Lean economy, fatty diet

When money's tight, many people switch to cheap, unhealthful foods. But it doesn't have to be that way. By Karen Ravn >>> Prices are way down on the stock market and way up at the grocery store. Just thinking about it could make you lose your appetite -- or, alternatively, give you a serious craving for some comfort food. Indeed, as the economy flags, sags and drags, there's talk that it could affect the way people eat, and even how much they weigh. ¶ You might imagine that high food prices could put the nation on a diet as people, strapped for cash, tighten their belts and eat less. Forget that idea. Many nutrition experts fear that soaring food prices will have the opposite effect -- fatten up the nation. ¶ They point to science showing that price changes can make people change what they buy as well as how much. As the price of one food goes up, people not only buy less of it, but they also sometimes buy other, cheaper food in its place. And cheaper foods tend to have more calories than those with a higher price tag. For instance, as the price of oranges goes up, people don't buy as many oranges. And some may decide to buy cookies instead. Today, "people are eating cheap, unhealthy food who never thought they would be," says Adam Drewnowski, director of the Center for Obesity Research at the University of Washington in Seattle. ¶ It's no accident that high-calorie foods (chips, dips, cookies, candy) are generally cheaper than low-calorie foods (broccoli, asparagus, peaches, blueberries). Processed foods are cheaper to produce, ship and store. As researchers note, this is partly due to agricultural policies, which could be changed, and partly due to the nature of the foods themselves, which can't.

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