InSite Wellness

What does “Natural” mean when you are shopping for healthy foods?

Where we do have definitions of what it means to be “organic”, there is additional ambiguity when it comes to the term “natural”.  Published in 2010, the FDA states, “From a food science perspective, it is difficult to define a food product that is ‘natural’ because the food has probably been processed and is no longer the product of the earth. That said, FDA has not developed a definition for use of the term natural or its derivatives. However, the agency has not objected to the use of the term if the food does not contain added color, artificial flavors, or synthetic substances” and allows for a broad usage of the “Natural” label without government controls beyond the regulations and health codes that apply to all foods. Food manufacturers are encouraged to include information as to what makes their product natural, such as “no artificial ingredients”.  If you are like me, then you might be inclined to question the definition of “artificial ingredients”.  I found the following information on the FDA website as well.

What is the difference between natural and artificial ingredients? Is a naturally produced ingredient safer than an artificially manufactured ingredient?

Natural ingredients are derived from natural sources (e.g., soybeans and corn provide lecithin to maintain product consistency; beets provide beet powder used as food coloring). Other ingredients are not found in nature and therefore must be synthetically produced as artificial ingredients. Also, some ingredients found in nature can be manufactured artificially and produced more economically, with greater purity and more consistent quality, than their natural counterparts. For example, vitamin C or ascorbic acid may be derived from an orange or produced in a laboratory. Food ingredients are subject to the same strict safety standards regardless of whether they are naturally or artificially derived.

If you consider that soybeans and corn are two of our most common GMO crops, you begin to see the circular logic whereby we see the use of the term “natural” in the definition of the same term, “natural”.  How is it that a genetically engineered grain can be considered minimally processed?

Sometimes, the whole concept of healthy nutrition is a lot like my college experience in freshman psychology and sociology classes: everybody and his dog seems to have a theory.  This could not be truer in the diet industry.  Reading diet book after diet book, it became very obvious that most diet books are little more than one person’s journal of how they fixed themselves.  The problem comes in the habit to bill that one person’s solution as a silver bullet for the vast majority.  It sells because, with that promise, people are captured by the hope that they too could experience true joy and self-acceptance if only they can follow ‘this’ meal plan for a month or two.  Diets do not work because they do not typically reflect real life – Your Life!

The basis of my practice and preaching revolves around whole foods, but a friend recently pointed out to me that she did not really understand what defines whole food.

Whole foods are foods that are unprocessed and unrefined, or processed and refined as little as possible before being consumed. Whole foods typically do not contain added ingredients, such as sugar, salt, or fat.

That might clear up some confusion, but we go a little farther here with examples.  Of course, all raw fruits and vegetables are whole foods.  Since most of us are not following a raw-foods diet, lets look as some other common foods.  Take potatoes for starters.  A baked potato is closer to its original form as it was uprooted on the farm than a potato chip. A kettle chip is simply sliced and dropped into a deep fat fryer, and possibly coated with various flavors.  A baked potato would be considered a whole food: a potato chip would not.

Things can get a little gray from here, as many of the foods that we do not consider as junk-foods may still not be considered as whole foods.  Milk is a perfect example.  Pasteurization and homogenization strip milk of nutrients and enzymes that are normally contained in raw milk.  Add to that the practice of reducing fats, fortifying with vitamins and mineral , and in some cases, adding artificial flavors such as strawberry and it becomes more clear that the milk you get in the grocery (unless you live in California) is no longer a whole food.  It does not matter if you use that milk to make fermented foods such as yogurt or kefir – it is no longer a whole food.  Raw milk cheese would be a different story.

Whole food does not imply organic, kosher, or gluten-free.  Those are completely separate and distinct classifications that have their own definitions.  Whole foods can be from plant sources or animal sources.

Some of this is obvious, but others are not so.  If you have questions about something in your kitchen, start by looking at the ingredients label and measure it against our definition above.  If you still have questions, ASK ME!

Portion control really misses the boat when it comes to sustainable dietary habits in any case where one or more individual nutrients are absent or in short supply within the body.  Taking into consideration all of the factors mitigating proper nutrition, it is almost never true that simply reducing calorie intake will affect weight loss through fat stores alone.

In addition to animal-source nutrients, scientists currently estimate that there are between 30,000 and 50,000 plant-based nutrients in our food supply.  Although most of these nutrients are labeled as non-essential, research also shows that a diet rich in these foods reduces the risk of cancer and other degenerative conditions.  If your body cannot create its own supply of a given compound or nutrient, then you might find yourself drawn towards certain foods or tastes.  (Although this scenario is far from a comprehensive explanation for cravings, it is used here as a simple phenomenon that most people can relate to.)  When the foods you consume fail to supply adequate measures of needed nutrients, you might be inclined to consume more.  In this case, your body is far more concerned about that deficit than any potential for excesses in other nutrient stores.  In this way, it is common to see weight gain concurrent with malnutrition.  Additionally, if you have ever managed to lose weight on such a diet, you may have experienced the rebound effect of your body trying to replenish those nutrient stores as soon as you started eating ‘normal’ again: the yo-yo diet effect.

In large, we are creatures of habit, and food is typically another routine.  If you are one of the many people who buy the same six items from the produce section, the chance of satisfying all of the 30,000 plant-based nutrients needed to ward off cancer (or other degenerative conditions) are slim.  That number gets even smaller as we consider the ways our food is handled once harvested.

Minerals are among the most stable nutrients in our food supply, but just about everything else is vulnerable to things like air, heat, radiation, light, time, and chemicals.  As soon as our food is picked, peeled, pressed, or cooked, it begins to change.  The most devastating changes occur when we start deconstructing whole foods into things like cornstarch, polished rice, and vitamin C.  All nutrients are originally delivered in synergistic packages like fruits and vegetables, nuts, and grains.  In whole food form, each nutrient is in the company of the other nutrients needed to make it work.  When we isolate a nutrient from its synergistically balanced delivery system, our internal chemistry can become imbalanced.

Whole foods need to be at the foundation of any diet you choose to follow.  Calories and the macronutrients, fat, carbohydrates, and proteins, have been at the heart of weight management and yet we continue to struggle with excess weight.  A healthy diet goes far beyond calorie counting, so eat up!