Eat Well and Don't Break the Bank!

The hardest part of a macrobiotic, vegan, and gluten-free diet is that all three diets are MUCH easier if you've got disposable income to work with. Ironically, foods that take the least processing often cost more than foods that have been doused in chemicals, injected with synthetic dyes and preservatives, smashed, boiled, pasteurized, and treated beyond recognition. If you want to know why, I recommend the film Food, Inc.

That being said, it can be EXTREMELY difficult to do the diet on a limited budget. I do believe that Community Supported Agriculture memberships, Chinese/Asian grocery stores, and farmers markets make things a lot more affordable, but there are several "splurge" items that can eat up quite a bit of your food budget. That being said, let me tell you from personal experience that health is most definitely a pay now or pay later thing. And often by the time "later" rolls around, what you've lost is priceless.

Things that I no longer pay for:

Advil, Aspirin, and Tylenol for menstrual cramps- Between $4 and $8 per month

Alka-Seltzer, Tums, antacids and antiemmetics- $20 a month

Steroids for recurring sinus infections- $45 a month

Prescription drugs- Between $30 and $150 a month

Doctor's appointments to treat celiac/sinus infections/various random issues- $65-$200 a month

Medical bills accumulated in 2009- $3200

TOTAL 2010 SAVINGS: $3320, and that's using the low estimates. If you divide that over 12 months, that's an extra $276 per month I could have spent on groceries. I then subtract the amount I spent getting macrobiotic healing (intensive) for a month, and it still comes to about an extra $126 per month.

So here's my list of...

WORTHWHILE MACRO COOKING SPLURGES AND THEIR APPROXIMATE COST:

Food Staples and Condiments

Umeboshi Plum Paste (Mitoku) - Approx $7

Cold Pressed Flax Seed Oil - $9

Tamari Wheat-Free Soy Sauce - $6

Powdered Kuzu Root - $7

Twig Tea - $4

Umeboshi Plum Vinegar - $3

Brown Rice Vinegar - $2

Sesame Oil - $4

Brown Rice Syrup - $7

Equipment

Pressure Cooker - Between $40 and $100

Bamboo Steamer - About $5

Quality Chopping Knife - Around $50-300. But there's probably a deal to be had if it's ever been seized by law enforcement authorities.

Good VEGAN cutting board - $20-25 ***CROSS-CONTAMINATION NOTE: Match your cutting board with a knife. I tag mine with bright electrical tape to match sets. Make sure the veggie knife and veggie cutting board are ONLY used for vegetables and grains. If you are gluten-free, establish a GF set. I have a special cutting board I only use for fish, and a special fish knife. This helps prevent illness.

New "Medicines" I Take

Oona 2- About $5/month Amazing for menstrual cramping, bloating, and acne. The pau d'arco/ "cramp bark" is amazing to address a host of female issues from pain to over-bleeding to candida overgrowth (yeast). When I imagine what this plant must look like in the forest, I imagine a vagina tree.

Some Stuff My Acupuncturist Gives Me- $10/month It's mostly magnolia extract, which has worked famously on curing up my sinus weaknesses. I would put the name down, but it's in Chinese, which I've never quite been able to get the swing of.

Umeboshi Plums- $15 a month I take a plum every couple nights or so if I've eaten "widely" that day and want to recenter my digestive tract. I soak the plum in hot water for about fifteen minutes and find it quite calming before bed.

Conclusion: I would say that $30 a month is definitely cheaper than $300 a month.

Win.