Is it more expensive to eat healthy?

NormInv
NormInv Posts: 3,303 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So any studies/stats on this? I know that eating your allotted quota of calories using only healthy choices is tough and requires a LOT of food. Wondering if that also translates into more money spent on grocery shopping. And for this discussion, let us ignore the cost of healthcare to a person of poor eating habits.
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Replies

  • ruwise
    ruwise Posts: 265 Member
    I think it is slightly more expensive doing my weekly shop as I like to buy the nice healthy things that I enjoy . Things like nuts and some fresh fruit and vegetables can be very expensive but I suppose less takeaways and meals out mean that over all I am saving money.
  • krystonite
    krystonite Posts: 553 Member
    From a sociological perspective it absolutely does. That's why impoverished neighborhoods tend to be overrun by fast food joints (fast and cheap) whereas stores with healthy foods (fresh fruits and veggies, lean meats) are in more affluent areas.
  • CoraGregoryCPA
    CoraGregoryCPA Posts: 1,087 Member
    Nope, I spend less. But I buy lots of vegetables and discounted meat from a high end grocery store and cook more from scratch than "fast food" healthy stuff. I spend less.
  • maggiemay22467
    maggiemay22467 Posts: 214 Member
    yeeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssssss in winter it is
  • marqcutie80
    marqcutie80 Posts: 68 Member
    From a sociological perspective it absolutely does. That's why impoverished neighborhoods tend to be overrun by fast food joints (fast and cheap) whereas stores with healthy foods (fresh fruits and veggies, lean meats) are in more affluent areas.

    ^^This is true^^

    From personal experience also, yes it's more expensive. For example, bad weather affects crop returns, which then drive up the cost of fresh produce...
  • NormInv
    NormInv Posts: 3,303 Member
    From a sociological perspective it absolutely does. That's why impoverished neighborhoods tend to be overrun by fast food joints (fast and cheap) whereas stores with healthy foods (fresh fruits and veggies, lean meats) are in more affluent areas.

    True. As any student of economics would tell you, McDonalds is an inferior product - McDonalds has done very well since the 2008 recession.
  • Sorashi
    Sorashi Posts: 41
    Where I live (Spain) it's not. I don't know how is it in other countries but here veggies and fruits are fresh and quite affordable. Other thing is good quality meat or organic foods, those are more expensive.
  • StephShuttle
    StephShuttle Posts: 39 Member
    I've just finished my 3 years as an undergraduate student so I've had approx. £0 during that time. When I started Uni I was eating pretty unhealthy buying easy processed and unhealthy food. Then when I realised I couldn't carry on spending so much on food I check out how much carrots were.

    I very quickly learn that it was soooo much cheaper for me to buy the ingredients and cook whatever I wanted to eat from scratch. In doing that I accidentally started eating properly.

    So in my experience healthy food has been a lot cheaper than unhealthy food!
  • gfedex
    gfedex Posts: 226 Member
    Yes, particularly if you want to have any variety in your diet and actually enjoy what you're eating. Though, you'll always get people saying stuff like healthy is cheaper and to "Just go to the farmers market! Buy oats and dried beans!"
  • skydiveD30571
    skydiveD30571 Posts: 281 Member
    Even when you eat a lot of fast food stuff, you still have to make grocery trips for perishable things like fruits/salad/milk/etc.

    In my experience, I spend less now buying mostly healthy food with 1 fast food trip a week, as opposed to mostly fast food and still having to replace the perishable food I bought that went bad when I didn't eat it.
  • jess6741
    jess6741 Posts: 107 Member
    I think certain things like out of seaon fruits and veggies do. But if you are cooking everything from scratch then it isn't. A box of rice and can of beans will cost the same as a meal at a fast food joint but will last for 4 meals instead of one.
  • jzebracki
    jzebracki Posts: 112 Member
    Absolutely! The price of fruit and veggies is so high - especially compared to about a year ago! Applies used to be $0.89 per pound, and now they are $1.99 per pound! The climate changes have contributed to the higher cost for fruit and veggies.
  • Corruptkitten
    Corruptkitten Posts: 157 Member
    I think in the long run lower quality, less healthy food will cost more in medical bills. Eating healthy is preventative maintenance and an investment in my health. When I shop I try to buy all organic when possible. I just buy what is in season and on sale and honestly it costs about the same if you are smart about it and pay attention to what is on sale. Also if you do your cooking at home rather than buying processed meals it is less expensive.
  • Sorashi
    Sorashi Posts: 41
    I've just finished my 3 years as an undergraduate student so I've had approx. £0 during that time. When I started Uni I was eating pretty unhealthy buying easy processed and unhealthy food. Then when I realised I couldn't carry on spending so much on food I check out how much carrots were.

    I very quickly learn that it was soooo much cheaper for me to buy the ingredients and cook whatever I wanted to eat from scratch. In doing that I accidentally started eating properly.

    So in my experience healthy food has been a lot cheaper than unhealthy food!

    THIS. I noticed this also when my parents leave me home alone for a month and I should make my meals, I spent more the previous years that I was eating processed and canned foods than this one when I started eating healthy.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    Personally, I don't think healthy is more expensive.

    I bought a 5 pound bag of oranges for $3.49. A 12 oz bag of potato chips would cost about the same.

    I also got boneless skinless chicken breasts for $1.99 a pound, frozen carrots for $.99 a pound, 10 pounds of potatoes for $3.99 (bogo special). That'll go a lot further than a couple McDoubles and fries. Anyone who thinks anything off the dollar menu is really a bargain needs to do some math and learn to cook.

    Now, if you're talking about CONVENIENCE, that's another story.
  • BunkyBumBum
    BunkyBumBum Posts: 157 Member
    It depends on what you're buying.

