Millennials Are Really Struggling To Afford Healthy Eating | Men's Health Magazine Australia

Millennials Struggling To Afford Healthy Eating

Millennials get a bad wrap, particularly when it comes to their smashed avo, gluten free, coffee guzzling habits. They’re stereotyped as the ‘fitspo’ generation, and the waves of #foodporn that posted to social media have solidified their reputation as being incredible health conscious (not a bad thing at all).

However behind the selfies and perfectly presented breakfast flat-lays, the generation are apparently struggling to keep up their healthy ways. New research has been conducted that suggests an enourmous three quarters of 25-34 year olds find healthy eating unaffordable. In the survey conducted by insurance firm Aviva, 75 per cent of men and 80 per cent of women mentioned that they struggled to make healthy eating choice, based on budget.

“[The data] goes against the view that this is a generation who are juicing, detoxing and taking up all the latest healthy eating plans,” says Aviva medical director, Dr. Doug Wright.

The data also uncovered interesting eating habits among millennials, identifying that almost half would eat reduced calories during the day if they knew they were going to blow out on calories through alcohol and junk food at night.

“Starving oneself can also lead to bingeing and overeating, which could mean ironically people take in more calories than through eating regular sensible meals,” said Wright of the trend. “And if a big night out involves alcoholic drinks, this could mean people are swapping foods with a range of useful nutrients for ‘empty calories’ from alcohol with little nutritional value.”

While money is an obvious barrier to eating healthy for younger adults, those over 55 years of age seemed much less likely to struggle, with only 54 per cent saying cost was a limiting factor.

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