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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I love using chia seeds to bulk up overnight oats.
I recently started adding kale into my diet! I add it to everything! Smoothies, omlets, salad, you name it!
I recently started purchasing Kale. I love to add it to smoothies and make kale chips!
Cauliflower- you can use it in anything (I just made cauliflower “rice” pudding).
I’ve added quite a number of healthy foods into my diet thanks to you Julie! A go-to for me is chia seeds – adding them to the overnight oats, a smoothie, or on top of yogurt – it’s a great way to get some Omega 3s without eating fish.
Started adding chia seeds to my smoothies
Chia Seeds- I love them!
I LOVE Whole Foods!! I have started use Chia seed in my oatmeal and Kale in my smoothies!
I’ve been incorporating a lot of fresh ginger into my diet! It’s so good for you and adds a nice zip to my food!
Quinoa and kale! I add them to everything I cook!
I’ve just recently started eating KIND bars for a boost of energy in the afternoon and I love all the different flavors and that you can actually see all the ingredients. I am a long-time fruit and veggie lover and try to incorporate both into at least 2 meals a day!
I have fallen in love with all the ways you can eat Quinoa! Its my new Peanut Butter!!
I’ve started adding kale or spinach to meals. You can even taste they’re there!
I’ve recently been obsessed with all things quinoa! I put it in everything- soo yummy!
I have been eating totally clean for over a year now and it feels great! I recently made the Coconut, Carrot, and Chickpea Soup from the Whole Foods website. You inspired me to try more recipes with coconut milk. It was delicious!
My favorite healthy food is sweet potatoes!
I grew up eating and loving kale (I was a strange kid), and now I have figured out different ways to incorporate this superfood into so many dishes.
Brussel sprouts are my new favorite veggie! I love roasteing them with balsamic vinegar and garlic.
I am a pretty healthy eater as it is but I have recently been adding ground flax to many of my recipes and I love it! My husband doesnt even notice 🙂
Hi, Julie! I love using whole olives (which I purchase from my Whole Food’s olive bar in Lincoln Park) in my salads lately — both green and grain salads. It’s a great way to add flavor, so I don’t feel like I need to add any oil or dressing. Thanks!
I’ve recently discovered Kabocha squash, and I am OBSESSED. However, a lot of the “regular” grocery stores around me don’t carry it…Whole Foods always comes through for me!
This was a great post! My boyfriend and I are always looking to find new, fun and AFFORDABLE dates–we will definitely be looking into events like these in the future. Lately my staples have been leafy greens like kale and collards, but I always try to get what is in season. This winter we have enjoyed spaghetti squash! Thanks for the opportunity for a great giveaway.
I absolutely love whole foods! I could spent all day there! The closest one to where I live is 2 hours away. Luckily, my boyfriend’s parents live 5 minutes away from it, so whenever we visit them we always do our grocery shopping too! I’ve recently been using cultured coconut milk and whole foods is the only place that sells it! It’s so good!
Avocados are my go to source for healthy fats!!
I recently started eating brussel sprouts and spinach. I eat them almost every night and love learning about new ways to cook them. (And I too love Whole Foods!)
can’t get enough oatmeal!
I’ve really been loving spaghetti squash! It’s so easy and so yummy 🙂
I LOVE whole foods, the closest one to my house is 45 mins away. I usually stop on the way home from work. Recently I started adding quinoa to my diet daily and i LOVE it. Thanks for this opportunity, this is a great giveaway!
I have recently started making different quinoa recipes and love it because it keeps me full.
I love pasta, but have been ditching grains in favor of a Paleo diet over the last year. My new favorite is zucchini, which I spiralize into noodles to make healthy pasta….yummy!!!
I have been trying to incorporate more healthy fats into my diet such as fish and nuts!
I’ve recently started roasting sweet potatoes to have for the week… they keep well and are very versatile, able to eat them cold or reheated, and can be eaten plain or incorporated into meals!
I’ve always loved avocados, my boyfriend jokes that he can always pick what I will order by looking for something with avocado!!! I’m working to try and work with more quinoa!
I love Whole Foods! Great giveaway. I’ve recently been adding different varieties of squash into my diet. Healthy and a nice change of pace. There’s so much to choose from.
Brussel Sprouts! 🙂
My favorite healthy food right now is quinoa! I love that is packed full of fiber and protein too!
I have recently fallen in love with pitted dates!
I love using quinoa!
While it’s nothing to exciting, Greek yogurt has been a staple in my diet. Especially now that I’m pregnant it’s a great snack to incorporate a little protein rather than eating something that will leave me hungry again in an hour.
I’ve been cooking with coconut oil lately!!! mmmmm it adds a lovely FLAVA to veggies and sweet potatoes. AND it’s good for you!
I’ve been obsessed with cauliflower lately. So good.
I’ve always been obsessed with avocados and recently I’ve gotten hooked on sunflower and pumpkin seeds for some healthy fats.
I’ve recently started to replace rice/ pasta/ bread with cauliflower- cauliflower rice, puree, even “dough” for pizza!
Recently I’ve become a huge fan of butternut squash.
I recently became obsessed with making Green Bean Fries! They’re just green beans that you drizzle some olive oil and salt over and then roast them for about 15 minutes. They’re soooo good!!
I have been incorporating eggplant- love it!
I love snacking on roasted almonds and incorporating spinach into my meals! Love Whole Foods!!
I started adding spinach to my smoothies! You just posted about blending it up for pancakes…so I may try that if I’m brave enough 🙂
I’ve fallen in love with roasted brussel sprouts lately. I’ve always loved Whole Foods, and we just got one in my hometown! So very excited.
In the past year, I’ve been trying to buy mostly fruits and veggies. I try to incorporate fresh vegetables in everything I eat. I love broccoli, spinach, kale, green beans, brussel sprouts, bell peppers… the list goes on. I also try to eat 2-3 pieces of fruit a day.