Expert: How to eat healthy without breaking the bank

In the modern world of today, consuming a healthy diet is often perceived as an endeavour for the wealthy who can afford eating a balanced diet.

This is especially attributed to the high cost of living of edible products, which can strain an individual’s budget.

For some people, they believe eating healthy means buying and consuming expensive organic food products from groceries, supermarkets and other food outlets.

Many people believe that maintaining, let alone purchasing, a nutritious diet is an idea that is so far-fetched.

These beliefs often tend to deter food lovers from enabling the body with the requirements it needs to thrive.

The Star spoke to a nutritionist with more than 15 years of practice who describes eating healthy as the action that involves taking quality and quantity food as recommended for an individual’s age, body weight, activity levels and prevailing medical conditions.

He further asserts that practicing healthy habits facilitates providing the human body with the required nutrients it needs to thrive.

Though maintaining these practices may be difficult owing to a myriad of challenges surrounding them, it is essential to ensure the quality and quantity aspect of the food we take encompasses the food nutrient value.

“The plate of food must have six important requisite nutrients namely: carbohydrates or starch, proteins, vegetables and fruits, healthy oils in the right proportions, fibres and water,” he says.

The nutritionist, however, acknowledges that making it a routine to these intakes is grappled with major obstacles citing financial difficulties and preferences to consumption of junk and processed foods among the most common.

“Financial challenges is the chief reason many do not adhere to prophet nutrition; even a well informed nutritionist may still not keep good nutrition and suffer malnutrition,” he states.

“This is not because of lack of knowledge but lack of the financial ability to purchase the required foods in their right quality and quantity all year long.”

He advises that though the challenges exist, Kenyans can still find ways to make consistent efforts to eat healthy and overcome them.

In an urban setup, forming a habit of buying fresh and simple foods but cook them deliciously to beat the craving for junks would be a good start.

“One can do bulk shopping for fresh and cheap veggies, fruits and groceries in major open public markets,” the nutrition expert says.

Other recommendations include storing left overs for the following day and learning how to carry an owned packed lunch box to work as opposed to ordering processed foods which tend to be costly.

The dietician also gives some tips to those who reside in more remote settings and rural areas.

He argues that those living in such a landscape have a good advantage as fresh produces coming into cities often originate from the rural areas.

‘’Those who live in rural settings can take advantage and do bulk buying at their own markets especially during the harvest season when foodstuffs are sold at throwaway prices,’’ he explains.

He adds that due to the fact that rural homes are more likely to have homesteads with backyards, they should take the advantage of establishing kitchen gardens with a variety of veggies, fruits and spices use to sustain their families.

This will help them eat healthy without having to break the bank.

He further recommends a list of edible products that are both healthy and affordable.

‘’Meals such as bone soup, eggs, omena, teller milk, githeri, groundnuts, bananas, avocados, soy beans, chicken wings, or liver are just a number of edibles that are both nutritious and economical.''

For those who require a more elaborate plan on a healthy, pocket-friendly diet, a notable suggestion is to find a good nutritionist or diet expert who can help them design a customised diet plan, taking account of their financial ability, food preference, health conditions, and body reaction to food.

“Cut you coat according to your size, buy simple fresh foods but cook them like five-star hotel foods, and serve them with colour and flavour and just enjoy your life at your own level,” he ends.