Are you looking for solid guidelines for staying healthy and happy at every age? Tune in for tips on nutrition, herbs and lifestyle habits for women, as well as specifics on mood, menopause and weight management. Dr. Tori Hudson is a naturopathic physician, professor and women’s clinic medical director.
Dr. Hudson’s top suggestions for women’s health include:
Research supports at least 3.5 hours per week of aerobic exercise (as well as some strength training) to benefit bone, heart, immune, and joint health.
Vitamin D supplementation, eating whole fresh foods, drinking filtered water and minimizing exposure to environmental toxins are important.
Beyond a daily multivitamin, focus on essential fatty acids (fish oil supplements), probiotics, B vitamins, calcium, and numerous antioxidants.
Women with regular menstrual cycles may need extra iron.
For children and up though teenage years, as well as later in life (70s+) calcium is important.
There are natural ways to help with anxiety and depression:
First evaluate how to stabilize relationships, home life, career, finances, and spirituality.
Some helpful natural compounds for anxiety include the amino acid L-theanine, the nutrient GABA, and an herb called kava.
For mild to moderate depression, St. John’s Wort is still is the #1 most important plant that’s been researched. Tryptophan and SAMe can also improve serotonin levels.
Menopause symptoms can be supported through the following:
Black cohosh is the #1 most researched plant for menopause symptoms. There have been more than 100 studies over the last 25 years on an array of menopause symptoms including hot flashes.
Studies on St. John’s Wort for menopause symptoms show that a combination of black cohosh and St. John’s Wort are more helpful than just black cohosh alone.
Products carrying the Premium Body Care symbol are the most exceptional personal care products available. They meet the strictest standards for quality sourcing, environmental impact, results and safety. Enjoy this introductory video on how Premium Body Care truly allows you to be good to your whole body.
Did you know that nearly one-third of all municipal solid waste in the U.S. is packaging? Learn about the changes we’re making to our Whole Body product packaging to help reduce our environmental impact. Jim McConnell is Store Supplies and Services Specialist for the Rocky Mountain region and co-chair of the Whole Foods Market Responsible Packaging Task Force.
We’ve made a few packaging changes in our Whole Body™ department, and in the spirit of Earth Month, thought we’d give you the details on how we are using post-consumer recycled materials. According to the EPA, nearly one-third of all municipal solid waste in the U.S. is packaging. Fortunately, people are shifting to demand more environmentally friendly forms of packaging…and we’re here to support that!
When you see the PCR (post-consumer recycled) seal, that means the bottle is made with 100% PCR plastic. Some experts say that selecting products that utilize PCR plastics not only decreases production of plastic worldwide, but also reduces the release of greenhouse gases.
Our 365 Everyday Value® brand offers lotion, hair care, hand sanitizers and foaming soap that are currently in 50% PCR plastic. All of the body care and supplements are transitioning to 100% PCR plastic bottles. And, the shipping cases are 30% PCR cardboard boxes.
Our Whole Foods™ brand currently offers supplements in amber colored bottles that are 100% PCR plastic. Supplements in boxes are transitioning to 100% recycled (50% PCR) paperboard. The organic castile soaps are in 50% PCR bottles, and the organic bar soap packaging uses 30% PCR paper.
We know that sometimes all of the choices available in our Whole Body™ department can be a bit overwhelming, so please don’t hesitate to ask a question! Our Whole Body™ Team Members are thoroughly trained and well educated about the products we offer.
Did you know that there isn’t a government regulation for organic claims on personal care products? That’s right. While the USDA Organic label on food ensures that what you put in your body is truly organic, an “organic” claim about stuff you put on your body doesn’t mean as much. Producers of lotion, shampoo, toothpaste, etc. can label their products as organic but only have as few as one or two actual organic ingredients.
At Whole Foods Market, we think organic should mean organic in every aisle of our store not just the food aisles. So, we are setting our own high standards for organic body care products.
To earn the organic label in the U.S. for food, it must be third-party certified to the USDA National Organic Program standards, which prohibit the use of genetically engineered seeds or crops, sewage sludge, toxic and persistent pesticides, herbicides and fungicides. Since we — and many of you — believe that what you put on your body is as important as what you put in your body, we’re making organics in body care as reliable and straightforward as the existing standards for food. Here are the specifics:
With our guidelines for organic personal care, Whole Foods Market is working toward ensuring that “organic” means organic in every aisle of our stores. Listen in as we share about our efforts to protect the organic standard for our shoppers, suppliers and planet. Joe Dickson is Global Quality Standards Coordinator at Whole Foods Market.
