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Spring is in the air! Flowers are blooming, baby lambs are being born, and your home is just begging for some spring cleaning. Minimalism is in the air, too. With the rising popularity of Marie Kondo and her method, and the less than minimal following of , you might be more eager to tidy up and declutter your life than you usually are. This means you’re going to need a good spring cleaning checklist.

Make Your Home “Spark Joy” This Spring

It’s difficult to know why we do spring cleaning. Theories have been offered from wanting to de-soot the house once the fireplace wasn’t needed anymore, to “shaking down the house” for Iranian new year, or even preparing for Passover or lent. Some even suggest that it might be a simple case of warmer, lighter days making us more active: the renewed vim and vigor spurring us to make our living room more livable, and our laundry room lovely.

Whatever the origins of this tradition, it’s become something of a habit in Western societies. But whether it’s spring, summer, autumn, or winter, it’s always good to give your house a good deep clean. But as well as making everything look sparkling, this is a good chance to simultaneously declutter your home and make it a minimalist oasis.

We’ll give you the lowdown on what it means to be minimalist, as well as take you step by step through the decluttering and spring cleaning process, along with some handy dos and don’ts and decluttering tips. However, if you’re really raring to go, you can skip straight to our free printable spring cleaning checklist template.

What Does it Mean to be a Minimalist?

When you think of minimalism, you wouldn’t be blamed for conjuring up images of sparse white rooms with absolutely nothing in them. Or maybe, you think a minimalist is someone who has forsaken all worldly belongings to live out of a rucksack in a hut deep in the woods.

Whilst these are both ways people can practice minimalism, you’ll be happy to know that the essence of minimalism is far less drastic and much simpler and easy to incorporate into your life. The fundamental mantra is simple:

Does an item add value to your life?

If not, remove it from your life.

Every form of minimalism stems from this. Even Marie Kondo’s question of whether something “sparks joy” is just an extra layer, angle, and philosophy to whether something should be kept, or thrown out.

So, you needn’t fear that this year’s spring clean will turn your life upside and into a maelstrom of drama worthy of an Oscar-winning film: unless that’s actually what you want. Giving your home a minimalist decluttering can simply help you shed things you don’t need, don’t add value, and don’t “spark joy”: nothing more.

Minimalist Spring Cleaning Dos and Don’ts

Dos

Check to see where you can donate things - decluttering needn’t mean creating waste. Many of the items you might be saying “goodbye” to may be able to be used by other people. Before you start your decluttering and spring cleaning, check for thrift stores, charity shops, food banks, and soup kitchens that may be in need of your excess. Even see if you have any friends or family that could take your unwanted items off your hands.

Check your recycling facilities - environmental issues are hot topics these days. When you’re shifting a lot of unnecessary items, it’s easiest to just put them straight into the garbage and let it be the landfill’s problem. But ensuring things are recycled means you’re doing your bit for the planet. As well as sorting out your paper and empty cans, be sure to check what kinds of plastic are able to be recycled in your area. Also, check where electrical waste can be taken. That old cell phone or that second hair dryer can actually be put to better, greener use.

Consider selling your unwanted items - if you’re not in the position to run for “Philanthropist of the Year” there’s no shame in trying to make a bit of money out of your excess items. Consider selling them online on auction sites like eBay, classified listing pages like Craigslist or Gumtree, or even just have yourself a good old fashion car boot, jumble, or yard sale. It’s much more environmentally friendly than just chucking them out, and you can pocket a pretty penny or two in the process.

Involve friends and family - spring cleaning and decluttering needn’t be a solo affair. You can make it more fun and speed up the process by involving those nearest and dearest to you. You could certainly organize a “packing party” to achieve this. If you’re thinking of implementing a new regime to keep your house clutter free for as long as possible, then certainly get the entire family on board so they can develop these newfound habits along with you.

Don’ts

Rush - spring cleaning and decluttering takes time. It’s why a lot of people usually do it over spring break or the Easter weekend. Rushing things will not only lead to you being stressed and frustrated but will also make it more likely that you make bad decisions on what you should keep or get rid of. So, be prepared for things to take a while, and don’t expect things to be over before they even get started.

Panic - sometimes decluttering can create a lot of mess before you’re free from it. This is especially true if you’re using a method of plonking everything of a certain category (clothes, paper etc) into a massive pile to sort out. This can be very intimidating. But it gives you an unprecedented look at the amount of clutter you’ve accumulated to motivate you into reducing it to something less shocking. Just take a deep breath and sort through it methodically and tenaciously. You’ll get there, and your home will be all the better for it.

How to Minimalize

Enough chatter about clutter! Roll up your sleeves and let’s get this “mother” minimalized!

Decided on What Form of Minimalism You Want to Practise

As mentioned above, there are many variants and developments on the basics of minimalism. So, before you start to declutter your home, decide on how you actually want to go about decluttering and becoming a minimalist. Will you be armed with an arsenal of Marie Kondo tips, seeking a more emotional approach to minimalism? Or will you be opting for The Minimalists’ more practical but more stoic approach?

Prepare to Clean

If you’re going to spruce up your light fixtures, ceiling fans, window sills, shower curtains, and the rest, make sure you have everything you need.

