Thoughts on frugality, diet, health, and wealth

I've said in the past that being poor is the best diet. You don't eat as much because you can't afford as much. This actually has some basis in fact, if you believe the writings of Luigi Cornaro, author of Discourses on the Sober Life.

I've been thinking more about the best diet, as it relates to personal finance, and here's the conclusion that I've come to:
The whole reason for going on a diet is to live longer and healthier. The whole reason for managing your finances well is to have more and be able to live a better life, especially when you're older. Obviously, then, the best diet, with regard to personal finance, is the one that drains your wallet the least and helps you live the longest and healthiest. However, if I had to choose between "cheap" and "healthy," I'd choose healthy every time.

I won't give recommendations for any specific diet, but here are some observations about the whole dieting scene:

The Atkins Diet is my last choice for a cheap, healthy diet. When the Atkins diet was in its heyday, manufactured Atkins diet food was one of the most expensive choices you could make. I saw Atkins snack bars selling for $2.00 each. I think that's crazy, and speaking as one who tried Atkins, I know how expensive it can be. I won't even go into how unhealthy I think it is.

Jenny Craig, or any other diet plan where you have to buy their food, is probably a poor choice for two reasons: it's more expensive than cooking it yourself, and I'm not sure that it's any healthier than what you could cook for yourself.

The bottom line is that you have to live long to fully enjoy your financial well-being. If being healthy means eating less food, then that's what I recommend. If it means buying expensive fresh fruits and vegetables, go for it. If it means buying expensive vitamins and taking them every day, by all means do that. You plan your finances down to the penny, so why not take care of your health in the same way?