Balanced Healthy Diet Cheaper than Junk Food?

Think eating healthy foods will cost you more? Think again.

Shatter a diet myth and know this: Eating healthfully can save you money.

Healthy Diet Facts: With a little planning, eating healthy foods can actually cost less than typical fast-food fare. Are you surprised? A study at the Mary Imogene Bassett Research Institute in Cooperstown, N.Y., found that a person who follows a diet of heart healthy foods can reduce her grocery bill by up to $8 a week.

That translates to an annual savings of $416 a year for a single person or $1,664 for a family of four. Granted, wild salmon and imported olive oil cost more than a Happy Meal, but you need to factor in the hidden costs of a diet that is high in fat.

More than half of all Americans eat too much, with the extra pounds costing about $400 per person in added health-care bills, not to mention the more than $30 billion spent annually in this country on weight-loss products and services.

Pound for pound, a balanced healthy diet with health-boosting whole foods is a lot cheaper than a fast-food diet. To help pare down your grocery bill, swap legumes for meat products; buy less-expensive produce such as apples, oranges, carrots, spinach and cabbage; and purchase healthy whole grains like oatmeal, rice and bulgur in bulk.

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