Fast food is easy, convenient and often times cheap, but it doesn’t always have to be the answer. At the Coastal Bend Food Bank and Driscoll Children’s Hospital, dietitians are teaching families ways to make healthier choices.
“Cooking can be really simple and that is the biggest thing is just to get into the kitchen,” Kate Hilliard, a dietitian at the Coastal Bend Food Bank said. “And that is one of the goals that we have when we go out and teach the community.”
There is often the idea that eating healthy can also be expensive, a common misconception these dietitians are trying to end.
“Whenever you compare the cost of a meal that you can buy from a grocery store or compare to a cost of a meal out and the time you really are saving time and money by prepping at home,” Jill Thiede, a dietitian at Driscoll Children’s hospital said.
With the hundreds of fast food restaurants in the Coastal Bend, making a trip to the drive thru happens often, but there are ways to make healthier choices.
“A lot of fast food restaurants have salads or have apples or fresh fruits as side options,” Thiede said.
Both of the dietitians we spoke with emphasized that cooking also introduces families to fresher whole foods. And if you want to find ways to start cooking and eating healthier you can find all that information on the Coastal Bend Food Bank’s website: https://coastalbendfoodbank.org/