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

histora

I want to visit some of the markets near some of y'all, because the nearest farmer's market is 30 miles away and has a 25% price increase for less than stellar produce. The only CSA is organic only and costs half my food budget .

Like I said before, it is geographic and situation dependent.

FitSuga

Yeah I disagree. Shop for a family of 6 and it gets pricey. Not only that but it's our area. We live in the desert. You are lucky to grow anything. Farmers market?! Ha! If only! Now, if we moved to a state we consider our home, then yeah cheaper ! Not only could I grow half my food but the farmers market is stellar. The entire downtown transforms , love it! So, it's all relative. You can't make blanket statements like that. I've lived all over and I've never have spent more on food than I have here. Also people say coupons! ... Umm no, only for crappy food. Ever get a coupon for 1$ off grapes? Nope!

That's not to say its not worth it though :-)

swimmermama

Not to keep harping on this, but we just computed our grocery, gas, and "extras" totals for last month like we do for every month. We spent a total of $200 for a family of three, which includes a trip out of town to visit family. Check out my diary if you think I don't eat healthy. My total for this month will be even lower because there have been so many good sales so far.

There are coupons for produce, too! Check out the websites of Earthbound Farms and Driscoll's berries for frequent coupons. There is a coupon for onions here: https://www.facebook.com/VidaliaOnions/app_137656902971961.

geetabean

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.

I totally agree! I also feed a family of 5 and when we are eating healthy it costs us almost double. Fresh and organic fruits and veggies and fresh lean meats are pricey! It probably wouldn't make much of a difference cost wise to go from regular oil packed canned tuna fish to water packed albacore tuna fish and that would be a healthier change, but when you want fresh tuna, or frozen tuna......that costs a lot more! Eating healthy is expensive......why are salads $3-5 more expensive than burgers and fries in restaurants??

mmbleb

I was pleasantly surprised at our first grocery bill. I have a family of 6. We buy things for breakfast, luch, dinner and 2-3 snacks a day. We are really trying not to buy processed foods. We buy lots of fresh fruits and veggies. Our grocery bill was at least $150/week. Now it is rarely $100

rcthale

I think we end up paying higher prices because healthier foods have short shelf lives. You can't really buy a two-month supply of avocados when they're on sale. But, I do love the healthy foods that most people avoid as poor-people foods: beans, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, and frozen vegetables.

shaynak112

So true!
For two of us, who do NOT eat meat, less than $50 a week. Veggies are so cheap!

seebeachrun

I'm really spoiled because I live Florida. We have fresh fruits and vegetables all year round so I just buy whatever is in season and on sale. Plus I live in a mixed area with both urban, suburban, and rural areas packed in close so I have the option to shop at grocery stores as well as farmers markets and roadside stands. I can buy a week's worth of produce for two people for $8 (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, onions, zucchini/squash, carrots, celery, potatoes, and whatever fruit is in season.)

Amommymoose

Fresh perishable items are not necessary for a healthy meal. Frozen foods are just healthy as fresh, and in some cases healthier as light can destroy some vitamins. Canned are not bad either if you buy no salt added.

Dried beans, nuts, whole grains and whole grain products are also non-perishable healthy foods.

I think you've nailed the heart of the issue right here: your version of "healthy" and mine differ. So to say that "eating healthier" is less expensive is wrong.

I'm not going from processed foods to healthy versions of processed foods (which are absolutely more expensive). When we went gluten-free, we didn't spend money on gluten-free versions of what we ate--we changed what we ate.

And although frozen veggies can be healthy, it's not what my family has opted to do. We eat fresh, organic produce. We don't eat beans or grains. It's predominantly produce and grassfed meat or wild-caught fish (animal protein is really just a small portion of our food).

We don't do a lot of recipes so having a variety of crazy spices on-hand, and really--my spices and stuff DO last a long time.

But I went from being a serious shopper. Honestly, coupons didn't even get to the savings I found on loss-leader items and off-brand food items. Coupons (for me) were a complete waste with rare exception because those items (after the coupon discount) simply couldn't match the prices I could find on brands without the coupon when on sale (and then, I stocked up to last me through the next cycle--which I knew after years of keeping a price book).

