Tag: smart shopping

One more danger from salt — kiss your memory goodbye

Salt causes our bodies all sorts of problems like high blood pressure and bloating but here’s a new one. Salt can contribute to memory loss, according to new research from Australia.

“Dr Samantha Gardener, a research fellow at Edith Cowan University’s McCusker Alzheimer’s Research Foundation in Australia, found that higher sodium consumption may reduce episodic memory, the type used to recall personal experiences and specific events such as where you put your keys or parked your car,” reports The Times of London.

“Looking at the sodium intake and cognitive decline of 1,208 participants over a six-year period, Gardener and her team showed that men who ate the most salt showed a faster decline in episodic recall,” the story reports.

So there’s one more reason to put down the salt shaker and read food labels before you buy packaged foods — if you can remember.

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Maximize Savings: CVS vs Walgreens Couponing Tips

With food prices continuing higher, looking for deals, coupons, sales, etc. is even more important now than in years past. I’ve written about seeking out supermarket deals. But a lot of us turn to drug stores for personal care items. So you need to work every available deal in those as well.

The two national chains, CVS and Walgreens, each have extensive couponing programs. But after trying both, using tips I found online from extreme couponers, CVS is the clear winner in offering deals to consumers.

The Walgreen’s program has more conditions, fine print and road blocks than does CVS. It really seems designed to be a bait-and-switch system, luring you to shop at Walgreens but then forcing you to spend more than you expected.

One recent example I ran into — I bought something there that offered me a $5 register cash reward. Walgreens register rewards are printed coupons that normally come with the restriction they must be used in seven days. So they basically draw you back, likely before you need to shop there again otherwise.

But the coupon I got was even more convoluted. It was for $5 off a future purchase. But it was only activated after I shopped there again and spent a certain amount (I think it was $20). Only then would it be activated — and for my next trip!

So I would need to make three shipping trips to get that $5; the first one, the second to activate it and the third to spend it! It’s an insult to shoppers, really. Shame on you Walgreens.

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The cheapest groceries aren’t at a grocery store

Grocery prices have reached the stratosphere and we’re all scrambling to lower our food bills. Enter Consumer Reports which recently looked at where the cheapest groceries can be found.

My advice to lower your food bill — wherever you shop, plan weekly trips, search out deals and then plan your meals accordingly. I save between 30-50% on weekly trips, as this receipt shows.

Surprise, the winner wasn’t a traditional supermarket or even Walmart, it was Costco.

“Only six chains nationwide had lower prices than Walmart, and the cheapest grocery store in America was none other than Costco. According to the study, groceries at Costco cost, on average, 21.4% less than at Walmart,” reports Delish in analyzing the Consumer Reports study.

But before you run to Costco, keep in mind there are some downsides to shopping there. You have to buy a membership, to start. Costco also doesn’t stock as many grocery products as traditional stores. And you likely have to buy in large quantities, more than a small family might need.

But you could join with neighbors, splitting the $65 membership fee and dividing up what you purchase.

BJ’s Wholesale came in second, another warehouse concept store.

My advice for getting lower prices — shop sales, use coupons and plan your weekly trip, and your weekly menu to maximize your purchasing power. I rarely pay full-price for any grocery item.

My goal each week — to save at least 33 – 40% off full price for my weekly shopping list.

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Consumers fret over food costs; here’s where they hurt most

Consumer confidence has been dropping in recent weeks as food prices remain high. Some foods, like eggs, remain extremely high because of a plague sweeping the country’s bird population.

USAToday recently reported on a study by WalletHub that showed people are paying the highest percentages of their incomes for food mostly in southern states.

Food prices remain stubbornly high. Here are the states feeling the most pain.

States where shoppers spend the highest percentage of income on groceries are:

  • Mississippi (2.64%) 
  • West Virginia (2.57%) 
  • Arkansas (2.49%) 
  • Kentucky (2.41%) 
  • Louisiana (2.39%) 
  • New Mexico (2.36%) 
  • Alabama (2.34%) 
  • South Carolina (2.27%) 
  • Tennessee (2.23%) 
  • Oklahoma (2.21%) 

“The top states also coincide with the states where the median income is the lowest in the country, said Chip Lupo, writer and analyst for WalletHub,” USAToday reports. U.S. food prices have risen a total of roughly 25% in the past five years, the newspaper reports.

Continue reading “Consumers fret over food costs; here’s where they hurt most” →
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Weight loss & food choices, really?

LoseIt has been pumping out a lot of diet info as the new year begins. This one particularly caught my eye because it seems kind of guffy, Most-Logged Foods in 2024 by Those Who’ve Lost 50 Pounds or More.

Banks are something I have daily.
Photo by Couleur on Pexels.com

Does eating these foods regularly lead to weight loss? That’s the implication. But our nutrition and eating habits are much more complex than that, I’d contend.

