Heart-Healthy Tips: National Nutrition Month

Monday, 02 March 2009
Focus on making healthy food choices this March during National Nutrition Month®. Sponsored by the American Dietetic Association, National Nutrition Month is a nutrition education campaign that promotes healthy eating and physical activity habits. This year, the campaign is encouraging everyone to eat right for every age and lifestyle.

Use these low-calorie alternatives for old favorites to help you eat right while still enjoying a variety of foods. When making a food choice, remember to consider all the information on the food label. Some foods provide most of their calories from sugar and fat but give you few, if any, vitamins and minerals. Find more tips like these here.

Instead of: Try this:

Dairy
Whole milk Low-fat (1%), reduced fat (2%), or fat-free milk
Ice cream Sorbet, sherbet, low-fat or fat-free frozen yogurt
Whipping cream Imitation whipped cream (made with skim milk)
Sour cream Plain low-fat yogurt
Cream cheese Neufchatel or “light” or fat-free cream cheese

Cereal, Grains, and Pastas
Ramen noodles Rice or whole-grain pasta
Pasta with white sauce Pasta with red sauce
Pasta with cheese Pasta with vegetables
Granola Cooked grits or oatmeal, low-fat granola, bran

Meat, Fish, and Poultry
Bacon or sausage Canadian bacon or lean ham
Ground beef Extra lean ground beef or ground turkey
Duck, goose, or skin-on Skinless, white meat chicken or turkey
chicken or turkey
Oil-packed tuna Water-packed tuna (rinse to reduce sodium)
Beef (chuck, rib, brisket) Beef (round, loin), trimmed
Pork (spareribs) Pork tenderloin or trimmed, lean smoked ham
Frozen breaded or fried Fish or shellfish, unbreaded
Whole eggs Egg whites or egg substitutes
Chorizo sausage Turkey or vegetarian sausage

Baked Goods
Croissants Hard French rolls or soft rolls
Donuts, sweet rolls, English muffins, bagels, reduced-fat and fat-free muffins, scones, or pastries muffins or scones
Cake (pound, chocolate, Cake (angel food, white, gingerbread)
yellow)

Fats, Oils, and Salad Dressings
Margarine or butter Light spread margarine, whipped butter
Mayonnaise Light or diet mayonnaise or mustard
Salad dressing Reduced-calorie or fat-free dressings, lemon juice
Oils, shortening, or lard Nonstick cooking spray; when baking, use
applesauce or prune puree as a substitute for oil or
butter

Miscellaneous
Canned Cream soups Canned broth-based soups (choose low-sodium)Gravy (homemade with fat) Gravy mixes made with water or homemade with

the fat skimmed off and fat-free milk
Fudge sauce Chocolate syrup
Guacamole dip Salsa

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