Have Your Pizza Pie and Eat It, Too

Americans love pizza. In fact, on any given day, one in eight Americans consumes pizza, and the average American will eat 6,000 slices of pizza in a lifetime. Every day Americans combine to eat 100 acres of pizza at a rate of 350 slices per second. Unfortunately, pizza is not particularly good for us. One average slice of a large pepperoni pizza packs 311 calories, 13.5 grams of fat (five grams of saturated fat), 14 mg cholesterol and 701 mg sodium. That one slice represents 16 percent of your body’s recommended daily calorie intake, 20 percent of your daily allotment of both fat and saturated fat, six percent of your allotted cholesterol intake and nearly a third of your daily sodium intake. Good thing we all stop after one slice, right? Not! For those who crave pizza but want to keep a healthy heart, here are some tips on how to have your pie and eat it, too.

1. Change up the crust.
The crust is one of the least healthy parts of the pizza, particularly if you’re trying to avoid excessive carbohydrates. You can solve this problem with a few delicious tactics. At the most basic level, choose thin crust over hand-tossed, pan or stuffed crust. Choosing thin crust helps reduce the negative impact of carb-heavy crust. Go even further when you’re making pizza at home with a thin, whole wheat pizza crust, adding protein and fiber along with a more distinctive flavor profile than traditional crust.

For those avoiding gluten, you have a couple great ways to enjoy gluten-free pizza. First, several chains now offer gluten-free options, like Domino’s, whose GF crust is made from rice flour, rice starch and potato starch. Pizza lovers with celiac disease still need to be wary, though, because restaurants’ gluten-free crusts are often still exposed to gluten during the preparation and cooking process. Your best bet to avoid gluten entirely is to make your crust at home with a recipe like this one. Second, consider trying cauliflower crust, a relatively new GF option that’s gaining popularity among all health-conscious pizza lovers. It may sound crazy, but a properly made cauliflower crust can provide the crunch you crave along with a substitution of a nutrient-rich vegetable for a processed starch. If you don’t want to go through the trouble of steaming and breaking down your cauliflower before forming it into a crust, some varieties of frozen cauliflower crusts are available, typically at natural grocery stores.  

2. Take out a slice of sodium.
Another hidden evil in pizza is its high sodium content. You can reduce your pie’s sodium content by opting for a thin crust or one of the other options mentioned above, which have significantly less sodium than the standard delivery pizza crust. When ordering out, ask for reduced cheese and tomato sauce, as much of pizza’s sodium hides in these two components. When they’re reduced together, you’ll hardly notice a difference in your overall pizza enjoyment. When making pizza at home, select lower sodium cheeses and sauce, like mozzarella or goat cheese. Always avoid salty (and fatty) meats like pepperoni and sausage, too. 

3. Nutritional toppings can’t be topped.
Finally, make your pizza healthy by putting healthy toppings on it! Toppings like tomato, mushroom, green pepper, onion, broccoli and even kale make for savory, flavorful bites and pack a nutritional wallop. Get creative and help reach the recommended five daily fruits and vegetables with more unique additions like roma tomatoes, roasted squash or zucchini, spinach, olives, roasted red peppers, banana peppers, jalapenos, sun-dried tomatoes, pineapple slices, grapes, and herbs like basil or cilantro. Use these tips and tricks to turn your pizza from an indulgence to a wholesome, heart-healthy delight!