TIGHTENING YOUR FOOD BUDGET

If you find that your income has been reduced by the current COVID-19 pandemic, or simply
want to lower your food budget to free up money to be more charitable or support local
businesses, we have put together some tips to help.

PLAN AHEAD & BE FLEXIBLE
This may sound like conflicting advice, but both can be helpful strategies. Plan ahead by listing out
the meals and snacks you and your family will have. Start with doing inventory of what you have
on hand. Plan to use ingredients before they go bad by building them into your meals and snacks.
Group common ingredients so that you can plan for leftovers. If you are going to roast a chicken
for dinner one night, consider having chicken tacos a day or two later so that you can utilize the
leftover chicken. Within your overall plan, allow for some flexibility. You may find that some items
are sold out or that others are on sale. Look for swaps that keep your overall plan in mind but let
you take advantage of items that are on sale or seasonal.

STOP FOOD WASTE
Nothing can derail your food budget like throwing away food. Keep your refrigerator organized. It
can be easy to forget that you have strawberries waiting to be eaten if you can’t see them behind
the milk. If possible, store leftovers in clear containers so they are easily visible. Date your food so
you don’t have to rely on your memory of when something was opened or prepared. Use your
freezer! If you have fresh items or leftovers that you won’t use before they go bad, freeze them.
Make clean-out-the-fridge recipes. Soups, stir-fry meals, frittatas and smoothies are perfect for
using up a variety of ingredients before they go bad.

CONSIDER COST VS CONVENIENCE
Individual packs of snacks and drinks can be handy if you are packing lunches, but that
convenience comes at a cost. Bulk items are usually less expensive. To make them more packable
and control portion size, use reusable containers to repack them yourself. This will cut costs and
send less packaging to landfills.

Written by Jennifer M. Roberts, MS, RDN
JUNE 2020
weeatlivedowell.com

Read More

Planetary Health Diet

The EAT-Lancet Commission brings together more than 30 world-leading scientists from across the globe to reach a scientific consensus that defines a healthy and sustainable diet. They recently released their first report that outlines what a healthy diet from a sustainable food system looks like. They call it the Planetary Health Diet. And it might look familiar.

WHAT IS THE PLANETARY HEALTH DIET?
The Planetary Health Diet is a flexitarian diet, that is largely plant-based with the option for modest amounts of animal foods. If you were to look at a plate model, like the one in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, you would see half of the plate filled with fruits and vegetables. The remainder would have whole grains, nuts, seeds, fish, plant oils and limited amounts of dairy foods, animal proteins and added sugars.

WHY A PLANETARY HEALTH DIET?
According to the EAT-Lancet report, “Food is the single strongest lever to optimize human health and environmental sustainability on Earth.” Unfortunately, our current eating style, paired with the trends in our global population do not appear to be sustainable. Changes are needed in the way we produce and consume food to ensure healthy diets and sustainable food systems are available for the estimated global population of 10 billion people by 2050.

HOW TO GET STARTED?
While it is called a diet, it is more of a framework. Two people could be following the Planetary Health Diet and eat very differently. The goal is to follow strategies that support the health of people and planet while incorporating personal, regional or cultural preferences. The first step for most people is to get more fruits and vegetables as they should make up half of the diet. The types you choose should reflect your preferences and what is available locally. Swapping some plant-based proteins like legumes, nuts or seeds for traditional animal proteins is another good step. While vegetarian and vegan diets will fit into the Planetary Health framework, it is not necessary to choose this way of eating. Simply increasing your plant-based foods and reducing animal foods can make a positive impact on your health and the health of the planet.

Read more about the EAT-Lancet Commission at eatforum.org.

Reference: Summary Report of the EAT-Lancet Commission on Food, Planet, Health available at https://eatforum.org/eat-lancet-commission/.

Written by Jennifer M. Roberts, MS, RD and Julia Jordan.
APRIL 2019
balanceittakesyou.com

Read More

National Nutrition Month 2017: Plant Power

If you follow food trends, you’ve surely noticed that plant-based foods, recipes and restaurants have been getting a larger share of the spotlight lately. Does this mean that more of us are becoming vegetarians? Should we be?

Why more plants?
Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, peas, nuts and seeds are key features of some of the healthiest diets in the world. Plant based foods are a common theme in the Mediterranean Diet, the DASH Diet and most dietary guidelines. The balance of health promoting nutrients with moderate calories and less of the stuff we should be limiting make plant based foods an easy fit for most people. Looking beyond personal health, to the health of our planet, plant based foods tend to more sustainable and less taxing on the environment.

What is a flexitarian? Or a pescatarian?
With the expansion of plant foods on our plates has come an expansion of how we refer to the way we eat. Vegetarian still refers to people who don’t eat meat, fish or poultry, but there are many other variations as well. Vegans are vegetarians who don’t eat any animal products at all, so they skip dairy, eggs and honey too. Pescatarians are typically vegetarians who include fish and seafood occasionally. Flexitarian has become a term associated with people who skip meat meals in favor of vegetarian ones periodically.

Bottom Line
If plant foods are so good for us, does this mean we should all become vegan? Not necessarily. We could, however, all benefit from incorporating more plant foods into our daily menus. Try to avoid seeing “meat eater” and “vegetarian” as the only two options. Plant foods can and should be a big part of all of our diets, with or without meat. Vegetarian meals have moved far beyond just a plate of steamed vegetables. Grilled cauliflower steaks, chick pea stews, mushroom Bolognese and other plant based dishes appeal to both vegetarians and meat eaters alike.

REFERENCES:
1. Rizzo, Nico S. et al. Nutrient Profiles of Vegetarian and Nonvegetarian Dietary Patterns. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics , Volume 113 , Issue 12 , 1610 - 1619

Read More