What’s lurking in your pantry? Come on, be honest. Are the shelves full of crackers, like Goldfish, Cheeze-its, and Ritz? What about the cookies? What’s your favorite childhood sweet? Oreos, Chips Ahoy, Nilla Wafers? How about that cereal? Are you hiding the Frosted Flakes, Trix, and Lucky Charms in the back of the pantry, hoping no one will see them there? If this sounds like you, then it’s time for a pantry makeover.
As you go through your pantry, we want you to read the labels of the foods you have. Really look at those ingredient lists. The two main things we want you to try and spot are all of the added sugar, like sugar, honey, dextrose, sucrose, maple syrup, maltodextrin, and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and all of the bad fats, especially partially hydrogenated (______) oil. High sugar diets have been linked to inflammation, insulin resistance, obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and liver problems. The partially hydrogenated oils are trans fats, which are just as bad for your heart, if not worse.
The following are some of the most common pantry offenders and suggested swaps.
1. Minute Rice: Yes, it’s quick and convenient, but it has also been stripped of the most important part of the rice – the fiber. What you’re left with is a highly-processed grain that quickly spikes your blood sugar.
Healthier: Slow-cooking Brown Rice. It may take 45 minutes to cook, but it’s the whole, intact rice grain, full of fiber and important vitamins and minerals and will keep you full for hours.
Healthiest: Quinoa. You know how much we love quinoa. It’s not really a grain, it’s a seed that acts like a grain. The awesome thing is that it’s a complete protein. Fiber + protein + complex carbs all rolled up into one!
2. Peanut Butter (Skippy, Jif, Peter Pan): Did you read the label on this one? We’re sure you found sugar, HFCS, and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Not so wholesome.
Healthier: All Natural Organic Peanut Butter. The only ingredients that should be listed on your peanut butter jar are peanuts. That’s it. And you’re looking for the kind with the oil that’s risen to the top, which you should mix into the peanut butter when you first open it. Peanut butter is a great source of protein and heart-healthy fat. Yes, it’s high in calories, but unless you’re eating the whole bottle at a sitting, a couple of tablespoons will not hurt you.
Healthiest: Raw Almond, Cashew, or Pecan Butter. Similar to peanut butter, these nut butters are a good source of protein, but score higher nutritionally with more of the heart-healthy monounsaturated fats. Enjoy on our Paleo bread, spread on some organic apple or banana slices, mixed into a smoothie, or stirred into some organic yogurt (try coconut, cashew, or almond milk types) for a dip.
3. Vegetable Oil: Most people have in their pantry some kind of vegetable oil blend. You know, corn, soy, sunflower, safflower, canola, and grasped oils. While this kind of oil works for high-heat cooking, like frying, the real truth is that the fatty acid profile of these oils is less than healthy – high in pro-inflammatory omega-6s and low in anti-inflammatory omega-3s.
Healthier: Avocado oil, Extra Virgin Olive oil, and Virgin Coconut oil. These oils are the favorites among functional medicine practitioners as they have the best health properties. Avocado oil is high in monounsaturated fats and is an excellent neutral flavored oil with a high smoke point (500F), which means it can handle high-heat cooking. Cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil has been favored for a long time as it is high in monounsaturated fat. It’s best used in a salad dressing or as a finishing sauce because it’s smoke point is lower and the flavor is one that you want to showcase in a sauce. Coconut oil is rich in medium chain triglycerides (MCTs), which are a type of fat that is metabolized differently than traditional fats. MCTs go straight to the liver where they are burned for energy. They also can help with ketone production if you are following a ketogenic diet. No wonder so many people are adding it to their coffee in the morning!
4. Cold Cereal: Step away from the sugared-cereal! And don’t be deceived by the major cereal makers, like General Mills and Kellogg’s, who claim that their cereals are now healthy because they’re made with whole grains. Really? Frosted Flakes is now healthy because they’ve added whole grains? Does it really cancel out all of that sugar? NO! If you insist on cold cereal, make sure it has less than 6 grams of sugar per serving and try to stick to 1 serving 
Healthier: Puffed rice or quinoa are about as plain as it gets. But neither of these really gets us excited for a meal.
Healthiest: Switch from cold to hot cereal and belly up to a bowl of steel-cut oats. High in fiber and no sugar, these oats will leave you full for hours. And you can get creative with flavoring them up and adding some protein (we love to add Vital Protein’s collagen peptides) and healthy fat to balance out all of those carbs – add some cinnamon, vanilla extract, ground flax seed, chia seeds, chopped almonds or walnuts, a spoonful of almond butter, fresh or frozen fruit, or even some dried fruit.
5. Trail Mix/Nuts: Nuts and seeds have been increasing in popularity and have made their way back into the rotation of many “diet” plans thanks to the Paleo and Keto movements that are at the height of popularity right now. Nuts provide a great balance of carbs, protein, and healthy fat. Unfortunately, most nuts and seeds are roasted in unhealthy oils that have probably oxidized and gone rancid and are doing more harm than good. And don’t get us started on trail mix – roasted, salted nut and pieces of sugared dried fruit or candy. Not exactly what we’d call a “health food.”
Healthier/Healthiest: Raw nuts and seeds are the best option as they contain everything that nature intended. Make sure to store your nuts and seeds in the fridge or freezer to keep them fresh, as they are high in fat, which can oxidize and go rancid quickly. You can coat your nuts and seeds in avocado oil and toss with some delicious spices and toast them in a pan on the stove over low heat for about 5 minutes. Warm, salty, and savory nuts and seeds are extremely satisfying.
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