late 2012 has been to help people with health issues eat tasty, satisfying food rather than just the bland stuff nutritionists propose after a major health incident such as my angioplasty in 2012.

Those in my family who have died from heart attacks. I miss them all.

But helping people is only possible if they’re listening, otherwise I’m just another tree falling in the forest, unknown and unseen and not helping anyone.

So it’s been gratifying to see our visitor traffic building year after year. More people are finding us and hearing our message. January was a record month, in fact, for views of our site. NoSaltNoFatNoSugar.com had 6,174 views in January from 3,243 visitors. Continue reading “NoSaltNoFatNoSugar.com achieves all-time high view total in January”

Healthy Heart Market offering shipping discount

Healthy Heart Market is a good place to shop online for low-salt offerings you can’t find in local stores. I turned to it extensively after my 2012 angioplasty as I dropped salt, fat and sugar from my daily eating routine.

Continue reading “Healthy Heart Market offering shipping discount”

Costco offers diabetes, heart-healthy shopping guide

Regular readers know I’m a big Costco shopper and usually deconstruct a Costco food court salad once a week for a lunch there after my shopping trip.

You can find healthy items there, but like everywhere else, you need to know what to look for and you need to read labels, especially because products come and go at Costco. I’ve written about that before, click here to read that post.

You can download the booklet at this link: cdiabetesshoppingnov21

It covers the basics, so if you’ve researched food and diabetes or heart issues before you might not need it. but if you;re new to the topics, it’s a good first step.

If Healthy Eating Is Your Life, You Need These Kitchen Items Now

We all know that it can be a struggle sometimes cutting back on salt, fat, and sugar. But we also know that these things are not great for our health, that is why we did it. But did you know that there are lots of awesome kitchen gadgets out there that make cooking without these things, not only possible but easy? No? Well, keep reading for a cooking revelation.

Blenders

Blenders are a great tool to have in any kitchen. Bt they can particularly help the low salt, low sugar, low-fat kitchen because they are brilliant at creating flavor. Continue reading “If Healthy Eating Is Your Life, You Need These Kitchen Items Now”

If you believe foods can speed your metabolism, try these

I did better with the second four — black pepper, oily fish, water and broccoli. Broccoli is everywhere on my low-salt, low-sugar, low-fat diet. Check my recipe page for different ways to make it.

Claims about foods and superfoods come and go, so I usually don’t put a lot of faith into anyone touting any food as helping with your health or specific aspects of it. But I tend to be more skeptical than most on the subject.

Put the trimmed broccoli in the steamer basket, cover and set the timer to the recommended cooking time. — My take on broccoli for Thanksgiving — steam it

So when I recently read this piece on 8 Foods That Can Help You Speed Up Your Metabolism I decided I’d share it with you all and you can decide whether you believe it or not. As we age, our metabolisms supposedly slow down, making it more difficult to maintain a healthy weight. So maybe these can help a bit. Continue reading “If you believe foods can speed your metabolism, try these”

Think you’re eating healthy? Think again

Read every label and don’t buy foods, whether at a supermarket or restaurant, if you can’t see nutrition information.

When I first met with a nutritionist to discuss health eating after my 2012 angioplasty, I brought along four pages of foods I liked to eat. She told me one by one that they were all unhealthy. Most had too much of one or more of what I call the evil triangle of American food — sugar, salt or fat.

My low-salt, low-fat, low-sugar pantry. Are these healthy? For me, they are. Read every label before buying any food products.

This blog is the result of that meeting and of my attempt to keep eating foods I find tasty while cutting out the evil triangle. But it is extremely tough in a world of so many mixed food messages. That point was brought home to me by a recent piece I read on npr.org headlined 75 Percent of Americans Say They Eat Healthy — Despite Evidence To The Contrary. Continue reading “Think you’re eating healthy? Think again”