As everything aside from our salaries is on the rise, taking your own lunchbox to work could be a very healthy solution to saving money. A Taipei Medical University Hospital survey has found that people taking their own lunchboxes to work every day instead of eating out can save around NT$2,000 a month, or nearly a whole month’s salary over the course of a year for entry-level workers. The survey also shows that up to 80 percent of office workers who do not finish their lunchboxes simply throw away the leftover food. Nutritionists recommend splitting lunchboxes between two meals to decrease calorie intake and avoid waste.
Online questionnaires for the “2012 Survey of Office Workers’ Diets and Consumer Habits” were given to 1,400 office workers. The survey found that 78 percent of office workers eat out regularly, while 22 percent bring their own lunchboxes to work. The survey also shows that more than 50 percent of people regularly eating out do not finish their take-out lunchboxes, and that rice and vegetables make up the majority of the uneaten food. For those eating take-away lunchboxes, as much as 86 percent simply throw away the food they do not finish.
According to the report, people eating out spend NT$5517 per month on average, while people bringing their own lunchboxes to work spend NT$4461 on average, which is 24 percent less per month. People regularly eating takeout also typically buy drinks and snacks while they are out getting their to-go lunchboxes, and this is why people eating out spend around NT$13,000 per month on food and beverages, while those who prepare their own lunchboxes spend around NT$11,000 per month, the difference of which over the course of a year could equal an entire month’s salary for an entry-level worker.
Photo: Hua Meng-ching, Liberty Times
照片:自由時報記者花孟璟
Su Hsiu-yue, head of Taipei Medical University Hospital’s Department of Nutrition, says that office workers who eat out regularly admit that they are only consuming about 10 percent of the foods they should be eating from the six main food groups. She says that too much food from the meat group and oil and fat group are being consumed, while foods from the vegetables, grains, and dairy groups are not being eaten enough, making for a very imbalanced diet. Further analysis shows that people eating out regularly who finish all of their food usually have a higher Body Mass Index (BMI) than those who do not finish all of their food.
Su says that there are around 850 calories in pork chop and chicken leg lunchboxes, but that the average woman needs only 450 to 500 calories per meal, so she suggests dividing each lunchbox into two meals, eating the foods that spoil more easily, such as vegetables and pulses, during the first meal, and leaving a third of the meat and rice for a second meal, simply buying more vegetables to add to the meal, which can benefit your health and also save you money.
(Liberty Times, Translated by Kyle Jeffcoat)
Photo: Chung Li-hua, Liberty Times
照片:自由時報記者鍾麗華
在「什麼都漲,只有薪水不漲」環境下,帶便當不僅省錢又健康!台北醫學大學附設醫院調查,每天上班帶便當的「便當族」比「外食族」總花費每月約省新台幣兩千元,一年下來可以省下社會新鮮人一個月的薪水。高達八成六上班族把吃不完的便當直接丟棄,營養師建議,可將便當分成兩餐食用,減少熱量負擔,也避免浪費。
「二○一二年上班族飲食與消費習慣大調查」是以網路訪問一千四百名上班族,結果發現,有高達百分之七十八是外食族,自帶便當僅為百分之二十二。調查發現,有五成以上的「外食族」便當吃不完,剩下最多的是白飯與青菜;面對剩菜剩飯,前述的外食族有百分之八十六選擇直接丟掉。
根據調查,外食族每月伙食費為新台幣五千五百一十七元,比便當族新台幣四千四百六十一元,多出百分之二十四。外食族通常買便當也會順手買飲料、點心等,也因此外食族每個月總花費超過一萬三千元,比便當族一萬一千餘元,一年多出二萬二千餘元,約是社會新鮮人一個月的薪水。
北醫營養部主任蘇秀悅說,習慣外食的上班族自認每天攝取六大類食物的比率不到一成,其中蛋豆魚肉、油脂類都攝取太多,蔬果、五穀、奶類則相對不足,飲食不均衡。進一步分析發現,習慣將飯菜吃完的外食族,BMI(身體質量指數)明顯比沒吃完的人來得高。
蘇秀悅強調,一個排骨、雞腿便當熱量約八百五十大卡,不過,一名女性一餐約四百五十到五百大卡即足夠。她建議,不妨把一個便當拆成兩餐食用,可以先食用會變色、變質的青菜與豆類,各留下三分之一的肉類與白飯,第二餐再買一份青菜,如此兼顧健康,又可省錢。
(自由時報記者鍾麗華)
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