• Cleaning products - these can be of your choice. Be sure to have a spares handy in case something runs out!
• Gloves - to protect your hands from chemicals in cleaning products
• Cleaning clothes - cleaning is messy business. You certainly don’t want to get your favorite t-shirt and jeans damaged whilst spring cleaning. Therefore, make sure you have a set of clothes that you don’t mind getting a little soiled. You may even want to consider purchasing some overalls or other protective cleaning gear.
• Duster - to get rid of dust and cobwebs in hard to reach areas
• Dust cloths - for wiping down and cleaning surfaces once you’ve decluttered them
• Dust mask - even if you’re not allergic to dust, this can help you keep your lungs dust-free and reduce sneezing
• Bags - you’re going to need plenty for trash and recycling. Be sure to spend a bit extra on heavy duty bags, especially as these might get quite full. Cheap bags tend to break easily meaning you end up using more because you can’t put as much in them.

Prepare to Store

Once you’ve sorted out your clutter, you’re going to need things to organize and store your chosen belongings. If you’re not keen on going out and buying new storage containers before starting the process, look for things around the house that you could use temporarily to store things, like shoeboxes. Then, once you know much stuff you’re going to hold on to, you can shop for storage solutions accordingly.

• Large clear containers - these are great because not only are they roomy and stackable, but you can also easily see what’s inside them. This will make it easy to find out what you do and don’t have once you’ve tidied them away.
• Small boxes - these will help you to group and categorize smaller items, making the categories easy to determine. Also, this will make things within these categories easier to see.
• Folders and binders - paper clutter is a lot more insidious and rampant than you realize. Make sure you have places to put them once you’ve sorted and categorized them.

Start with the Easiest to Declutter First

It can be tempting to start with the most difficult decluttering tasks first. Get the hardest stuff out of the way, and the rest should follow, right?

Wrong. Decluttering and trying to downsize to a minimalist lifestyle is just as much as a mental affair as much as it’s also a physical purge. You’ll actually have to think a lot! For each item you come across, you need to ask yourself if it adds value to your life, and maybe if it “sparks joy”.

By starting with the easiest decisions to make, you can get into the mental and emotional mode you need to make better decisions when it comes to more difficult items and areas. Do it the opposite way around and you end up making bad decisions on the hard stuff because you weren’t prepared enough, and then making bad decisions on the easy stuff because you’re tired.

The KonMarie method for sorting your home with increasing decision difficulty is a good place to start, even if you don’t want to implement her philosophy and approach as a whole.

1. Clothes
2. Books
3. Paper
4. Miscellany (inc. )
5. Sentimental objects

Develop Your Upkeep Plan

You got rid of your clutter, categorized and stored the things you want to keep. Congratulations. You’ve achieved your new minimalist lifestyle. But now you have to try and maintain it. So, make sure you have a plan about how you’re going to go about doing this.

This plan shouldn’t be something hideously comprehensive and administrative. Mainly because it doesn’t have to be. It should be some ground rules to help things tick along, such as assigning everyone an area of the house that they’re responsible for, or when and how people should help upkeep the house. If it’s just you, perhaps come up with some mantras to keep yourself in the correct frame of mind. After a while, it will all become second nature.

If things do start to degrade a little, it’s good to have these rules to revise and/or reassert them. If things really relapse, don’t worry. You can take the time to go through the whole process again. Minimalism is not always easy, especially if trying to live more minimally is a huge paradigm shift for you. Just keep on going, keep on redoing, until it’s part of your day to day state of mind.

Spring Cleaning and Decluttering Checklist

Hopefully, we’ve helped you prepare and put into an action a plan to help declutter your home as part of your spring cleaning efforts. You’ll find our free printable minimalist spring cleaning checklist below, which can help you on your minimalism journey.

5 Step Decluttering Checklist

1. Decide on what form of minimalism you want to practice 2. Prepare to clean Cleaning products Gloves Cleaning clothes Duster Dust clothes Dust mask Bags

3. Prepare to store Large clear containers Small boxes Folders and binders 4. Start with the easiest to declutter first 5. Develop your upkeep plan Personal mantras Household ground rules

Do your groceries spark joy? Whilst Marie Kondo is great for providing decluttering tips for your home, what about what you shop for, cook, and eat? Take the time to remove some of the excess from your kitchen by knowing how to declutter your groceries and create a minimalist grocery list.

Why Declutter Your Grocery List?

Our day to day lives are packed full of things: jobs, distractions, relationships, material possessions, travel, commuting, exercise. The list goes on! Among all of this, you need to find time to eat.

Cooking can either be unpleasant or simply too time-consuming for many. But relying on fast food and ready meals can have a serious impact on your health. These can often be high in saturated fat, added sugar, and sodium. Making a wholesome homemade meal with fresh and healthy ingredients is certainly the way forward.

Whilst there are many tips and tricks to saving time in the kitchen, such as that can be just as healthy as fresh, we’d like to try and make being in the kitchen as manageable as possible. Therefore, we’ve put together a guide, inspired by minimalism and Marie Kondo, to make your grocery list clutter free and take some of the pressure and stress out of mealtime prep.

We’ll take you through what it means to be a minimalist, some dos and don’ts, as well as guide you through a step by step approach to scale-down your groceries for a happier, more joyful kitchen.

What is Minimalism?

Minimalism is actually quite difficult to define. Ironically, there are many different definitions out there. Youtube stars, , both admit to having differences in the minimalism that they each practice. Even Marie Kondo’s tidying philosophy and regime can be seen as a form of minimalism, even though it’s not overtly touted as such.

But in essence, there’s still one simple message that underlines all the different approaches to minimalism out there:

Remove excess from your life.

It doesn’t necessarily mean trying to own a maximum of 100 items, or selling your home or your car and living out of a rucksack. It can mean these things, but it doesn’t have to. Another important point is that “excess” doesn’t necessarily mean getting rid of the things you love. If Marie Kondo has taught us anything, it’s that if it “sparks joy”, it should stay.

