Eat Healthy. Live Better.

Most people say that being healthy is expensive, that is why individuals in this generation choose to eat a fast, convenient, delicious, and cheap food rather than going to the store to grab healthier meals to cook at home. Moving on, it is a well-known fact that there would always be a huge difference between ready to eat meals and home cooked ones.

Ready to Eat Meals has a lot of salt content which can lead to high blood pressure that can cause all sorts of illnesses such as stroke, heart disease, heart failure and more cardiovascular diseases. Also, most of the ready to eat meals are full of nasty preservatives and additives that can put people’s health in danger. Since, packed meals are not packed with the nutrients that our body needs, companies that make this kind of food make them tasty by adding some chemicals that are not just tasty for our tongues, but also to preserve it longer than a fresh food.

On the other hand, home-cooked meals have healthier ingredients. One of the best reasons why home-cooked meals are better than those ready to eat meals is that, YOU decide what goes into your food and how well you want it cooked. Other than that, you also do not have to worry if the cookware used to prepare food is clean enough and that if it suits your standards. Eating home-cooked meals also means living a longer life. Five or more days a week of home-cooked meals will not only make you consume less sugar and processed foods, but it will also improve your physical and mental health.

Since we all know that everyone talks about how eating healthier foods can be expensive and time consuming, I have found five tips on how to eat healthier on a budget.

·         Plan your meals - yes, planning your meals cannot only save you time by going to the store but it can also save you money by knowing what you necessary need and don’t need. You would also distinguish what you really need from what you want.

·          Cook Larger Portions - with this kind of method you will not only save time, but you would be able to save more food by having some leftovers that you can eat for a few days. I would say store some leftovers in the freezer, if they can be stored, and just thaw it out when you are ready to eat them again. However, be careful in getting food poison from them. You can tell by what the food looks like and some molds might show.

·         Self-Control - whenever you go to a store or anywhere that serves you something to eat, you most likely wouldn’t stay within your grocery list which can cause you to go over your budget. Therefore, learn to not shop whenever you just get a little craving.

·         Generic Brands - buying generic brands costs way lesser than the branded ones and besides, all food manufacturers will have to follow the standards to provide safe foods to everyone, regardless of their excuses. Whether generic or branded, they all contain the same ingredients.

·         Pack Your Lunch - since eating out costs a lot more than cooking at home, in order to save and/or to prevent yourself from eating out is by packing your meals, in which not only save you a couple of bucks in your pocket but it will also make you live healthier.