By Stacey Colino

Improving your eating habits starts in the grocery store, because what you put in your shopping cart will eventually end up in your mouth. “Try to concentrate on the perimeter of the store, which should have the wholesome basics, and steer clear of the center aisles, where the processed and prepared foods are,” advise the Nutrition Twins, Tammy Lakatos Shames, R.D., and Lyssie Lakatos, R.D., authors of Fire Up Your Metabolism.

More tips for healthful shopping:

1. Choose the leanest cuts of meat. Buy turkey and chicken breasts without the skin (or remove it yourself).

2. Use nonfat milk and yogurt, and cooking spray instead of butter.

3. Load up on fresh or frozen vegetables. Frozen ones do retain their nutrients.

4. Reach for whole-wheat or whole-grain breads and rolls. Avoid refined carbohydrates and white breads.

5. Think about drinks. Pass up sweetened sodas and fruit juice. Opt for seltzer.