it DOESNT cost more to eat healthy!! :-)

2fit4fat

http://todayhealth.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/17/11745871-is-healthy-food-really-more-expensive?lite

And my grocery bill has proved it! lol

annmarwor

I hear this all the time and you are so right; it doesn't cost more to eat healthy. My grocery bill used to average $120 a week for my fiance and I. Since I have been eating healthy, my weekly bill is about $60-$80 a week, sometimes less! I think when people try to combine healthy eating alongside unhealthy eating, it becomes pricey. Produce can be quite expensive; when it makes up the majority of your meals, it's doesn't hurt your bank account. When you pair it with your Twinkies and frozen snacks it hurts a little.

histora

Actually, like all things diet and health related, this varies widely depending on the family/person and their situation.

Eating healthy IS expensive here. I live in the country, buy my food in two week chunks, and cook for 6. This means a lot of bulk product and produce is NOT something that can be bought for the next two weeks.

Add to that my produce is *expensive*. One bell pepper costs me $3. Cherries are a very rare treat. Unless I can grow it myself, it hurts the bottom dollar to bulk up on produce alone.

Part of what feeds into the disparity is the grocery desert that many rural families face. Grocery stores are spread out here, and not only do I spend gas to get anywhere, but local prices are way higher than in the bigger city 15 more miles away. So add on some more milage, pay a little less...damned if we do, same if we don't.

juniper_m

I live in Alaska, and the price of produce is quite high here. Even so, I've found that whole foods are more filling and more affordable per pound than "convenience" foods.

macx2mommy

I think it depends on how the comparisons are done. If comparing similar items, I do think it can get more expensive for the healthier (notice I didn't say the food was healthy, just healthier), the better choice can often be more.

Here's some examples (again, not saying that all of these are healthy or the best choice, but rather a comparison of two items)
Fast food restaurant value meal items seldomly have healthy choices, other than maybe a side salad. I could get a couple of value menu items for under $4, or spend $8 for a salad

In the grocery store:
Organic is at least 20% more than non organic
Whole bread is more expensive than white, and the good whole grain bread is up to three times the price
Same with whole wheat pasta vs white
Real juice is much more than the punch craps
Baked chips are double regular chips
Healthy cereals are double the sugar stuff

I find that there are often alot more unhealthy processed foods on sale rather than the healthy things. All of this being said, with some good planning, shopping sales, and stocking up, one can actually eat healthy for not much more than unhealthy. The other problem is that the really healthy foods like fruits, and veggies, can be difficult to stock up on for a long time. It's much easier to buy a year supplie of chips and cookies on sale, than it is a year of fruits.

Just my random thoughts. I know that now that I have been eating so much better, my grocery bill has gone up. It's well worth it though.

KayteeBear

Sadly, fruits and vegetables are kind of expensive where I live. I tend to only buy a few types of vegetables because they are the cheapest but there's a lot I don't buy because it's too expensive. However, I do want to plant a garden this summer so I can have more vegetables.

And I also live in a small town where there is only one grocery store so I can't price around. The city is 45 minutes away so whenever I am there I try to go grocery shopping because it is cheaper there...but I don't go there specifically for groceries because that's just a waste of time and money to drive all the way there for groceries. And I'm not really in the city that often.

I think it honestly depends where you live. Dairy products are also quite expensive here. Meat kind of is so I don't buy that often either. However, I do get meat from my dad's farm and my boyfriend's raising pigs so we will have plenty of pork soon so that helps lower the grocery bill as well.

MindyG150

Food is expensive, but like anything if you do your homework it can work.

Plan ahead, don't deviate and always stay on the outer perimeter of the store.

Also, Farmers Markets are AWESOME!

macx2mommy

I am always in awe of farmers markets. The ones in my city are actually alot more. I hear in the US, you can get deals, but here, the produce is fresher at the market but again at least 20%, and that's not even organic.

Amommymoose

I also think that this article's perspective of price-per-calorie doesn't really take into account price-per-meal and how things are bought, stored, etc.

