Health on a Budget

Many people believe that eating healthier will costyou more and mean less taste and enjoyment. This is not true. There aremore choices on the healthy eating side than tofu and bean salad. Itoften starts with choosing lower calorie alternatives to the fried andsugar laden choices that are often reached for first. Depending uponthe season and where it comes from fresh fruits and vegetables mayappear more costly, but consider all the factors. Can you really put aprice on your health? If poor dietary and lifestyle choices mean thatyou develop a problem in your body (whatever it is) and you mustregulate this with medicine or hospital stays, what is the true priceof not making better food choices?

It comes down to this: how canyou get the most nutrient value for every calorie that you buy? Theanswer: Nutrient-rich foods like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, leanproteins and heart-healthy fats. For whole grains, you can choosethings like cereal, bread, brown rice, bulgur wheat, and flour. Varietyis significant with vegetables. Buy vegetables with different coloursand textures for better nutrition. Also remember to buy things whenthey are in season as they will be cheaper. The rest of the times varybetween fresh, frozen, canned and dried vegetables. Lean proteinsinclude low fat cuts of beef to beans. Heart healthy fats are theunsaturated kind. These are found in things like nuts, and fish. Thepublication "Eating Well with Canada's Food Guide" which can easily besearched on Google or the equivalent from the "U.S Department ofAgriculture" can help you with serving size suggestions.

Afteryou have decided that eating healthier is for you, what can you do,especially if you are budget conscience? Here are five ways to eathealthier on a budget.

1. Plan your meals in advance. Plan yourmeals for the week and make a grocery list based on your plan. If youstick to your plan, you are less likely to by pricier and lessnutritious things on impulse.

2. Cut down on some pre-packagedconvenience foods. It does nit take too much extra time out of yourschedule to shred your own cheese, cut your own vegetables or fruit oradd water to frozen juice concentrate. Doing these things yourself willsave you money and making your own choices in these matters means thatyou will be eating healthier.

3. Prepare meatless means withthings like dried beans, peas and nuts more often. It is also importantto note that eggs and peanut butter are two examples of a good low costmeat alternative. Do not have all salad and beans for example, but varywhat you put on your plate.

4. Canned or frozen vegetables andfruit are just as nutritious as fresh produce. Frozen vegetables andfruit that are packaged in bags usually cost less than those in boxes.These also have a much longer shelf life. Having things that are goodfor you and will keep longer means you may buy less often.

5.Grain products can often be purchased in bulk and therefore be moreeconomical. Consider trying some of these. Things like oats and brownrice for example.

In addition to the five things mentioned abovedoing things like buying milk in bags instead of cartons, large cheeseblocks that you can cut yourself or a whole chicken that you cansection will save you money. Eating better and on a budget really justmeans little more time planning things in advance. You may be saying,"I am too busy for that", but back to the earlier question, "Can youreally put a price in terms of time or money on your health?" Want tobegin your own journey to a healthier you; the resource links at theend of this article are there to assist you. Also remember thatalthough you have been given five ways to eat healthier on a budget,that does not mean you can make an unhealthy choice once-in-a-while,just do it much less frequently, balance your unhealthy choices withhealthy alternatives and do it all in moderation.