Decluttering Tips Dos and Don’ts

Dos

Check for places you can donate your unwanted items - thrift stores, charity shops, soup kitchens, and even food banks may well benefit from your kitchen decluttering. Even if there aren’t any in your area, you might be able to find a local “freecycling” group on Craigslist or Gumtree of people willing to take stuff off your hands.

A note about soup kitchens and food banks: they will generally only accept dry goods that are within date and completely sealed/unopened. Things like unopened bags of pasta and canned food are perfect. Most will not accept fresh fruit, vegetables, or meat because of their short shelf-life and the need to be refrigerated.

Invite friends and family to help - if you feel like you’re not going to make the best choices by yourself, involve others. If you live with another person or have a family, get them on board. Having this extra help might help you to make tough decisions better. Organizing a “packing party” or something similar can also help speed things along if you’re pressed for time.

Buy small boxes, and bigger clear containers - these will really help with your kitchen organization. They’ll help you sort and keep all your ingredients into categories as well as making it easy to see what you have and don’t have.

Don’ts

Rush - one of the worst things you can do when decluttering is to rush. These things take time. So, leave plenty of it, and expect things not to be sorted out instantly.

Taking your time also helps you to focus on making decisions. Marie Kondo’s method of taking a moment to thank your house and each item you throw away might seem a little bizarre, but what it does do is help you keep calm and focused on the task at hand. This means less stress and more measured choices about what to keep or chuck.

Panic - decluttering can be quite overwhelming, especially if you have a lot of stuff. But don’t let that feeling take hold of you. Things may even start to look a lot worse before they get better.

This can be especially true if you’re following a method of putting everything of a particular type of item into one massive pile and then sorting through it. This can be quite shocking and dismaying, but that’s ok! You’ll get through it in time, and you’ll feel all the better when it’s shifted.

Feel too guilty about waste - we can totally understand not wanting to be wasteful. But sometimes this feeling rationalizes our hoarding and does nothing to help us declutter our lives and strive for better home organization. Having a big sort out can create a lot of intimidating waste that might make you feel bad. If you can, find a way to donate or give away some of the things you don’t need anymore, even if it’s just to friends, family, or neighbors.

Ultimately, remember that decluttering is (hopefully) a once in a blue moon event. The point of this exercise is to remove excess from your life, and not re-accumulate it. There might be a lot of waste now, but it’s a one-off.

How to Make a Minimalist Grocery List

Step #1: Marie Kondo Your Kitchen Cupboards

We all love to try new recipes. The problem is, that sometimes those new meals don’t stick. This is can cause a problem when we need to buy special ingredients that we never use again. We also have a habit of forgetting things, especially if we have a lot of storage space. Something we bought ages ago might be lurking right at the back of the freezer or the pantry, neglected but preserved for prosperity.

So, have a complete clean out of your cupboards, pantry, fridge, and freezer. Once you have your pile of spices, cans, packets, ingredients, and ready meals, go through them one by one and ask, “does it spark joy”? And by this, you should be asking:

• Do I like the taste of this?
• Is this something I use regularly?
• Is this something I could do without?
• Is it excess?

You must be completely honest with yourself.

For example, 1 item might be a packet of “superfood” from last year that you bought, tried, but didn’t take to. Don’t allow yourself to keep it in case you “might” use it again soon. If you were going to, you would have by now. Therefore, it’s excess. So, thank it, and say goodbye.

Step #2: Level Up Your Kitchen Organization

Now that you’re left with only the ingredients and food items that you use and like the most, it’s time to put them back. But how to organize your kitchen? Well, you’ll need to do this in a way that helps you keep your pantry, fridge, freezer, and cupboard space from getting cluttered again.

The way to do this is to make your kitchen arrangement better. When you put everything back you need to do 2 things:

• Group things by category
• Make sure you can see everything in a category in one glance

The categories can totally be what you want them to be. Some will be obvious, like all the herbs and spices in one place. But you might want separate canned ingredients from canned soup. Or even group canned soup with packet soup.

However you decide to categorize things, you need to make sure they’re arranged so that everything in that category can be seen when you look at it. This will help you make sure you know what you have, meaning there’s less chance of forgetting what’s there and buying duplicates.

This is where those clear containers and small boxes come in handy. Use them to help keep your categories defined, tidy, and visible. You might find you need to invest in a spice rack, or stack you canned food on top of each other rather than place them one behind the other. Just chose whatever works best for you and implement any other pantry cupboard ideas you might have. Just try and keep your things together and easy to see.

Step #3: Make a Meal Plan for a Minimalist Diet

Now that you’ve pared down your ingredients, it’s time to start on your meals. Get together with your family and think about what you like to eat and come up with a list of your favorite food for:

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
• Snacks
• Drinks

These should not only be things that you enjoy eating but also find easy and fun to cook. If a chosen meal is complicated and too stressful to cook, really ask yourself if this “sparks joy” enough to be on this list. Alternatively, you could try and look for simpler, easier recipes for your elected entrées.

Also, try and make sure there’s enough variety in what you chose so that you don’t get bored.

Step #4: Create Your Minimalist Food List

Now that you have your list of meals, create your grocery list for your minimalist cooking adventure. This should be a master list of all the things you’re going to need for your new minimalist diet. You might want to consider creating your own to help.

Once you’ve done this, you can go through the ingredients you already have, which are now nice and easy to see because of your revamped kitchen organization and shop accordingly.

Step #5: Stick to Your New Grocery List

Now that you have a clutter-free kitchen, a meal plan that sparks joy, and a minimalist grocery list, you just need to stick to using your pared-down . Using a shopping list whilst shopping means you’re far and unnecessary items. Remember, minimalism is all about removing the excess from your life, so you need to be sure not to pile that back on too quickly.

