Grocery Store Rule: Shop the Perimeter?
Grocery Store Rule: Shop the Perimeter? Maybe not.
Honestly, one of my least favorite things to do is to grocery shop. That maze of aisles, looking for that elusive product (where are the jars or roasted red peppers? ), the lines, and interacting with people! I embraced curbside pickup way before 2020, not from laziness but for the health of all involved.
But for those who go inside (or will return to this way of shopping), I address this to you.
The setup of the grocery store is deliberate. From product placement within the store to which items go on the top shelf vs. the middle or bottom. Did you know that many times the “bargains” are sometimes regular-priced items, just featured that day or week?
Grocery stores have a captive audience. “They” know we have to go there regularly, on average 2-4 times a week!
Sometimes you will hear dietitians and other health professionals tell people to “shop the perimeter” as a smart shopping strategy. This recommendation is from a classic grocery store set up of the fresh, whole foods being the perimeter of most stores, like produce, fresh meat, dried beans and nuts, and dairy products. Granted, stores vary in their setup, and there are exceptions to this sometimes.
While “shop the perimeter” is a good guideline, we need to take care with that recommendation for many reasons:
Many stores have a bakery near the front entrance and part of the perimeter. While there are some healthy items there (whole wheat pita bread?), for the most part, you can skip this part.
The dairy section with low-fat and fat-free milk and yogurt and some cheese? Yes. Even moderate amounts of whole milk and full-fat yogurt are fine. But, whipped cream and dips? Not so much.
The meat section has many healthy options: fresh fish, turkey, chicken, lean beef, and pork. There are also not-so-healthy options such as the highly marbled meats (high saturated fat), sausages, and sometimes various parts of the cow and pig that I would prefer not to see, let alone mention.
Alcohol! Alcohol has its benefits, but some people only shop in this section or shop it a bit too much.
While the purpose of touting “shopping the perimeter” is because the aisles tend to carry the more processed food, but it is essential to know that the aisles have great items too!
Cereal: Whole grain and low in added sugar cereals such as oatmeal, cream of wheat, and several ready-to-eat kinds of cereal are just fine! It is the sweetened cereals that we need to limit.
Oils including olive oil, Canola oil, and even the various specialty oils such as peanut and sesame oil.
Herbs and Spices: Flavors and more flavors for your cooking, especially if you are working on reducing your sodium intake. Jarred spices such as minced ginger and minced garlic are my favorite in this area. It saves so much time; we go through about three jars a month.
Cans: I loved canned foods! Canned beans (black, white, pinto, and garbanzos are very popular in my home), canned fish (tuna, salmon, and sardines, gag), canned fruit like peaches, pineapple, and mandarin oranges, and canned diced tomatoes which I buy by the case. But canned foods are high in sodium and sugar. Drain and rinse every single can of beans and drain the fruit to cut sodium and sugar content. If you choose soups and vegetables, select the lower sodium versions, and rinse your vegetables before cooking.
There are always plenty of healthy food items in the aisles and plenty of not-so-healthy foods on the perimeter. So, the lists above are not all-inclusive of the many grocery store options.
So, while there are “rules” for grocery shopping, this one is okay to break if you do it right.
