Numerous scientific studies have proven that a poor diet can have real negative impacts on health such as the development of diabetes, overweight, obesity, certain cancers, or even cardiovascular diseases. These different pathologies will subsequently lead to a deterioration in the quality of life . [¹,²,³] Your diet and your choices for what you eat can really have an impact on avoiding these diseases! But then the question we can ask ourselves is: Eating a balanced diet, is it accessible to everyone?

Eating right is not more expensive

We have a lot of prejudices when it comes to food

We have all heard or read at least once in our lives these kinds of sentences: “It's more expensive to eat a balanced diet” 🥗 “Vegetables at every meal, it increases the price of the shopping cart enormously” 🥕🛒 “Meat , it’s expensive” 🥩 … But are these preconceived ideas justified? We will decipher this together.

Let's compare products intelligently 🧠

There is no point comparing a meal consisting of a beef steak accompanied by a sauce, a trio of cooked vegetables and rice, with industrial croque-monsieur. It is important to remain lucid and consistent when making comparisons. It goes without saying that the 2nd meal will be much cheaper than the 1st. The 2nd meal is an industrially prepared meal with a high GI, with poor quality ingredients. While the first meal is equivalent to restaurant standard. However, it is possible to distinguish between these 2 choices: by cooking at home and choosing the right products, you can create meals rich in nutrients and not so expensive . You will do good for your health and your wallet! You understand, it is important to compare what is comparable. Do not compare a local and organic food with an ultra-processed food, only to evaluate which product is cheaper. However, it may be interesting to explore the comparison further. Let's take the example of a fresh fish fillet, to compare with breaded fish sticks. Certainly the price of fresh fish may be more expensive to purchase. However, it will contain more nutrients and contribute to better satiety . This way, you will be less likely to snack between meals. In the end, this choice will be better for your health and not necessarily bad for your wallet!

In reality, what is the most expensive thing in your shopping cart? 🛒

Finally, in the shopping cart, it is mainly the accumulation of processed foods that will increase the cost of your shopping. By choosing to cut out these foods in favor of raw foods, you will buy less food. Quite simply because you will eliminate all the products not necessary for the proper functioning of your body, in favor of more nutritious foods. Over time, you will be less tempted to eat out of compulsion or emotion. If the food is not in the cupboard, the temptation disappears on a daily basis at home. A real financial gain and for your health! Make up your own mind by purchasing only raw products over 1 month! The second important point to discuss is meat . Meat is often singled out as representing a significant cost in spending. In reality, not all protein sources are necessarily expensive. For example, you can opt for eggs (1 serving of egg = 2 eggs = €0.60 on average) , or legumes (1 serving = €0.20 on average) . These are two types of foods that will provide many nutrients to your body. Either way, it is not recommended to eat red meat every day. It is therefore important to take this into account in your speech. Finally, eating a balanced diet , with a portion of starchy foods , a portion of protein and a portion of vegetables at each meal, is not as expensive as you might think. We have developed a week of menus with proteins, vegetables and starchy foods at each meal to prove to you that eating right does not rhyme with exorbitant prices.

With the maju program, it's easy, quick and inexpensive

What is the maju concept? 🥣

maju is an innovative bowl , patented twice, which simplifies food rebalancing . Say goodbye to all the mental load and frustration of weighing food and counting calories…and say hello to easy-bowl , free-thinking ! With the maju concept, you learn to eat balanced in a fun way. Each category of food (starches, proteins, vegetables) has its place and this balance allows you to provide all the essential nutrients for the proper functioning of your body. For those who aim to lose weight , the program allows for healthy and lasting weight loss, thanks to this fun operation where everyone is free to choose the foods they like. With this method of eating, raw foods are given pride of place. We can therefore wonder what cost a diet can have where proteins, starchy foods and vegetables are to be consumed at each meal (lunch and dinner), every day.

A shopping cart within reach of all budgets without spending hours in the kitchen. 🛒🕰️

We estimated the cost of 1 week of meals with the maju bowl, as well as the preparation time in the kitchen that it requires. Here are the conditions of our test: Context: As we saw previously, many prejudices exist about the cost of a balanced diet. Preconceived ideas also exist about the preparation time in the kitchen if the meal consists of proteins, starchy foods and vegetables. Objective: Evaluate the average price of 1 week of meals (lunch and dinner) in the maju bowl for 1 person, and the time spent in the kitchen to prepare these 14 meals. Method: For the choice of foods: Use of mixed “Chef bowl” and “Simple bowl”, that is to say a mix of cooked recipes and raw foods. The choice of proteins was made as follows for the 14 meals:

• 2 servings of red meats
• 3 red meats
• 3 servings of eggs
• 4 white meats
• 2 vental proteins

The starchy foods and vegetables were chosen to provide as much variety as possible. For preparation time: This includes the time spent handling the food, that is to say the cutting times for vegetables and proteins for example. It does not include cooking times, such as the cooking time of rice in water for example. For the price: We used an average of the prices of each food. We based ourselves on the prices charged by different resellers, and chose the median between the lowest and highest prices. Results: On average, 1 week of meals (lunch and dinner) with the maju bowl for 1 person costs €39, for a daily preparation time of 40 minutes in the kitchen. Conclusion: Eating a balanced diet does not necessarily cost more and does not necessarily take more preparation time in the kitchen. Here is an example of a test week:

Finally, eating right is accessible!

Saving money 💰

In general, I invite you to form your own opinion and not to limit yourself to beliefs. As you have just seen through our tests, eating right, that is to say eating balanced, is not necessarily more expensive. It's all a question of food choice , balance and variety .

Saving time 🕰️

You don't need to spend hours in the kitchen to make healthy, balanced dishes that meet your needs. You just need to choose the right recipes to combine with each other. You can also organize yourself to cook 2 meals in one go, by cooking a double portion in the evening to have some for the next day at lunchtime for example. You can also opt for the batchcooking method , cooking once for the whole week.

Nutritional monitoring with maju to facilitate the transition 🥣!

To facilitate the transition to a diet focused on raw foods and a more balanced plate composition , you can follow the maju food rebalancing . With maju, your quantities are adjusted, your calories are controlled, and your results are assured! No more mental load and frustration linked to methods of calculating calories or weighing food. Welcome to freedom of mind ! By becoming a Boliste Pro at maju , you have access to a multitude of tips to successfully rebalance your diet, to guide you on your breakfast and your snack. You stay in touch with the team of dieticians-nutritionists 6 days a week thanks to chat for 360° monitoring. The objective of maju is to simplify your dietary rebalancing and to make you an actor in your health . Finally, eating balanced and inexpensively becomes child's play! What are you waiting for to try maju food rebalancing ?

Bibliography

[1] Islam, Md Ashraful, Mohammad Nurul Amin, Shafayet Ahmed Siddiqui, Md Parvez Hossain, Farhana Sultana, and Md Ruhul Kabir. “Trans Fatty Acids and Lipid Profile: A Serious Risk Factor to Cardiovascular Disease, Cancer and Diabetes”. Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome 13, no 2 (2019): 1643-47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2019.03.033 .
[2] Malik, Vasanti S., and Frank B. Hu. “The Role of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages in the Global Epidemics of Obesity and Chronic Diseases.” NatureReviews. Endocrinology 18, no. 4 (April 2022): 205-18. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-021-00627-6 .
[3] IARC (2018). Cancers attributable to lifestyle and the environment in mainland France. Lyon: International Agency for Research on Cancer.