But, nobody’s perfect. Even Marie Kondo admits to having lapses and that even she can be untidy at times. If this is the case, and you find your kitchen is no longer the oasis of minimalism that it was, then you can always go through this process again.

Go Forth and Minimalize!

We hope that we’ve provided you with the tools to make your kitchen great again, and recover the joy of cooking and eating meals.

Canned food is something we all . Not only is it cheap and lasts for a long time, it is also often as healthy as fresh food. But from the wide range of canned goods that are available, what should you have on your pantry’s canned food list?

Why Canned Food for Your Stocked Pantry?

There are many benefits to canned food, which can be read in full in our “” article. In short, the main reasons we should be shopping using canned food items list are as follows:

• Price - canned food is generally cheaper than fresh
• Range - some items can only be found canned in some stores, such as artichokes
• Sustainability - cans and their labels are recyclable, and their long shelf life and predetermined portions can help avoid unnecessary food waste
• Storage - long shelf-life means you can eat them well into the future. Because of this, canned goods make up a lot of items on a prepper food storage list.
• Nutrients - because canned food is prepared at the peak freshness, they are generally no less nutritious as fresh food

But what should you actually put on your canned food pantry list? We’ll take you through 10 items that we think should be on your list of canned goods and why. However, you can skip straight to the free printable shopping list template if you wish.

10 Essential Items for Your Canned Food List

Fish

We all should be eating at least . 1 of which should be oily fish such as tuna, mackerel, or sardines. Fresh fish can be difficult to store and keep fresh. But, the canned variety is easy to keep in your pantry without fear of it going off, and also means no messy or difficult preparation.

What’s more, some varieties of canned fish are a great source of calcium because the canning process softens the bones, making them edible. Fish canned with oil can also ensure a greater amount of omega 3 is preserved in the fish. Though this does mean increasing the calorie content.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes, especially chopped tomatoes, are a cooking essential. They and even appear on our . Canned varieties save a lot of preparation, such as peeling and chopping. Canned tomatoes are even healthier than fresh as the canning process increases the levels of lycopene in them: a great antioxidant.

Coconut milk

Have you ever tried milking a coconut? We certainly wouldn’t know where to start! However, it’s a key ingredient in southeast and east Asian cuisine. It also has several health benefits. It contains medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) which can help boost your metabolism. Coconut milk can also help decrease bad cholesterol (LDL) as well as increase good cholesterol (HDL).

Baked beans

Many diets say that we should be increasing the amount of legumes we eat, especially if part of a , , or diets. Legumes, such as beans, peas, and lentils, are high in fiber, which help you maintain a healthy gut. They also keep you feeling full for longer as well as being a great source of protein.

So, what better place to start than with a family favorite: baked beans!

A word of caution; make sure you check the sugar and sodium levels per portion as these can be added to the sauce. You don’t want to be ingesting that healthy fiber and protein as well as too much of these. Especially as sugar and sodium are linked to obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. Look for low sodium and “diet”/light varieties, or check the label before buying.

Red kidney beans

These are another firm favorite. But you don’t have to add it only to your favorite chili recipe. They can be drained, rinsed, and put straight into salads or grain mixes to give these a fiber and protein boost. These canned beans are great because they do not need any soaking or cooking compared to the dried variety. However, be sure to take time to rinse them thoroughly to decrease the levels of salt, often added to the water to help preserve them. Alternatively, look for low sodium varieties.

Chickpeas

Another great pantry staple is chickpeas. As well as adding them to curries, like red kidney beans, they can be put straight into salads and grains mixes. Furthermore, if you blend them with some olive oil, garlic, and tahini (sesame seed paste), you’ve got your very own homemade hummus!

Lentils

Lentils are another great legume to have on your canned food list. Again, the canned version means you don’t have to take time to cook them. Many vegan recipes use green or black lentils to replace meat and ensure that there’s plenty of protein in your meal.

Vegetables

As much as legumes are a crucial element of any healthy diet, eating more vegetables is also just as important. But if you don’t have time to prepare and cook them, there is a better way: canned of course!

Vegetables come in many varieties, from boiled potatoes, cooked baby carrots, peas, to corn and red pepper mixes. These can be whole, chopped, pureéd, and more! The nutrient value of these is either very similar or just the same as fresh vegetables. What’s more, whilst frozen vegetables are just as nutritious, with canned you don’t need to worry about them going bad if there’s a power cut.

Soup

Nothing makes you feel nice and cozy during winter than a good soup. So, why not have some canned soup ready for those chillier days. Whilst it does take more time to cook than packet soup, these are generally more nutritious and tasty than packet soup’s freeze-dried ingredients and powdered flavor. Just make sure the canned soup you're using doesn’t have too much sugar, sodium, saturated fat, or artificial ingredients.

Full meals

As well as soup, you can buy entire meals in a can. These can really help you out in a fix. If we’re honest, the canning process means they don’t always look too appetizing. But, like all other canned food, they’re still nutritious. Although, you need to watch out for meals with high levels of sugar, sodium, and saturated fat, as well as artificial ingredients.

We would actually recommend making a fresh meal using canned ingredients, such as legumes and vegetables. This can save some precious time, is generally tastier, and certainly looks better! But canned meals are decent enough for those who really don’t have much time to cook, or if there’s an emergency. They can provide a somewhat balanced meal with minimum effort.

List of Canned Goods

If you’re keen to make canned food part of your well-stocked pantry, feel free to use our . By all means, take off anything you don’t like, and add some of your favorite canned food that we haven’t listed.

