Food assistance policy makers have long debated whether increasing benefit amounts actually improves dietary quality or simply enables recipients to buy more food overall. This question carries significant implications for public health outcomes and the $100 billion annual federal nutrition safety net. A comprehensive analysis of grocery transaction data from North Carolina provides compelling evidence that enhanced SNAP benefits directly translate to healthier food choices. Researchers tracked actual purchases from a major supermarket chain, comparing shopping patterns of SNAP recipients before and after pandemic-era benefit increases with matched non-SNAP shoppers over the same period. The study captured real-world purchasing behavior from October 2019 through February 2022, encompassing both emergency pandemic allotments and the permanent Thrifty Food Plan modernization. SNAP participants demonstrated significantly greater increases in purchases of fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, and minimally processed foods compared to their non-SNAP counterparts after benefit enhancements took effect. Simultaneously, these recipients reduced their purchases of sugar-sweetened beverages and overall sugar content. The improvements were most pronounced when both benefit increases were active simultaneously, suggesting a dose-response relationship. This transaction-level evidence challenges assumptions that low-income families will spend additional food assistance dollars on less nutritious options. Instead, it indicates that financial constraints, rather than preferences, may be the primary barrier to healthy eating among SNAP recipients. The findings support policy arguments for permanent benefit increases, though the study's geographic limitation to North Carolina and focus on one retail chain warrant broader replication across diverse markets and demographics.