    I live in the city, today I went to pick up some produce, here's what it looked like:

    5 good sized Gala apples
    1 gigantic Organic Fuji Apple (probably $2 all by itself but my 5 year old just HAD to have it)
    2 big bunches of parsley
    2 average heads of endive
    2 average heads of romaine
    1 large bunch of spinach
    1 large stalk of broccoli
    1 big green pepper
    2 large cucumbers
    2 medium zucchinis
    1 average sized brick of locally made tofu
    6 tubs of greek yogurt (usually $1.70 each but on sale 10/$1)

    Total? $25

    I don't consider that expensive, especially not for city standards.
  • bikinisuited
    bikinisuited Posts: 881 Member
    Our family compose of three spends less money than your typically American family. We eat healhty which includes rice, beans, fashioned oats, eggs, fage yogurt, lots of produce and minimal processed foods. However, when we eat out, we splurge as I like great quality of food and less is better in my opinion...:laugh:
  • NualaTW
    NualaTW Posts: 205 Member
    Well, Costco is my friend for stocking up on non-perishable nuts, brown rice, tubs of chicken stock, and frozen chicken and fish tenderloins. My freeze is packed, but those big bags last me for a very long time.

    I hit the local farmer's markets for fruits and veggies, which last longer than store-bought ones. I also find that with planning, I waste a lot less food because I tend to buy only what I need each week and use it all up.
  • terijoestoes
    terijoestoes Posts: 205 Member
    At first it seemed more expensive but then I added up the money I was spending on lattes and eat out and junk food. Was a real eye opener. I always try to follow the seasons and eat what is in. Apples are about the only fruit we eat year round. Have also been teaching myself to blanch and freeze fresh veggies and also which fruits freeze well. Recently discovered that pineapple does so when my store had them for $1 a piece. I bought 10 and cut up and froze em. Yum
  • littlebre33
    littlebre33 Posts: 318
    personally, compared to eating out, no. I found it more expensive getiing fast food

    but...

    when my bf and i were low for cash we ate alot of spaghetti/mac n cheese/ raman noodles, which were quite cheap, but not very healthy. Now that we are buying produce, fresh meats I'm finding it wayyy more expensive..

    that's just my take on it!
  • dym123
    dym123 Posts: 1,670 Member
    I've found it's been less expensive for me, mainly because I'm no longer buying junk or processed foods, I force myself to stay out of the prepared foods and bakery section. I plan out my meals for the week and I stick to my grocery list, sometimes planning my meals around what's on sale.
  • KrystalLight03
    KrystalLight03 Posts: 119
    In my personal experience, the answer is both yes and no. I used to go to the grocery store and buy a lot of TV dinners and boxed meals, and my bill was about $150 every other week. Last semester I barely had time to go the grocery store and ate fast food 2 - 3 times a DAY, and I was living paycheck to paycheck because of it. Now, I'm going to the grocery store and buying mostly produce or organic items, and I'm spending about $60 a week because I'm only buying what I need to make meals I've planned in advance. Also, I found that my local co-op grocery store has healthy, organic meals pre-prepared, and it's about $20 for three meals (that's about on par with what I spent on fast food).
  • norcaligirl72
    norcaligirl72 Posts: 34 Member
    I think it depends on the store you buy from and what you buy. I live in Kona and Costco is my main source of food. I stick to things under $2 a pound for fruits and veggies. Buying chicken in bulk it works out better. You just have to be practical about all of it. If you don't have a warehouse store just buy on sale and stock up on what you can freeze. And quite honestly I do better eating the same stuff. I know people say they get bored but it just makes it easier and less tempting to over eat.
  • meeper123
    meeper123 Posts: 3,347 Member
    I have found it cheaper that per boxed stuff is expensive and i can skip the junk food asiles that stuff is def notcheap
  • StheK
    StheK Posts: 443 Member
    I think it's more expensive calorie for calorie, but less expensive overall because I'm buying less and not eating out 10 times a week.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I guess it depends on one's definition of healthy vs non-healthy. If we're talking a package of Ramen noodles as compared to a home cooked stew made with whole food ingredients, then yeah...it's more expensive.

    For the most part though, it seems to be about the same when you look at it serving to serving. Convenience is an entirely different matter altogether.
  • MissBernie73
    MissBernie73 Posts: 115 Member
    My shopping is more expensive now. I find that buying the leaner cuts of meat, a lot more fruit, veggies and nuts costs a lot more then when i was buying prepackaged and cheaper cuts of meat. I never really ate out or brought takeaway. This is compared to my weekly shopping trip, maybe $50-$100 more now. It is worth it though :)
  • SmartAlec03211988
    SmartAlec03211988 Posts: 1,896 Member
    My grocery bill is about $100 LESS per month eating healthy than when I wasn't. So for ME personally, it is cheaper.
  • RadioactivePirate
    RadioactivePirate Posts: 212
    It is probably cheaper, money wise, to cook from scratch than it is to buy takeout all the time. But time is a valuable resource as well, and cooking from scratch takes up a whole lot of that. Being able to plan out meals, grocery shop, prep, cook, store, etc all of your food can be very time consuming, especially if you have a family. This is the big issue that often gets overlooked in the "is it too expensive" question, and in my opinion is a HUGE driver of why so many low income people have poor nutrition. When you're working long hours for low pay, you just don't have the resources to do all that planning and shopping and cooking without a huge effort.
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,658 Member
    So any studies/stats on this? I know that eating your allotted quota of calories using only healthy choices is tough and requires a LOT of food. Wondering if that also translates into more money spent on grocery shopping. And for this discussion, let us ignore the cost of healthcare to a person of poor eating habits.

    I have found it cheaper actually, for a start I no longer buy cakes, biscuits, sweets or junk food which can be expensive.

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