Canned Food Pantry Shopping List

Fish Mackerel Tuna Anchovies Tomatoes Coconut Milk Baked beans Red kidney beans Chickpeas

Lentils Green Black Vegetables Carrots Potatoes Peas Corn and red pepper mix Soup Full meals

February is National Canned Food Month in the USA. Also, maverick UK cook, Jack Monroe, is releasing a cookbook featuring only recipes using canned items this year: . But are canned goods healthy, and should you be using more of them?

Overview

Fresher means healthier, right? Fresh food has long been viewed as the pinnacle of good eating. But, even though it might be shocking to hear, it’s not always the case.

More and more research being done shows that other methods of storing and selling food mean that alternatives such as frozen and canned are generally nutritionally not worse than their fresh counterparts.

So, let us take you through what canned goods you should be buying and why. But also, when you should avoid them.

History of Canned Items

Canning food is a practice that has been around for longer than you think. In fact, canned items first appeared over 200 years ago. In 1811, an Englishman named Bryan Donkin bought a patent of Frenchman, Philippe Girard. Donkin made some adjustments to make Girard’s idea into something able to be produced on a large scale. After gaining approval from the British gentry in 1813, Donkin went on to provide canned food products for the British navy and set up the first canning factory in the world in Bermondsey, London.

And the rest, as they say, is history. To gain an in-depth insight into the history of canned goods, the BBC has a  on canned items’ history.

How Canned Goods Are Made

To be canned, food is prepared (cut, chopped, or even cooked) and then sealed in an airtight can. This is treated under steam pressure at an incredibly high temperature (116-121°c / 240-250°f). This ensures that the food is completely sterile, as this process destroys all microorganisms. This means it’s safe to eat and won’t decay quickly.

4 Major Benefits of Canned Food

Price - cans do generally tend to be cheaper than fresh food

Range - you can find some food in cans that you wouldn’t find fresh in some supermarkets, like artichoke hearts

Sustainability - plastic got a bad rap (and rightly so) during 2018. It’s also made us think more generally about how we package food and what we waste. Whilst canned food might seem like a lot of potential waste, the fact is that cans are recyclable. Most cans these days are made from recycled steel, which can be recycled again. Labels can also go straight into your paper recycling pile.

Canned items can also help combat unnecessary food waste. As the food keeps for much longer (see below), and already comes in defined amounts and portions, we’re less likely to throw away what we don’t use because it’s gone bad. Any unused cans can be used a long time down the line.

But this, of course, is down to you. They won’t get recycled if you throw them straight into the general garbage. If you do this, they’ll just sit in a landfill whilst they slowly decompose, which takes about 50 years.

Storage - Perhaps the best thing about canned goods is that they keep for ages. Whilst they do all come with a use by date on them, it’s generally safe to use them well after this date (albeit at your own risk). For example, on the BBC’s “Made in the Factory” program, people opened canned food that was 100 years old, and it was still perfectly fresh and good to eat! However, this will only be the case if the can is in perfect condition, and there isn’t any damage to it.

Canned Produce vs Fresh

The mantra for many years has been, “fresh is best”. But canned produce is here to upset that.

Research has shown that the nutrient values of canned vegetables and fruit are very similar. Indeed, the levels of fat-soluble minerals, and vitamins (like A, D, E and K), are the same. This is because canned goods are produced whilst the food is at its peak freshness. Often canning plants can be found very close to farms, ports, and producers so the food doesn’t lose much of its freshness before the canning process begins. Fresh produce, however, travels great distances to your supermarket shelf. Sometimes they travel hundreds, even thousands of miles. With each moment on the road, it loses more and more nutritional value.

The only difference is the level of vitamin C. With any piece of produce, the levels of vitamin C start to decrease as soon as you start to prepare it, and that includes during the canning process. However, even though fresh produce has more vitamin C whilst whole and untouched, you do end up losing some of it when preparing and cooking it yourself. You lose even more if you’re using produce that you’ve already prepared and stored for a while. So, the levels might not be that much different once you’ve prepared and cooked food yourself.

Furthermore, the canning process can actually increase some antioxidants in some food. For example, the levels of lycopene in tomatoes are actually higher in canned form than in fresh!

Canned Legumes vs Dried

If you’re asking, “are canned beans healthy?” The answer is, yes!

Much like fresh produce, canned legumes are just as nutritious as they are dried. But the biggest advantage the canned stuff has over the dried version is the convenience.

Many dried legumes take a while to cook. Some even need to be left to soak for several hours, or even overnight, before cooking. This means you need to do a good deal of planning if you’re going to use them. Whereas, because canned legumes have already been cooked or part-cooked, you can pop them straight into your dish at a late stage to simply warm them up or finish cooking them.

However, this convenience does come at a price. It’s one of the few times canned items are more expensive. Canned legumes can cost up to 3 times more in weight than their dried counterpart.

Canned Soup vs Packet

Eating (drinking?) soup is a very comforting sensation, especially during colder months. Like most other food, soup can also come canned.

However, canned soup is not as clear a winner as its main competitor: packet soup. For starters, canned soup takes more time to make as the contents need to be emptied and heated. Packet soups just need hot water from the kettle and it’s ready to consume. Furthermore, packet soup also has a very long shelf life, much like canned, but tend to take up a lot less space.

Canned soup is also not great for portion control. 1 can of soup usually contains 2 portions: not 1 like some people think. This means you could be slurping down twice as much as you should. Packet soups can (but not always) come in single portions to help you control your intake.

