Economics of Healthy Living

[Clodfobble]

Originally Posted by aimeecc

I was listening to NPR the other day and they were talking about how in DC (and I'm sure a lot of other inner cities), the poor really only have unhealthy options. There's not an abundance of grocery stores, so if you're poor, without a car, its much more cost effective to go to MacDonalds than to try to get to a grocery store, and pay high prices for healthy food.

I've heard this argument before, and I just don't believe it. Sure, fresh vegetables are expensive, and organic food is even moreso--but your basic beans and rice is both healthier and cheaper than McDonald's. And they can be bought in bulk, so you're not going to the grocery store as often. Same with oatmeal, pancake mix, vegetable oil, pasta, potatoes, Velveeta, evaporated milk... it won't be the healthiest diet, but it'll still be better than McDonald's. Fast food will easily cost you $5 per person per meal, and conscientious shopping will cost much less, even if you have to add in bus/taxi fare to get to the store every 2-3 weeks.