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From MarketWatch.com:

“Down to your last belt loop and your last penny? These seemingly unrelated phenomena may have more in common than you think, a new survey shows.

“Dining out is the No. 1 thing that Americans blow their budgets on, according to the Principal Financial Group’s annual Financial Well Being Index, which will be released Wednesday (Market Watch got an early look at the data). The company surveyed more than 1,100 employed American adults.

‘Those restaurant meals are also adding to our growing waistlines: On days when people dine out, they tend to consume 200 more calories than when they eat at home, according to a study of more than 12,500 people published by Public Health Nutrition last year, and government research shows that “when eating out, people either eat more or eat higher calorie foods — or both — and that this tendency appears to be increasing.” Other studies show that eating out more frequently is associated with obesity and higher body fat.”

And the problem is getting worse. While 22% of Americans blew their budgets on dining out in 2014, this year, 24% did so.

In the Huffington Post a few years ago, Mark Hyman, MD wrote a fascinating piece which is very important.  Here is an excerpt and a link:

“Research shows that children who have regular meals with their parents do better in every way, from better grades, to healthier relationships, to staying out of trouble. They are 42 percent less likely to drink, 50 percent less likely to smoke and 66 percent less like to smoke marijuana. Regular family dinners protect girls from bulimia, anorexia, and diet pills. Family dinners also reduce the incidence of childhood obesity. In a study on household routines and obesity in U.S. preschool-aged children, it was shown that kids as young as four have a lower risk of obesity if they eat regular family dinners, have enough sleep, and don’t watch TV on weekdays.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/family-dinner-how_b_806114.html

Blogfinger Medical Commentary:  By Paul Goldfinger, MD, FACC

For the first time, data reveals that Americans spend more money on eating out than they do at  grocery stores.  Processed foods and restaurant foods tend to contain more salt, fat, and sugar than you might think.  The food industry plays up the addictive properties of certain ingredients including sugar, salt and fat.     Eating at home brings more fresh fruits and vegetables as well as low fat proteins and less calories to the table.

The issue is not only calories, which goes to the obesity issue, but it also involves prevention from cardiovascular disease, strokes, high blood pressure, cancer and diabetes.  In our book Prevention Does Work: A Guide to a Healthy Heart, we go over every nutrition issue that we could think of including good/bad fats, coffee, chocolate, nuts, salt, statins and many others.

In addition, for you modern men and women who don’t know how to cook, Eileen provides 36 easy-to-prepare evidence- based original recipes with an emphasis on seafood, and it’s all about home cooking.  You young families should try to eat most  of your meals at home, for a variety of reasons.

Our book is an inexpensive way to get on a better nutritional road. Don’t rely on unsubstantiated Internet claims.  We provide the scientific evidence  in a way that you can understand.

Go to Barnes and Noble and type Paul Goldfinger, MD.  They have it for $12.95 in paperback.  It is also on Amazon.com.

Good diets, exercise, good music, low stress, and a good lifestyle will help keep you young.  Here is Frank Sinatra who would have been 100 yesterday, joining Charles Aznavour with another way to feel young: