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Do candy bars have a tendency to jump off the shelves and into your cart when you’re at the supermarket? You’re not alone. From the weekly circulars to the cash register, the entire grocery-shopping experience is designed to ensure you spend as much time and money on junk food as possible.

But fear not! My book
Eat It to Beat It! is full of easy tips that empower you, the consumer, to stand your ground against a food industry that wants to make you fat. Here are five ways you can outsmart the supermarket and keep those sneaky vice foods out of your cart.

1. Pay with cash.

Paper or plastic? When it comes to checking out at the supermarket, paper money may be your best bet.

A series of experiments by Cornell University looked at the effects of payment method on food choice. When participants used credit cards, they bought more unhealthful “vice” foods than they did “virtue” foods. Researchers suggest that you’re more likely to think twice about an impulse to buy junk food if it means parting with a hundred dollar bill than swiping plastic.

2. Shop with a cart.

I know what you’re thinking: A basket has to be better than a cart because it’s smaller — less room for bad decisions! In fact, a study in
Journal of Marketing Research suggests the opposite may be true: Shoppers gathering groceries in baskets are more likely to reach for junk than cart pushers.

According to the study, shoppers are more apt to compensate for the tension and strain a basket puts on the arm with “vice products” such as candy and soda. In fact, the odds of purchasing junk food at the cash register for a basket shopper was 6.84 times that of someone shopping with a cart!