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Call it best-intentions grocery shopping. At the store, you promise yourself you'll cook a wholesome dinner every night—and the next thing you know, you're tossing wilted spinach and shriveled tomatoes to make room for takeout cartons and pizza boxes. To eat more nutritious food, you may need to do only one thing: Get smarter about how you stock your fridge, so you'll have fresh, enticing options at your fingertips. Here's how:

Buy a Thermometer
"People assume their fridge is cold enough, but in some cases it's not, and that increases risk of spoilage and food-borne illness," says registered dietitian Sara Haas, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Bacteria that can make you sick thrive at temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees, so buy a fridge thermometer and stick with a setting no higher than 40 degrees. Even if your high-tech model has one built in, a separate thermometer is good, cheap insurance.