The persisting economic downturn has turned the majority of us to become incredulous – wondering what would eventually become of house values and how high the prices of gas and grocery would become soon. Taking a closer look and analysis, a sort of refrain is on the air – who knows, this financial crisis has come to help Americans arise to the consciousness of living within our means, and to live healthier and smarter.

For Americans, it has always been a ‘fast paced’ lifestyle – think about fast food, diner food and just anything that can be done swiftly. We prefer to eat out most of the times, leaving no room for a quality time with our families in the home dining section. We prefer to drive, instead of walking to a nearby shop (no room for exercise).

The recession has not come to maim us, but to help us change in a better way. Let’s analyze the regular trends and see how we can convert them to something positive – eventually leading to a happier, healthier and moderate lifestyle:

Here are some statistics; a poll has it that nearly 65% of US families and kids under age of 18 testified that every other week, they had dinner at home 4-5 times – the statistics were nearly 70% in the 90′s. Approximately, 70 percent of American households whose income exceeds 50,000 dollars had just one meal outside home in a week, and about 17% of the entire households surveyed dined on fast foods twice or thrice in a week.

Lesson: it is quite expensive to eat outside home. It is still cost-effective to get your groceries and prepare your own food. Cooking at home should be favored, even if it is just a dollar cheeseburger from McDonalds that is trying to win your attention. Also, looking at it from health perspective (of which, Americans have a pitiable health condition; 63 percent of Americans have excess weight, while more than 30% are obese – National Center for Health Statistics).

It has been proven that restaurant meals are not as healthy as meals prepared at home. Typically, an American would usually go for less-fatty and top quality ingredients when cooking their own foods at home. Conversely, the restaurant meals may contain some of those artery-clogging ingredients; of course, it may not appear so when they present the ready meals to you.

How to overcome eating out: look at those things that lure you to eat out and consider integrating them in your dining structure – whether the meal itself or the atmosphere. You can make your dining section’s atmosphere to have a better ambiance than that of restaurants. If you are constrained of time, opt for meals that would take less time to prepare, and also discourage yourself from eating out by comparing how long it would take to drive down (it could take lesser time to get your meal at home ready).

You can also make your meals tastier than those foods that beckon on you at restaurants – there are loads of free recipes on the internet to assist you. You may as well get the best-selling home recipes hard copies.

credit: graur razvan ionut