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One of the most common perceived roadblocks I hear about eating healthier is that it's too expensive. Since I hear this so often, I think about it quite a bit - wondering how to help people bridge that gap.I keep thinking, it can't be "expensive", otherwise WE wouldn't be eating this way! I choose to consider healthier foods as an investment rather than an expense. Sure, that may sound cliche, but it's true for our family.We've got the same financial concerns as the rest of hard working Americans. We don't have extra cash to throw around willy nilly! Therefore, I take our investments seriously. There are several things we will put on the proverbial back burner until things turn around - like home renovations, big vacations, new clothes for mom and dad, the luxury car I dream about, and so on.Those are things I can go back to someday. For the most part, they'll always be there.The same cannot be said for our health. If we are not proactively creating health, then we are actively (albeit passively) moving away from health.Every time we choose NOT to make a pure and sufficient nutrition decision, there are consequences. Consequences that accumulate over time. Every time we make a toxic and deficient nutrition decision, there are consequences. The science of epigenetics has clearly demonstrated that it's this type of environment that will determine a less-than-ideal genetic expression. There are consequences.Every time we make that less healthy choice, we set the stage for one or more of the five pillars of chronic illness: insulin resistance, chronic inflammation, release of stress hormones, decreased sex hormone binding globulin, and decreased immunity. These unequivocally lead to chronic illness (cancer, diabetes, obesity, arthritis, depression, digestive disorders, infertility, etc.) - this is exactly how we get sick. It's not random chance or family history.When I choose not to re-do our bathroom for awhile and invest in healthier food (and other healthy lifestyle choices) instead, the result is that I still have a 1970's looking bathroom! When I choose to forego the healthier food, the results are clearly, scientifically more devastating.I can't effectively go back and undo the damage that was done by NOT choosing the healthiest foods I could have for our family, given my resources and circumstances at the time. That's not how health and sickness work. There are limitations of matter. I don't dwell on the poor choices of the past, mind you. I just try to make healthier choices each day... each shopping trip... each restaurant outing.I don't ever worry about being "perfect" - it'll never happen and it's completely unrealistic! It's just about making healthier choices, whenever possible, little by little.The interesting thing is that I really don't believe that our family spends all that much more on food than the average North American family. I've not done a side-by-side comparison of our shopping and dining receipts, but I just have a hunch!Yes, there are certain foods that I undoubtedly spend more on, like clean, less toxic, free-range, grass-fed meats, poultry and eggs, and raw dairy when I can find it. We also only buy organic coffee. You can't undo the effects of the known carcinogens that are still used in conventional coffee processing. These are important choices for me - I'd rather not eat these things, at least with any regularity, if I can't get them in their most pure and sufficient forms.I also choose organic produce whenever possible. Not always, but most of the time. Thankfully, I've seen the price of organic come down drastically in recent years. I've spent the same or less on the organic option now several times!Here's the clincher: there are many foods that we don't spend a single penny on... and those pennies surely add up.We don't buy junk food, candy, fast food, pop, sports drinks, energy drinks, milk, or the very common conventional snack-type foods like snack packs, crackers, potato chips. Very rarely do we buy cereal (a handful of times per year). We spend very, very little on common starchy foods, like potatoes, rice, or pasta. We don't buy any of those crazy foods I see advertised when I let my kids watch a "kids' show" every once in awhile. I'm really not even sure of all the things that are out there that we could buy, that many people are spending their hard-earned money on. But I know that these things surely must add up. In fact, when I talk to other people about their diets, I'm the one who's often thinking, "I couldn't afford to eat or drink all those things!"So, I may spend more on a pound of grass-fed bison, but I'm almost positive it all works out in the end. What I've noticed in the years of doing nutritional consulting is that many people really aren't that far off track at all with their core meals that they make at home. There's a concerted effort to have protein and veggies, at least. That's a fabulous start - real food!I think it's all the "extras" that make the difference... all the things we scarf down between meals. Not only are those heavily marketed snack foods and drinks rarely health-promoting, they're also usually expensive. They're costly to our pocket book and to our health.If we could stick to healthy meals (comprised of healthy protein and fats, veggies and very little filler starches) the majority of the time, and gradually shift our snacks to healthier options, I think we'd see a real savings.I like to advise people who are ready for healthier changes to make baby steps. The most important foods to "clean up" are meats, eggs, dairy and grains. In the case of dairy and grains, we'd be better off not consuming them at all unless they're extremely pure and sufficient. In the case of fruit for example, the most toxic of the conventional choices, and therefore the most important to choose organic when possible, are strawberries, blueberries, apples and peaches.Taking this into account, consider how you could shift your food spending around in order to invest in the most nutritionally significant choices. For example, what if you chose to stop drinking pop, or cut back on your 'designer' coffee, or started packing a lunch a few days each week instead of eating out - with the money you saved you could easily upgrade some of your protein choices, or choose organic (preferably raw) milk for your kids, or buy a few produce items that are organic. It doesn't need to be any more difficult than that. What are you spending your money on that is clearly moving you away from health? Just make a small shift. Stop investing in the development of chronic illness! Choose healthier options... and call it even!