Frozen Meals: A do or a don't?

The holidays are over, and as you begin a new year, it is a prime time to assess your lifestyle choices, and decide how you can both recover from any holiday "lapses" (too many cookies, too little cardio?), and how you can make this year, as a whole, even better than the last one! 

Perhaps some of you are wondering how you can manage to take the time and effort required to eat better this year. Are you working like crazy, or a busy mom of several children? Are you too busy to cook on a regular basis? You are not alone, so don't despair! Cooking is, of course, a wonderful pastime and, for many, the key to maintaining a healthy weight, cholesterol, and sodium levels. That being said, just because you don't have enough time to cook doesn't mean your food choices and health have to suffer.  Many people turn to frozen meals instead.  Before you cringe at the "frozen food" concept, understand that these options don't have to be detrimental to your waistline; in fact, they can play an integral role in improving your health, if done correctly!

Let's review some of the pros, cons, and options that are available nowadays:

Pros of a Pre-Packaged, Frozen Meal:

-You automatically know all of the nutrition facts for the food you are eating; therefore, you can track your meals and calorie intake accurately.
-There are many healthy options nowadays that are available, including "light sodium", vegetarian, vegan, organic meals, etc.
-You have automatic portion control
-You can choose non-"meal" items, such as frozen chicken, fish, veggies, or fruits, and create your own meals quickly based off of those, while still saving yourself some of the hassle of cooking.
-You save time

Cons:

-If you don't pay attention to the meal you are choosing, you could pick some options that are high in calories or have unhealthy ingredients
-Many are high in sodium
-Some of the nutrients are lost in the freezing and reheating process
-It can be more costly to stock up on frozen meals (this does not apply to frozen individual ingredients) as opposed to buying fresh ingredients and putting them together yourself

Options/Solutions to These "Cons":

-Lean Cuisine, Amy's meals, Smart Ones, and Healthy Choice are all good choices
-Frozen meats, veggies, fruits
-If you eat 3 pre-made meals a day, so long as you do not eat much additional salt, you will not go over your RDA of sodium
-Supplement your meals with fresh foods that do not require additional preparation: apples, almonds, carrots, yogurt, to name a few
-There are usually generic brands of these meals, such as "eat right", that have sales frequently at Safeway, Lucky's etc; these meals can cost $1.50 each, as opposed to $3-5 each, so you won't break your budget.

So there you go, folks! Don't give up cooking, it's a wonderful and healthy thing to do! However, if you don't have time one day, it's okay! You can still get proper nutrition. Your health is in your hands, it is just up to you to make the choices that best suit your lifestyle.

Wishing you Good Health and Happiness!
Dr.Abu Pigott
Aurora