Affordable Survival Plan
For several years now I have tried to make one point as simple as possible. Flour and sugar are strongly associated with excess body fat and the chronic diseases that follow. The biology behind that is real, but it’s a hard sell. Many people care more about the foods made from flour and sugar than they dislike extra fat.
The other truth, however, is that extra fat is a byproduct, not the real problem. This became clear to me as I studied the mitochondria, those jillions of tiny power plants inside nearly every cell, working 24 hours a day to keep the lights on. It ‘s foundational. No power, no lights.
The calories in the food we eat—carbohydrate, fat, and protein—are the fuel for the furnace. Within that food are ~30 essential vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other nutrients that tell the body how to use that fuel.
Three of those 30, thiamine, niacin, and magnesium, will be the make or break of energy production and it just so happens that deficiency in these three is connected to that extra body fat. The carbohydrate calories missing those three nutrients are more likely to be stored as fat rather than used as energy.
No single food contains all essential nutrients. A diverse diet of natural, whole foods—meat or fish, whole grains, vegetables, fruits—has the best chance of meeting nutrient needs without calorie-counting or tracking every vitamin. In other words, stick to whole foods of a good variety and you can otherwise eat without a lot of thought.
But today, the rising cost of food makes that level of dietary diversity increasingly difficult for families on tight budgets.
My goal was to identify affordable food combinations that meet all essential nutrient needs at the lowest possible cost, while still allowing some dietary variety. I settled on a list that consistently delivers the necessary nutrients:
beans, eggs, canned tuna, powdered milk, bacon, greens, potatoes, rice, oatmeal, citrus, and a small amount of nuts.
Today we will see which nutrients each food brings to the table (no pun intended) and how they work together as a complete, low-cost plan.
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As you look at the table below keep three ideas in mind.
First, thiamine, niacin, and magnesium are in bold because they form a bottleneck in energy production. Rice is the only food listed that contributes calories without any of the three. Second, many other essential nutrients appear across those foods in smaller but meaningful amounts. No single food does the job; overlap is what makes the system work. Third, terms like “incomplete protein” or “high phytates” simple mean that preparation and food pairing matter, a topic we will explore next week.
Affordable Survival Plan – Nutrient Contribution Table
FOOD TABLE
| Food | Portion | Protein | Major nutrients | Special Features |
| Oatmeal (rolled oats) | ½ cup dry (150 cal) | 5 g | Thiamine, Magnesium. Niacin (modest), protein, fiber | Incomplete protein |
| Rice (white, unenriched) | ½ cup dry 1.5 cups cooked (300 cal) | 6 g | No meaningful thiamine, no magnesium, no niacin | Pure calories |
| Beans (cooked) | 1 cup cooked (225 cal) | 15 g | Thiamine. Magnesium Niacin, protein, fiber, folate, multiple others in small quantities | high phytates. incomplete protein |
| Eggs | 1 large (70 cal) | 6–7 g | Thiamine, Niacin (small), B12, B2, choline, folate, selenium, multiple others in small quantities | Complete protein; |
| Canned tuna (light) | 3 oz (100 cal) | 20–22 g | Niacin very high, B12, DHA/EPA; protein, selenium, multiple others in small quantities | Complete protein |
| Dried milk (non-fat) | ¼ cup dry (90 cal) | 8–9 g | Thiamine, Niacin (small), Magnesium (small), protein, B5, calcium | Primary calcium source; cheap complete protein |
| Potato | 1 medium baked (160 cal) | 4 g | Thiamine (small), Magnesium Niacin (modest), fiber, K, C, B6. Others in small quantities | Highly nutritious per penny; |
| Greens (collards/ spinach) | 1 cup cooked (40 cal) | 3–5 g | Thiamine (very small), Magnesium, Niacin (small), fiber, Vit K/A/C, folate, manganese | antioxidant dense |
| Orange (citrus) | 1 medium (60–70 cal) | 1 g | Thiamine, magnesium V C, potassium, fiber, many others in small but meaningful roles. | Best known for Vit C, Enhances iron absorption; prevents scurvy |
| Bacon | 2 slices cooked (~90 cal) | ~5 g | Thiamine, Niacin, Magnesium (very low), Vit E | adds flavor + fat; improves palatability of beans/greens |
| Peanut Butter | 2 Tbsp (~190 cal) | ~8 G | Niacin Magnesium, Vit E, copper | Improves absorption of vitamin A and K |
All listed foods contribute additional vitamins and minerals in smaller amount. The table highlights major contributors only, meant to show how foods complement on another rather than to rank nutrients by importance.
This is a very narrow list of food carefully chosen to maximize protein and meet all the essential nutrients at the lowest possible cost. Many of these foods can be acquired at a food pantry. The following rotating menu is one idea of how to simulate variety.
Rotating 7 Day Menu
| Day | Protein Focus | Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner | Notes |
| Mon, Thu, Sun | Eggs | Oatmeal + PB + milk + orange | Beans (with bacon) + rice + greens | Eggs + potatoes + greens + milk | Scrambled or boiled eggs; soft foods for toddler |
| Tue, Fri | Tuna | Oatmeal + milk + orange | Tuna-bean rice bowl | Tuna-potato bake + greens | Omega-3 and selenium days |
| Wed, Sat | Beans | Oatmeal + PB | Beans + rice + greens | Beans + potatoes + egg or tuna leftovers | Meatless days for savings |
Next week we will begin looking at each of the food more closely, why they were chosen, why some others were not, and criteria you might use to make substitutions. Maybe you are allergic to peanuts or eggs.
——————————————————————————————-Pat Smith is the author of “It’s All about the Food,” a book that guides nutritious food choices as the way to avoid illness and maintain a healthy weight. Proceeds from her book benefit the Montgomery County Food Pantry. Her book is available on Amazon and at Bob’s Food City, Mount Ida Pharmacy, Mount ida Area Chamber of Commerce, and Turtle Cove Spa. Her website is http://www.allaboutthefood.org/ She can be contacted at patsmith2@live.com, 501-605-3902. Her Facebook page is www.facebook.com/patsmithbooks.