The theme of March’s National Nutrition Month is simple: Eat right. But how do you do this when grocery store prices seem higher each time you shop and the dollar-value fast-food menu tempts you by being fast, cheap and easy?

To add insult to injury, food manufacturers are quietly shrinking packaging with either no change or a price increase. Consumer Reports published a list of downsized products — everything from paper towels to breakfast cereals — with no decrease in price. Last week I noticed that one store had a special on ice cream, but instead of the usual half-gallon, the package had shrunk to 1.5 quarts — a 25 percent reduction.

Have a question of general interest? E-mail Chris Rosenbloom Fit to Eat columns Get out of rut: Try new fruits and vegetables  Three questions: Organic produce, iron and iodine, and tryptophan  Setting the record straight on some food myths         More Fit to Eat • Chris Rosenbloom, Ph.D., R.D., is a member of the nutrition faculty in the College of Health and Human Sciences at Georgia State University Related: • Carolyn O'Neil: Think of add-ons as accessories  Good links: • Evening Edge • AJC Food & Drink • AJC Health Channel • Diet and Nutrition headlines, resources • Atlanta Restaurant reviews and search • Low fat/ heart healthy recipes • Search recipes

The average household spends about $5,000 per year at the grocery store, so how can we eat right and still get a good bargain for our dollar and our health?

Bethany Thayer, work-site wellness manager for the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit and a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, offers these tips:

• Planning pays off. Plan your family’s meals to save time and money. “Search online for easy one-pot recipes and ideas to find dinner options that can last for more than one meal,” Thayer suggests.

• Clip and click for coupons. “You can save 10 [percent] to 15 percent of your bill by clipping coupons from the paper or printing them off a Web site,” she says. Using a shopper’s card and the grocery store circular to plan meals can also lower the bill.

• Don’t fear canned or frozen vegetables. When you can’t afford fresh or your favorite veggie is not in season, buy frozen vegetables to save money and increase storage life. “Frozen vegetables without sauces are equally nutritious as fresh,” Thayer says.

• Convenience costs more money. Consider buying a pound of carrots and peeling them or making fresh salads instead of getting the popular baby carrots or bagged lettuces.

• Consider private label brands. Compare prices of store brands to national brands. Often the savings are significant.

• Chill your impulse buying. Stick to your list and avert your eyes from the displays (these are usually not on sale but make you think they are a good bargain) and the goodies near check-out.

If saving money wasn’t enough of an incentive to eat right, consider that good nutrition is also a good stress reducer. Registered dietitian Amy Jamieson-Petonic says, “People don’t often realize how good they feel when they start eating well. Good nutrition can give you a better outlook and the clarity of mind and body to face tough situations.”

Chris Rosenbloom, Ph.D., R.D., is a professor of nutrition in the College of Health and Human Sciences at Georgia State University. She’ll answer nutrition questions of general interest. Send your questions to her c/o The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Sixth Floor, 72 Marietta St. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30303. Or e-mail her at chrisrosenbloom@live.com.