A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to attend a Health Starts Here tour at Whole Foods and my interest was immediately piqued.
Since I no longer live near a Whole Foods, I figured I wouldn’t be able to attend and was quite bummed since Ryan and I used to love Whole Foods events when we lived in Orlando. (We attended a number of restaurant cooking demonstrations and had a great time at a Greek cooking class! I know I’ve mentioned Whole Foods events on the blog before, but I highly recommend them for fun, inexpensive date nights!)
When I responded to the invitation, I happened to mention my travels to Jacksonville for my sister’s bridal shower last weekend and we were able to set something up since there is a Whole Foods in the area. Woo!
The Health Starts Here tour is free to everyone and I met up with Heather Olsen, the Jacksonville Whole Foods healthy eating specialist, for my tour in the late afternoon. Heather gave me a ton of information about the Health Starts Here program, which I never knew existed at Whole Foods until our tour began!
Health Starts Here is a mindful approach to healthy eating that’s rooted in simple ways to build better meals. The program is essentially an in-store guide that you can use to choose the healthiest foods.
Fun fact I learned from Heather: The average American cycles through the same 10 fruits and vegetables!
The Health Starts Here program includes the following Four Pillars of Healthy Eating:
- Whole foods: Health Starts Here foods only use recognizable ingredients in their purest, unprocessed forms.
- Plant-strong: Plant-based foods are the foundation of Health Starts Here.
- Healthy fats: Health Starts here foods does not use any extracted oils or processed fats but included healthy fats from natural sources including nuts, seeds and avocados.
- Nutrient dense: Health Starts Here meals contain a rainbow of nutritious whole plant foods with high Aggregate Nutrient Density Index (ANDI) scores.
As Heather escorted me around the store, she pointed out Health Starts Here logo stickers that can be found on a number of food items within the store that follow the four pillars of health.
If you’re visiting the Whole Foods salad bar, hot bar or prepared foods section and noticed the Health Starts Here logo, you can be sure that the food you are eating is a healthy choice. It’s a great way to take some of the guess work out of healthy eating!
The program also offers a grocery list for stocking your pantry the healthy way and tips and tricks for cooking fast and healthy meals using quick-cooking whole grains, canned no-salt-added beans and frozen vegetables and fruit.
I left very impressed with the Health Starts Here program and know I’ll be looking for the logo as I select foods from the hot bar and salad bar during my next trip to Whole Foods!
Whole Foods Giveaway
When I said I’d be writing about this tour on my blog, Whole Foods was kind enough to offer a giveaway to one reader for a $50 gift certificate to Whole Foods. Since I know you guys get just as excited about food as I do, I have a feeling this one may interest quite a few of you!
To enter this giveaway, simply comment below and tell me about one healthy food you’ve recently started incorporating into your diet or a favorite healthy food that has been a staple in your diet for quite a while.
I will randomly select a winner on Friday.
Good luck!
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cucumbers in my salad! and avocado 🙂
Love Whole Foods! Recently bought hemp seeds. Nutritional yeast is next on my list to try.
Quinoa and Kale!!!
My long-time favorite superfoods are spinach, salmon, and oats. Could eat all of them every day. In fact, as far as the spinach and oats are concerned, I do.
Oh my goodness!!! There’s a Whole Foods directly ON MY WAY HOME from work. It’s the most expensive route possible. I love it and hate it at the same time. This would be SO fantastic!! I’ve been alllll about the sweet potatoes lately, especially with this arctic tundra I’ve been living in in Michigan. Comfort food to the max 🙂
I just started incorporating smoothies again! I hate cold food in the winter but sooo ready for summer to be here!
hemp seeds!! & i’ve recently been sipping apple cider vinegar 🙂
Kale! And Greek yogurt! Yum! Not together though…
Kale is hands down my favorite healthy food that I could eat every single day of the week.
