Food

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Whole foods are foods that are unprocessed and unrefined, or processed and refined as little as possible before being consumed. They are more nutritious, because processing a food depletes it of some of its nutrients. Whole foods are not only the road to longevity and health; they can be more interesting, more delicious and more nutritious than you thought possible. Whole foods are unrefined and do not contain harmful chemicals and additives which damage our bodies and are those that nature provides, with all their edible parts. Whole foods are the world's healthiest foods. Foods that have been substantially modified are classified as processed foods. 

Because of the lack of even basic, organically-acceptable processing, many whole foods have a very short shelf life and are not easily sold outside of farmers' markets. Examples of whole foods include unpolished grains; organically garden-grown fruits and vegetables; and non-homogenized milk. For some, it is preferable to eat whole foods raw to obtain the maximum nutritional benefit.

The term health food has no official definition. A health food store is a type of grocery store that primarily sells organic foods, local produce, and often nutritional supplements.  Health food stores often offer foods that attract people with special diets, such as people with wheat and gluten allergies, diabetics, vegans, vegetarians, and raw foodists. Health food stores became much more common in the 1960s in connection to the newly emerging ecology movement and counterculture. As early as the 1920s and 1930s health food stores started opening in the United States selling products such as blackstrap molasses and brewer's yeast.  Many health food stores are worker owned cooperatives and consumers' cooperatives due in part to their growth of popularity during the counterculture movement of the 1960s and 1970s and the ability of cooperative buying power to bring lower costs to the consumer. 

Over the last decade, health food, and especially organic food, has entered the mainstream. Some stores that would usually be thought of as 'Health food stores' prefer the term "Whole food stores” to acknowledge that they sell whole or organic foods, but not the large range of artificial nutritional supplements common in other health food stores

Some terms that are associated with health food are macrobiotics, natural foods, organic foods and whole foods. Going natural isn’t only trendy, it can be pretty darned good for you, too—and just because it’s healthy doesn’t mean it isn’t delicious. Organic foods can be included in this category, but while all organic foods are natural, not all natural foods are organic. 

In Canada, labeling of a food as “natural” is not legislated, so it’s up to consumers to read the ingredient list and determine for themselves whether the food in question lives up to their definition of natural. Generally speaking, however, a natural food is processed only minimally in order to enhance the consumer’s safe consumption and enjoyment (for example, pasteurizing milk or filtering juices). Raw fruits and vegetables are natural foods. Many dairy products are considered natural as well. Natural bread might contain only flour (milled whole grain), water, yeast and salt. The more heavily processed a food is, the fewer naturally occurring nutrients it retains.  So go on, have a stroll down the aisles of your local natural food store.

Most whole foods are nutrient dense but relatively low in calories and also contain large amounts of fiber, which fills you up long before you've consumed too many calories. In addition, whole foods are "stick to the rib" foods and release their energy into our circulation slowly enough that we do not have cravings for food every couple of hours, as is often seen when people are eating large amounts of processed, low-fiber food.  Additionally, whole foods are alive with enzyme activity while isolated vitamins are not living substances. So, whole foods are organic fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, and seeds that have not been processed but are actually in their natural form.

© Copyright: Magriet Du Plessis

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