But overall, canned soup is generally more nutritious. Packet soup often freeze-dry any vegetables and meat that comes with it, meaning a lot of its nutrients are lost (although some are regained when added back to water). Whereas in canned, the contents retain as much goodness as possible. This also generally makes canned soup taste better, although there are certainly exceptions.

Beware. Both varieties have a tendency to add extra sugar and salt/sodium. Always take a good look at the label before you purchase either varieties. Of course, the best way to avoid these extra nasty ingredients is to make even healthier and tastier homemade soup!

Canned Fish vs Fresh

Produce and legumes aren’t the only things that come canned: fish does too. We’re not just talking about tuna, either. A whole range of fish comes in cans, some in oil, and some even already marinated in sauce.

Just like everything else, the nutrients within canned fish don’t differ from fresh. The canning process can also make them a better source of calcium over fresh fish. This is because the process softens any bones, making them edible. It also comes with the added convenience of not needing much preparation or needing to store it in the fridge or freezer to make sure it doesn’t go off quickly.

What’s more, if you opt for canned fish in oil, this helps preserve even more of the omega 3 that is inherent in fish. Many recommend we eat two portions a week of fish, one of which should be oily because of their omega 3 levels. The downside is that using fish canned in oil will mean consuming more calories than those canned in water. Yet, the benefits of increasing your omega 3 intake may well be worth it.

When to Avoid Canned Items

Whilst canned goods are as good as most fresh food, there are some instances where you should avoid them.

The can is dented - if there is a dent in the can, it’s best not to buy it. This is because when the outside becomes dented, there’s a chance it creates a microscopic hole which will allow air to enter the can. When this happens, the contents will start to decay and the shelf-life greatly reduced.

If there’s over 3g of saturated fat per portion - many healthy guidelines say we should be cutting down on our saturated fat intake. This helps us avoid health issues like heart disease. If a serving of anything that comes in a can has more than 3g of this, then it should be avoided.

If there is over 300mg of sodium per portion - salt is not only used as a flavor enhancer but also as a preservative. Sometimes this can be added during the canning process. High levels of salt and sodium intake are linked to high blood pressure and hypertension. Look for canned goods labeled as “low sodium” to be extra sure you’re not overloading on salt. With legumes, giving them a proper wash before using can greatly reduce the amount of salt and sodium in them, too.

Anything with added sugar - sugar has started to get as much scrutiny by health professionals as saturated fat and sodium these days. Too much sugar in a diet can cause type 2 diabetes and is linked with obesity. Therefore, as tasty as fruit in syrup might sound, it’s probably best to avoid putting these onto your canned food list.

Too many strange ingredients - salt is not the only preservative that goes into our food. Manufacturers will also add a lot of non-organic ones. They also like to add a lot of non-natural coloring and flavoring in too. So, if there are any, or too many, ingredients that you’re not aware of, find a more natural alternative. These ingredients are often long complicated chemical names, and “E-numbers”.

Highly processed canned food - not everything that comes in a can is good. Highly processed meat, such as corned beef or spam, can contain a lot of salt and sodium. It is also generally advised to avoid processed meat as this is also linked to cancer as well as heart disease.

Yes, we can(ned)!

So, there are many reasons to start buying more canned food. It’s not just convenience, price, and shelf-life that makes them great: they can be just as good for us as fresh food. However, buyers should still be wary that not all that glitters is gold, and neither is every type of canned goods good. But more often than not, you’ll be surprised at how much canned items are actually great for your health.

Shopping lists have been around for as long as anyone could write, with evidence dating back ! But why do we make them? Sure, they’re convenient. But did you know there’s a load of psychology behind why we like to make lists. There's some some surprising mental benefits, too.

Let us indulge your curiosity about making shopping lists' mental benefits.

Mental Benefit #1: They Improve Our Memory

This probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise to people, and is probably the most obvious mental benefit.

Our brains are pretty good with memory, and we put a lot of trust in them. But they’re not always perfect. We can guarantee you went to the grocery store without a shopping list and came home to find you’ve forgotten at least one item.

One study has constantly been cited when it comes to shopping lists and memory: in the Journal of Consumer Psychology. It found that over 80% of items that are placed on a shopping list are ultimately bought.

“...shopping lists appear to be an effective external memory storage device for grocery purchasing”, says the study.

But it’s not just the mere fact you’ve made a shopping list that helps us remember things. The format which we make shopping list in is also a great help.

That’s because our brains .

This means that we not only remember pieces of information, we also remember their location. Because shopping lists are very clean and simple it’s very easy for us to remember items by simply recalling their position on the list.

“...it’s hard to memorize through brute force the groceries we need to buy,” says Maria Konnikova in the . “It’s easier to remember everything if we write it down in bulleted, or numbered, points.”

Writing and taking a shopping list with you is the most effective way to make sure you get everything you need. But the mere process of making a list makes your groceries more memorable.

So, if you make a list and leave it at home, chances are you’re likely to remember items on the list. Just recall where they were written.

Mental Benefit #2: They Make Shopping Easier

Lists are the perfect way to make a task seem so much more doable. means it’s easier for the brain to process it, and helps relieve some stress. It can even “trick” you into being more productive.

Indeed, shopping lists are inherently doing this already. You don’t just put down “spaghetti bolognese” on your shopping list and then try and remember everything you need for it. You break the meal down into its ingredients, which makes the task of shopping to make one a lot easier.

But what also makes the task of shopping easier with a shopping list is because the layout makes it quick and easy for our brains to understand them.

This is because we love to read in an F-pattern.

