Trying to cut down on grocery costs? There are ways to save at the checkout counter without having to pull out a fistful of coupons.

Some tips I've heard before include "Don't go shopping on an empty stomach" and "Don't buy things you normally wouldn't just because they're on sale."

I'm going to add to the list these thinking-outside-the box ideas from the American Diabetes Association:

• Buy boneless cuts. That way you're not paying for the bone, which adds a lot to the weight of meat.
• Pick white eggs over brown eggs, which are pricier but aren't any more nutritious. They're only brown because of the color of the hens that lay them.
• Avoid buying buying small containers of yogurt. Instead, get a quart and separate it into servings yourself.
• Use nonfat dry milk for drinking, cooking and baking. It's cheaper than fresh milk and doesn't expire
•Make your own cooking spray by pouring some cooking oil into a spray bottle (This one gave me pause, but I won't knock it until I try it.)

Have tips? Share here.

So you’re at your local restaurant and you get the choice of a side: Rice or mashed potatoes. What do you pick?

Given the bad rap that carbohydrates have gotten in the last decade or so, you might go with the rice, though your stomach pleads, “me wants creamy potato goodness.” (That's how yours talks, too, right?)

But don’t rule potatoes out yet, say researchers at the University of Maine.

“Potatoes have a tendency to make you feel full longer,” says Danielle Meyer. “It has dietary fiber and fiber is one of those components that slows your stomach from emptying.”
“It’s also a good source ofvitamin C, potassium and nutrients,” Meyer says.

There are caveats, however. The health benefits of potatoes depends on how they're prepared, Meyer said.

French fries are of course dripping in fatty oil. The other problem is that the processing and the high cooking temperature changes the fiber and starch content.

“With French fries, you’re going to feel less full than having mashed potatoes,” says Meyer.

Meyer, a graduate student in the Food Sciences and Human Nutrition, and her colleagues are in the process of studying what is the best way to prepare potatoes, and will have their subjects eat them mashed, baked, boiled, steamed and fried. Meyer recommends leaving the skin on potato dishes because of the high concentration of nutrients and vitamins.

Meyer acknowledges that other produce may be all-around healthier than potatoes, like, say, broccoli. Potatoes also have a high glycemic index, meaning that it causes blood sugar levels to rise quickly – a big problem for diabetics.

But Meyer says the reality is that potatoes are an affordable part of the American diet, and knowing the best way to make them could maximize the benefits.

We've heard that moderate red wine consumption can be good for the heart. Scientists started using the phrase, French Paradox, after observing how French people regularly drink red wine and eat Croque-Monsieurs, seemingly with impunity.

A new study, though, shows that the positive impact of red wine is limited to one glass at a time. Any more servings than that reverses any health benefits.

The study goes on to show that a glass of any alcoholic beverage has the same benefits as red wine. (Mon dieu!)

Researchers at Toronto General Hospital break it down for us: One drink of any alcoholic beverage expands the blood vessels and reduces the work the heart has to do.

Having two drinks, though, begins to stress the body, the researchers said. Blood flow increases, but the blood vessels' ability to expand becomes impaired.

(In case you were wondering, the 13 people in the study – published in this month's American Journal of Physiology, Heart and Circulatory Physiology – were served moderately priced pinot noir and some unspecified spirits.)

A toast to our hair stylists! Ok, now, sip slowly.