Low-Carb Diets Trim Waistline, Expand Food Bill
Supermarket Guru Suggests Food Substitutions

POSTED: 10:09 a.m. EDT May 10, 2004

If you're going low-carb on either the Atkins or South Beach diet, you'd better have a fat wallet.

That's the advice from supermarket guru Phil Lempert, who helps ACNielsen track food trends.

He said they've calculated that if you stick to the recommended ingredients and portion sizes for a week, you'll pay close to $100 on the Atkins low-carbohydrate diet and a little over $91 on the South Beach diet. Compare that to the $59 a week that the Food Marketing Institute says the average single person spends on food.

Lempert said going low-carb means you'll be eating a lot of protein and a lot of fresh meats and fish, as opposed to rice, sugar, grains and other foods that cost less. Plus, there are special low-carb brands and packaged foods that also tend to be pricey.

The cost is an important issue since 17.2 percent of Americans told Nielsen they're currently on a low-carb regimen, and the numbers have been growing.

To curb the costs of a low-carb regimen, Lempert suggests substituting salmon and other high-priced fish with chicken breast or tofu. He also suggested buying frozen fish rather than fresh -- and the same holds true for expensive fruits, like blueberries, strawberries and raspberries.

Substituting canola oil for extra virgin olive oil and using less expensive herbs and spices can also cut costs.

http://www.ksat.com/money/3287314/detail.html

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I know this is a subject which has come up before and a lot of people here have said that they do find low carbing more expensive.

I have found the opposite and spend far less now, possibly because I always bought the same amounts of meat, fish, fruit, vegetables etc, but with added 'junk' on top. Now that I no longer buy the junk, my bill is cheaper.

Interesting article Demi. I to often see the complaint about low carbing being more expensive, but I too have not seen an increase in my food bills. I no longer buy prepackaged meals which tend to cost more than the basic ingredients. I also save money by going to the supermarket early and buying the meat that is reduced because of its sell by date. There is nothing wrong with this and I just freeze it in portions ready to use. If I was to just buy what I wanted for 1 week at a time then I am sure the price would go up.

My grocery bill did go up...I never spent a lot of money on junk or processed foods, so I didn't see any savings there. The big change is that veggies replaced refined carbs - and veggies cost more than rice, potatoes, or pasta. This was especially noticeable during induction, when veggie portions are so controlled. If I was not full after one helping, the only thing I could have more of was meat. And filling up on meat costs more than filling up on rice. However, the extra cost has been offset by the fact that I am eating less than I used to. It wasn't uncommon for me to eat two pork chops for dinner...now I have one. I would eat two pieces of sausage at breakfast...now it's one. So my grocery bill is now about the same as it was before I began low-carbing.

I think that's similar for most of us that saw an increase in food expenses in the beginning. When I started low-carbing about 2 1/2 years ago, my food bill almost tripled. I was eating very poorly and cheaply before low-carb. However, it's gone down remarkably as I have both reduced the amount of food I eat and learned how to buy good, whole food in ways and at places that cost less.

Personally for me, Trader Joe's has been my biggest resource. They sell good, organic, whole foods at prices that rival the non-organic foods at the grocery stores. And if you're willing to eat fish that's been frozen, their wild salmon has the best price in town -- wild or farmed.