Reasons Women Don’t Eat More Healthfully

You have likely heard your fair share of excuses from clients regarding why they don’t eat healthy foods more consistently. Most of us certainly have made a few such excuses ourselves.

According to a new national poll of more than 1,000 women, published in the June 2012 issue of ShopSmart magazine (from the publisher of Consumer Reports), 57% of respondents said their main reason for not eating a healthier diet was cost. The ShopSmart poll about women’s habits and feelings vis-à-vis healthy eating exposed the list of excuses that follow. Knowing these were the most common sentiments, it might be useful to study this list and develop solid counterpoints to explain why these excuses don’t hold water. You’ll be ready the next time a client tries to cop out of his or her eating plan.

57%: Eating healthful foods is too expensive.
47%: Social settings are too tempting.
39%: Life is too short; I want to enjoy what I eat.
33%: It’s hard to find healthy options when eating out.
29%: I don’t have time to prepare healthy meals.
25%: My family prefers less healthy meals.
20%: Unhealthy habits are too hard to change.
18%: Healthy foods don’t satisfy my appetite.
13%: I’m not sure which foods are healthy.