Bob

No, this isn’t written about you specifically. I hear the same thing from everyone at least once a week.  Sure, you may be one of the people who have said it to me, but you’re not alone…I hear it all the time.

I can’t afford to eat healthy food. It’s too expensive.

Whether you’ve said it out loud or not, alot of people use this as their reason for not eating good, real, healthy food.  Sometimes I think they’ve even convinced themselves that it’s true.  Today I want to look at this idea and share why I think it’s a complete cop out.

Tell The Truth

When people say this, I think primarily they’re lying. Not to me (necessarily) but to themselves.  They don’t really want to go through the hassle of finding out what it would cost if they actually ate real foods as opposed to processed junk.  They like processed junk and, honestly, just want the conversation to be over.  Afterall, money is a private issue so by saying “I can’t afford it” you basically shut down the conversation.  What am I supposed to do to convince you otherwise, ask for pay stubs?

I wish people would be more honest and just say what’s true:  “I don’t really care enough to change.” If they said this during a conversation, sure I’d probably think they were lazy, but at least they were honest.

Priorities

When people lie about their desire to eat healthier, they’re not really lying per se.  Maybe they really do want to eat healthier, but in reality they want something else more:  to stay the same. Human nature wants to be better, to improve…but part of who we are also fears that change.  Therefore we can want to change, but at the same time we can want to stay the same more.  It’s all about priorities.

When someone talks about changing what they eat, it’s really about priorities.  What do you want more than changing how you eat?  Do you want to keep eating in resturaunts?  Do you want to keep buying new clothes or living in a big house?  Do you want to (fill in any way you spend your money that’s not food and shelter here) ?  When someone says “I can’t afford to eat healthy” what they’re really saying is “I value eating healthy less than other things that take my money.”

If you live in America and have at least a minimum wage income, not being able to afford real food (like rice, beans, flour, fruits, and veggies) really means that you spent that money on something else…you had other priorities.  The poorest people in the world live on ‘real’ food (granted, much less of it)…and you’re telling me you can’t?  That you can only afford junk?  It’s simply not true.

Change What You Eat

When people say “I can’t afford healthy food” they also mean “I can’t afford healthy food AND all the processed crap I still buy, AND all the meat I want to eat.”  Affording to eat real food means eating differently. It means you stop buying anything in a box or bag and put that money into something better.  That’s step one: stop wasitng money on fake food.

Meat costs alot of money (not to mention the unspeakable system that provides the meat you buy..that will be saved for another post). If you want to eat better, it means cutting out a lot of your meat consumption and spending that money on vegetables, fruits, and grains.

“But…but….but….I don’t want to eat less meat!”

Do you love meat more than eating ‘real food’?  Again, it’s priority.  The rest of the world eats a TINY fraction of the meat people in America eat and are healthier than we are.  Most diets over the  course of history have contained very little meat.  Every study anywhere shows that people who eat no meat are healthier than those who do.  Americans have this “we need meat to live” mentality and it’s completely false.  God didn’t build us to eat meat (read Genesis if you’re a Bible person) and we certainly don’t need it.  I’m not asking you to be vegan…I’m just asking you to understand that this ‘necessary meat’ claim is totally bogus.  Oh, and not eating meat is cheaper than eating it.  More money for fruits and veggies (or at least tofu, which is REALLY cheap).

When you start eating like this, you’ll eat less because you’re getting the nutrients you need and not filling your body with processed flour and sugar. Eating less means saving money (and losing weight, if you care about that kind of thing).  Affording to eat ‘better’ means changing how you eat.  Is it a priority?

Pay Now or Pay Later

“I can’t afford healthy food” means, more than anything, that you will be sicker and die sooner than people who do eat healthy food. If you’re a parent, think about what that means for your children.  Seriously, stop and realize you’re giving your kids a shorter, sicker life than if you (and they) ate healthy.  You’re telling me you can’t afford to have healthy kids?  Talk about priorities!

So, you can either pay a little more for your food now, or a LOT more for medical care later.  Personally, I prefer to eat better, healthier food now (and enjoy myself) and not pay to feel crappy and be hospitalized later.

Other People

The price we pay doesn’t always come as a dollar amount.  Eating better means relationship struggles as well.  “My wife won’t eat it” or “my kids won’t eat it” is another often  heard excuse. Your relationships are your business but I’d just suggest two things:

First, you and your partner need to work on being a team. If they can honestly say they think it’s better (for you and your kids) to eat processed food than real food and want that as a role model to the kids, then there’s bigger issues here than food.

Second, if your kids won’t eat it? Too bad.  Until they can get a job and pay for their own junk food, you’re in control, not them.  Don’t want to fight these battles…again, that’s a priority.

Friends and dining companions are also a minor price you pay.  Eating healthier food means saying ‘no, thank you’ when someone wants to meet you at McDonalds or “I’ll pass” when they give you a bowl full of Doritos.  Sure, you may look like a snob, but it’s a price that has to be paid.  If people don’t understand that you want to make healthier choices and they give you a hard time, this is another problem bigger than food.

Don’t Buy Organic

Buying real healthy food doesn’t mean buying organic.  Can’t afford organic?  Fine.  Don’t buy it.  But the choice isn’t between organic food and Twinkies. It’s between Twinkees and a simple bag of rice or dried beans.  Don’t use organics (and their yuppie image) as an excuse not to eat healthy because it’s a false choice and another excuse.  Organics are more expensive but you know why?  I’ll let you answer that one….

What to Do

There’s really two choices here:

1. Stop lying (to yourself) and do your research. You can absolutely afford to eat good, healthy, real foods.  You can afford to stop eating processed crap.  You can afford to stop eating tortured animals.  You can afford to not kill your kids at a younger age.  You can afford to change.  Do a little research and see what it would mean to change how you eat.  It won’t cost nearly as much as you think, especially if you make it a priority.

Or…

2. You can just tell the truth. Rather than saying “I can’t afford it”, just be honest that it’s not a priority.  If you’re honest with everyone, then when you’re paying those large medial bills later in life for you and your kids, at least you will know exactly what got you there.  Just don’t say no one ever pointed you in a different and healthier direction.