BEHAVIOR CHANGE
	Refrigerator Revamp: Food Makeover for Cancer Prevention

Although Refrigerator Makeover: Extreme Edition is not (yet) a reality TV show, imagine a team of registered dietitians turning up in your kitchen with lights and cameras ready to redo your fridge. They rifle through the shelves and thrust these items in front of the camera:

• Tupperware with a green tinged mass inside: "Is this a science project?"
• Cheese in a can: "What were you thinking when you bought that?"

If this sounds like an all-too-true nightmare and your fridge is filled with soft drinks, leftover Chinese take-out, hot dogs, sausage biscuits and pizza, consider a do it yourself makeover. You might even want to take pictures before and after.

If You Stock It, They Will Eat It

The idea for a fridge makeover is that people eat what is available and easily accessible. Stocking your fridge with antioxidant rich, cancer-fighting vegetables, fruits and whole grains may be the most important step to improving you and your family’s eating habits. Studies do show that children and teens eat more fruits and vegetables when those foods are available and accessible in the home. Although research is scarce on whether adults are influenced by the availability of healthful food in the home, it’s worth a try to see if stocking your fridge with appealing and ready to eat healthful foods helps shape a better diet.

Picture Perfect

What does a "healthy refrigerator" look like? Colorful. Refrigerator foods should be primarily fresh, unprocessed foods—vegetables, fruits, milk or soy milk, yogurt, eggs, fresh poultry, lean meat, tofu and 100% juices. Except for condiments, foods in the refrigerator should have quick turnaround for safety as well as for flavor. Freezer items keep longer, making this a good place to store frozen vegetables and meats for later in the week.

Food storage information:

• http://www.fmi.org/consumer/foodkeeper/
• http://www.foodsafety.gov/

Steps to a Healthy Fridge

1. Start by purchasing fresh, healthful items you can realistically eat in one week. Choose produce items that have varying times of perishability: A few salad greens, a couple of peppers, a bag of carrots and a cabbage for example. Add one small container of berries, a bag of apples and a melon. Go for low-fat or nonfat dairy items and fish, poultry and lean meats. Limit the amount of high-sugar-added foods and beverages. Look for the whole grain tortillas for quick and easy wraps. The Blueberry Quesadilla recipe this month shows a great way to combine low-fat dairy, fruit and whole grains for a power breakfast entrée.
2. Make your healthful purchases easy to get to and highly visible. Wash and cut up fruits and vegetables and store these and yogurts up front. Pre-portion leftovers for next day meals—place 2-3 ounces of chicken breast, 1/2 cup pasta and 1/2 – 1 cup vegetables in one appropriate storage container ready to be re-heated for a quick lunch or dinner.
3. Consider the condiments. Choose more low-fat salad dressings, reduced-sodium soy sauce, trans-fat free and soft margarine and reduced-fat mayonnaise, for example. Remember, condiments are to be used as flavor enhancers, not side dishes, so think small servings.

The Pay-Off

Re-doing the "food environment" in your home with more vegetables, fruits and other lean fresh foods is a great start to over all health improvement. If you have children in your home, you have the opportunity to influence their choices now and in the future. Some research indicates that children who grew up consuming abundant fruits and vegetables at home continue doing so into adulthood.

Don’t wait to be a reality TV show star. Go ahead and conduct your own extreme makeover. (Email us a before and after picture and we’ll post some on our blog.)