Is Low Carbing really too expensive?
 

Some background, last night I was talking to a friend about his diabetes. He has been in and out of the hospital every month and is losing hope he will ever get over his symptoms of throwing up and high gas. He complains of Acid Reflux, excess gas, aching joints, his sugar level (Still over 200) and the fact he's always hungry (he has gained 80lbs in the last year).

I naturally ( ;) ) suggested low carbing. And he replyed it was too expensive eating low carb. This made me wonder if what he thought was true. Truth, My grocery shopping has increased by $50-100 than before. However, I don't eat out as much. Also I don't go to the candy/snack machine at work anymore. Just those two things would have cost me $50 dollars a week. But wait.
I don't need asthma medicine anymore, nor prozac nor the heavy use of Motrin. I don't use Zantac daily anymore. This lack of needing has saved me a little over $120 in medicine a month
Hmmm. That means, it costs me less to be on Atkins than it did before!
Oh Can I add to you my health benifits? My sugar level has been at 78 for almost a year! My cholesteral is excellent - 135. (My good cholestral is 55 :D ) Acid Relux? Gone. Bloatedness? Never.
Always hungry, ok I do have this in a cycle like way. I suspect that my monthly TOM has something to do with this.

Be truthful, how does your budget on Low carbing vs before you started? I'm talking money.

I have to agree with you on the food cost, especially if you shop at a regular supermarket. Meat will almost always cost more then carbs. But if you go to Costco or some other warehouse food place you can get good deals on meat. I also find that I eat out much less and my medical cost is less also(no more statins). I have also saved a lot of money by not buying as much alcohol(used to drink beer every weekend) know I may have one or two Michelob Ultras if I eat out.

Same here. No more Altace and Glucophage to buy every month. I'm not buying tons of sugar-loaded cereal at $4.00 a box. You won't find chips and pretzels at my house anymore.
Meat doesn't have to be expensive unless you are buying lamb chops and porterhouse steaks all the time. I just got a 10 lb bag of chicken leg quarters from my local grocery store for $2.80. Last week, I got chuck roast and chuck steaks for $1.39 a pound. Eggs can't be beat as a cheap protein source (those were on sale last week for 50 cents a dozen). Fresh veggies can be more expensive, but there's nothing wrong with frozen (unless you're making mashed cauliflower...fresh works better than frozen). Now if they could only do something about the price of butter....

Yup, eating LC the way I do costs more money. Hey, take away my bulk purchases of whole grains, the homemade bread, the lightly ground cereals, the home grown 'taters, the bulk bags of non-instant yellow rice, the pastas, bananas by the 20 lbs or case, and add in my own goatmilk, chickens, turkeys and pork, and we ate much cheaper. Of course, we've moved away from the area to a much more expensive region (hay $6.00 bale by the ton, instead of $1.00 max to grow and cut it, food costs much higher due to everything being trucked in, for the most part.)
Do I want to go back? Just did, for a visit, and food costs have risen Back 'Ome as well. That vast discrepancy that I remember just ain't so. :rolleyes:
But next week I'm dropping a ram off to the butchers, and I'm hoping to buy another pig come fall. Meanwhile, chicken legs are still on special, and I've got another litter of rabbits coming up for butchering. My daughters' quail and chickens are laying still; so I can still get "free" eggs. And maybe I'll trade some mutton for some goatmeat. The garden is producing some greens, the tomatoes and cukes are almost here, and the broccoli (hope it beats the worms) is heading.
All in all, it costs us a bit more to eat LC, but my size is getting down into off-the-rack (cheaper). Soon I'll be able to go to regular dept stores to do all my shopping, not at Omar the tentmakers. :D I consider my improving health a fair trade. :D :D

:sunny: Hi!! I agree, it's cheaper to eat low carb then to keep going into the hospital and paying for precriptions. I haven't been able to give up any yet, but can't wait.

We shop alot of the "lost leaders", (specials to get you in the door). We may have to go to several stores and my hubby does most of the shopping since I no longer drive, but it is worth it. When whole sirloin is on sale for $1.39lb we buy two and have them cut into roasts, cubed steaks, ground beef and /or chunks. Whole boneless pork loin goes on sale for $1.77 to $1.99lb, these are great center cut chops with no waste or pork loin roasts. When ground chuck is on sale, we load up on that, chick. Alot of times the stores run buy one get one free ads, that's when we load up on cheese and whatever. We go to Costo, Sams, but find alot of times it's cheaper at the supermarket. We also have Aldies, a no frills market, where butter is usuallly $1.69, and eggs and produce very low in cost......it's great because if we end up at Wallmart, they honor all the other ads.

