Growing up, we at most of our meals at home. This was in the days before McDonald’s – there were no fast food places. There were fried chicken places and pizza places. But there just weren’t the dining out choices of today. Dining out was really a treat back then. For me, dining out with a girlfriend’s family was a HUGE treat! My parents always dictated what I could order – fried chicken, but my friend’s parents had no such rules. Is it any wonder that I very rarely choose to eat fried chicken as an adult? I had so much of it as a child!

In today’s world, we all seem to be very busy and things like meal preparation get pushed aside. There is a price associated with that, though. And that is in our health. It may show up as fatigue or obesity or more frequent colds. Eventually, though, it can show up as cancer, heart disease, and shortened life spans.

I do have a caveat for you, though. As you learn to prepare more whole foods, you’ll lose your taste for the fake foods you get at fast food joints and many restaurants. I can now taste the petroleum aftertaste in the queso from a local fast food Mexican restaurant. And pastas and breads made with white flour now taste as ’empty’ as they actually are. They’re not empty of calories and they may fill you up, but nutritionally you may as well eat a cardboard box.

A friend of mine related a story along those lines. He’s an entrepreneur making sales calls all day long. He had been a fast food connoisseur for years but had turned his habits around. He now packs fruits and veggies to eat throughout his day. One day, he had to make an out-of-town trip and had nothing fresh and wholesome packed. So, he stopped at one of his old, trusty burger joints. He said that the burger tasted bad. And the french fries. So he washed it down with some of the soda and even that tasted bad. That’s when he knew that it wasn’t the food. He knew that his tastes had changed.

In reality, isn’t that for the better? I think so. Higher quality food means more energy and less illness. Why not give it a try?

Still not convince? Here are ten reasons why cooking and eating at home is better:

1. Save money on food.
2. Connect with you kids – Involve them in cooking and enjoy the family time.
3. Eat more real foods.
4. Be confident in the ingredients you’re eating.
5. Be confident with your cooking skills. It will happen.
6. Get compliments from your family.
7. Leftovers!
8. You’ll all feel better.
9. Fewer absences due to illness.
10. Save money on medical bills!

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