Whenever you go to the supermarket, one question to consider is whether that product is good for you or not. You may have hear health nuts recommend eating whole foods for a healthy body. Have you ever wondered what the big deal is with whole foods?
Whole Foods Defined
Whole foods are pure in form. Technically speaking, these types of food have not undergone any processing or refinement. In some cases, they are minimally processed or refined only to preserve the nutritional value found in the food. The added benefit of lack of processing is the energy saved. Eating foods with minimal refinement means that machinery and equipment weren't needed to produce the item.
Some good examples of whole foods that you can have at home are fruits and vegetables, unpolished grains, poultry, fish, unprocessed meat, as well as non-homogenized milk. Some whole grains are barley, short grain brown rice, rye, buckwheat, whole oats, medium grain brown rice or sweet brown rice pearl barley.
The U.S. Department of Food and Drug Administration (USDA) has given a definition of whole grains as those that contain the germ, bran, and endosperm of the original grain. In 2005, the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion issued a Federal Dietary Guideline recommending an intake of a minimum of 3 servings of whole grains in one day. This eating habit can actually abate the risk of heart disease and cancer.
Difference Between Organic and Whole Foods
Oftentimes, the terms organic and whole foods are used interchangeably. When you refer to whole foods, it does not mean that they are automatically organic and vice versa. Organic foods and whole foods are two separate categories of foods that are beneficial in different ways.
Organic foods are those that have been grown using organic methods only. They are not sprayed with pesticides or any chemicals. Synthetic fertilizers and hormones were not used to make them grow. On the other hand, whole foods are those that were not processed or refined after being picked from the source plant. Even if chemicals were used in growing them, they can still be considered as whole foods, as long as they were not processed or refined after harvest.
Whole Organic Foods
Whole organic foods are considered both whole in the processing manner and organic in the growing method. One example would be corn that had been grown without any synthetic fertilizers or pesticides, and then harvested with any food processing or refinement before reaching your table.
If you have the chance to acquire whole organic foods for your family, then you can be assured that you are utilizing foods with the maximum amount of nutrients and the least amount of chemicals promoting a healthy meal and a healthy environment.
