Eating better does cost more

For a couple of weeks now, I’ve been eating a lot better than I normally do. At first, it made me feel sick—I was even dizzy for a couple of days. But I’ve noticed that I’m more energetic, I sleep better, and my allergies have even improved.

Specifically, I used to skip breakfast and now I eat a yogurt every morning; I used to eat a quick sandwich for lunch and now I’m eating a spinach salad with garlic, strawberries, olive oil and vinegar. While I have always made Wood Sprite’s very simple meals—cereal and fruit for breakfast, peanut butter sandwich or pasta with broccoli and a banana for lunch, etc.—I’ve always done what’s fast and easy for my own. I work full time and homeschool among other things and I don’t have a lot of time to learn to cook intricate meals, though I can cook in general. My husband cooks dinner every night, however, because he enjoys it.

When I priced how much my salad costs next to my sandwiches, it was a big difference. My sandwiches cost sixty cents each, while my salads cost almost three bucks each when you factor in each ingredient. My breakfast went from nothing to fifty cents each as well, so you can see how this really adds up over time. You can also see that I’m buying lots of potassium-rich foods; I have borderline blood pressure issues, which run in my family, and I’m hoping that will help.

But the cost of time also factors in. Mincing my garlic and making my salad takes 10 minutes; my sandwich took one minute. Really. I also have to stop and eat it with a fork—which is good, I know—instead of eating a sandwich in one hand while I pick up the living room or do research for work. So eating also takes much longer—at least 15 minutes. The flossing after eating spinach is an insane amount of time—at least another 10 minutes!—because that stuff sticks everywhere. Breakfast doesn’t really add to my time because Wood Sprite and I typically sit together and talk over breakfast anyway. Sleeping better—and actually getting sleepy—is such a good thing, but I have to keep telling myself that it is because I’m used to working while the rest of the family sleeps.

So we’re talking almost an extra $4 dollars per day plus an extra 35-45 minutes eating and preparing food here. I think I can cut my costs a bit more if I made some of my own stuff, but that would add even more time. I love eating lunch with Wood Sprite again, which I used to do every day. I also enjoy brushing and flossing with her after meals because we get goofy with it. It’s all worth the price and the time. And I’ve also cut my caffeinated tea, which saves some money, too.

But the thing is, not everyone can afford the time or the cost, and I’m really tired of families getting judged for it. We grew up on hamburger helper as a family, and when I compare the cost of that filling meal for my family growing up against my new salad habit, it still comes out a few bucks cheaper—and both my parents worked. I wish that before people criticized working families, they could consider all of the extra work involved in paying for and preparing fresh food. And I wish that instead of subsidizing corn, our government could help out local famers growing fresh foods instead and help families afford better food.

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