Eat healthy on a budget
First, let蘑菇视频 address the single most common concern folks express when organic food is mentioned: 鈥淚t蘑菇视频 too expensive; I can鈥檛 afford it.鈥� Now, I am not about to try to persuade you that buying transported, conveniently already-picked real food is not normally priced higher than it蘑菇视频 aggro-biz counterpart.
This would be dishonest. What I will say, is that dollar for dollar, when viewed over the long term, this author believes without reservation that the 鈥渋nvestment鈥� will be more than worth it蘑菇视频 dollar cost.
In my humble opinion, food quality, and its corresponding health consequences, is a pay me now or pay me later proposition: short term 鈥渟avings鈥� on food prices are more than likely to result in long term out of control costs in medical bills to treat symptoms and diseases that could have been avoided by lifestyle.
I recently viewed a presentation by world famous Dr. Bruce Lipton, in which he reported that only 5 percent of sickness and early death are due to genetics; the other 95 percent are due to lifestyle and dietary choices. In other words, while we all may have genes that predispose us to this or that illness, the expression of those genes is overwhelmingly due to lifestyle choices, including diet, exercise, and handling of stress.
So before concluding that you cannot afford to eat organic, real food, consider whether you and your family can afford the consequences of eating poisoned, nutritionally inferior mainstream commercial food-like products. There have been extensive and numerous scientific studies showing that in general, organic food is superior in nutrition, and far cleaner in terms of chemical pesticide and other contamination. It also tends to be more sustainably grown, with a far lesser cost to our environment.
I personally feel so convinced of this, that at times when for one reason or another I cannot afford both medical insurance and organic foods, I forgo the insurance and get the food. My experience is that, barring accident or injury, when I eat the right food (and exercise), I never get sick, and thereby do not even visit regular doctors. What if I injure myself ? I purchase a low cost catastrophic injury policy for a fraction of the cost if the full policy.
Note, I am not suggesting this is how you handle your budget, but it works for me, and it represents my values.
Another tactic I use to offset the cost is to eat less. I practice intermittent fasting, and when I do eat, I keep to staple foods and mostly avoid the cost of desserts. Some very well published studies of centarians (people over 100 yrs) show consistently that people who practice calorie restriction live longer and healthier. Longer time between meals (combined with regular swallowing of clean water) gives the body the all-important chance to cleanse itself of toxins, excess fat, and dead cells. It also stimulates growth hormone, which helps slow aging, and build lean body mass, which is increasingly important with age.
Try gardening, even in containers, if you never have. It is amazing how much real food you can grow, at a fraction of the cost, in your yard. I normally do not buy lettuce or tomatoes from May to October 鈥� they are in abundance in my backyard garden. I use organic soil and compost, and I buy rock minerals online to add to my soil, so I grow the highest nutritional value plant I can. Furthermore, you should investigate edible yard weeds such as dandelion and plantains: both are packed with nutrition! I know we also get wild blackberries in my area.
So there you have it, even without discussing grocery store strategy, you have an array of methods to make real food more affordable. Of course, you need to replace the junk foods with these, not add to the pile. Understandably this is a cultural change, and may take time to accomplish; however the journey always begins with a decision to take it, even before that first step!
As far as grocery store strategy, let蘑菇视频 start by noting two things:
1. Real food does not come in packages with labels, and it is normally far less expensive to eat mostly real food, than packaged items with far inferior nutritional value, not to mention often containing lots of sodium and unrecognizable chemicals.
2. Not all food needs to be organic if the budget is tight. Look up the 鈥渄irty dozen, and the clean 15鈥� for foods that always must be, and who do not have to be organic.
Nonetheless, I support organic farming practices( and local farmed food) because they are are more sustainable. Also look for Fair Trade certified foods.
There are a number of web sites, such as Simply Organic, who post manufacturer coupons weekly. Pick up a copy of 鈥淲ildly Affordable Organic鈥� by Linda Watson for a menu of options and strategies.
Making items yourself such as veggie burger patties, or granola bars, etc., makes them more healthy and affordable. If you make it, you control the ingredients (and their quality). Note that usually frozen is cheaper than fresh, and it keeps longer; blueberries are a prime example 鈥� I use them in smoothies several times a week. Totally unaffordable fresh, but frozen no problem.
Animal products cost far more than vegetables, and not as nutritious, so reduce animal consumption. Some people may consider vegan-ism, but this is not a requirement. Some people do 鈥渧egan before 6 p.m.鈥� to reduce cost and animal consumption. You have flexibility in choosing what works for you.
I hope that these ideas inspire you to consider that you may be able to eat much healthier than you are now. Remember, a good diet is most valuable when combined with regular exercise. For more information, please pick up the Linda Watson book mentioned above.
Here蘑菇视频 wishing wellness to you and your loved ones.