Eating healthy costs too much

I hear this so much in my practice.  "It's just too costly to eat healthy."  In many cases, yes, it's true, fresh fruits and vegetables can cost more.  However, this doesn't mean that eating healthy has to cost more than an extremely unhealthy diet.

Eating healthy takes work.  It doesn't happen overnight, and it certainly isn't easy to change one's diet.  I see people everyday who tell me how expensive it is to eat healthy.  I agree that it's not cheap to eat fruits and vegetables.  However, it's important to look at someone's whole diet.  There's usually something in the diet that is costing lots of money that can be changed. 

One example of an expensive item in people's diets is coffee.  A coffee habit of going to Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks everyday can really add up, especially if you are drinking specialty drinks (not to mention the amount of calories that are in some of them).

I often see patients spending 3 dollars per day on coffee alone.  Most people don't think that this is that much money until I explain that 3 dollars could be 1.5 pounds of chicken breast when it's on sale. 

Some tips that I give to my patients are to buy meats and fish when they are on sale.  Put them in the freezer so you'll have it on hand when you need it.  Buy produce that's 'in season'.  Right now, apples are very affordable.  Soon, citrus will be affordable.  If you are trying to buy raspberries right now, you're going to be spending a pretty large chunk of change on those. Buy canned fruits in their 'own juice', or vegetables in a can that have 'no salt added'.  Frozen veggies can be purchased on sale and have a long shelf life in the freezer.  Generally, these are the best ways to get your veggies at a reasonable price.

When you are shopping for fresh produce, purchase the foods that aren't already cut and washed such as lettuce.  The more production that goes into a food, the more it's going to cost.

All of this sounds easy.  It's not easy to change habits, however, it can be done.  It may take a little more planning and a little more time, but it's well worth it in the end.