I was a STEALTH shopper when I wasn't eating whole foods. Stealth. My food budget absolutely tripled when I went to whole foods (and I wasn't even eating twinkles or the like "before"). I've taken several years to find the best ways to do it--I buy in bulk, via coops/CSAs, meat direct from the farmer vs. the store. I used to host a co-op drop-off site that got me most of my produce for free for about a year (man--that was AWESOME). I know how to save money for sure, but there is now question that going from a packaged foods eating regimen to a whole foods one absolutely increased our food bill. And it was the same both on the east coast and now in the midwest. The only reason I was even able to move to pasture-raised meat was because we slashed our meat portions so significantly that the overall meat cost was the same (as opposed to the price-per-pound cost--which was multiple times more the grocery store meat because I only ever bought it at $1.99/lb).

We are also gluten-free, so there are no "filler" things like breads or pastas. We're close to eating paleo (predominantly veggies, some meat/protein and rarely if ever any beans, grains, potatoes or fruits). Veggies alone cost me $75-$85/week and they happen to be organic but that's because my research found that where I'm getting them from is cheaper than non-organic (or a mix of organic and non) anywhere else I have access to. And that's just for 3 people (the youngest one doesn't really eat enough to count her).

Awkward30

My food budget is ridiculous either way, I've found. For two years I ate subway damn near every day and very little aside from that, so while it was not cheap, it came out to around $10 a day. Now I make my food much more, and sometimes do microwave meals, but I just don't see how people can eat so cheaply (I don't drive, so I have to do most of my shopping at a slightly overpriced store and then supplement with public transportation out to buy stuff at cheaper stores) but a typical day

Breakfast: fiber one bar (.50) and protein instant coffee (1.00)
Morning snack: yogurt (.75) and spelt pretzels (~.50)
Lunch: sandwich thin (.50) 2 oz ham (~.75) 2.5 servings frozen veggies (1.00)
Afternoon: cliff bar (1.00)
Dinner: 8 oz chicken (1.00) couscous (.50) 2.5 servings frozen vegetables (1.00)
Post workout: protein powder (1.00) cottage cheese (.50)

Ends up around $10/day and that's when I'm good, I'm usually significantly lazier and have more bars. I tried to make my own protein/nutrition bars, but they were bland and it requires me to put the time in on the weekend, which I'm bad at. I don't k ow what the point of my post was. I think lamenting the amount I spend on food while knowing I'm not doing everything in my power to remedy it. But I also didn't have to spend much time when I just ate subway every day... And time is money!

Pebble321

I think it can definitley be cheaper - but this assumes that you have access to buy a variety of food, knowledge of healthy options, skills/utensils/power to cook and store food etc.
Like lots of things, it isn't just a simple equation - often people in poorer communities don't have access to much choice of food, don't necessarily have a good education, may not be eudcated about what is good food to feed themselves and their children.
It's a tragic reflection on many western societies that you can be overweight and malnourished - and it's not really about cash, it's much more about knowledge and opportunity.

BeautifulKristen

Um it is more money to eat healthy. Especially with all the ingredients that ask for spices. God spices can end up to being almost 4 -5 dollars. And the oils can end up to be like 8-10 dollars.. O.o. I was wanting to buy ingredients for a lot of recipes on skinnytaste and couldn't because of how much everything was here.. So I ended up buying weight watchers smart ones instead. Because normally I only cook for myself when my fiance is at work. So it is cheaper for me to buy them.

FrostyFour

I spend $40 a week on our food.

Actually, it's about 33% of the reason we changed how we eat, is cause we got a new apartment with insane rent and we had to really tighten our belts to make it.

I only have to cook one meal a day, and it's just pasta with corn and egg whites in it.

The rest is like, a banana, an orange, yogurt with honey bunches of oats mixed into it... etc. When you start getting into things like cumin, rosemary, thyme, I lose interest.

Grab and go! That's what I do!

Pebble321

Um it is more money to eat healthy. Especially with all the ingredients that ask for spices. God spices can end up to being almost 4 -5 dollars. And the oils can end up to be like 8-10 dollars.. O.o. I was wanting to buy ingredients for a lot of recipes on skinnytaste and couldn't because of how much everything was here.. So I ended up buying weight watchers smart ones instead. Because normally I only cook for myself when my fiance is at work. So it is cheaper for me to buy them.

