Get a heart-healthy grocery basket

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - A big part of being heart healthy starts in the grocery store by buying the right kinds of foods.

"There are so many products in a grocery store so it is a little overwhelming, but once you clue into what you are looking for, it becomes easier. You learn what product your family likes and you can stick with that," Lutheran Hospital Outpatient Dietitian Beverly Moellering said.

To learn what to clue in on, NewsChannel 15 went shopping with Moellering and Kris Foate. Moellering evaluated Foate's choices and recommended some better options.

"About 50 to 70 percent of her basket was already heart healthy. I just had a couple of other things you can do in addition," Moellering.

The first tips were to use a list and stick to the outside of the grocery store.

"Establish that list before getting to the store so you don't shop by sight," Moellering said. "The perimeter will have more of your wholesome foods."

Their first stop was in the produce section, where a lot of foods have heart-healthy fiber.

"Soluable fiber is like a little sponge going through your system trying to soak up your extra bad cholesterol," Moellering said.

It's not only the spice of life, variety is also the key to buying produce.

"I learned to make sure you have a colorful basket; it's healthier," Foate said.

In addition to fruits and vegetables, Mollering and Foate also talked about adding nuts into a healthy diet.

"Walnuts and almonds are a good source of protein and walnuts have a lot of Omega-3, which is good for protecting the heart," Moellering said.

Bread is also a good source of fiber. Each slice should have 2-3 grams to be heart healthy.

When buying cereal it's also important to look at the fiber. Mollering said around 6 grams per serving is good. She also advised to watch out for a lot of added sugar.

Some argue shopping for healthier items can be more expensive, but Moellering said there are ways to save money and still get the heart-healthy food.

"Produce that is in season is a little cheaper, you can buy in bulk, like a bag of apples. In the winter you can buy frozen fruits and vegetables with no added sugar or salt. Beans and lentils are a very inexpensive protein," Moellering said.

Not only are beans less expensive than meat, they are healthier. In general, it's better to buy more plant-based foods instead of animal-based foods, but when buying meat, there are ways to buy healthier options.

"You will have cholesterol and that bad saturated fat [because it's from an animal] so eat smaller portions and watch for loin, round, sirloin, skinless, boneless." Moellering said.

Instead of ground beef, ground turkey breast and frozen soy crumbles are healthier options for the heart. The crumbles are used just as ground beef would be used.

Choosing the reduced-fat or fat-free cheeses is also an easy change for heart health.

"You can also buy the sharper cheeses so it's stronger and you don't have to use as much in your item," Moellering said.

One weakness for Foate was sour cream. Moellering suggested buying the reduced-fat or using fat-free plain yogurt instead.

"I said, 'ok' and snuck the sour cream in my basket," Foate laughed.

But, Foate admitted over time change isn't so bad.

"Like with most things, if you start changing it will taste as good as what you've been used to," she said.

Foate also changed her pasta to whole wheat.

"I'll mix it in with the regular and cover it with sauce so you can't even tell," she said.

Eventually, she won't use white pasta at all. But, it's important to read labels when buying the sauce and watch out for too much sodium.

"The easy rule for sodium is 5 percent or lower is low in sodium and 20 percent or higher is too high in sodium," Moellering said.

Now Foate said she will start using a shopping list to prevent impulse buying and will change what's on her list.

"I am going to try to utilize more plant-based items [instead of animal-based items]," Foate said.

Click on the stories on the left side of the page in the sidebar "Heart Healthy Extras" to watch bonus videos of Moellering explaining how to shop for different foods.