by Annie M Manzi

Created on: September 27, 2008   Last Updated: October 07, 2008

A person or family can save quite a bit of money cutting out the junk, processed, and pre-cooked food. These expensive foods are loaded with empty calories, fats, sugars, preservatives, additives and salt. We pay a premium price for the priveledge of eating unhealthy. If you want to save quite a bit of money on your food bill each week and eat healthier, read the following tips.

* Shop the perimeter of the supermarket. This is the area to find the freshest and healthiest food. Fresh produce, meat, dairy, or fish are found in the perimeter of a store and are usually the best bets for finding the healthiest choices to make a meal. Frozen foods are often in the perimeters too and they are healthy alternatives to fresh. Just check the labels to make sure no aditives, perservatives, or salt are added.

* Buy fresh produce in season. Out of season produce are trucked or flown in from thousands of miles away causing the prices to be high. The produce itself will have lost too many nutrients as they age in transit. Buying in-season foods may be more healthy for you as well as being cheaper. Note that many out-of-season foods are from other countries who do not regulate on how pesticides and additives are used on growing crops.

* Buy cooked or uncooked beans, brown rice, couscous, barley, and other whole grains. They not only are tasty and nutritious, but they add fiber and fill you up faster. They are also cheap and lower in calories.

* Buy and stock up on canned goods and frozen foods when they are on sale. Canned foods are processed at the peak of ripeness and are a good alternative to eating fresh as long as you avoid the ones with salt, additives and preservatives added in.

* Make a meat free dinner with beans, rice, potatoes, or other alternative protein sources a couple times a week. They are healthier for you and have less cholesterol and calories than meat. They are much cheaper to buy than meat too.

* Eat smaller protions of meat which are dense protiens and calories. A portion is the size of a deck of cards.

* Grow your own herb garden in a nice pot in a sunny window. Buying fresh herbs in the supermarket is expensive. When you grow your own, you know what goes into growing them and keeping them pest free. You cannot say that about the ones you buy. Also the potted herbs will brighten up the area and freshen up the air.

* Brew your own tea or coffee, it is a healthy and cheaper than the drinks you get at the specialty coffee houses and cafes, which are loaded with

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