This is so fun to read....I guess I never really thought about if and do or don't...so, basically I don't look that often while I am shopping. Once in a while. I do look at the checkout counter while I am waiting in line to pay. I'll look at the what the people ahead of me are buying - as they put it on the place by the register.

I sometimes think that the check out person might be thinking....oh, I must be back on my 'diet'. LOL

Ha! I so agree! i would probably be looking in her cart for inspiration.

I understand stretching a dollar as I grew up in a large family. Also, during the first part of my marriage money was tight, and creative nutrition was the order of the day. What I have a hard time with is that instead of spending money on cheaper, unhealthy foods, they can take that same amount of money and buy a smaller amount of healthier food. It may not be as filling initially, until the body adjusts to the smaller amount, but it would be healthier. I mean, what's the point of eating filling foods that leave you malnourished? It would be better to eat less food that provides the body with real nourishment, and then have junk food only on occasion. Oh well, I guess I have a hard time with this issue because I look at it from a nutritional stand point whereas others may look at it more from an "emotional/social deprivation" issue.

I do agree with you on the restaurant issue though. That's a different setting altogether, and as you said, they could be there for a special occasion.

I always look at peoples carts. It used to be b/c I am nosey, but now I do pay attention to "healthy" looking people especially. Ill take a leg up anyway I can get it.

I try to do my shopping at a Giant where I use a hand-held scanner as I go, put my stuff in bags in my cart, and then check out with the scanner at the end. No need to put my items on the belt or have a checker deal with them.

That being said, when I do the traditional "put the food on the belt" checkout, I do find myself looking at the stuff of the person ahead of me or behind me. And I have to think they must be confused by my options:

• No fresh meat, but frozen chicken breasts, sausages, chicken nuggets and fishsticks (chicken breasts for me and DH, the rest for picky DD) -- my husband goes to a butcher each week for our fresh meat and cheese
• Lots of produce
• Full fat cheese, cottage cheese, and butter
• Nuts and popcorn
• Fiber cereal
• No milk (we have ours delivered)
• Very little snacky stuff or sweets

In some ways it seems healthy (veggies) and in others not (butter and cheese). That's the moderate-carb way.

I love this thread! It's sooo true: I always look at other people's trolleys or baskets ;D

Students and young families: Really cheap & processed food like pasta and ready meals. Usually very little or no fruits and vegetables because they are quite pricey here! (I live in Wales in the United Kingdom, wooh!)

Overweight, thin people & families on benefits: Loads of junk food! Usually the baby sitting in the trolley seat is eating chocolate or drinking Coke. Makes me mad!

People with good jobs (of any body shape!): Plenty of healthy food, expensive brands and plenty of fruits and vegetables. Very little treats but it's usually something expensive and organic like Ben & Jerry's!

Old people: A lot of bread and fish! Maybe jam spread and paste? Wholemeal bread and healthy cereals. Fun sized sweets for the grandkids. Gotta love the oldies! :]

NOW .. my trolley or basket ;]
Well, I don't do the food shopping because I live with my parents but if I do go to a food supermarket, it's usually because I want junk food! I don't buy a lot, though. It usually happens when I fancy watching a movie so I go and pick up Ben & Jerry's, trash magazines, Coke & things like that! :]

Beth :]

Oh, by the way .. I always go to the self check-out service because I'm too paranoid to let the cashier look at my food, hehe.

I think you misunderstood my post. Nutrition and care and emotion all go hand in hand. I feel that having been in the situation of having to eat very poorly, well, because of poorness, I both understand why families do shop in a specific way, and I wish I knew how to help them. That is what I wish. I wish we could get back to basics, and farmer's markets were everyday, and corner stores had fresh fruits and veggies, rather than 40s and cheetos.

Of course I do feel sad when I see families not buying the most nutritional food. My suggestion is that we have to be careful how we view things, afterall, people who have always watched their weight may judge us just as harshly, wondering how we got to be the size we are, or why we don't know about nutrition? See how easy it is to get into that way of thinking?

