Is food one of the areas of your household budget that you should cut back on?
In recent years, if you search the Internet for "ways to reduce food costs" or "saving on food costs," you will find a lot of information.
It is true that more and more families are cutting back on food costs, especially to cover mortgages, education, and entertainment costs. But I would like to disagree.
My belief is that food expenses are the best investment you can make in your future self and your family, and should never be cut back .
So let's take a closer look at why you shouldn't cut back on your food expenses.
The health effects of short-term savings
It's true that using expensive ingredients can increase your daily food costs, which may seem like a disadvantage at first glance.
But it's important to think long-term about your diet and consider how short-term savings could pose future risks.
Diseases caused by poor eating habits
In modern society, we are plagued by many illnesses caused by poor eating habits : diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, obesity, the list goes on.
Simply continuing to eat cup ramen, convenience store bento boxes, cheap bread sold at supermarkets, easy-to-prepare ready-made meals, frozen foods, etc. will not immediately make you ill, but the accumulation of your daily meals will definitely affect your future health .
Everyone knows that "health is the most important thing," but in reality, we don't realize how important it is, and it's only when we get sick that we truly appreciate the time we had when we were healthy.
If you continue to cut back on your food expenses and make do with cheap foods, the effects will definitely be visible 15 years from now. There is a high possibility that you will be forced to spend huge amounts on medical visits and medicine, and in the end, your medical expenses may end up being higher than the savings you made on food . Moreover, hospital visits and hospitalizations take up your free time, which may affect your lifetime earnings. In short, you will suffer future losses just because you skimped on your food expenses in the short term.
Those who realize the value of good health while they are still healthy and pay attention to their diet every day are the ones who will be able to enjoy a 100-year life.
Why successful people invest in food
Successful people such as athletes and entrepreneurs invest heavily in their daily food .
Because it's essential for optimal performance .
They are extremely particular about not only the selection of ingredients and cooking method, but also the time, quantity, and quality of their food.
Shohei Ohtani's dietary management
For example, Shohei Ohtani, a Major Leaguer, earns a huge annual salary, but apparently almost never eats out.
I cook my own meals every day and my diet is high in protein and low in fat.
He apparently actively consumes rice and protein, as well as meat, fish, and seafood such as scallops. Recently, influenced by Darvish, he switched from white rice to brown rice and no longer uses sugar in his cooking.
In addition, during the 2020 off-season, he thoroughly analyzed the foods that were good for him through blood tests and found that eggs were not good for him, so he has eliminated them from his diet or kept them to a level that does not affect him. Before that, he used to eat three boiled eggs with every meal.
He also started going gluten-free, just like many other famous athletes.
By avoiding wheat products, we aim to further improve performance.
In this way, successful people keep their bodies in top condition from the inside out by thoroughly controlling their diet, which ultimately results in amazing results.
Food is the foundation of everything
In the end, it all starts with food . No matter how much money you spend on other things, if your starting point, your diet, is not right, your investment will be wasted.
Before using high-end cosmetics for beauty
For example, before investing in high-end cosmetics to look beautiful, you should first focus on your diet, which brings out inner beauty . Eating a lot of sweets can lead to glycation, which causes skin aging . If you want beautiful skin, it's important to eat a nutritionally balanced diet.
If you want to improve your child's academic performance
Many families also send their children to cram schools to improve their academic performance, but if their meals are inadequate, this investment is meaningless . If they come home late from cram school and have only sweet bread or noodles for dinner just before going to bed, they will not get the nutrients they need, and their concentration and learning performance during the day will decrease. By making sure to eat dinner at least three hours before going to bed and providing a properly balanced breakfast, the quality of their learning will also improve.
Before using the fitness equipment
Even if you purchase fitness equipment and exercise, the effect will be halved if your nutritional balance is poor . First, you should balance your diet and create an environment that is conducive to the production of healthy cells, and then use fitness equipment to maintain your health more effectively.
Food costs are an investment in the future—Why you should reassess them now
This may seem repetitive, but it's important so I'll say it again at the end.
If you haven't invested in your food, start now.
The method is simple.
Identify unnecessary expenses, allocate a little towards your food budget, and buy the right ingredients - and you'll have made an investment.
First of all, it is handmade from ingredients (vegetables, meat, fish).
All we do is choose seasonings that are made using traditional methods that use as few ingredients as possible, use high-quality oil that has not been subjected to any strange processing and is simply pressed from the ingredients, and cook in an iron or clay pot.
If you have some spare time, first check the label on the back and make sure to choose products that contain domestically produced ingredients. Make sure to choose domestically produced vegetables and meat as well.
If you have a little more money, choose organic vegetables, domestic meat that is not treated with antibiotics, and wild fish that is not farmed. Also, stick to additive-free seasonings. In this way, you can gradually start to eat unprocessed foods and clean ingredients.
What you eat now will ensure your health and that of your family 15 years from now.
Think of food expenses as an investment in your future self, so try and review your daily meal plan.
Summary: Don't cut your food budget, invest in a healthy future
Food costs may seem like something you can save on in the short term, but when it comes to your long-term health, it's an important item that you shouldn't cut back on. Your daily meals are the starting point for maintaining a healthy body, and investing in them is essential.
Food expenses are an investment in your future self. In order to avoid suffering from illness and medical expenses in the future, start investing in maintaining your health by being conscious of eating a nutritionally balanced diet now.
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