Several years ago, using eye-tracking on webpages, found that readers read in a pattern that roughly resembles an F. This means that at the top of the page they’ll read quite far to the right, but the further down it they go, they less their eyes move right. This research had a dramatic impact on how people write, especially for the internet. This research is often credited/blamed for fueling the rise of “listicals”.

It’s much easier and quicker to look at a shopping list and then know what we need to buy. This is because it fits this F-pattern quite nicely. It’s much simpler than trying to take in a list of ingredients written in paragraph form, saving a lot of time and effort.

Furthermore, shopping lists take away the .

Sometimes, having too much choice can actually make things more difficult. It causes us to be more dissatisfied with the choice we eventually make. What should we choose? What is the better choice? Apples, oranges, or pears?

A shopping list can make all the decisions we need before we even enter the shop, from the type of cheese we want to what meals we plan on cooking. This means you can shop with focus and intent, making the trip easier and quicker. It can also be a tool in helping you fight that grocery stores use to make us spend more.

Mental Benefit #3: They Help Us Focus Better

As well as helping us keep focus when we’re shopping, one unexpected mental benefit of a shopping list is that it can also help us focus better in the rest of our lives.

A study in 1928 by Russian psychologist showed that unfinished tasks can produce intrusive thoughts to try and encourage someone to get it finished asap. It shows that our brains constantly hold onto a task until it is completed.

Following on from this, a study done at found that planning can actually help limit the cognitive dissonance caused by uncompleted tasks.

In this particular study, two teams were given a preliminary task to complete before a main one. One team could prepare for the preliminary task, whilst the other couldn’t, but neither team were allowed to finish it. So, both teams should have experienced interruptions to their trains of thought during the main task, right? Wrong!

The team that were able to make preparations performed better on the main task compared to the team who weren’t allowed to prepare. This is because the plan assured their brains that the unfinished task was able to be finished later on.

“...a plan reduces the amount of thoughts and attention that are typically recruited in service of an unfulfilled goal. Thoughts of an incomplete goal will not interfere with current concerns so long as a plan has been made to see the goal through later on,” concludes the study.

Making a shopping list means your mind doesn’t need to worry about the shopping anymore. It helps to reduce anxiety regarding shopping. If you make your shopping list in the morning, your brain can forget it for the entire day. Then, you can focus and get on with the rest of your life, uninterrupted, until it’s time to go to the grocery store.

Mental Benefit #4: They Make Us Feel Good

Completing a list is satisfying. Ever finished a to-do list and thought, “Yeah. That’s the stuff. I feel goooooooood”?

Of course you have! It’s human nature.

That’s because your brain literally makes you feel great when completing a task. Even for the smallest of successes, the brain triggers the release of the chemical which makes us feel elated.

This is one of the reasons where the advice for making a shopping list’s close cousin, a to-do list, is to break tasks down to as many simple ones as possible. Not only does it make the task easier to understand, but all those little releases of dopamine from completing these smaller tasks can greatly help with the motivation to complete your list.

The same goes for shopping lists. If you’ve managed to complete your shopping list in one shop, you’re going to feel damn good about it. Even if you there are some items remaining, you’ll still feel good about the items you have been able to pick up and cross off.

Shopping List Your Way To Happiness

So there you have it. If you’re someone who really enjoys making , now you know why. Not only do they have several mental benefits, they're also good for your mental health.

If you don’t usually make shopping lists, maybe these 4 mental benefits will be enough to encourage you to start making one.

Not everyone likes to be scared. Not everyone likes dressing up. Not everyone likes candy. Not everyone likes Halloween! Yet, when you tell someone that you don’t like Halloween, the shock and horror on their face is as if Michael Myers just decapitated a puppy in front of them. So how do you do your Halloween shopping if you hate Halloween?

Many people don’t like or celebrate Halloween for many different reasons, from religious beliefs to just plain hate being frightened out of their wits several times an hour.

Unfortunately, Halloween is impossible to hide from.

In the USA it’s one of the biggest events of the year. Surprisingly, it’s not actually the second biggest holiday, in terms of spending, as many think it is. According to the National Retail Federation, it’s the 8th biggest holiday in the USA after other seasonal events like the Superbowl and Mother’s Day. But it’s still a pivotal and much anticipated holiday in the American calendar, and also globally.

In the UK, Halloween hyperbole, mimicking that of its stateside cousins, is significantly growing. Even here in deeply conservative Catholic Poland, there’s concern about the year-on-year growth of the amount of young Poles wanting to indulge in the holiday.

So how can you survive it if you’re one of the people who’d rather not don on a witch’s hat and fill your yard with a dozen rotting pumpkins?

Well, you can shop your way around it.

We don’t mean you should go on a shopping spree so huge that it would shame Johnny Depp. It’s more about choosing when, where, what, and how you do your normal shopping to help lessen the drudgery that is Halloween.

Shop Ahead of Halloween

Many people will always leave things to the last minute, and that includes Halloween shopping for their Halloween costume or Halloween party supplies. This means the closer to Halloween you get, the crazier things in stores get.

Not only are they busy, but certain goods might randomly sell out. According to retail intelligence company, Streetspotr, the average “Out of Stock Rate” is around 8% of goods, rising to 10% for promotional products. If this is the normal rate, you can see how during busy periods like Halloween, goods are far more likely to disappear from the shelves.

If you can, try and do your usual shop a little earlier so you can avoid shopping in the immediate days before Halloween. This means you’ll be spared the braying, barging crowds, and also you’ll be more likely to get what you want or need without the disappointment of finding out that the shelves are bare.

Avoid Halloween Promotions

As with any holiday, there will undoubtedly be a lot of promotions and offers on goods associated with Halloween. You may think that this might be a good time to stockpile things like alcohol and soda. But you should stay away from these.

