Cut Your Grocery Bill In Half! with Stephanie Nelson, The Coupon Mom

5 Creative Ways to Save Money While Eating Healthy
When it comes to staying healthy, one of the biggest challenges you face is how to choose healthy foods while balancing your grocery budget at the same time. While junk food and fast food meals are easy on your wallet, they are tough on your waistline and have shown to be an especially detrimental food choice for children. While you might think you need to eat cheap in order to keep your budget healthy, there are several creative and fun ways to save money and make healthier food choices for your family at the same time.

1. Use Apps That Help You Make Healthier Choices
If you want to make healthier choices when grocery shopping, there are a number of apps available that will track what you buy and help you choose healthy alternatives to junk food as well. For example, one app that I really like called MyFitnessPal allows you to scan a food item so that you can instantly learn about its sugar, fat, and sodium content before you buy the item.  Other apps will even suggest a healthier alternative. This will help you save money by allowing you to remove foods from your diet that may have high sodium or sugar hidden within their ingredients.

2. Prepare Healthy Meals Ahead of Time
We know that fast food and prepackaged meals are not always the best choices when it comes to eating healthy, but you may resort to them when you and your spouse both work full time and your children are involved in a number of after-school activities that make cooking healthy meals every evening a challenge. However, there is a simple solution for this issue. When you shop, choose healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, organic chicken (on sale), and ingredients for preparing fresh sauces and salads.
Once everything is purchased, set aside a few hours on a Sunday evening so that you can prepare and freeze meals and snacks as a family. Create grab-and-go snacks such as celery sticks, apple slices, soup, and whole grain muffins. Freeze ready-made casseroles, chicken dishes, and even desserts such as fruit smoothies. When you prepare and freeze whole meals and snacks for the week, you can save anywhere from $30-$70 a month by avoiding trips to the local fast food joint and teach your kids healthier eating habits at the same time.

3. Be Choosy About Organic Foods
When it comes to making healthier food choices, you may be tempted to buy all organic fruits and vegetables. The downside to this is that organic foods can be expensive. However, you can save money on your organic produce by doing a bit of research before you shop. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) tests produce for pesticide levels each year and the Environmental Working Group releases a list of which fruits and vegetables should be purchased organically based on the results of the testing. The list of non-organic produce that generally tests low for pesticides includes onions, sweet potatoes, cabbage, and avocados,  to name a few. This will allow you to save money on your food bill without forcing you to cut back on buying produce.

4. Think Outside the Healthy Food Box
You will need to be especially creative about eating healthy if you aim to live a vegan lifestyle. Before you shop, look into companies that offer these alternatives and how they have been received by the public. You can find much of the information you need online; for example, the Hampton Creek Wikipedia page offers a wide variety of facts and statistics about the company’s plant-based food alternatives, including egg substitute, cookies made without butter or eggs, and a mayonnaise substitute made with the same plant-based ingredient, in a variety of flavors. The more you know about which healthy food alternatives you can use in order to create healthy vegan meals, the better you can plan meals and save on your food budget.

5. Plan Ahead Before You Shop
While using fun apps and doing a bit of research about healthy foods can help you save money while you shop, it is also important to plan ahead for your trip to the grocery store. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to shop on an empty stomach, as your appetite will fuel your desire to buy junk food and sugary, high-fat processed foods. Before you leave the house, eat a meal that is rich in protein and that will fill you up, such as a bowl of oatmeal or fiber-rich cold cereal with soy milk. When your stomach is satisfied, you will be able to concentrate on buying foods that will keep you, your family and your bank balance healthy.