In Sickness and In Health
If you live in Nova Scotia (or anywhere on Earth right now), you know the pain of walking into a grocery store. You pick up a pack of butter, look at the price tag, and feel a phantom pain in your wallet. You look at a cauliflower and wonder if it’s made of gold.
One of the most common criticisms I hear about my clean keto lifestyle—especially when I talk about eating steak, avocados, and grass-fed butter—is this:
"That must be nice, Chris, but eating healthy is too expensive. I can't afford to eat like that."
It is a valid feeling. On the surface, a box of pasta costs $3, and a ribeye steak costs $20. The math seems simple: being unhealthy is cheap; being healthy is a luxury.
But in my role as a Manager of Quality and Compliance, I've learned not look at "sticker price." I look at Total Cost of Ownership. I look at ROI (Return on Investment).
And when you run the real numbers, the "Standard American Diet" is the most expensive thing you can possibly buy.
Here is my unfiltered audit of the price of health versus the crushing cost of sickness.
Part 1: The "OMAD" Math (Volume vs. Value)
The biggest flaw in the "eating healthy is expensive" argument is that it assumes you are eating a clean keto diet on top of a standard eating schedule.
If I were eating grass-fed steak for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I would be bankrupt.
But I don't. I follow a 22:2 OMAD (One Meal a Day) schedule.
The "Standard" Daily Invoice: Let's look at the hidden costs of a "normal" day of eating, using the Standard American Diet:
Breakfast: Cereal, milk, orange juice, maybe a drive-thru coffee and bagel.
Lunch: A sandwich (bread, deli meat, processed cheese), a bag of chips, a soda.
Snacks: A granola bar at 10:00 AM, a cookie at 3:00 PM.
Dinner: Pasta with sauce, garlic bread, maybe dessert.
The "Clean Keto" Invoice:
Breakfast: Water (Free). Black Coffee (Pennies).
Lunch: Water (Free). A walk (Free).
Dinner: One high-quality protein (steak/chicken/salmon), quality fat (butter/avocado), and low-carb, nutrient-dense veggies.
When you remove two entire meals and all the snacks from your budget, you free up a massive amount of capital. I am taking the money I used to spend on boxes of cereal, loaves of bread, jugs of juice, and bags of chips, and I am re-allocating it into one single investment.
I am buying less food, but better food. My grocery cart is half as full, but the bill is roughly the same. The difference is that every dollar in that cart is buying fuel, not filler.
Part 2: The "Hidden" Inflation of Junk
We tend to give "junk food" a pass on inflation, but have you looked at the price of chips lately?
Processed food is no longer "cheap." A bag of name-brand chips is $6. A box of sugary cereal is $7. A fast-food "value meal" is nearly $15.
These foods are nutritionally bankrupt. You pay $6 for a bag of chips that provides zero satiety, spikes your insulin, and leaves you hungry an hour later. That is a terrible Return on Investment.
When I spend $15 on a piece of beef, I am buying:
Complete protein to protect my muscle mass.
Healthy fats for brain fuel.
Satiety that lasts for 24 hours.
In the economy of my body, the steak is a value stock. The chips are a Ponzi scheme.
Part 3: The Cost of Sickness (The Long-Term Audit)
This is the part nobody puts on their grocery budget, but it is the most expensive line item of all.
I have had five heart attacks. I know the cost of sickness.
The Direct Cost: Even with insurance, being sick is expensive. I take a cocktail of medications (Lipitor, Plavix, etc.). I buy supplements. I manage appointments.
The Opportunity Cost: How much is a "sick day" worth (in productivity, if not loss of wages)? How much is "brain fog" costing you in your career? How much is low energy costing you in time with your family or your hobbies?
Every time I choose the "expensive" clean food, I am putting a down payment on preventative maintenance.
If I eat "cheap" inflammatory oils and sugar now, I am simply deferring the cost. I will pay that bill later—with interest—at the pharmacy...or worse.
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| Heart attack #3 in 2020, three days before Christmas. |
By investing in
The Takeaway
The honest truth: is eating clean keto expensive? Yes. Good food costs money.
But I have to ask myself: What is the alternative costing me?
I view my grocery bill as part of my retirement portfolio. I am investing in a vessel that needs to last me another 30 or 40 years. I can either pay the farmer now, or I can pay the pharma later.
I choose the farmer.
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