Payday loans can stretch things financially, so can eating right

Need extra cash for groceries?

Hmm.. What to get?

If you’re in a pinch and you need some extra cash for groceries, payday loans can certainly help.  But there’s another way to stretch your food budget, and it’s not necessarily what you think.    In fact, many health experts they are saying that we in this country are going to become MORE obese in these tough economic times, not less. That doesn’t really seem to make sense, because you’d think if we have less money, we’d eat less and therefore would slim down.

However, tough economic times mean that there’s a need to stretch every dollar we have. That can mean that we buy “cheap” food nutritionally, things like white bread, white flour, macaroni and cheese, and so on. But the fact is, these foods are also nutritionally empty, which can make us hungrier and therefore can make us gain weight. There’s a better way.

Make your grocery dollars count

Chances are, your grocery budget is less now than it was previously. That doesn’t mean you have to starve, though, and it doesn’t mean you have to eat nutritionally “empty” food.

Take a look at your food budget

Make healthy decisions

Give yourself a dollar amount per week that you can afford to spend on food. I can just about guarantee you that no matter what it is (say you’re spending $50, $60, $100 a week on a family of four), you’ll be able to feed your family nutritiously. That will save you money not just on food, but on medical bills, too. When you eat healthy, you’re healthier.

Shopping

When you go to the grocery store, break your list down like this: first, you buy things like fresh fruits and vegetables, complex carbohydrates like whole grain breads, some beans and legumes like pintos and lentils, healthy low-fat dairy, and then finally meat.

Stretching your food dollar

You can stretch your food dollar not just by utilizing payday loans if you need them, but also by supplementing some of the meat in your diet with beans. Beans are healthy and nutritious, and they can be disguised in most dishes so that you won’t even taste them if you’ve got members of your family who don’t like them.

Disguise them in chili, throw a cup of cooked lentils in with your next meat loaf or hamburger recipe (reducing the meat by the same amount), or sneak a few tablespoons of puréed white beans like Great Northern beans or navy beans in with egg or tuna fish salad.

Nutrition doesn’t have to be expensive

In fact, despite complaints most people have, nutrition doesn’t have to be expensive. It can be if you think you need to have a pound of meat be the centerpiece your dinner every night, but really, you don’t need that much. Most nutritionists say that three ounces of meat per day per person is plenty; you can even opt to be a semi-”vegetarian” once a week or so to save even more money. And you’re not going to hurt your nutritional profile, even if you really do need me.

Finally, cut way down on the junk food and soda

Most people don’t realize how much money they spend on truly empty foods like soda and junk food. These foods are expensive and may provide absolutely no nutritional value whatsoever. Opt instead for inexpensive beverage choices like powdered drink mixes mixed with water (unsweetened generic versions can be had for as little as a few cents a quart) sweetened with an herb called stevia or another artificial sweetener like Splenda.

And instead of reaching for the chips, buy yourself a microwave popcorn popper and snack on freshly popped popcorn instead. It has fiber and nutritional value, and you’re going to enjoy that movie or ballgame a lot more cheaply, too. This just may help you make the best use of your payday loan the next time you need one — not to buy junk food, but to spend it on something you truly need.