For people who are considering couponing, or even for those who are already couponers, it's good to ask the question, "Is Couponing Healthy for You?" To be sure, the answer to the question could be answered with a yes and a no. Yes, couponing can be good for you in the sense that it truly can help your family save money. At the same time, however, one must be careful when couponing, for it can easily bring about some bad habits.

An Obsession

What are some of these habits? For starters, I've heard some people state that couponing can become kind of like an addiction, like a game that can't be gotten enough of. With this sort of consumption, a lot of time is spent, spent on unceasingly finding coupons and sales that go with them. Furthermore, with this continual search for the best deals, one burns up a lot of miles with their vehicle, traveling to multiple stores simply to save (perhaps erroneously) a buck or two.

A Budget Breaker

In addition to forming an obsession with getting good deals (the best ones that you can find!), it's easy to spend unwisely when using coupons. What I mean by this is that it's easy to overspend, to break your budget. How is this possible? It is possible simply because you tell yourself, "It's okay. This is such a good deal. I better get it . . . even though I can't afford it. I'll make it up later . . . ."

More Than What You Need

Along with breaking the budget, it's easy to purchase items that you and your family don't particularly need. Why is this so? Simply said, it's easy to purchase unneeded items because they come at a tremendous price. For example, couponers often stockpile. Because they find items at low costs, it can be tempting for the couponer to continue stockpiling, even when they already have enough.

Unhealthy Consumption

And finally, it can be particularly easy for the couponer to buy unhealthy items in terms of food. For example, say that Cheezits are on sale at a tremendous price. Wow, right? And then, to boot, the couponer has coupons to go with it. Double wow? Well not necessarily. Because of this tremendous deal, the couponer may purchase 10 boxes of Cheezits! But what for? To eat them? ALL of them?

Yet . . . It Can Be Good

While certainly there are benefits to couponing, namely in that you can purchase everyday items with them (i.e. toothpaste, toilet paper, paper towels, deodorant, etc), thereby saving your family money each month, there are also some things to be wary of when using them. Is couponing healthy for you? It can be. However, if you do coupon, or are interested in beginning couponing, it's good to beware of the pitfalls so that it remains a healthy hobby, rather than becoming an unhealthy one.