In multiple areas there is an abundance of cheap, and high processed foods. There are not always the more nutritious food options. My statement for those that may be quick to judge negatively the family with poor shopping habits is to first think---Would any parent want to willingly harm their child? No. Of course not. So, it may be a combination of a lack of information and knowledge about healthier eating, coupled with perhaps lack of awareness of how to cook. And, trying to manage all of that will very little money.


Also, if you take a person that does not eat consistently---some days they have at least 1 meal, some times they go a couple of days without anything, on a rare day they may eat multiple times. If you take that person, who is in such a bad situation, is it right to tell them to take that dollar and buy $1 dollar worth of fruits and veggies, which are nutritious yes, but low in calories, or to buy the $1 double cheeseburger, that while high in fat and sodium and super processed, also has a good amount of protein and a high amount of calories? What would be the best thing to say in that situation?

I do feel strongly about this topic because I see this growing devide between the availability of healthy food and better healthy, and poorer quality food and poorer health.

Sounds like my cart---when I am being good, of course! We don't have a milk delivery option though. It probably tastes way different from the stuff in the cartons.

I had no idea there was such a thing! I'd love that. Does it keep a running tally for you of how much you've spent? When we're budgeting, it's always tricky to make sure I don't go over my grocery allowance.

i take glimpes of other people's carts but not in order to judge them.. more like comparing them to mine. and i am happy i usually win in my head in comparison.

doesn't say anything about the person, and i do not make any assumptions, it's just self-awareness mostly for me.

on the checkout though, i really look at what the person in front of me is buying, just out of curiosity and because there's nothing better to do!

Yep, you get a running total, and can easily subtract things that you have already added. You also get a total of how much you've saved, if you're in their Saver program.

It's nice to not have to wait in checkout, but it takes a little longer for the actual shopping because you're scanning and bagging as you go.

http://www.giantfood.com/our_stores/tools.htm

I often wonder what the folks at my grocery store think of me.

See, I shop at 4-5 different places. I get all produce and eggs at the Farmer's Market, my meats from a specialty butcher, dried beans and grains from a produce market that has really good prices, and some other staples (greek yogurt, coffee) at Costco. So by the time I get to the grocery store, I am inevitably buying a strange combination of things, but those things don't reflect my diet as a whole!

A typical grocery store cart for me includes turkey deli meat (the deli of my store roasts whole turkey breasts in a rotisserie in store, then slices them...heaven, and without any of the preservatives and junk!), bread of some kind, tea, almond milk, peanut butter (I can my own jam, so no need to purchase any if I want a sandwich), no sugar added ice cream, coffee creamer, cream cheese, and if I have busy, out of the house days planned, a few protein bars.

If people judged me by my cart, they'd have to assume I ate nothing but turkey and peanut butter (no jelly!) sandwiches, ice cream, tea, and coffee. Oh, and protein bars.

Oh, I'm sorry if I misunderstood you. I do agree with what you're saying though. Honestly, if I was in a situation where I had a dollar to spend for food I probably wouldn't pick either the fast food burger or just veggies/fruit. I would most likely buy a bag of beans, which you can get for under a dollar, and then with what money was left I would then buy the cheapest vegetable or fruit. Beans expand considerably when cooked, so can go further, are very nutritious, and have a good amount of fiber. And, as crazy as it may sound, in order to include fat in my diet, I would go to the meat counter and ask if there are any fat scraps that I could have for free. As long as scraps are not saleable, they don't mind handing them off. I remember when we used to get bones from them for free, which makes a very good and nutritious broth. Maybe for some it's just a matter of needing to think outside the box. All I know is that for myself, nutrition is VERY important so my mind would automatically start thinking outside the box and figuring out ways that I could aquire (legally, of course) more nutritious options.

Reminds me of how I would get in trouble when I was in grade school for reading—I'd hide books on my lap or on my music stand and the teachers would have to take them away.