Do you groan when thinking about the cost of eating healthy? Many of us associate healthy eating with an empty wallet. While this may be true for some products, we need to break this association. A study involving diabetic youth and their parents found that improved diet quality was not accompanied with greater expenses. This suggests that not all healthy foods are more expensive and a healthy diet can be achieved without increased food costs.
The next time you go grocery shopping, focus on finding healthy choices outside of the health food aisles. Often times foods that are marketed as healthy choice are more expensive and don't necessarily have much better nutritional content than similar choices. If you find a product that's being marketed as healthy, seek out more information using the Nutrition Facts Label before you buy. Focusing on the nutritional information rather than the price tag can help you rely on careful and systematic thinking about the health claims.
Starting to eat healthy can be daunting in the beginning. Follow these additional tips for eating healthy on a budget.
• Meal plan and cook in bulk. You’ll buy exactly what you need and buying in bulk is cheaper. You can freeze or refrigerate the extra. • Make smart choices at the grocery store. Do not go when you’re hungry. Make sure to stick to your grocery list. • Buy frozen fruits and vegetables. The frozen options are often less expensive and contain more or the same amount of nutrients as fresh produce. • Buy generic brands. Check the nutrition facts to make sure the nutritional value is the same or better than the name brands. • Buy high nutrition, low cost foods such as beans, lentils, sweet potatoes, eggs, peanut butter, canned chunk light tuna, oats and frozen fruits and vegetables.
Bottom line: Eating healthy does not have to empty your wallet. Rely on the nutrition facts rather than the price tag when choosing healthy foods. If you are interested in learning more about healthy eating on a budget and other wellness programs offered by Wellness Workdays please download our brochure.
Written by: Christian Jung, Wellness Workdays Dietetic Intern.