A bagel is much denser than a slice of bread, so one large bagel can equal several slices. Either can fit, and the bigger difference is whether it's made with whole grains.

Is juicing healthy? Do detox diets work?

Juicing removes most of the fiber that makes fruit filling and keeps blood sugar steady. And your body already has a detox system: your liver and kidneys. Whole fruits and vegetables do more for you than any cleanse.

Is double-frying plantains a healthy way to cook them?

Frying twice means the plantains soak up more oil. Baking or air-frying gets you a similar crisp with much less.

Can you even find produce in its purest form anymore?

Yes, and it doesn't have to be fresh to count. Frozen fruits and vegetables are picked and frozen at their peak, and canned options with no added salt or sugar are a budget-friendly choice too.

A grocery store walk with a dietitian: what we learned in the aisles in Mattapan

4 min read

Community members, a registered dietitian and a lot of good questions met in the grocery aisles. Here's what we learned about labels, food myths and shopping well on a budget.

Here's the honest truth about healthy grocery shopping: most people aren't short on motivation. They're short on information they can trust.

That's what we heard on a Wednesday morning in Mattapan, when a group of neighbors joined registered dietitian, Nour, from Harvard, for a guided walk through their local grocery store.

People came with questions some of them had carried for years. About food myths. About feeding their families on a budget. About whether the "healthy" label on the front of a package means anything at all. We started by listening, and the conversation never really stopped. We ran 30 minutes over, and by the end, everyone was asking for Part 2!

WHAT THE MORNING LOOKED LIKE

We gathered in the produce section and started with introductions. Within minutes it felt less like a class and more like a conversation among friends.

"We all were so personable from the very start, and it felt as if we were sitting in someone's living room."

From there, we moved aisle by aisle. Nour led the group, with nutrition researcher Wanqing sharing her expertise along the way. Instead of handing out a list of rules, we picked up real products, turned them over and figured out together what was actually inside.

THREE THINGS WE PRACTICED IN THE AISLES

1. Flip it over

One snack had chia seeds and quinoa pictured proudly on the front. On the back, the ingredient list told a different story: those ingredients appeared only in tiny amounts, alongside oils and added sugar.

The front of the package is marketing. The back is where the facts are. Ingredients are listed by weight, from most to least, so the first few ingredients tell you what you're mostly eating.

2. Use the 5/20 rule

The Nutrition Facts label shows a % Daily Value for each nutrient. A simple way to read it:

• 5% or less means a food is low in that nutrient

• 20% or more means it's high

Aim low for things like sodium, saturated fat and added sugars, and aim high for fiber, vitamins and minerals.

3. Compare, don't guess

We held two loaves of bread side by side and asked the group which was healthier. Most people picked the one that looked healthier, and we all laughed when the label proved otherwise. Then we scanned products with the Nucona app, which pointed us to a healthier, affordable bread that had been sitting, unassuming, on the shelf the whole time.

A good rule of thumb for bread: look for "100% whole wheat" or another whole grain as the very first ingredient.

QUESTIONS WE HEARD (AND WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS)

The biggest barrier wasn't interest. It was not knowing who to trust. Here are some of the questions that came up:

Bread or bagels?
A bagel is much denser than a slice of bread, so one large bagel can equal several slices. Either can fit, and the bigger difference is whether it's made with whole grains.
Is juicing healthy? Do detox diets work?
Juicing removes most of the fiber that makes fruit filling and keeps blood sugar steady. And your body already has a detox system: your liver and kidneys. Whole fruits and vegetables do more for you than any cleanse.
Is double-frying plantains a healthy way to cook them?
Frying twice means the plantains soak up more oil. Baking or air-frying gets you a similar crisp with much less.
Can you even find produce in its purest form anymore?
Yes, and it doesn't have to be fresh to count. Frozen fruits and vegetables are picked and frozen at their peak, and canned options with no added salt or sugar are a budget-friendly choice too.

WE LEARNED AS MUCH AS WE SHARED

We came to share what we know and left having learned just as much, about the real challenges of eating well in a food environment that isn't built to support us. People talked about stretching groceries when money was tight, about no longer trusting what brands say, and about searching for better options wherever they could find them.

That's exactly why this kind of event matters. Healthy eating gets easier when you have someone to ask, and a community to figure it out with.

Thank you to Nour for leading the walk, to Wanqing for sharing her expertise, to the Mattapan Food and Fitness Coalition for helping us reach neighbors, and to everyone who spent the morning with us. We came as strangers and left as a community.

PART 2 IS COMING IN NOVEMBER

Because you asked, we're planning Part 2, all about shopping mindfully through the holiday season. Want to join us? Contact us or follow us on Instagram for the date and sign-up details.

Bonus: You don't need a dietitian beside you to make these choices. Scan products in the Nucona app to compare them and find healthier options on the shelf. After you shop, scan your receipt: healthy purchases earn spins on a prize wheel that pays out real cash, and the healthier your cart, the more you can win.

Small, informed choices add up. That's what Nucona is here to make easier, one aisle at a time.