Actual restaurants (over fast food) aren't that much more expensive, hence my Mexican restaurant example. I suck at cooking myself, but anyone can cook some basic things (burgers, eggs, etc.). I do want to get one of those InstantPots but that seems like a bit more work than I want, that's how limited my cooking is that I feel an InstantPot is too much for me. I'm not sure if overall real food is more money. Hell, I get 1/2 pound burgers at the local grocery store for $2.50, you can't get a fast food quarter pounder for that price. Plus, if you're eating real food, you'll be eating less overall food (in weight), that's the main trick. The worse food you eat, the more you need to eat because the less nutrients per weight you're getting. Just think about how much people spend on drinks when all you need is water.
You do realize everything I've said, top experts and doctors have said as well (I learned from them), nutrition is a minefield of misinformation. Medicine can cause you putting on a few pounds but not you being obese. I know what my friend eats (we eat out dinner about 3 times a week) and conversation comes up about this and that over the years and you have a good idea of what someone eats. For example, picking up food from a pizza place regularly because she gets off work late and that's the only place open. She's not eating healthy and blames her medicine.
Food deserts like aren't a thing. I drive through Gary, Indiana pretty occasionally (when there's bad traffic on the usual routes) and apparently just Gary alone has 14 food deserts, that's not true. There's plenty of options in Gary for healthy food. The problem is people don't buy/eat healthy food to begin with and that's why there's less healthy food because it doesn't sell. There's a reason why say Sharks is in Gary and there isn't a Poke Bros there, and it's not like Sharks is cheap either (I do love their catfish nuggets, but only get that like once a year). It's there because that's what food the community likes to buy.
If you place your finger on a map of grocery stores within Northwest Indiana, you may find that you cannot touch one within a mile radius. Donna Catalano, community development director at Legacy Foundation, shared how this is considered a food desert. “Lake County currently has about 27 food...
nwi.life
Families with access to healthier foods don’t necessarily buy them
news.uchicago.edu
California caused it's housing crisis, everything to do with democratic laws/policy. But no, it's the republicans fault that you can't build houses in California.