Why is it cheaper to eat unhealthfully...

fbmandy55

I don't find it it. I got to the store with a tight budget and spend less now on healthy foods than I did before on junk. I buy milk, eggs, cheese and rice for staples. Then stock up on meat and frozen bagged veggies. Bags of frozen chicken breast and whatever meat is on managers special. I can make meals for a week or more just from those few things...

k8blujay2

I find that these threads, while making good points, tend to oversimplify this issue. For a lot of people, yes, it can be the same or even cheaper to buy fresh food and make it at home. But if you're living at or under the poverty line (or even a little above depending on the region), that stops being true at a point.

Someone pointed out the difference ounce-for-ounce between a McDonalds burger and one at home. The thing is, you cannot go to the grocery store and pull one bun out of the bag, one slice of cheese out of the pack, and one serving of beef from the fridge. The total amount you're spending will be greater even if it works out to less money per serving. For some people, that is simply not workable. If you've got one dollar to live on for the day, you'd be crazy to get the 70-calorie apple over the 450-calorie double cheeseburger.

On top of that, subsidies make certain foods vastly less expensive than others. It is a fact that corn and its derivatives are much cheaper than, say, fresh vegetables. It's not healthier, but foods full of it will stretch your dollar further.

For people who eat out twice a day and spend $8 every time, buying groceries and cooking at home will very likely be cheaper. But if we're talking "unhealthy" as not just fast food but things like that $.10 pack of ramen or the $.33 box of macaroni and cheese that'll feed four people, there's no denying that fresh is indeed more expensive.

Except unless you are homeless or making just above poverty level, most people that are having trouble get some type of nutritional assistance to help pay for sustenance. And while, no you can't just pull out one bun.. if you don't use a whole package, you can certianly freeze the rest. I had a Government professor once talking to a lady in a grocery check out line complaining about how her nutrition assistance money doesn't go far enough... she had steaks and fresh fruit (which isn't necessarily a bad thing) and other items in her cart that would only feed for one meal. He said he took her and taught her how to shop (buying ground beef and canned produce that go farther and spoil less quickly)... Now, I think the point of this is that most people are just plain ignorant on how to shop cost efficiently... Yes, for the first time or two it might seem like it's more expensive. But once you have the staples established, it is much cheaper.

ilovemybuggy

It's actually much much much cheaper to eat wholesome healthy foods. It will just take you a While to figure it out. It seems like a learning curve everyone has to go through.

please share the secret!

tvanhooser

I figure it this way....I go to Mickey D's and get a burger -- that feeds me for one meal. I go to the store and buy a pound of hamburger, whatever fixings I want, and buns and the meat should make at LEAST 4-5 patties which feeds me for more meals. An 8-pack of buns is good for 8 meals and the condiments can last for weeks of many meals. So in the end, if you calculate it out per meal, it's still cheaper to make it at home where you can control things like what kind of fat content by what kind of meat you buy and using low fat mayo; and add in fiber by getting whole wheat buns, and cook the burger without added sodium. It also occurred to me this year finally, that I can get berries ALOT cheaper by taking the kids out to the patch for U-Pick rather than getting them at a supermarket or even the farmer's market. You pay alot just for the convenience of having someone else do the labor and transport it. As far as green peppers go -- no idea. I usually find the green peppers pretty cheap, but the red, yellow and orange ones are exponentially more which I find unfathomable. It's just color --why the huge diff in price? I remember being shocked at first many years ago when I first started shopping for more fresh, ingredient foods than relying on the processed, packaged and canned stuff....but it really does seem to last longer and provide more meal material over the long run so it averages out and you get the health benefits on top of it. My pet peeve now that I am paying more attention to labels and what's in food is that there seems to be an inverse relationship between fat and sodium -- if one goes down, the other goes up and the healthy, whole-grain, low fat, reduced sodium options seem to cost MORE. But it is all a marketing move I'm sure...they produce and stores stock what they think will sell. My question is this...what would happen if all the stores got together and refused to stock the unhealthy stuff anymore and only stocked the shelves with low-fat, high fiber, low sodium options.....sure people would probably gripe and moan at first and try to boycott but if they were all doing it and it's all that was available, it's not like people are going to STOP eating altogether!! Society would have to adapt and become healthier whether they wanted to or not!! I KNOW -- that's Fantasyland material....but just sayin'.... )

shannie74

It depends greatly on how you're doing it... for instance, I have friends with gardens who ALWAYS have extra veggies and one with a peach tree in their yard.. I get my "produce" from them and get the bagged salads from the grocery when on special (gonna eat it right away anyways.. what's a manager special for lol) then watch what i eat from there... and like someone said.. its the fillers that are cheaper... if was real meat it wouldnt be so cheap. I have questioned the same thing but have learned the curves to healthy eating and I have to eat more but I feel better in the end... hope this helps. God bless your journey

haylz247

a lot of people told me about shopping at aldi because i'm on a budget. been there a few times now and i think it's great. i wouldn't buy meat or eggs from there because i'm not too sure on them but the frozen stuff is great. the fish is so cheap.

