Healthy food costs, but so does heart attack

My son loves those prepackaged meals of meat, cheese and crackers, probably because they allow him to feel as if he's making his own lunch and also because it allows him to play with his food. Many grown-ups may like them because they're convenient.

Don't make the same mistake I did by reading the label. Yuck. The regular-size Lunchable by Oscar Mayer has 18 grams of fat, 340 calories and 24 grams of carbohydrates. Try saving your child a little bit of fat by getting the low-fat version, and you'll shave off 8 grams. In exchange you'll get 52 grams of carbohydrates.

They're also not cheap.

Reading labels and strolling the aisles got me thinking about my switch to healthier items. I already avoid fat-free salad dressing because what they take out in fat, usually they add in sugar. And in many cases, the healthier the food, the bigger the price tag.

I've had lots of people say that joining diet groups is expensive. That's true. Many have a weekly fee, not including those that require participants to eat a plan's food. Others tell me they have to buy in bulk and buy canned items because that way it's easier to eat more economically.

Sadly, it's true. It all starts with the produce.

One head of light green, perfectly crisp iceberg lettuce is 99 cents. But if you want to go healthier with the darker, leafy spinach, you will pay $1.99 for 9 ounces. One pound of asparagus in season is more than double the price of canned. A small bunch of fresh broccoli is $1.69, but frozen with twice that amount is 92 cents.

The same is true for reduced-fat items. H-E-B Reduced Fat Colby-jack cheese is $4.28 for 16 ounces. The regular cheese in the same size is $3.87.

Ground chuck is $2.49 a pound, while the super lean is $3.99 a pound. If you want to switch from the dark meat in boneless, skinless chicken thighs to the white meat of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, you'll jump from $2.29 a pound to $3.29 a pound.

Suppose you want to eat healthier junk food. It's going to cost you. Baked Lays are $3.49 for a 9 1/2 ounce bag. You'll pay the same amount for the regular Lays, but the bag will contain 17 ounces.

Snack Wells chocolate mint cookies are $2.67 for 6.75 ounces. Buy a 17-ounce package of chocolate mint Twisters and $2 will get you a 17-ounce package.

If I ate less healthy, I could save money. By adding these less-expensive items, my total would be $16.09 for the meats, cheese, canned or frozen vegetables, cookies, chips and my son's Lunchable. The healthier items would cost me $24, or 50 percent more.

Now all I have to do is put the money I save in a medical account. I'll need it to pay for my hospital bills when I have a heart attack.

Contact Stephanie Jordan at 886-3762 or