If you want to improve your health and lose weight, you should use a grocery list before you shop for food. A recent article comparing the weight of those people who shopped for food using a grocery list and those who didn’t showed that making a list before shopping led to more weight reduction.
A couple of things were key:
1. Don’t shop when you are hungry
2. What you buy is important – Include healthy green leafy vegetables in your daily diet. The best are the ABC’s
Arugula, Broccoli, Cabbage (Red, Green,or Purple; cooked or raw), Spinach and Kale
According to a new study in the Journal of Nutrition and Education Behavior, using a Grocery List Is Associated With a Healthier Diet and Lower BMI Among Very High-Risk Adults.
Researchers went door to door collecting demographic information, height and weight, and details about a person’s diet. This was in lower-income neighborhoods in Pittsburgh that are considered “food deserts,”meaning residents who live there have few options for healthy food. Most of the residents in the neighborhood had household incomes below $20,000 and the majority were African-American.
What researchers found when they asked more than 1,300 residents about their grocery shopping habits was that nearly a third said they always shopped with a list. Some 17% said they sometimes shopped with a list, while 26% said they never bothered.
The group that planned before they shopped weighed less than the other groups. On average they weighed at least 5 pounds less than those who did more free-range shopping.
People who live in food-insecure neighborhoods often suffer disproportionally from obesity-related illnesses and chronic conditions.
So here are some free Apps for shopping with a list:
Grocery IQ ( for iPhone)
DietPoint (for Android and iPhone)