I've seen reports that predict the economic recession will cause a rise in obesity. The thought is, people will buy cheaper, less healthy food to save money. More people will turn to fast food to feed their families. Basically, it's a consensus that it costs more to eat heathy. I'm curious if this is true.
Recently, my family eats out less and cooks at home more. We hardly ever go out to sit-down restaurants these days, and we eat fast food maybe twice a month at most. At the grocery store, I save money by making more stuff from scratch. Pre-packaged meals can't compete with a home-made meal. We have a deep freeze and I buy meat when it's on sell and freeze it. A lot of produce, like onions and bell peppers, can be chopped and frozen too so it's easily accessible to quickly cook up a nice meal. I even started making pizza at home which is a lot cheaper than delivery pizzerias, not to mention healthier and a lot of fun to make. And yes, some days I feel lazy and we just make spaghetti.
Buying breakfast and lunches during the work week can account for a huge chunk of the budget. We managed to cut those expenses too without cutting back on taste. Either my husband or I have managed to cook breakfast almost every day. Before work, I make breakfast sandwiches on whole wheat bread with egg and turkey with a side of fruit. My husband and I also make lunches to take to work usually consisting of leftovers from the night before or a sandwich or salad.
I feel my family has been eating better since we started being more conscience of our spending habits. It may be a little more work, but I think it's worth it. I don't feel that the recession will cause any weight gain in this household.
I'm curious, how has the economic downturn changed your eating habits? Are you eating less or eating lower quality foods? Or has it caused you to rethink how to feed yourself and your family? Please share you thoughts.
UPDATE: Poll Results 7/13/09 - 2/20/09
Do you think the recession will cause a rise in obesity?
25% Yes
25% No
50% Meh
Friday, February 13, 2009
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Excellent point. I generally didn't eat out much anywhos, however, I do find myself looking for shopping bargains in the grocery stores a lot more (I recently got two doggies, and feed them on the raw diet. It turns out that's much less expensive than kibble).
ReplyDeleteData points, Barbara