Follow the Stars—How to Use Guiding Stars

Shopping for groceries is about way more than just filling a cart with food. It’s about making sure that cart reflects your nutrition goals. You may walk into the supermarket with it all very clear in your mind, but suddenly you realize there are way more options than you anticipated. All of those choices can be confusing, especially if you are trying to eat a little better. Enter Guiding Stars, the guidance program that takes the guesswork out of shopping for more nutritious foods.

You’ve seen the green tags hanging when you shop at your local store or you’ve noticed the Guiding Stars symbol on your favorite store brand, Taste of Inspirations or Nature’s Promise products. But, what do they mean?

This tag and symbol mean you’ve made a more nutritious choice and that you are getting more of the good stuff and less of the stuff you are, likely, trying to limit. The tags show products with more omega fats, vitamins, minerals, fiber and whole grain, and with less saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, sugar and artificial colors.

You may still need to turn over the package to review the food label or check for allergens but looking for the Guiding Stars symbol can help you narrow down a section, the cereal aisle for example, to the more nutritious options that are worthy of your dollar. You’ll find Guiding Stars symbols throughout the store, except when you’re shopping for coffee, tea, spices or water. If you don’t see a star, then that just means the item didn’t earn one. This doesn’t make this food a bad choice it just means you should seek to balance your cart with items that do earn stars.

The good news is that it’s easy to add more stars to your cart (and ultimately your diet!). Try these simple tips:

·       Choose whole grain bread in place of white bread

·       Look for star rated cereals

·       Make fruits and veggies part of your cart every shopping trip

·       Seek lean meats, chicken, fish, fresh shrimp and eggs

·       Limit your intake of cheese, coconut oil and whole milk dairy products

Follow the stars with these “star approved” recipes!

Buffalo Chicken Tacos: 1 Star

Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup: 2 Stars

Egg Fried Rice: 3 Stars

Visit Guiding Stars’ website for recipes and more. Follow Savory Online for more recipe ideas with Guiding Stars in mind.