It can be, but it doesn't have to be ..... the trick is to build up your pantry gradually. I know that if I set out to buy all the spices for one recipe then it is going to be really pricey, but if you buy one herb or spice every couple of weeks, you'll only be adding a dollar or so to your shopping budget and in a few months you'll have a great selection. The same goes for things like olive oil, sesame oil, fish sauce etc - you only use a tiny amount of those ingredients so once you have them they'll last for a long time.
Or buy spice mixes - my neice cooked cajun chicken salad for me last week and the bottle of cajun spice mix cost about $1.50 and she didn't add anything else to the chicken. Add that to a handful of salad leaves and you have seriously delicious dinner. I reckon I could make that for four people for under $10. Buying a Lean Cuisine here is going to cost upwards of $4.

devilsangel2

It definitely costs more to eat healthy here.

Milk is $5.00 for 2 litres - Soda is 99 cents for the same
For lean mince you are looking at $15.00gk compared to $6.00 for fatty stuff
Good quality grain bread at least $3.00 loaf - white bread 99 cents
And so it goes on.

If you want things like quinoa and wholemeal pasta your choice is limited pretty much to 1 brand and you pay premium price, because they have no competition.

momtokgo

I think it depends on where you live, and what you buy. Food is pretty expensive here, but thats all food, not just healthy food. We live pretty far north in Canada, so nothing is grown local and everything has to be trucked in. Even during the summer there is not much local. We can get some veggies from the farmers market, but thats it. No fruit grows here, and local meats are hard to get.

But I find its cheaper to buy a bag of apples instead of a bag of doritos. A 6 pack of pop is $5.99. Milk is far cheaper. A frozen pizza is around $9, I can make it from scratch at home for less then that. But it requires work. If I were to buy a premade pizza crust, and all the toppings, it would cost us more then a frozen pizza.

terri0527

The only issue I have is having to buy basically 2 meals per dinner. Sometimes I can modify or sneak in healthy alternatives but otherwise my hubby refuses to eat something that doesn't have "grease" in it. Nothing I say or do will change his mind unfortunately. So I cook what I want and what the others want.:grumble:

swimmermama

With planning and a little work, eating healthy can be so cheap. Our monthly grocery bill for a family of three is maybe $200. We are vegetarian, which may help, but we all eat incredibly healthy. My tricks are that we NEVER eat out, I coupon, I buy what is in season, and I totally stock up when things are on sale. My freezer is full of veggies, fruit, veggie "meat" and fish that I got for almost free. My pantry is BURSTING with whole wheat pasta, organic canned veggies, low-cal and sugar cereal, etc.

I think grocery shopping can two out of the following three: cheap, easy, or healthy. Mine is not easy because I plan and cut coupons and plan some more. But it's sure as heck cheap and healthy! It is so worth that to me.

Cliffslosinit

If it was just for me....I agree. I have 2 shopping list. Mine and the kids. They just don't eat everything I do. That's ok I'm setting the example for them later I hope!

roachhaley

It is for me. But I live in a place where produce is pretty expensive and on top of that the cheapest produce is usually moldy or never ripens.

aippolito1

Mine has been significantly less. The things that are expensive are the processed foods...so when you get into buying organic or natural versions of processed foods, THEN it gets expensive...like a box of fruit strips is like $4, versus like $1 for an off brand fruit roll up. But hey... suffer for your treats and just eat cheap the rest of the time... all you need are veggies, lean meats, fruits, and a little whole grain (multigrain pasta $2? I can handle that). I used to spend about $100 every two weeks, now I spend $40-50 every week and I'm eating much healthier, so it's about the same or a little less.

cspong

When I add in all the random Fast Food runs and buying chips or whatever on movie nights, it really is cheaper. Plus, in canada at least, the tax is about half for healthy food rather than junk

runfatmanrun

Mine is cheaper only because it lasts longer. Before I would buy a bag of chips say $3 and it would last a day or two tops. Now it last 3-4 days so all of a sudden my $/day gets cut in half. My biggest think was costco tortellini. The double pack used to be two meals, now it's seven. The cost of the items didn't get cheaper just how long the items last in my house increased.