They are building a brand new Whole Foods down the street and I can’t wait to check it out! I hear they have amazing, fresh juices.
I love quinoa and recently have been incorporating it into baking items (such as muffins), chili, and soups instead of eating it plain. It’s been challenging, but so good too!
Purple cauliflower! I love greens but adding some color also helps add pizazz to my recipes!
I have gobs of frozen fruit on hand and I tend to incorporate in one way or another everyday! Frozen blueberries are one of my favorite superfood fruits!
Have started incorporating kale in my diet in soups and smoothies.
I have recently started to make my own granola (ala your blog!) and have LOVED going to Whole Foods to get some of the ingredients.. chia seeds, dried fruits, nuts and nut butter- I always know I can trust their ingredients!
I have recently been experimenting with kale, but can’t seem to get on board. I’m a long believer in unsweetened vanilla almond milk-YUM!
My favorite new health food is chia kombucha! It’s so delicious and full of health benefits.
As of two days ago, I officially eat BRUSSEL SPROUTS! And I like them!
I’ve been adding bee pollen to my (almost daily) green smoothies for a while now. And today I tried fresh turmeric for the first time, it will definitely be making a reappearance soon.
Spinach has been a staple for quite some time now, and just started incorporating more Brazil Nuts – great source of selenium!
My favorite healthy food is probably avocado – its always delish!
My favorite healthy food is sardines, I always get a word look when I mention it, but you can do so much with them…put them in salads, make a lettuce wrap, add them to pizza, cut them up and put in soup. They are filled with lots of flavor.
I’ve started incorporating Chia Seeds into my diet from reading your blog! Thanks!
We’ve started eating asparagus as a side at dinner- so tasty!
I have started to use Ghee instead of butter in my cooking and I love it. Adding more Kale, and unsweetened Coconut milk in place of non fat.
Thanks, AMAZING giveaway!
greek yogurt — love the protein and probiotics
Spinach! I eat it at least once a day!
Love having my local Whole Foods ! I recently started buying Love Beets at WFs and freeze them, then add them to my smoothies…. Trust me it is delish and healthy!!!!
Currently loving quinoa! So easy to prep ahead of time 🙂
Brussel sprouts!! I had never tried them until recently, but found a great easy recipe for roasting them in the oven. They are super healthy and tasted amazing!
My favorite health foods are raw nuts and nut butters.
I added in flax seed to my diet and love it.
Chia seeds in my cereal!
I started adding kale about a year ago – and now its in a majority of my families meals!
I have been getting more into brussel sprouts lately.
I recently tried spaghetti squash for the first time with marinara sauce!
I made a big batch of quinoa or roast spaghetti squash for the week. It’s easy to add to for pretty much any meal! 🙂
Kale is a semi-recent staple for me!
A healthy food staple of mine is sweet potatoes!
Chia seeds are my latest health food find
avocado! so delicious and filling
Roasted brussels sprouts!
I love whole foods! I have always been a big Greek yogurt fan, but have recently been eating the plain kind to cut back on the sugar. I’ve been loving it!
I enjoy smoothies packed with fruit and greek yogurt for protein!
I’ve been using a lot of chia recently!
I LOVE whole foods!! I have also been incorporating quinoa into my diet, and it’s wonderful!
Greek Yogurt
oats and incorporating breakfast into my daily routine!
Spinach and Kale are easily thrown into any meal. Eggs, smoothies, soups, pastas…the list goes on!
To enter this giveaway, simply comment below and tell me about one healthy food you’ve recently started incorporating into your diet or a favorite healthy food that has been a staple in your diet for quite a while.
My favorite healthy food that I discovered in the past two years is sweet potato. They’re soo easy to prepare and are always delicious! I stick em in the microwave or Spiralize them and steam them to make a healthy, noodle-y dish 🙂
-Libby
I always have sweet potatoes which are easy and quick to roast or grill for something starchy, and frozen grapes for my sweet tooth!