try writing out meal plans so you only buy what you need?

i guess you just have to shop around and find some good deals

NoAdditives

It's actually much much much cheaper to eat wholesome healthy foods. It will just take you a While to figure it out. It seems like a learning curve everyone has to go through.

please share the secret!

My big "secret" is that I plan out my meals before I go grocery shopping. I know that at Trader Joe's, where I shop, most produce comes in packages. (I don't like that, it means lots of plastic waste to recycle.) So, if I'm planning one meal with zucchini and yellow squash, I know I should plan at least one more meal with those same ingredients so that the extra doesn't get wasted. I plan meals that can use chicken, and I get frozen chicken breasts because it's cheaper.

Mainly, I save money because I cook. I don't buy frozen dinners, boxed anything. I make it all myself. It's easy. It's healthy. And it's far more delicious.

swarla

I am always so confused when I hear people say that eating fast food is cheaper than eating healthy. I grew up in a house where almost every meal was homemade. They were simple meals, but almost always made from scratch. If we did eat out,, it was a weekly treat. Even now, I prefer to make my meals at home and I find that it is cheaper to stock my fridge with the basics (milk, eggs, veggies, etc) and leave eating out to a special occasion or a treat with friends or family.

wiltl

However, what about the people that have $5 to feed themselves for the day? That dollar menu becomes mightly temping. Not saying its right, but its part of reality.

This is very true. When I was incredibly poor, i used to get so hungry I went to the corner liquor store - if which there were several withing a 3 block radius, with no produce in sight - and bought candy just to shut my stomach up.

Now that I have more money and know better, I make eating well a top priority.

Your point about global warming/drought affecting food prices is also something that people should be paying more attention to.

Sorry, I guess I worded that wrong. I meant weather changes as part of normal patterns over hundreds/thousands of years. La Nina and El Nino have huge impacts on agriculture, but they're regular fluctuations in weather. I grew up in a farming town, and you could predict harvests based on how much snow fell in the mountains, how much rain fell in Spring, If it did or didn't get dry enough right before harvest. Regardless of impacts from what is now called climate change, there will be patterns of feast or famine just based on things mother nature has thrown at us for a long time.

BlueJean4114

TO THE OP

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http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/697736--weight-of-the-nation

mamagooskie

Personally I find that I can make a meal from scratch to feed my entire family of 4 for less than going to mcdonalds.....so I don't think that eating unhealthy foods like fast food is cheaper.

yoovie

all the people that lost significant amounts of weight are like ITS NOT MORE EXPENSIVE! and all the people with a long road ahead are like ZOMG BUT FAST FOOD HAS A DOLLAR MENU.

/thread

NoAdditives

However, what about the people that have $5 to feed themselves for the day? That dollar menu becomes mightly temping. Not saying its right, but its part of reality.

This is very true. When I was incredibly poor, i used to get so hungry I went to the corner liquor store - if which there were several withing a 3 block radius, with no produce in sight - and bought candy just to shut my stomach up.

That's a great point. But, how many people are just handed a $5 bill in the morning with someone saying, "This is what you get for food. Make it work"? Not many. So, if a person has $5 a day for food, that comes out to $150/month, which is roughly $37.50 a week. That money can buy rice, beans, in season fruits and vegetables, eggs, a little chicken, etc. That money would definitely go farther at a grocery store than at a fast food place. There might not be a whole lot of variety, but there isn't on a "value menu" either.

bcattoes

You can go to McDonalds and buy a cheeseburger and fries for a lot cheaper than going to the grocery store and buying foods to make a meal. It just aggravates me...

No you can't. If you bought the ingredients for the same foods and made it at home, it would be cheaper at home. McD is just easier, not cheaper.

GeorgiaElliot

I find that these threads, while making good points, tend to oversimplify this issue. For a lot of people, yes, it can be the same or even cheaper to buy fresh food and make it at home. But if you're living at or under the poverty line (or even a little above depending on the region), that stops being true at a point.