Why?

There are two reasons. First, the promotions might not be as good as they seem. In the UK, found that special offers often made little to no savings what so ever, and that 10% of multibuy offers actually cost more than when they’re bought individually or when they’re not on offer.

Grocery stores are tricksy hobbits who know the art of making something look like it’s cheaper even when if it isn’t. So, those offers that seem super cheap during the Halloween shopping period might actually be more expensive than at other times during the year.

Secondly, if you’re buying more than you usually would, you are more likely to use more than you usually would.

“If you used to buy a 6-pack of soda and drink 6 cans a week but now buy a 12-pack…you’re probably going to start drinking 12 cans a week. Be mindful when buying larger sizes to make sure your habits don’t change as a result,” says Jeff Weidauer, former supermarket executive and vice president of marketing at Vestcom.

By avoiding these offers you can make sure you don’t end up with lighter pockets or heavier tums.

You can also learn more about the tactics supermarkets use to get you to spend more in our “” article.

Shop For Your Favorite Meal

Some “survive Halloween” articles will advise you to stock up on candy and shovel it down your gob, usually washed down with a tsunami of soda or wine. We think differently. If the hullabaloo of Halloween is getting your down, then overdosing on candy will only make you feel worse.

Instead, shop for and cook your favorite meal. You will enjoy both cooking and eating it which will take your mind off of Halloween. You’ll also be treating yourself with a nice little indulgence that’s not going to make you ill or feel (too) guilty come November 1.

If you don’t want to withdraw completely from Halloween and want to be prepared for the odd trick or treater, you can also bake your favorite cookies. This will gives kids in costumes something nice, homemade, and marginally more healthy than candy to eat. You’ll also have something you can enjoy too, if no trick or treaters come knocking!

Shop For Your Favorite Movies or TV Series

All the channels will have something Halloween related showing in the evening, from all-out horror films to fiendish family favorites. But just because it’s Halloween doesn’t mean you must watch a Halloween movie or show. You can watch anything you want!

So take time to plan a nice line-up of movies or a TV series that you really enjoy watching. It means you’ll have something to look forward to in the evening, and even if you are disturbed by any errant merrymakers, you’ll be keen to get back to watching whatever it is you’re watching.

What’s more, you can shop for snacks and treats that are themed to you choice of film of show. Thinking of joining “The Plastics” and watching Mean Girls? Buy some pink food. Lord of the Rings marathon? How about some onion rings? Or maybe some gazpacho for Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown?

Plan a bit in advanced, though. Streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime don’t have everything on them. So be sure to check whether you need to go out and buy a DVD of your choice flick or show rather than be disappointed you can't find it on the night.

Shop for the Holidays

If you don’t like Halloween, you might be looking forward to a different upcoming holiday: Christmas. What better way to forget a holiday you don’t like by shopping for one you do.

If it seems as if holiday goods start appearing in stores earlier and earlier each year, it’s because they are! This is a phenomenon known as “Christmas Creep”.

“It’s like a mini-arms race,” says . “The competition among retailers means nobody wants to be second. That moves the shopping season up a little bit more each and every year.”

Of course, you don’t have to shop for Christmas (especially if you don’t celebrate it)! Instead, you can start your preparations for Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, or Diwali.

So make use of this opportunity to start picking up things like decorations, and start shopping for presents during the Halloween period. This means that there are less things that could potentially be left for last minute panics when the time comes.

Buy Tickets for Something Un-Halloweeny

Although it seems like everywhere has something Halloween-themed going on, there are some places that don’t. Think about your local theatres, music venues, and concert halls as you might be able to spend your Halloween at something that isn’t Halloween themed. Sure, a couple might be doing something Halloweeny, but many would be just be doing stuff they would be doing at any other time of the year.

Always wanted to go to an opera? Give it a go! Been wanting to see that Broadway show for a while? Gotta book it! Your favorite band is in town? Get down there and boogie!

A similar thing can be said about sport. There may be an opportunity for you to try something new at your local sports facility, support a local team, or even join one. Either way, you might be able to find something that has little or nothing to do with Halloween that you’ve always wanted to do, not considered doing before, or have put off for a while.

Plan A Halloween Vacation

Much like shopping for a different holiday to take your mind off Halloween, why not start planning a vacation for next Halloween?

There are many countries around the world that don’t celebrate Halloween, or where celebrations are a lot more low key. So why not plan your trip to see the sights of such a country? Some places have their own festival during the Halloween period that you can get yourself involved in.

Many countries on the African continent and in East Asia like China and Japan don’t celebrate, or do very little for, Halloween. Certain European ones don’t too, including: Austria, France, Germany, and Poland.

Just be sure to check public holidays in these countries. For example, in many Catholic countries, November 1 is considered a Holy day and a public holiday so everything will be closed (apart from limited public transport), so be sure to make accommodations for this on your travels.

A Halloween Haven

Hopefully, these Halloween shopping tips will help you survive Halloween and be that little bit cheerier about having to endure it all. Do you have any other Halloween shopping tips? Are you surprised that Halloween is only the 8th most popular holiday in the USA? Have you ever spent Halloween in a country that doesn’t celebrate it? Let us know in the comments. Stay strong, Halloween haters!

Halloween Shopping For When Your Hate Halloween Checklist

• Shop ahead of Halloween
• Avoid Halloween Promotions
• Shop for Your Favorite Meal
• Shop for Your Favorite Movies of TV Series
• Shop For the Holidays
• Buy Tickets for Something Un-Halloweeny
• Plan A Halloween Vacation

For more inspiration, check out articles in our Halloween section.

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