Ge0rgiana

I get Bountiful Baskets (bountifulbaskets.org). For $15 (+$1.50 handling) every 2 weeks, I get a TON of produce. Going to pick up a basket in the morning, and I still have tomatoes, onions, asparagus, and some apples and oranges left over from the last time. Food co-ops are fantastic if you can find one!

saxmaniac

I don't agree at all. My grocery bill went up considerably. Let's read the article:

"healthy foods like toasted oat cereal (a grain), vegetables, fruits, and low-fat milk and plain, low-fat yogurt (dairy) were more affordable than most protein foods (lean roast beef, chicken breast, or canned tuna "

Chicken breast and fish is not counted as "healthy"? What? Sorry, but I need LOTS of protein to keep from losing muscle.

Compare the price of ground beef with pink slime vs. fresh sockeye salmon and tell me better food isn't more expensive.

By the time I get out the fresh vegetable aisle, shopping for a family of 5, I'm already down about $75.

Here's what I think: It's not a lot more expensive to go from eating utter garbage, to something slightly better but still crappy. But to take it to the next level, with lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, and HIGH QUALITY PROTEIN takes money.

deniseearheart

I live in AZ and can grow my veggies and some fruit inside year round.. Very thankful for that. Although I don't grow all the veggies I would like I can grown some like tomatoes,cucumbers,bell peppers , onion and garlic plus herbs and strawberries

Ge0rgiana

When I add in all the random Fast Food runs and buying chips or whatever on movie nights, it really is cheaper. Plus, in canada at least, the tax is about half for healthy food rather than junk

Wow. In the States we don't pay tax on stuff like whole produce and milk. I think that's another thing that people in this country forget about. I've made significant trips to the grocery store that resulted in 0 tax at the end.

deniseearheart

I don't agree at all. My grocery bill went up considerably. Let's read:

"healthy foods like toasted oat cereal (a grain), vegetables, fruits, and low-fat milk and plain, low-fat yogurt (dairy) were more affordable than most protein foods (lean roast beef, chicken breast, or canned tuna "

Chicken breast and fish is not counted as "healthy"? What? Sorry, but I need LOTS of protein to keep from losing muscle.

Compare the price of ground beef with pink slime vs. fresh sockeye salmon and tell me better food isn't more expensive.

By the time I get out the fresh vegetable aisle, shopping for a family of 5, I'm already down about $75.

Here's what I think: It's not a lot more expensive to go from eating utter garbage, to something slightly better but still crappy. But to take it to the next level, with lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, and HIGH QUALITY PROTEIN takes money.

Ya I agree my fiance and I and our 3 teenage boys who eat us out of the house hold.. even with growing some of my own veggies we spend about 2-3 a week on groceries :-/

cheshirequeen

if its expensive for you now, look at it in the long run. you wont be eating crappy hospital food for 5 days from your heart attack that youve been spending lots of meds on for years.

saxmaniac

if its expensive for you now, look at it in the long run. you wont be eating crappy hospital food for 5 days from your heart attack that youve been spending lots of meds on for years.

It definitely is worth every penny. It's maybe an extra $50-$75 per week ($300/wk here) but it really matters.

alyson820

Ugh, these articles always upset me because there are so many assumptions made. For one, we're assuming that the person driving has a car. Imagine taking bags of fresh produce on mass transit, especially in the summer. Meat could defrost, fruit can start to go bad, not to mention that fresh, whole food is going to be much heavier than pre-packaged processed meals, because you're carrying every ingredient. And what if the nearest grocery store is miles away? Poor neighborhoods statistically have a large amount of fast food restaurants, and often no grocery stores (and if they do, they're usually convenience stores with little to no fresh food) http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/28/6/w1088.abstract.

So, no car and no nearby grocery store. A lot of people are going to walk to the nearest fast food restaurant instead of spending an hour between buses and trains to buy food that could perish by the time it's brought home.