Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 13, 1991 TAG: 9102130132
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-6 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: KIM SUNDERLAND/ NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
February is American Heart Month, and Radford Community Hospital is sponsoring grocery shopping tours to teach area residents what they need to know about healthy eating.
And part of a healthy lifestyle is learning to read labels on food products correctly.
"Labels can be deceiving," said B.J. Willard, tour coordinator. "We want to teach people how to read labels and to read between the lines. A lot of what you read on the product is a marketing game."
The free, one-hour tours, which run all month, are conducted by a registered dietitian and focus on how consumers can measure the fat content of foods. Fat, especially saturated fat, is hardest on the heart.
There are also hints on how to make generally healthier food buys.
Radford Community Hospital, as a member of HeartNet of the Virginias, is offering the tours as a public service. The event was kicked off Tuesday morning at Wade's in Christiansburg.
A half-dozen people met in the produce department and were taken along nearly every aisle. Items were picked randomly from shelves, and packaging and contents were discussed.
One of the biggest culprits of heart disease is fat. The American Heart Association says the average American gets 36 percent of his calories from fat.
The heart association recommends reducing fat intake to 30 percent of calories - or lower.
"You've got to be choosey and use moderation," said June Simonetti, the Radford Community clinical dietitian who conducted Tuesday's tour. "And cutting fat will help your heart."
But fat is easily hidden in prepared foods. It lurks in snack crackers, "lite" frozen dinners, microwave popcorn, premixed pasta salads and even some breakfast cereals.
And saturated fats - primarily found in poultry, meat and dairy products - raise cholesterol levels.
If a food contains no animal products it will be cholesterol free, but it may still contain saturated fat - found in cocoa butter, coconut, palm oil, hydrogenated vegetable oil and solid vegetable shortening.
Check a food item's ingredients list. The ingredient in the greatest amount is listed first, with others in descending order. Limit your intake of those foods listing the sources of saturated fat mentioned above or near the top of the list.
There is plenty of free information available when you register for the tour - low-fat cooking tips, food-labeling terms and what they mean, and smart substitutions to make to help cut saturated fat and total fat.
Tours are scheduled for the following times and locations.
\ Feb. 19: Wade's, Dublin, 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.
\ Feb. 20: Radford Bros., Blacksburg, 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.
\ Feb. 26: Food Lion, Tyler Avenue, Radford, 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.
Call 731-2555 for information and to register.
by CNB