So for me, there is no question the price skyrocketed. I was just as diligent and relentless about finding the cheapest way to eat healthier and after 8 years, I have it down. But no question--it was more money. Worth it? Absolutely. No question. My now-8yo was predicted to be hospitalized 4x or more/year when he was under 1yo and in his whole life has been ONCE. That's the purity of his food at work. So I'm not COMPLAINING, but I'm saying that it's not as cut and dry as they make it out to be.

Serenstar75

Think for me it's hard to figure out what to buy. I need like a Healthy Foods starter grocery list

slkehl

Definitely depends on where you live. I'm blessed to live in a town where discount grocery stores are within biking distance. However, there are a lot of people who live in the inner city who are surrounded by convenience stores and fast food joints. You have to go a long ways to get anything better than that. And they don't have cars or the time to take the bus out to them. It's sad and something that needs to change.

However, I think people do need to be empowered to eat as healthy as they can. I was a nutrition counselor at the Salvation Army for a while, and many people came in with the mindset that there was absolutely nothing they could do to improve their nutrition status. Those who lived there ate what the shelter served them. However, once I talked to them about portion sizes and got my hands on the weekly menus, they started to make changes. There are also a lot of people that qualify for food stamps that don't know it or don't know how to apply for them.

10acity

On what planet is mac 'n cheese a "moderation food" ?? :noway:

nettasaura

pfft I dunno where you shop but I spend at least $100 more per week (for a family of 4) since I started eating right.

Bwahahaha! This made me giggle because I too am spending about $100 more A WEEK on a family of 4...AND that's for organic whole food....we don't buy processed, we don't eat out and we DO try to purchase pasture raised/grass fed/wild caught meats and dairy products. And I am really struggling with that increase, but I feel it is very worth it....not just for the health of my family, but for the health of the animals/environment. Even our one local farmer's market is not putting much of a dent in that increase....the prices on produce there are about the same as at the store and most of the produce isn't even organic.

If we had gone from conventional processed foods to conventional whole foods...the price definitely would have gone down. Going from conventional processed foods to organic whole foods is a universal shift in a much pricier direction. And going back to conventional whole food is NOT an option for us unless it's a matter of starvation. Just sayin.

jilliew

I live in Western Canada, and my grocery bill went down a BUNCH when I started eating healthy, even when I add the cost of the Herbalife products I use in. The reason is not necessarily that healthy food costs less but it's moreso that I'm not buy AS MUCH FOOD.

I used to be able to go through a bag of chips or a box of Oreos A DAY, and I was drinking pop or juice with every meal, and inbetween. Pasta and bread were a lifestyle - one box of KD would be a meal for me, and then I'd be hungry an hour later and have a sandwich. Carbtastic. Add in the fast food/restaurant/on-the-go snacks, and it added up to a lot.

Now I'm eating smaller portions that are more filling. I've almost cut out bread and pasta completely (because I don't believe that you should cut out any food group altogether), and I don't buy chips or cookies anymore. My grocery bill has been cut in half.

Even considering that I've switched to the leanest meat I can find, which is definitely more expensive than the cheap stuff I was buying before, and whole grain pasta and bread, which, again, is far more expensive than refined grains, my boyfriend and I are still spending the amount of money that I used to spend just cooking for myself.

jilliew

BTW, I should add that I don't believe in eating organic food. Kudos to those of you who want to live pesticide-free, but I'm totally ok with getting a discount on my veggies because they're coated in carcinigins.

emnk5308

Usually my boyfriend and I have $40 a week to spend on food... a lot of the times its less.. So we get markdown produce (where he works =p) and I get tons of Lean Gourmet meals ($1) and frozen veggies and yogurt.

We have lots of rice and stuff like that.. I'm eating a lot less meat so that cut our bill.. It isn't impossible to eat healthy and cheap.

histora

Well, I just came back from shopping for milk and produce. I bought 7 items for 25 dollars. They were:

1 vidalia onion
1.5 lbs red grapes
1 lb carrots
1 lb rutabaga
1 gallon 1% milk
Pack of snack crackers and cheese for the wee ones for behaving on the 30 min trip and at the the store
A bunch of 6 bananas

How much canned vegetables, 2 liters of soda and mac n cheese could that have bought me for $25? Or ramen, canned tuna and white bread? I didn't add any of the money spent on the gas to get to the store to get these items, because I had other errands to run too. And If I was to try and buy all that organic? Easily triple the cost. Hell, I can't even *find* organic rutabagas or vidalias.Free range eggs are thrice the price of regular.