Someone pointed out the difference ounce-for-ounce between a McDonalds burger and one at home. The thing is, you cannot go to the grocery store and pull one bun out of the bag, one slice of cheese out of the pack, and one serving of beef from the fridge. The total amount you're spending will be greater even if it works out to less money per serving. For some people, that is simply not workable. If you've got one dollar to live on for the day, you'd be crazy to get the 70-calorie apple over the 450-calorie double cheeseburger.

On top of that, subsidies make certain foods vastly less expensive than others. It is a fact that corn and its derivatives are much cheaper than, say, fresh vegetables. It's not healthier, but foods full of it will stretch your dollar further.

For people who eat out twice a day and spend $8 every time, buying groceries and cooking at home will very likely be cheaper. But if we're talking "unhealthy" as not just fast food but things like that $.10 pack of ramen or the $.33 box of macaroni and cheese that'll feed four people, there's no denying that fresh is indeed more expensive.

I'm super poor but I know enough that if I can afford enough Mcdonalds to affect my health, I can afford to eat healthy foods if I plan well and prepare them myself. Eating one cheeseburger one day isn't going to make a big difference. If eating healthy is a priority, planning to use your $10 on healthier staples (oatmeal, rice, canned fruit/veggies, tuna, beans, etc) to make your meal for the day, instead of $1 a day for 10 days on McDonald's cheeseburgers is going to be better for your body.

GeorgiaElliot

However, what about the people that have $5 to feed themselves for the day? That dollar menu becomes mightly temping. Not saying its right, but its part of reality.

This is very true. When I was incredibly poor, i used to get so hungry I went to the corner liquor store - if which there were several withing a 3 block radius, with no produce in sight - and bought candy just to shut my stomach up.

I'm sure at the time you didn't care what you ate and can't blame you for that. If you're living so poorly that candy from the liquor store is your only meal for the day, probably got more pressing problems than caring what you're eating. I'm pretty sure no one's gonna give you a hard time for not meeting your macros lol.

LorinaLynn

That's a great point. But, how many people are just handed a $5 bill in the morning with someone saying, "This is what you get for food. Make it work"? Not many. So, if a person has $5 a day for food, that comes out to $150/month, which is roughly $37.50 a week. That money can buy rice, beans, in season fruits and vegetables, eggs, a little chicken, etc. That money would definitely go farther at a grocery store than at a fast food place. There might not be a whole lot of variety, but there isn't on a "value menu" either.

Yep. It requires a little extra planning, that's all. I will only buy chicken breast when it's $1.99 a pound or less, and buy at least 5 pounds at a time. I'll freeze what I can't use immediately. I get frozen vegetables because they won't spoil and it's an easy way to get a good variety. I'll check over the day-old produce for extra savings. I get a bag of potatoes that lasts a long time. Pasta and rice is cheap, although I do "splurge" a little on Knorr Rice Sides or Rice A Roni at $1 a box because it makes meal planning easier.

To be honest, I find a homemade PB&J to be more satisfying than a McDonalds cheeseburger, and it costs pennies.

k8lyn_235

i don't know if anyone referred to this, but this compares the price of unhealthy food (fast food as well as grocery items) to healthy food.

http://www.dailyspark.com/blog.asp?post=what_20_will_buy_at_the_drivethru_and_at_the_supermarket

srpm

My household food budget (my husband and me) went down $30-40/month when I started eating healthier. I eat less and still get full so I am pretty sure that is the main reason why. On the weeks/months when he joins in it goes down another $60-$70 depending on how with it he really is.

That's $100/month we save when we both eat healthy foods (meaning more fruits/veggies, ordering salads out instead of burgers & fries etc.) Sometimes we even still order appetizers &/or desserts

When we cut-out eating down to a minimum on top of making healthier choices we save another $150-$200/month if not more.

Granted we turn around and spend all that money elsewhere but still that's a huge savings!

CM9178

Everybody (or most) are missing the point!

A package of 93% lean ground beef is MORE EXPENSIVE than the same size package of 80% lean beef.
A package of multigrain or whole wheat bread is more expensive than a loaf of White wonder bread.
A gallon of skim milk is more expensive than a gallon of whole milk.

These are straight up facts - same package sizes, but cheaper for the "less healthy" items.
How can you say that isn't true??

I am not talking about how much it costs overall to feed my family with healthy foods, vs. fast food.
I'm talking about the one-to-one comparision of buying these healthy items vs. unhealthier items.