FitnessMantra Weekend: Healthful Food Is Indeed More Expensive

Fitness Mantra del.icio.us page Welcome to “FitnessMantra Weekend”, your once-a-week health news update. As always you can also stay updated with the latest in fitness news by subscribing separately to the Fitness Mantra del.icio.us feed.

Almost a year-and-a-half ago I wrote about “The cost and benefit of eating healthful foods” which concluded that even though healthful foods are, in general, more expensive than junk-food, the benefits were indeed worth it. Although conveniently hidden in that analysis was the inherent assumption that healthful foods are more expensive, a recent New York Times article, “A High Price for Healthy Food“, seems to corroborate this and even goes into a little mathematical detail about things like cost-per-calorie.

Of close to 400 foods inspected in Seattle-area groceries, University of Washington researchers found that junk-foods always beat out the more healthful, unprocessed, fresh foods as far as cost goes. In a unique method of comparing, the researchers literally studied how much a calorie in junk-food costs when compared to a calorie in, say, fruits or vegetables. Of course, not being as energy dense as food-disasters like muffins or doughnuts, the fresher fare always turned out to be more expensive. Of course, I expected this, but the ratio of costs was a true eye-opener:

The survey found that higher-calorie, energy-dense foods are the better bargain for cash-strapped shoppers. Energy-dense munchies cost on average $1.76 per 1,000 kcal, compared with $18.16 per 1,000 kcal for low-energy but nutritious foods.

Is there any wonder, then, that the most unhealthy states in the U.S. are the ones with lowest per-capita income? Think about it: if you had $2.00 for lunch, would you blow it on an 80-calorie apple or would you rather have two hot hamburgers? Empty or not, junk-food calories are still calories and will keep you sated for a lot longer than the vitamin, mineral and fiber-enriched light-weights like fruits and vegetables.

Based on the study, a 2,000-calorie diet would cost just $3.52 a day if it consisted of junk food, compared with $36.32 a day for a diet of low-energy dense foods.

The article ends with the startling observation that “Vegetables and fruits are rapidly becoming luxury goods”!

May that day never, ever come.

Here are more health and fitness-related stories from this past week:

Holiday weight-gain fears often exaggerated: The good news: despite feeling several pant-sizes larger post-holiday season, such exaggerated weight gains are not typical.
10 holiday no-splurge tips: “Holidays are for connecting with family and friends, Unfortunately, most events come with food attached.”
How to Win a Reprieve From The Food Court’s Guilty Pleasures: “We have found that the more your schedule is disrupted, the more room there is for mindless eating.”
More obese women die in childbirth: More than half of mothers who died during child birth were overweight
Is your engine running efficiently?: I’m betting that most of you don’t know how much food it takes to fuel your body
A High Price for Healthy Food: Calorie for calorie, junk foods not only cost less than fruits and vegetables, but junk food prices also are less likely to rise as a result of inflation.
Heavy kids face heart risks as they age: By the time today’s teens are middle age, the rate of heart disease could be 16 percent higher because of the extra pounds they are carrying around today
Inactivity link to mental decline: A lack of physical activity leads to depression and dementia
The computer called, it said to get off the couch: Fitness research shows that when a recording reminds them, even people who rarely exercise can be persuaded to get off the couch.
Studies show how fruits and veggies reduce cancer: Just three servings a month of raw broccoli or cabbage can reduce the risk of bladder cancer by as much as 40 percent
Once again, California kids don’t measure up well in fitness tests: OK, ready? Start your push-ups. Fifteen year-old boys: you have to do at least 16. Fifteen year-old girls: at least seven.
Obesity, Diabetes Linked to Cancers: Obesity and diabetes — risk factors so often linked to heart disease — can also affect the incidence and severity of cancer, a collection of four new studies suggests.
Getting Kids to Eat Their Vegetables: Want your kids to eat their veggies? Start putting vegetables on the plate when they’re tiny babies, and don’t take a wrinkled nose to mean “no.”
Don’t overthink your diet: Let it slip that you’re trying to slim down and suddenly everyone you meet is a weight loss expert.