On Oct 18, 1:35*am, Linda Braxton wrote:
I am not a long time poster here but this appears to be an appropriate
blog for my situation.

Like many others my total income has became drastically reduced due to
economic conditions. As a result I have, by necessity became very
penny conscious, clipping coupons, seldom eating out and skipping the
more expensive items at the market. *For the present, at least, one
can truthfully *say that I am one of those living below the government
poverty line.

I have often read reports that the reason for the high percentage of
poor folks being obese is because their poverty prevents them from
buying and consuming the right foods.

I am not presently overweight, let alone obese. *However does what I
have read often apply to me. *That is, *because I will be spending
less on groceries I am destined to become obese?

In the past I have not completely bought into this idea. *It just
didn't seem logical to me. *In fact, I had serious doubts but now that
I am now cash-challenged I am concerned.

I would like to hear the opinions of others. *It that oft repeated
theory is actually true then I can expect to begin gaining weight.

Thanks in advance for your inputs.

Linda B


I'd say the whole subject is a complex one. It's probably true
that in general you can get the most calories at the lowest
prices by buying crap food, like packaged mac n cheese.
But I can also buy a quart of cream at Costco for $3. How
many calories are there in that? And how much less food
does one consume if you're limiting the amount by being
on LC compared to wolfing down 2X the quantities of
junk food? Also, in the last couple years with the diversion
of farming to biofuels, the price on those grain based
carb foods, eg chips, corn flakes, etc has gone up a lot.
How about if you gain 20 lbs and have to then buy new
clothes? Then repeat in another 6 months.
Anyone factor that in?

I think it's true that those with lower incomes, living in
poverty, etc are eating more junk food. But I doubt it's
as simple as the reason being it costs less and that
as soon as your income goes down, you'll be there.
It's also a factor of personal responsibility,
of being ignorant and not knowing or not caring about
what they eat, etc.

For LC, there are certainly food choices
that are reasoable. Around here chicken is on sale
for 40% off every couple weeks. And for vegs, while
I usually buy fresh, to save money you could use
frozen, or even canned. The canned is yucky, but
it depends on your motivation. If you want to do LC
it's a choice instead of that $3 bag of chips.
Costco has eggs and cream at a fraction of the
grocery store prices. If you make your own big
pot of LC soup, per serving, it will probably be the
same price as buying a can of soup. But it takes
the motivation to do that and it's more work.
It's much easier to
reach for that quick and easy mac n cheese,
hence the problem.

Bottom line, I think it's certainly more difficult to
stay on LC on a tight budget, but it's probably
managable.