By Shamira McCray (Morning News)

Dietitian Kitty Finklea taught Florence’s Biggest Loser contestants how to properly read food labels during a field trip to Harris Teeter on Tuesday evening.

Finklea gave a lesson on label reading before splitting up the contestants into smaller groups and sending them to find healthy foods throughout the store. Food items were then brought back to the group and nutrition facts such as protein, fiber, and calories were compared.

Contestants learned that some food packaging may advertise a certain “healthy ingredient” but may lack other healthy components.

When out grocery shopping, Finklea said, there are two things people should think about: the quality of food and the quantity for weight management.

“When you’re looking at food labels, the first thing you want to do is look at the ingredients,” Finklea said. “Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight.”

It is important to make sure ingredients in food items are indeed real food and not so much preservatives and chemicals.

“One thing they (contestants) were really surprised about was that a lot of times people don’t look at the serving size on labels, and all of the nutrients are based on whatever the serving size is,” Finklea said. “The fiber and protein keep you full, and for weight management, that’s extremely important.”

Biggest Loser contestants also learned the following general goals of grocery shopping:

• Stay out of the store when you’re physically hungry.
• Find healthy products that taste good to you.
• Shop from a list.
• Pick no more that 1 to 3 items (calories, carbohydrates, sodium, etc.) to focus on when reading labels.
• The outer perimeter of the store is usually less processed and a better source of healthier food items.

Contestant Stephen Cullen said Tuesday’s field trip was helpful for him, but he was already aware of the information that was taught.

“Some of it was new information – just learning to pay more attention to the ingredients list and try and keep things a little more natural, I think that’s a good point,” Cullen said.

Other tips from the field trip:

>> People with diabetes, cholesterol problems , and hypertension should focus on different nutrients.

>> People with diabetes should focus on consistent carbohydrate intake at meals and snacks for improved blood sugar control.

>> Decreasing saturated and trans fat with a daily goal of 20 grams or less per day can help with cholesterol.

>> Folks with hypertension should focus on sodium with a daily goal of 1,500-2,300 milligrams per day.

>> Focusing on the ingredient list, serving sizes, and nutrition facts is the key to choosing healthy options when grocery shopping.

 

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