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Comment by hristov | Hacker News Reader

Sorry you are wrong. Food that is good for you is just more expensive than food that is bad for you. I have never been really truly poor but I have been a poor student and I can tell you from first hand experience that it is definitely the case that if you are trying to save every penny you are more or less guaranteed to eat bad food.

I don't know what are those cans and jars of healthy food you are referring to. The only thing I can think of is canned fruit/peppers but they are definitely more expensive than the caloric equivalent of junk food.

Also as the article said, if you have uncertain income you will end up going on a starve/binge cycles which are also guaranteed to make you fat.

Another issue is that any affordable healthy food usually requires cooking and many poor people (esp in urban areas) do not have access to clean kitchens.

So it is a real issue and saying "they are poor because they are stupid" is pretty fucked up.

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Food that is good for you is just more expensive than food that is bad for you.

Any person who is obese is eating more food than they need. With the same amount of money, they can eat fewer calories but get better nutrition.

Incidentally, poverty is not the issue. Most graduate students are poor (or very close to it), but obesity is not particularly prevalent in grad school. Based on my personal experience, I'd guess that more poor students eat overpriced organic granola than big macs.

The only thing I can think of is canned fruit/peppers but they are definitely more expensive than the caloric equivalent of junk food.

Well yeah, but this is a study on obesity, which means they're getting too many calories compared to nutrients. And quite frankly, if they can't control themselves in the starve-binge cycle, which probably contributes significantly to the lack of food money, and can't tell that something harming them is harming them, then any evolutionary standpoint sort of demands they stay there. Meanwhile, those typically-poorest locations are most heavily targeted for food kitchens and support money, but many are too proud to take help that's offered.

And, if there's not a portion of stupidity, how do some get out of poverty? And explain the increased drug and alcohol use in such areas.

So it is a real issue and saying "they are poor because they are stupid" is pretty fucked up.

Wrong. I manage just fine. I have very little money for food. It can be done if you know what to buy and how to cook. You need to set aside eating some of the things you want and you will need to suck it up and carry food with you. I use my friend's kitchen when I can't get back to my place to cook. Sometimes you might have to skip some of the food you would enjoy.

If you don't know how to cook and you're poor you better learn to cook. You have no excuse not to learn. If you don't know how to buy food start asking people that have their act together. Seek help anywhere you can find it. (I've been lucky to have a friend that does some rather nice cooking. My mom is also great at cooking and I had her teach me.)

So to make a blanket statement: If you are poor and you don't take steps to improve yourself you will stay poor and you are an idiot. There are exceptions but they are just that, exceptions.

> Food that is good for you is just more expensive than food that is bad for you.

It's not a relevant difference. Sugar and rice are the absolutely cheapest calories, and they're not so good for you. But a can of coconut milk is ~700 healthy and tasty calories for about a buck. Eggs are healthy and pennies a pop; you can even buy them already hard boiled. A can of sardines is a couple bucks. A can of sauerkraut is a buck and loaded with nutrition.

You have to be a moron to fail to put together a decent day's worth of food at a grocery store given $8. If you're willing to eat high starch you can eat for a couple bucks a day.

> Sugar and rice are the absolutely cheapest calories

You can bulk bags of rice as needed to supplement smaller amounts of healthier foods if you need to save money. (Stay away from the sugar) A diet of rice, beans, and vegetables may be boring but with little research you can live on it just fine.

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