Some things are more expensive, like cream and Splenda, but we don't have to buy them every week. My guys are still eating carbs, so we still buy all the cereals...sugar frosted anything. But, they have given up eating a lot of sweets at home.

It's always something...you end up spending your money for one thing or another, so the bit extra for low carbing wont break you.

Not really more expensive for me
 

Actually, my grocery bill is a little less than before I was on atkins. Since I don't buy icecream or carbs anymore. I could not eat those things anymore, except for my occasional binges, which don't happen often. So, no, it is not more expensive, and it is way worth the benefits.
Have a good day, Belle

hmmm my grocery bill is higher, cuz i buy low carb for me, and regular for the rest of the family, so i have to buy more food, plus now i am eating more than once a day... deffinatly more expensive, and i have free medical... and i don't go to the doctor much, i have low blood pressure, anemia, and hypoglycemia, but i just dealt with it myself, so actually atkins is costing me a bunch more, but that's ok... i would rather shell out more money than stay fat.

I'd have to say that my bills are higher at the grocery store but I have more spending money cuz a couple of times a week I'm not going to any fast food places and inhaling junk--also I can go to the mall without having to have a cookie. So I think it's about even.

But I feel so much better and besides if I was on WW or other plan I'd have to pay someone to weight me everyweek!! This I can do for free!!! Like it or not !!!! :) :mad:

Sonja :D

And lets not forget that new wardrobe you have to buy every six months because you've gained weight and nothing fits.

**scratches head**

Oh, wait... I have to do that now because I've LOST so much.... :D

Ok, shopping is cheaper than therapy!

Cheers,

Friday

In the short time I have been LCing, I have found it to be much more expensive. As a graduate student on a very fixed income, this has been a bit difficult. I think I will follow one of the earlier post's advice and shop around a bit to get things really on sale and definately get cheese when it is buy one, get one free.

I figure that in the long run, this WOE will save me a ton of money. I figure it will probably save me from getting type II diabetes and that can get expensive. Also, I will no longer be constantly growing out of my clothes, having to buy more.

Oh no!! But how will I afford to live all of the extra years that this WOE is going to give me?!! I guess I will have to figure something out for that. :D

Did you say 50 cents/dozen???
 

Holy cow! You folks can get red meat for $1.39/lb? EGGS for 50 cents/dozen! I guess now you're going to tell me that you can get milk for under $2/gallon (not that you drink milk!)

I guess there really is a price for living in paradise. In Honolulu, a gallon of milk costs $6/gallon. Top sirloin will set you back $5.99/lb. And that 10 pound bag of chicken? Around $13. Eggs...$3.29 for 18 eggs. Can you say quiche, quiche, and more quiche??

But that's still better than a $7.00 box of cereal! Or yogurt for $1.50/container.

We've been very happy with our low carb lifestyle. Cause fish is cheap, and you can grow damned near any kind of veggie in your backyard here.

50 cents/dozen...wow, I'm still in shock.

I think it's actually cheaper for me to eat LC.

I tend to waste less food this way and I eat out a lot less.

Granted some of my favorites like steak can be expensive they're still not any more expensive than a lot of meals at a fast food joint. Other things like eggs, package of tuna fish, bacon, peperoni and other favorites are actually very cheap around here.

But even if this WOE costed double it would still be worth it to me in light of the results. -no complaints here.

prices
 

Well, here in England, good steak is £18 - £23 per kilo, eggs are 18p each; swordfish, marlin, tuna are from £12 - £15 a kilo.
I'm entering these from memory so can only think of the stand-out examples.
I think overall it evens out though. I buy no junk, bring lunch from home.
But am now spending a lot on supplements, whereas before I only took a multivitamin. And I have had to buy an entire new wardrobe, including shoes. And bras are damn expensive, for something you need to have at least 8 - 10 of.
So would I go back to eating cheap? It costs me my health. No chance.

Zan

Money, money, money...
 

I think I'm spending more on LC, especially because I used to go some days without eating meat. But if I watch the specials, I can do very well. And I don't have to scour the papers anymore for coupons for those high carb products (they never have coupons for REAL food). $$$

I think it's a trade off for us. Instead of buying ice cream, chips, cookies, pasta, bread etc etc, we are spending a bit more for quality meats and veggies.

I do know that neither of us have been sick with colds or flu over the past year. So that is a huge savings on doctor visits and drugs.

I can't think of a better way to improve ones health so cheaply.