Grocery & Gourmet

Must-have items for quick, healthy snacks and meals.

How many times do you open your refrigerator door each day, peering in and hoping to be inspired? It stands to reason that if you keep your refrigerator stocked with appetizing foods that also happen to be good for you, you're much more likely to eat healthy meals and healthy snacks.

But keep in mind that the "out of sight, out of mind" principle applies to your fridge. Many of us, for example, have colorful fruits and vegetables on hand -- but keep them buried in the crisper drawers at the bottom of the fridge. You are more likely to see, eat, and enjoy healthy foods if they're in a ready-to-eat form, staring at you from the eye-level shelves in your refrigerator.

Here are nine must-have healthy foods for a diet-friendly refrigerator:

1. Fruit Salad
Take that fruit from your crisper and fruit bowl and turn it into a tasty fruit salad, drizzled with a high-vitamin-C fruit juice (to keep the fruit from browning), and packed in a see-through, covered container. You might also find bags of pre-sliced organic apples in your market that you can keep front and center in your fridge.

2. Crunchy Raw Vegetables
Try cucumbers, celery, zucchini, jicama, and carrots, cut into sticks or slices, rinsed, and kept in a see-through covered container.

3. Ready-to-Eat Green Salad
A salad made with high-nutrient spinach or romaine lettuce, and embellished with cherry tomatoes, beans, and even nuts, is more likely to be gobbled once liberated from the crisper. Looking for a healthy meal in seconds flat? This salad can quickly transform into an entree with the addition of grilled chicken breast, cooked shrimp, or lean steak slices.

4. Whole-Wheat Pita Pockets and/or Tortillas
Switching from refined (or white) grain products to whole grains is one of the most powerful dietary changes you can make. Research has suggested that eating plenty of whole grains may lead

Experts offer advice on navigating the supermarket.

Good nutrition starts with smart choices in the grocery store. Cooking up healthy meals is a challenge if you don't have the right ingredients in your kitchen.

But who has time to read all the food labels and figure out which items are the most nutritious and the best buys? Grocery shopping can be a daunting task, simply because there are so many choices.

"Markets perform a great public service, but keep in mind they are designed to get you to buy (and, therefore, eat) more food, not less," says Marion Nestle, PhD, MPH, professor of nutrition at New York University and author of What to Eat: An Aisle-by-Aisle Guide to Savvy Food Choices and Good Eating.

But with a little guidance, healthy choices are a cinch to find in any supermarket.

Plan Ahead for Success
The process starts even before you head to the grocery store, experts say. Before you set out for the market, plan your meals for the week, and create a list to shop from. It takes a few minutes, but saves time in running back to the store for missing ingredients.

To save money, use coupons, check the weekly grocery ads, and incorporate sale foods into your meal planning. And don't shop hungry: An empty belly often results in impulse purchases that may not be the healthiest.

Health, convenience prime concerns for consumers Last year's hottest supermarket craze -- low-carb products -- can be found in this year's clearance aisle. In a country obsessed with dieting, we've seen low-fat, fat-free, sugar-free, low-carb, and no-carb foods come and go with little impact on our girth. In fact, as a nation, we're heavier than ever. So what new foods can you expect to see next on your supermarket shelves? WebMD asked the experts for their predictions on the latest trends. As with most everything else, baby boomers are affecting how the nation eats, according to the NPD Marketing group. Boomers made their mark with fast food in the '60s, fern bars in the '70s, microwaves in the '80s, take-out in the '90s, and a trend toward healthier foods today, according to Harry Balzar, NPD's vice president. As the boomers age, they are coping with health and weight concerns that drive their eating patterns. But boomers aren't the only ones behind changes in food buying habits. "Increasing Latin populations have had an enormous impact on our food trends," says supermarket guru Phil Lempert, editor of the Facts, Figures and the Future newsletter. "They don't drink sodas with high-fructose corn syrup, and their diets are more abundant in fruits, vegetables, and fresh foods."