A healthy diet could save $50 billion in treating cardiovascular disease

The detrimental effects of not eating a proper diet could cost up to $50 billion per year for treating cardiometabolic disease, according to a new study. Researchers simulated the annual downstream effects from improperly consuming 10 food groups — including fruits, vegetables, and processed foods — and found that not eating enough nuts and seeds was associated with the highest health care costs, at an extra $81 per person. Eating too much red meat was associated with an added $3 in costs per person. Men, those aged 65 and older, black people, and those without high levels of education were the most likely to have extra health costs due to poor diet. One caveat: The data could be subject to recall bias, as scientists asked participants to recall what they ate in the previous 24 hours in order to simulate the projected costs.