The definition of “organic” should not change substantially between the food and the non-food aisles of our stores:
When you’re in the produce aisle, “organic” means that a fruit or vegetable was grown without toxic or persistent agricultural chemicals in environmentally friendly ways, and that it was certified by a third party.
Whole Foods Market believes that this should be the definition in our Whole Body departments as well, which is why we’re raising the bar.
Our guidelines require any product making an organic claim – including products with ‘organic’ in the brand name – to be made up mostly of organic agricultural ingredients and to be certified.
Our guidelines ensure that “organic” truly means organic in every aisle at Whole Foods Market:
With food, in order to call a product “organic,” it has to contain at least 95% certified organic ingredients (and the remaining 5% is tightly controlled too) thanks to strict government regulations.
Since there’s no government oversight of organic body care, consumers have no assurance that “organic” products contain ANY organic ingredients at all.
Any product making an “organic” product claim – like “organic shampoo” or “organic bath salts” must be 95% organic and certified to the same USDA Organic standard as food.
Products with more than 70% organic ingredients can make a claim like “Made with organic essential oils and extracts” if they’re USDA certified, or “Contains organic essential oils and extracts,” if they’re certified to the NSF 305 Organic Personal Care products standard.
The NSF standard is similar to the “70%/Made With” level of the USDA standard, but allows certain ingredients and processes that are specific to personal care products.
These standards will help encourage the quality of personal care (and the industry as a whole) to improve:
As of June 1st, all organic personal care products sold in our U.S. stores will be certified organic.
Looking at the front label, anything that uses the word “organic” must be certified to one of the standards mentioned above.
Anything with “organic” in the product or name must be certified by a USDA accredited certifier or to the NSF standard – look for the certifier’s name on the label.
According to Joe Dickson, Global Quality Standards Coordinator at Whole Foods Market, this is a huge step with a positive impact for all stakeholders:
By requiring that organic products have substantial amounts of organic ingredients, we’re increasing the demand for organic ingredients and thus increasing the amount of land being farmed organically.
We’ve already seen many suppliers obtain certification and increase the organic ingredients in their products in order to comply, and this is a huge win for organic farmers, the environment, and shoppers seeking more organic products.
Supporting the health of an infant can sometimes feel like a guessing game with a limited amount of safe options. Find out why homeopathic remedies are gentle and easy to use for a variety of baby-related issues. Dr. Trevor Holly Cates is a naturopathic physician practicing in Park City, Utah, and a consultant for Hyland’s.
Naturopathic physician Dr. Trevor Holly Cates uses homeopathy to support children’s health:
Homeopathic remedies are therapeutically active micro-dose medicines mostly derived from plant and mineral sources.
These all-natural remedies provide a gentle and effective way of enhancing a person’s immune system and improving symptoms.
Homeopathy has been used for over 200 years and works as a catalyst to help our bodies act to their fullest abilities.
Homeopathic remedies are regulated and can be used in the earliest stages of life:
Most homeopathic medicines are regulated by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) as over-the-counter drugs.
Manufacturers have to adhere to Good Manufacturing Practices and market their products with similar guidelines as all over-the-counter medicines.
Homeopathic manufacturers rely on the Homeopathic Pharmacopeia of the United States to create monographs, or guidelines, for specific active ingredient preparation and strengths.
Homeopathic products often have different instructions on the labels for children ages 2 to 12, which is usually half the adult dosage. Dr. Cates recommends less frequent dosing for children and babies than adults.
Remedies are easy to use and can be helpful for tough issues like ears, teething, colic and sleep:
The top homeopathic remedy for teething is Chamomilla. It is also a great remedy for colic when the child is irritated and seems inconsolable. Colocynthis can also be helpful when babies draw up their legs in pain and like their abdomens massaged.
For ears, Belladonna is a top choice especially when there is a sudden onset with fever and flushed face, but also consider Pulsatilla when the child has had a cold and the pain is worse at night.
For sleep, it depends on the reason. Aconitum works well when there is anxiety and restlessness, and Pulsatilla can help weepy, moody children.
