The other day I was talking with a neighbor, Lee, who is a stay-at-home mom with three young children. We were talking about the challenges of eating healthy on a budget and the particular challenges faced by families with children.
Lee is a self-professed foodie. Just a few years back, she and her husband had dual incomes and cooked nice, homemade meals full of all-natural, whole foods. How much she paid for these healthy groceries took a backseat. Fast forward to today and her desire to feed her family natural, whole foods on a strict budget.
Lee believes you don’t have to stretch your pocketbook to feed your family natural, whole foods. What you do need, she says, is a little bit of time. The main time investment is in reading labels and doing price comparisons. Take Goldfish crackers. They are probably the number one-selling snack food of the toddler set. Lee said she buys the ones labeled “whole grain” instead of the rainbow colored ones full of artificial colors. How about bread? The amount of bread in the aisle at your local supermarket can be overwhelming, but start by reading the first line of the label. Breads with whole wheat flour listed as their first ingredient are the best choice. She also makes sure to avoid high fructose corn syrups or partially-hydrogenated oils. The healthiest breads are priced the same or slightly higher than other brands. Taking the time to read the ingredients ensures she is feeding her family the highest quality food for her dollar.
One other tip, according to Lee, is to shop around. Did you know that discount stores such as Wal-Mart and Target are now offering all natural, organic foods with minimal ingredients at fractions of the cost at grocery stores? Some of the cereals she buys for her family, such as Kashi and Cascadian Farm brands, are sometimes $2 or $3 cheaper at these discount chains than grocery stores or markets in the area.
Lee is working to feed her family natural, whole foods on a budget. Any healthy eating tips you’d like to share?
Kashi also now has frozen food. When I don’t have time to pack a healthy lunch I grab a Kashi frozen dinner out of the freezer and it keeps me out of the fastfood drive through lane. I’m not one much for reading labels, but I figure Kashi is going to be a healthier alternative to some of the other brand.
Be careful eating any frozen meals especially without reading the label. Most frozen lunches like Weight Watchers, Kashi, Lean Cuisine have a high amount of sodium and saturated fat. I looked at the Chicken Florentine meal (http://www.kashi.com/products/category/Entrees) and it contains 23% of your daily value of Saturated Fat and 23% of your daily value of Sodium. Reading the labels is very important when you are buying premaid meals. Also make sure you are reading the serving size.
A great article to read regarding high sodium is http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sodium/NU00284.