Five fresh facts to keep in mind next time you hit the supermarket

We hear a lot of the same nutritional advice again and again, but there are still items right under our noses that are healthier (or less healthy) than we might think. Claire Turnbull highlights five of them.

Even after 25 years of studying and working in the world of nutrition, I’m still learning. As I work on projects and chat to people about what they eat, I often discover things that surprise me or find myself sharing facts I’ve known for years that surprise others.

In the ever-changing world of nutritional knowledge, there’s always more to explore and research. So, here are five things I reckon are worth knowing (and some of them might surprise you).

I remember the first time I looked at the nutritional info on these bad boys and thought, wowsers, 18g of protein in one cup! That's as much as three eggs. These bright green beans are young soybeans, usually found in the frozen section of the supermarket next to the mixed veggies.

As well as being a great source of plant protein, they’re also high in fibre, with one cup providing around 8g, a good start towards the 28g we need as women and the 38g men need. They’re super tasty and versatile, so well worth having on repeat. I often cook a bag of shelled edamame at the start of the week and keep them in the fridge to throw into salads, sushi bowls, or stir-fries.

Another thing to know about these beauties, and other soy products like tofu and tempeh, is that they’re rich in phytoestrogens. These have a mild oestrogen-like effect, which may be helpful for women going through perimenopause or menopause when oestrogen levels naturally decline. In countries where soy foods are eaten regularly, women tend to report fewer menopausal symptoms. That said, these beans aren’t just for women, they’re great for guys too!

We often focus on “getting in our greens” but all colours of vegetables (and fruits) have their benefits, so variety is key. Despite their pale colour, mushrooms are far more nutritious than many people realise.

A 100 g serve (about six medium mushrooms) provides 2.8 g of protein, 1.7 g of fibre and around 33% of your daily selenium needs, all for just 78 kJ (19 kcal). That’s impressive, especially as many people in New Zealand fall short of selenium.

Another bonus: if you leave mushrooms out in natural sunlight, it boosts their vitamin D levels which is good news for your bones!

I buy mushrooms every week and eat them raw or cooked in salads, omelettes, and stir-fries. I also often grate them and mix 50:50 with mince to make the meat go further and add an extra serve of veg.

Recently, I found a packet of soba noodles tucked away in my pantry and decided to check the nutrition label (a habit that’s hard to break after this long in nutrition)! I was genuinely surprised. One 80 g bundle (dry weight) had 12 g of protein, the same as two eggs. Not bad for noodles!

They are, however, quite salty, so it’s best to cook them in a large pot of boiling water and rinse well, ideally a few times before serving to remove some of the sodium.

Since rediscovering them, they’ve become a regular lunch option for me. I toss soba noodles with baby spinach, edamame beans, sesame dressing and a sprinkle of seeds. Quick, tasty, and satisfying.

It also reminded me that carbs don’t deserve their bad reputation. For example, even dried pasta offers about 9 g of protein per 80 g (dry weight) serve.

Dietitians and nutritionists like me are always banging on about eating more pulses - lentils, chickpeas, black beans, kidney beans, and so on. But I totally get that no one wants to spend the day holding in farts at the office or risk embarrassing themselves in a yoga class!

Here’s something that genuinely helps: triple rinsing. If you’re using canned pulses, rinse them well. Rinse, rinse, and rinse again. This removes much of the liquid they’re packed in and washes away some of the natural compounds that your body can’t digest. Those are the ones fermented by gut bacteria that produce gas, so less of them means fewer side effects.

If you’re new to pulses, go slow. Jumping straight into half a can a day when you’re not used to them can overwhelm your gut. Start with a tablespoon a day, then gradually build up to a few tablespoons. Over time, your gut will likely adapt, and you’ll be able to enjoy them with much less discomfort.

If there’s one food that can vary a lot nutrition-wise, it’s yoghurt.

While most people think of yoghurt as a good source of protein and calcium for bone health, the reality is that some options these days contain very little of either.

When it comes to dairy-based yoghurts, during my shop last week I looked at more than a dozen types, and the range was between 4 - 8.4g of protein per 100g. A significant difference. While the highest-protein options aren’t necessary for everyone, it’s something worth being mindful of.

There will always be some sugar in dairy yoghurt, which isn’t a bad thing, as it naturally contains milk sugar (lactose). However, the amount of added sugar does vary. In the products I reviewed, the range was 2.8 – 10.6g per 100g.

The lower-cost sweetened and flavoured yoghurts sold in 1kg tubs or multipacks were generally the lowest in protein and highest in sugar overall.

Calcium content varied too, ranging from 108 - 230mg per 100g in the dairy yoghurts I reviewed.

On the dairy-free front, it’s important to know that nutritionally these are very different to dairy-based yoghurts. Of the four plant-based yoghurts I looked at, only one had 3.1g of protein per 100 g; the others all had less than 1.5g, with coconut yoghurt being the lowest at 0.6g. Some of these also had next to no calcium, so if you’re choosing these, you’ll need to make sure you’re getting enough protein and calcium from other food sources to meet your body’s needs each day.

I ideally aim for a yoghurt that is on the higher end of protein, lower end of sugar, higher in calcium, and I also take into consideration the fat content.

So those are my five little-known nutritional facts. If you have a question or a different nutritional topic you'd love me to write about, let me know at my site (link below).

Claire Turnbull is a registered nutritionist, wellbeing educator and author.