Single homeopathic remedies or combination formulas are found in readily dissolvable tablets placed in the baby’s mouth or as easy-to-use liquids, and are also available in gels for teething and drops for ears.
Say cheese! Or peas! Or bananas! Got a great photo of your baby experiencing their favorite food? Load them to our Facebook contest and you might win a $500 gift card and a Canon camera. Lots of runner up prizes too, so grab the camera and start snapping! March 16 is the final day to upload a photo of your baby to “The First Yum” tab on our Facebook page. (See all the rules here.)
Don’t have a baby? Don’t feel left out! You’ll be able to vote for the winners. Who doesn’t like looking at cute pictures of babies eating? From March 18th – 25th, our Facebook fans will be able to vote on 16 finalists to help us choose the winner. You’ll be able to vote once a day.
Thanks to our contest partner, Earth’s Best, we have 16 prizes to award:
Grand Prize: a $500 Whole Foods Market Gift Card and a Canon EOS Rebel T1i camera
Five First Prizes: Will receive Mom and Baby Gift Baskets filled with products from:
Earth’s Best
Traditional Medicinals
EcoNatura
Alaffia
Whole Foods Market (365 Everyday Value®)
Ten Second Prizes: $25 Whole Foods Market Gift Cards
Visit The First Yum on our website or Facebook to find out all the details. Good luck!
Choosing products carefully is important to your baby’s health. Learn about the wonderful products and stringent standards for body care in our stores. Whole Foods Market’s Senior Global Whole Body Coordinator, Jeremiah McElwee, has been working in the natural and organics products industry since 1994 and has been a devoted father since 2005.
Got a great photo of your baby experiencing their favorite food? Load them to our Facebook contest and you might win a $500 gift card and a Canon camera. Lots of runner up prizes too, so grab the camera and start snapping!
From March 2 through March 16, go to “The First Yum” tab on our Facebook page and upload a photo of your baby enjoying his or her favorite food. You’ll find all the rules on the Contest Page, but a few to note: the baby in the photo must be your baby, and your baby must be under 12 months of age when you submit the picture to the contest.
Don’t have a baby? Don’t feel left out! You’ll be able to vote for the winners. Who doesn’t like looking at cute pictures of babies eating? From March 18th – 25th, our Facebook fans will be able to vote on 16 finalists to help us choose the winner. You’ll be able to vote once a day.
Thanks to our contest partner, Earth’s Best, we have 16 prizes to award:
Grand Prize: a $500 Whole Foods Market Gift Card and a Canon EOS Rebel T1i camera
Five First Prizes: Will receive Mom and Baby Gift Baskets filled with products from:
Earth’s Best
Traditional Medicinals
EcoNatura
Alaffia
Whole Foods Market (365 Everyday Value®)
Ten Second Prizes: $25 Whole Foods Market Gift Cards
Visit The First Yum on our website or Facebook to find out all the details. Good luck!
Welcome to Whole Story, the official blog of Whole Foods Market.
Don’t know us? In a nutshell, we are the world's leading natural and organic grocer and we’re passionate about healthy food and a healthy planet. Learn more about us.
We’re lucky to have a whole bunch of smart, passionate people doing incredible things in areas like organics, supporting local growers, green practices, fair trade, micro-lending and all kinds of food related stuff. We’ll use this blog to share some of the cool things going on around here.
Of course, what makes this blog really exciting is YOU — so join the conversation!
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Research supports at least 3.5 hours per week of aerobic exercise (as well as some strength training) to benefit bone, heart, immune, and joint health.
When you see the PCR (post-consumer recycled) seal, that means the bottle is made with 100% PCR plastic. Some experts say that selecting products that utilize PCR plastics not only decreases production of plastic worldwide, but also reduces the release of greenhouse gases.
Our 365 Everyday Value® brand offers lotion, hair care, hand sanitizers and foaming soap that are currently in 50% PCR plastic. All of the body care and supplements are transitioning to 100% PCR plastic bottles. And, the shipping cases are 30% PCR cardboard boxes.
Our Whole Foods™ brand currently offers supplements in amber colored bottles that are 100% PCR plastic. Supplements in boxes are transitioning to 100% recycled (50% PCR) paperboard. The organic castile soaps are in 50% PCR bottles, and the organic bar soap packaging uses 30% PCR paper.
