Eating Healthy on a Budget

Written By Amber Barone

It’s a common misconception that eating healthy has to be expensive. Today I’ll discuss several practical ways to extend the dollar while nourishing your wellbeing.

Hunting is a great way to get high quality meat with no risk of antibiotic or hormone tainting. One concern in recent years is Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) which affects deer, elk and moose species. Depending on the area that you’re in, be aware of CWD prevalence and work with Fish Wildlife and Parks who set up inspection stations where you can get the animal inspected for free, prior to consumption. Butchering your own meat can be a bit of a learning curve but there are several online resources and books to help with this process and it can be quite satisfying and empowering to learn.

Instead of paying more for premium cuts of beef, pork, chicken or turkey in the store consider buying quantity straight from the farmer/rancher. Buying a 1/2 a beef or whole chicken is always going to be more cost effective and if you buy direct from the farmer you’re also supporting a more sustainable model of consumption. Just make sure you have freezer space to accommodate the volume! If you’re based in Montana like me, here is a great resource list by Abundant Montana that shows local farms and ranches throughout the state. Look for grass fed and finished and free range options.

Buying bulk also applies to beans, legumes, grains and flours. While there are several organic options available online, I’ll plug another Montana based business for lentils. You can break these 40 lb bags down into more manageable packaging and store them in the freezer or another suitable cool, dark place, nearly indefinitely.

Eggs are a GREAT all around nutrient dense food that’s quite affordable. Besides being a complete protein they further provide vitamins and minerals including vitamin D, phosphorus, vitamin A, along with some B vitamins and they’re a very rich source of riboflavin, selenium, and choline. Be sure to check with neighbors who have chickens, it’s a great way to start a conversation and learn about how to raise your own or possibly buy direct from them.

In the grocery stores, stick to the perimeter where REAL food lives and resist the urge to pay extra for convenience. Those prepackaged baby carrots might look appealing but with a little prep you can peel and chop carrots from a 2 lb bag for pennies on the dollar!

Lastly, don’t forget to minimize waste by saving those veggie scraps and bones and freeze all that for making your own bone broths, soups and stews.

Happy Saving!

References:

Puglisi MJ, Fernandez ML. The Health Benefits of Egg Protein. Nutrients. 2022 Jul 15;14(14):2904. doi: 10.3390/nu14142904. PMID: 35889862; PMCID: PMC9316657.

Réhault-Godbert S, Guyot N, Nys Y. The Golden Egg: Nutritional Value, Bioactivities, and Emerging Benefits for Human Health. Nutrients. 2019 Mar 22;11(3):684. doi: 10.3390/nu11030684. PMID: 30909449; PMCID: PMC6470839.

Amber Barone

Amber is a Holistic RN and Functional Medicine Practitioner who supports whole body integrative health and uses primarily diet changes, whole foods, herbs along with lifestyle tools and supplements to help clients restore balance and align with their highest sense of well being.

Amber started her nursing career in the clinic setting where she built a solid understanding of disease progression and contributing factors along with pathophysiology, biochemistry, psychological and trauma aspects. From there she became a travel nurse, working in various settings including cardiac rehab, med surg, psych, long term care, ICU’s and ER’s. These ever changing environments satisfied her ferocious appetite to learn and grow through challenging and inspiring case loads in diverse settings. It was through all of this that she realized her true passion and where she could serve at her highest capacity was working with patients on how to prevent and reverse chronic disease.

As a functional medicine, holistic RN Amber strives to bring in the best evidence based tools and resources from both conventional and alternative schools of thought. She is dedicated to continuing her learning to stay up to speed with the latest research and trends and has built her practice around educating and empowering patients to be proactive with their health.

Most patients come to Amber through a referral network of practitioners in various medical and alternative settings including MD’s, FNP’s, Acupuncturists, Dentists, Chiropractors, Massage Therapists and Yoga Teachers… who wish to support their patients in this way but don’t have the time, education or resources to do this effectively.

The functional medicine addition to client care seems to be the missing piece of a true wellness model. It becomes a collaborative movement too, working together to promote wellness in our respective communities. It expedites healing through deep understanding and promotes life long transformation. Win! Win!

Functional medicine is a deep dive into root cause correlations contributing to one’s current state, it views each patient as unique and in so doing, more fully supports patients on their road to wellness by nourishing unique pathways effecting body systems, organs and glands. Much like regenerative farming and soil health, our bodies are designed to be resilient they just need the right inputs and tools to mitigate cumulative stress, toxins and burdens of our time. Feeling empowered with your health starts here.

EDUCATION / TRAINING

BS Nursing Montana State University-Registered Nurse

BA Psychology and Sociology University of Montana

Equine Veterinarian Technician-Penn Foster

Clinicians Mastermind Circle a one-year Functional Medicine Intensive

Functional Nutrition Alliance 10-month Full Body Systems Immersion

Yoga Motion 240 hour RYS teacher training

http://www.bar1wellness.com
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