A family on a healthy diet can expect to pay $2,000 more a year for food than one having less nutritious meals, say researchers who recommend that the cost gap be closed.

The research in Thursday's issue of British Medical Journal Open reviewed 27 studies from 10 high-income countries to evaluate the price differences of foods and diet patterns.

"Our results indicate that lowering the price of healthier diet patterns — on average about $1.50/day more expensive — should be a goal of public health and policy efforts, and some studies suggest that this intervention can indeed reduce consumption of unhealthy foods," Dariush Mozaffarian, the study's senior author and a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health and his co-authors concluded.

Eating a healthier diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fish, and nuts would increase food costs for one person by about $550 a year, the researchers said. Diets rich in processed foods, meats and refined grains were considered unhealthy.

Among food groups, meats and protein showed the highest price difference and cost about 29 cents more per serving.

Previously, Mozaffarian's team suggested taxing less healthy foods together with subsidies for healthier foods would balance price differences.

"That's a real price difference, $1.50 for a low-income family could be an important barrier," Mozaffarian said in an interview. "On the other hand, that's a cup of coffee, that's a trivial cost compared to the enormous burdens of heart disease, obesity, diabetes that are due to poor diet."

The $1.50 per day is hugely significant for anyone working with budget constraints, said Valerie Tarasuk, a professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto..."We have to make sure everybody has the possibility of buying a healthy diet [that] is reasonably priced and we haven't done that now."

On 2013-12-07 12:55, landmark wrote:


But what I really want to know is why is my spell-checker flagging the word "coolatta"?

On 2013-12-07 15:20, Zombie Magic wrote:
We used to have hamburger helper without the hamburger ( no joke ).

On 2013-12-07 15:52, critter wrote:
There was a time when I was "between homes" that I was living on Wonder Bread and ketchup packets.

On 2013-12-07 14:11, mastermindreader wrote:

Quote:

On 2013-12-07 12:55, landmark wrote:


But what I really want to know is why is my spell-checker flagging the word "coolatta"?

Probably because it isn't a real word, just a trademarked term for the Dunkin' Donuts product. (Note that spellchecker flags "Dunkin'" as well.

On 2013-12-07 18:09, tommy wrote:
We the elite can afford to eat well and as the herd is too large, we have decided to give you cheap fast food and free heart attacts. You know it makes sense.

On 2013-12-07 18:03, Magnus Eisengrim wrote:
While it's always fun to boast of our youthful college diets, that's a long drift from the OP.

On 2013-12-07 20:01, Intrepid wrote:

Quote:

On 2013-12-07 18:09, tommy wrote:
We the elite can afford to eat well and as the herd is too large, we have decided to give you cheap fast food and free heart attacts. You know it makes sense.

Even the elite and the average person are prone to unhealthy diets even though money is not an excuse for them.