LoseIt looks at it this way, “Food choices play a crucial role in losing weight, and our Lose It! members understand this well. From breakfast to dinner, they carefully log their meals to maintain consistency and stay on track with their weight loss goals. These 11 foods were the most popular in 2024 among members who achieved an impressive weight loss of 50 pounds or more.”

You decide. The food are eggs, bananas, blueberries, chicken breast, white rice, bacon and 2% milk.

Bacon and white rice are on my heart-patient do-not-eat list, so I’m not so sure if they would help me use weight. I’m lactose-intolerant, so milk is also out. Egg prices have gone so high recently because of bird flu that I’m stopped buying them. And I don’t like blueberries. I do eat bananas every day to maintain my potassium levels.

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Up for a wellness challenge? Check out NYT

The New York Times started the year with a five-day wellness challenge, a series to help you shop for healthier foods.

Fiber One ultraprocessed? Yes, according to the Times.

Day one defines ultra processed foods and gives you a digital game to see how much of what you buy can fit the definition.

Some of the results may surprise you, as I’m sure they were picked to do.

I found out, for example, that Fiber One cereal, my fallback buy when I can’t find Trader Joe’s High Fiber Cereal, is considered ultra processed because of thickening agents and Sucrolose it contains.

How does the series define ultraprocessed?

“Ultraprocessed foods, or UPFs, are commonly defined as products you couldn’t typically make in your own kitchen. They contain ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, protein isolates, emulsifiers and artificial flavors, colors and sweeteners. Think chicken nuggets, hot dogs, flavored yogurts, sodas and many breakfast cereals, packaged breads and snack foods,” it states.

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A primer on building your food budget

Rising food costs have obsessed consumers in these post-Covid times. While signs have emerged that costs have leveled off, they likely won’t fall any time soon, so everyone needs to work on budgeting for their food needs. If you haven’t done this, a good place to start is with this primer The New York Times ran recently entitled 9 Tips to Stretch Your Food Budget.

Among the tips are changes in lifestyle — eat less meat, snacking less and avoid wasting food. But there are also ways to save money, like using coupons and knowing your grocery store and how to find the cheaper offerings in a. given food category.

Coupons these days are largely digital, be sure to have the shopping app for every store you shop at to get their best deals. Also, check out national couponing sites. These tend to have coupons for major brands, which I tend to avoid because they’re usually the most expensive, but you can get occasional deals.

My goal is to only buy sale/coupon items every time I shop, and to save at least 30% off full prices overall. You can see an example of one of my recent receipts here with all the discounts noted.

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Grocery costs stable in May but still higher than 3 years ago

The good news is that inflation, and the increases seen in food prices the past three years, are moderating. The bad news, those food prices are still 20% higher overall than they were three years ago.

Everything you buy should be a deal or a sale, check this receipt of mine to see the savings.

Grocery prices were unchanged in May compared with April, according to Consumer Price Index information released for May recently.

“Wednesday’s report indicated that consumers are beginning to get some relief from the price spikes of the past three years. Grocery costs were unchanged, on average, from April to May, after actually falling 0.2% the previous month. Food prices have risen just 1% over the past 12 months, though they’re still up about 20% from three years ago,” reports Associated Press.

Smart shopping can cut your food bills, always be on the lookout for digital deals and other possible savings when you plan your weekly food shopping trips.

Producers won’t cut prices unless demand drops dramatically, so it’s up to you to manage your budget and find the deals.

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Low-salt Easter turkeys are scarce in 2024

One of the most popular posts on my blog this time of year deals with making turkey for Easter dinner to cut down on your salt intake at the holiday table. You can read it by clicking Low-salt Easter dinner: how to enjoy the holiday meal.

Sarra Lee reduced sodium oven roasted turkey
Beware self-basting turkeys, they are loaded with salt. Always read the nutrition label before buying.

In the post-Covid food retailing environment, however, finding a fresh, low-sodium turkey has been tough. Two mainline supermarkets I went to had only one turkey brand, Jennie-O or Butterball, in freezer and refrigerated cases crammed with high-salt hams. Those turkeys come with self-basting fluids that are loaded with salt.

I finally turned to Whole Foods which thankfully had fresh turkeys, although even those had more salt, 125 mg a serving, than truly fresh turkeys which have about 75 mgs per serving. And I had to pay up, around $3 a pound, for the fresh turkey.

Another issue, stores are no longer carrying low-fat turkey gravy. During and after Covid, supermarkets cut the number of products they carried to simplify their supply chain management, and to increase profits. Low-salt, low-fat and low-sugar items suffered as a result.

Shop carefully this Easter, always read nutrition labels and enjoy a peaceful Sunday dinner.

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Thanksgiving food costs are down; here’s how to drive them even lower

The good news for Thanksgiving 2023 is that food costs are down compared to last year. The American Farm Bureau estimates you can feed Thanksgiving dinner to a family of 10 this year for $61.17 compared with $64.05 act year.

But if you’re a smart shopper, you can drive your costs down even more. To do that:

Continue reading “Thanksgiving food costs are down; here’s how to drive them even lower” →
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