Eat Greens to Save Green

Here's a money saving tip I found in the January/February issue of Bicycling magazine:

People in the United States who eat enough fruits and veggies tend to spend about $2,000 less on health costs per year than those who don't.

Wow, now I know my wife's reasoning! ;-)

I'm not a big fruit and veggie guy, but I can eat a salad about every day. In addition, I've found a great way to "eat" all those fruits that I can't seem to eat the traditional way every day. Each weekend, I make a fruit smoothie blend of 100% juice and various mixtures of fruits -- strawberries, bananas (which I can't stand to eat but the taste is hidden by the juice), pineapples, blueberries and so on -- in our home blender. I then pour it into five plastic glasses and put them into the freezer. On Monday morning, I take all five to work and place four of them in the freezer and one in the refrigerator. After a couple hours, the one is thawed enough to eat with a spoon. I do this every day each week. It's a delicious treat that's also good for me -- and allows me to eat much more fruit than I would otherwise.

Who knew it was also helping to save me money? ;-)

Comments

[Blaine Moore (First Time Home Owner)]

Uhm, well, if you read anything that you've been writing over the last year or two then I would have said that you knew it would save you money. Aren't you always writing about how being healthy and making healthy lifestyle choices will save you money on healthcare costs?

I would say that a well balanced diet that includes fruits and vegetables is one of the ways to live healthy...

[Dean]

Actually, I find that fresh fruits and veggies are more expensive than other foods, like chicken and pasta. Maybe the people that eat a lot of fruits and veggies already have a healthier diet, and eat in smaller portions than unhealthy eaters, who may be paying a lot for junk food.