I'm not saying that for some people, eating "clean"/organic/super-healthy isn't cheaper. If you have a grocery store within easy access distance and you aren't shopping for a horde (which I am, lol) in the middle of a landlocked state, sure. But for poor rural folk or poor decaying urban folk, it just isn't the truth. When you are more worried about caloric density vs health of food, the ramen cups, mac n cheese and hot dogs win every time. Add in lack of nutrition knowledge, inexperience with healthier foods...it just isn't as simple as not wanting to "eat clean".

I just had my first artichoke at the advanced age of thirty. Why did I wait so long? Because I'm always on a tight food budget, had never made one before, didn't know if I'd like it, and refused to pay $8 for something I didn't know if the family would eat or I would screw up.I can't afford to be making mistakes, experimenting, losing money like that.

PinkEarthMama

It's ALL dependant on WHAT you buy. Healthy versions of unhealthy food will cost more.

Cooking from scratch will cost you a FRACTION of what buying premade food costs.

Premade pizza crust - $3 Homemade pizza crust $0.30
Coffee Shop Muffin - $2.50 Homemade muffin $0.25
Wonder bread - $2.99 Homemade $0.36

A huge bag of frozen veggies costs $4, the same as a box of good cookies. Tap water is extra cheap, especially compared to soda.

I find a LOT of people use excuses to buy crappy food. It's too expensive. It's too much work. Blah blah blah. Meat is expensive. Vegetables are expensive. It sucks to cook for 1 person. My husband / kids / partner / roommate eats like crap.

There are TONS of ways around the expense of buying healthy food. Skinless boneless chicken breasts are very expensive. Buy a chicken and cut that up. Steaks are expensive. Buy a roast instead. Veggies are expensive. Clip coupons and get them frozen for little to nothing. ( We don't even have decent coupons here ) Boxes of cereal are expensive. Buy off brand, make your own granola, etc. While the initial investment might be larger, the volume of food produced by home cooking is often exponentially larger.

bcattoes

Fresh perishable items are not necessary for a healthy meal. Frozen foods are just healthy as fresh, and in some cases healthier as light can destroy some vitamins. Canned are not bad either if you buy no salt added.

Dried beans, nuts, whole grains and whole grain products are also non-perishable healthy foods.

I think you've nailed the heart of the issue right here: your version of "healthy" and mine differ. So to say that "eating healthier" is less expensive is wrong.

I'm not going from processed foods to healthy versions of processed foods (which are absolutely more expensive). When we went gluten-free, we didn't spend money on gluten-free versions of what we ate--we changed what we ate.

And although frozen veggies can be healthy, it's not what my family has opted to do. We eat fresh, organic produce. We don't eat beans or grains. It's predominantly produce and grassfed meat or wild-caught fish (animal protein is really just a small portion of our food).

We don't do a lot of recipes so having a variety of crazy spices on-hand, and really--my spices and stuff DO last a long time.

But I went from being a serious shopper. Honestly, coupons didn't even get to the savings I found on loss-leader items and off-brand food items. Coupons (for me) were a complete waste with rare exception because those items (after the coupon discount) simply couldn't match the prices I could find on brands without the coupon when on sale (and then, I stocked up to last me through the next cycle--which I knew after years of keeping a price book).

So for me, there is no question the price skyrocketed. I was just as diligent and relentless about finding the cheapest way to eat healthier and after 8 years, I have it down. But no question--it was more money. Worth it? Absolutely. No question. My now-8yo was predicted to be hospitalized 4x or more/year when he was under 1yo and in his whole life has been ONCE. That's the purity of his food at work. So I'm not COMPLAINING, but I'm saying that it's not as cut and dry as they make it out to be.

Yes, but you are talking about your preferences, not what is "healthy". Of course if I choose to eat fresh or organic produce instead of frozen it will cost more. If I choose to buy foods I want regardless of whether they are on sale or in season it will cost more. If I choose to buy tuna steaks instead of canned tuna it will cost more. But that was not the original subject. The subject was whether it really did cost more to eat healthy. The answer is "only if you want it to".

psychicreader80

Sugar free cereal? What kind and where do you get that? Carbs break down to sugar so ????? Just curious.