Jun 11, 2008 @ 10:15 PM
By LAURA WILCOX
The Herald-Dispatch

Food and fuel costs may be putting a strain on many people's wallets, but nutrition experts say residents can still eat healthy on a budget.
 
While many people may consider healthy food to be more expensive than easy-to-fix, prepackaged meals, it doesn't have to be that way, said Jan Vineyard, president of the West Virginia Oil Marketers and Grocers Association.
 
"Quite honestly, some of the foods that aren't healthy are more expensive," she said.
 
Food prices across the United States are predicted to rise by 5 percent in 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
 
Local dietitian Amy Gannon said consumers can save money in the long run and be healthy by spending a little more time fixing fresh meats, vegetables and other foods. Gannon is an assistant professor and registered dietitian at Marshall University.
 
"It's not always cheap to eat conveniently. We've gotten into this pattern in the U.S. of everyone rushing," she said. "But those foods aren't cheap either. Bags of potato chips and boxes of cookies and prepackaged meals and fast foods, those add up, too."
 
However, she said healthy foods like well-known brands that are marketed for their wholesomeness do tend to be more expensive.
 
Vineyard said consumers can save money by watching for sales and buying in-season and homegrown items.
 
Rose Marie Boyd, owner of Living Naturally in Ashland, said she thinks some healthy food is more expensive because it's harder to produce and there's less of it. She said people can save money by cutting back on frivolous things. Rather than spend money on chips and lunch cakes, they can put those dollars toward organic vegetables.
 
"There's a lot of things that people buy that they really don't need to buy," she said.
 
Brenda Hawthorne, dietitian and clinical nutrition manager at St. Mary's Medical Center, said all foods are getting more expensive, healthy or not.
 
But fresh foods tend to take longer to fix, she said.
 
Certain foods can be prepared healthier, said Elizabeth Ayers, public health educator for the Cabell-Huntington Health Department. She suggests grilling chicken or buying fish.
 
Gannon said people also can save money by taking the amount they would spend eating out and using it to buy groceries.
 
She said most people she counsels report spending at least 25 percent of their food dollars eating out each month. The total spent at one restaurant could buy several meals' worth of groceries, she said.
 
Tips for healthier eating
Local nutrition experts offer the following tips for shopping healthy on a budget:
 
Be better label readers. For every 100 calories, food should only have three grams of fat.
Shop on the outside perimeter of grocery stores. That's where consumers can find fresh produce, meat and other items. Inside aisles have more processed, convenience-based food items with more salt, sugar and fat.
Buy fruits and vegetables that are in season.
Watch for sales.
 
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