Keeping costs down in natural treatment
If you want to do natural stuff, how to afford it? Here are some ideas.
Finding affordable brands
Nature's Way tends to be a good source for affordable and reliable herbs and supplements. They have many standardized versions of herbs, and many things for less than $8 or so, and the basic vitamins and minerals through them tend to be cheap. (I would not use their mushrooms however- those are very sensitive to quality.)
Jarrow and Doctor's Best are other brands that tend to be affordable but high-quality.
Tax deductions
If a healthcare professional prescribes them, a lot of supplements and even special diets can be TAX-DEDUCTIBLE. Yep. If they are for a specific condition. Don't take this as legal advice - but look it up for yourself.
"You cannot include in medical expenses the cost of nutritional supplements, vitamins, herbal supplements, “natural medicines,” etc. unless they are recommended by a medical practitioner as treatment for a specific medical condition diagnosed by a physician. "-arthritis.com
Ordering supplements and health foods online
Vitacost.com is often cheap and they can give free shipping.
I find that I spend less when I have amazon prime and then order things one at a time, only if I have run out of them and really need them. That way I don't end up bulk-ordering stuff to meet a certain shipping requirement and then not needing some of it. Amazon prices are fairly competitive and often less than in stores.
Bulk things like powders
Sometimes you can get things much more cheaply as powders rather than in capsule form. Or certain superfruits will be cheaper as powders (which can be stored and are lightweight to ship) than as juices or fresh fruit.
Do as much as possible with food
You have to eat food anyway. It might as well work for you rather than against you.
A lot of it is about what you don't do
Lots of healthy lifestyle has to do with not just doing or taking or eating extra things, but with not doing things. Sugar can be a big one. Doesn't cost anything not to eat processed sugar, yet that might be important. Just an example.
Find the 80/20 things with the biggest impact
Often it's just 20% of interventions that provide 80% of the benefits. You don't always know what those 20% are until you experiment, although research and other people's experiences can provide some idea. But you might not have to do everything you try forever; it's possible to prioritize.
The truth is that none of us can do everything possible for health. But that's not a good reason to do nothing either. Ideally we find the key things that give a good return on the effort and money.
Frozen organic food
Often frozen soon after picking, which is great. Can be "fresher" than fresh food.
Devices
Sometimes some sort of "hardware" can help conditions, stuff that is just a one-time cost that can be used over and over.
Cook at home
Saves quite a bit over eating out. It's possible to cook certain things that are pretty inexpensive.
Chew thoroughly
You'd think it would be obvious, but a lot of people don't do this enough. The food should be basically liquefied and full of saliva by the time it goes down. Might as well get nutrition out of food if you are paying for it. Can help with needing less food, if what you eat is fully digested and absorbed. Dr. Tom Levy talks about the importance of chewing; how in some ways it is more important than what you eat - how well you chew.
Cheap treatments
Simple things like drinking adequate clean water, relaxing, laughing, enjoying yourself, sleeping well in darkness, stress relief, etc., can have a big impact but don't really cost anything.
If you want to do natural stuff, how to afford it? Here are some ideas.
Finding affordable brands
Nature's Way tends to be a good source for affordable and reliable herbs and supplements. They have many standardized versions of herbs, and many things for less than $8 or so, and the basic vitamins and minerals through them tend to be cheap. (I would not use their mushrooms however- those are very sensitive to quality.)
Jarrow and Doctor's Best are other brands that tend to be affordable but high-quality.
Tax deductions
If a healthcare professional prescribes them, a lot of supplements and even special diets can be TAX-DEDUCTIBLE. Yep. If they are for a specific condition. Don't take this as legal advice - but look it up for yourself.
"You cannot include in medical expenses the cost of nutritional supplements, vitamins, herbal supplements, “natural medicines,” etc. unless they are recommended by a medical practitioner as treatment for a specific medical condition diagnosed by a physician. "-arthritis.com
Ordering supplements and health foods online
Vitacost.com is often cheap and they can give free shipping.
I find that I spend less when I have amazon prime and then order things one at a time, only if I have run out of them and really need them. That way I don't end up bulk-ordering stuff to meet a certain shipping requirement and then not needing some of it. Amazon prices are fairly competitive and often less than in stores.
Bulk things like powders
Sometimes you can get things much more cheaply as powders rather than in capsule form. Or certain superfruits will be cheaper as powders (which can be stored and are lightweight to ship) than as juices or fresh fruit.
Do as much as possible with food
You have to eat food anyway. It might as well work for you rather than against you.
A lot of it is about what you don't do
Lots of healthy lifestyle has to do with not just doing or taking or eating extra things, but with not doing things. Sugar can be a big one. Doesn't cost anything not to eat processed sugar, yet that might be important. Just an example.
Find the 80/20 things with the biggest impact
Often it's just 20% of interventions that provide 80% of the benefits. You don't always know what those 20% are until you experiment, although research and other people's experiences can provide some idea. But you might not have to do everything you try forever; it's possible to prioritize.
The truth is that none of us can do everything possible for health. But that's not a good reason to do nothing either. Ideally we find the key things that give a good return on the effort and money.
Frozen organic food
Often frozen soon after picking, which is great. Can be "fresher" than fresh food.
Devices
Sometimes some sort of "hardware" can help conditions, stuff that is just a one-time cost that can be used over and over.
Cook at home
Saves quite a bit over eating out. It's possible to cook certain things that are pretty inexpensive.
Chew thoroughly
You'd think it would be obvious, but a lot of people don't do this enough. The food should be basically liquefied and full of saliva by the time it goes down. Might as well get nutrition out of food if you are paying for it. Can help with needing less food, if what you eat is fully digested and absorbed. Dr. Tom Levy talks about the importance of chewing; how in some ways it is more important than what you eat - how well you chew.
Cheap treatments
Simple things like drinking adequate clean water, relaxing, laughing, enjoying yourself, sleeping well in darkness, stress relief, etc., can have a big impact but don't really cost anything.
