Sandra enjoys sharing her practical knowledge, healthy eating strategies and tasty food ideas -
"Nutrition for the Best of Health!"
Longo's is pleased to have Sandra Saville, RD, registered Dietitian and Nutrition Consultant, offering her expertise on the nutrition issues important to you. Sandra brings her practical healthy eating strategies and tasty food ideas directly to Longo's customers through in-store seminars, flyer tips and monthly web advice.

Download and print from Sandra's Download Centre helpful healthy living templates.

Is snacking healthy? What are some healthy snack ideas?

Answer:

Healthy snacks help:
  • Give you energy for your busy day and helps to fight fatigue
  • Give children energy for growth and activity
  • Combat cravings and control hunger
  • Give you nutrients for healthy living

Tip: Keep snack portions to a “mini meal size” – you don’t want to fill up and not feel like eating when meal-time comes around.

Healthy Snack Choices:

  • Choose foods from the four food groups of Canada ’s Food Guide.
  • Snacks are a great way to add vegetables and fruits to your day – especially all of the local seasonal fresh picked produce available at Longo’s. Snacking on vegetables and fruits is an easy way to improve your diet and your health!
  • Go for whole grains – they add B vitamins and energy to your day.
  • Add some “yum” with calcium rich milk and alternatives.
  • Protein helps to keep you full longer – add some cheese, plain nuts or seeds, bean salad or a small piece of meat to satisfy hunger pangs and banish cravings.

Pack Your Snacks
If you plan, purchase and keep healthy snacks readily available, you make it easy for yourself to eat healthy. Keep healthy snacks up front and easy to reach on the counter and in the cupboard, fridge, office desk, briefcase, knapsack and vehicle.

Healthy Snack Choices

Fruits and Vegetables:
Check out all of the choices of fabulous fresh produce at Longo’s – perfect for healthy snacking!

Western Family unsweetened applesauce
Carrot sticks
Avocado
Fruit cups
Snow peas
Celery sticks
Grapefruit
Pears
Peaches
Apple
Banana
Grapes
Cherry tomatoes
Pepper slices
Turnip slices
Apricot
Pineapple
Orange
Clementine
Watermelon
Plum
Nectarine
Dried fruit
100% fruit juice
Longo’s vegetable and fruit bowls (pre-cut ready to eat – handy to snacking)


Grains:
Choose whole grain products more often.

Cereal
Bread
Bun
Bagel half
Whole grain crackers
Fig bars
Whole grain muffin
Breadsticks
Baked tortilla chips
Longo’s whole wheat pita and wraps
Crispbreads
Oatmeal
Brown rice cakes
Plain popcorn

Milk and Alternatives:
Cheese (string, cubes, sliced)
Cottage cheese
Yogurt
Milk
Low fat milk pudding
Yogurt tubes (these are great frozen)

Meat and Alternatives:
Unsalted plain nuts
Lean cooked meat (hint- leftovers from Dinner)
Longo’s hummus (try the new Lemon and Dill flavour - yum!)
Bean dip
Peanut butter and other nut butters
Hard boiled egg
Longo’s tuna
Roasted soy nuts and chick peas

Other:
Smoothies
Cereal yogurt and fruit parfait
Cold pancakes topped with yogurt and bananas
Baked potato and salsa
Small salad topped with seeds and grated cheese

Back to Routine


Fall marks the return to routines and hectic lifestyles.
Successful families implement a “plan” to make meal planning and preparation easy.
Follow these tips to get your family back into a routine for healthy eating.

Plan:

  • Develop menus, snack lists and grocery lists
  • Follow Canada ’s Food Guide. Plan meals to include choices from each of the four food groups (vegetables and fruit, grain products, milk and alternatives and meat and alternatives)
  • Plan meals “by the plate”. Fill half the plate with vegetables, one quarter of the plate fill with whole grains, and the remaining quarter of the plate fill with lean meat and alternatives. On the side have a milk and alternative and a serving of fruit for dessert.
  • Write a weekly menu plan and post it on the fridge. Save those menus to use for reference later.
  • Ask friends, family members and coworkers to share their favourite family menus.

  • Check out healthy recipe ideas on Longo’s web site.

Purchase:
  • Use your weekly menu plan to write out your Longo’s shopping list.
  • Write your menu following the store layout. Include: Produce, Grocery and Pharmacy, Dairy/Frozen, Deli, Meat, Poultry and Seafood and Bread and Bakery sections.
  • Stock up – check out Longo’s flyer (available online) for sales. Stock up on items to have on hand in the cupboard, fridge and freezer.
  • Too busy to shop? Check out www.grocerygateway.com to order your groceries online, and have them conveniently delivered to your home or workplace.
  • Check out the “time-saving purchases” at Longo’s. Pre-cut vegetables can save you lots of preparation time.

Prepare:
  • Use time-saving tools and equipment – use the microwave oven, slow cooker, toaster oven, wok, steamer, rice cooker and food processor.
  • Big batch cooking – Double or triple recipes for casseroles, muffins and favourite meals to freeze and make a quick reheat meal for those “hectic on-the-go days”. Make extra portions to use as “makeovers” the next day.
  • Involve the crew. Start the school year off right, and get the whole family involved in meal preparation. Designate age appropriate tasks for your children. Meal preparation is a life skill that your child needs to know!
  • Prepare Lunch when you have the time – right after finishing Dinner, before the leftover food is put away; use those leftovers to become part of Lunch for the next day. Make the sandwiches and salads and put them into the fridge. Pack the non-perishables into the Lunch bag. The next morning, just grab the items from the fridge, and Lunch is ready to go!

Provide Perfect Picks:
  • Stress free meals and snacks are those the family enjoys. Post a list of healthy meal and snack ideas that the whole family can add to. Young children can even draw pictures of their favourite snacks.
  • Check out Longo’s recipes on this web site for plenty of easy and healthy meal ideas.


Returning to routine can be easy on the whole family with a little planning and preparation, and fabulous foods from Longo’s.


Download Centre
Download and print helpful healthy living templates from Sandra: