A recent comment to my blog post “Whole Foods is Promoting Junk Halloween Treats” http://drritamarie.com/blog/2008/10/31/whole-foods-is-promoting-junkhalloween-treats/#comment-27 prompted me to clarify my stand on the Whole Foods  and sugar issue.  I shop at WF all the time, and they do carry lots of quality foods, especially at the raw bar downtown.  It’s the most convenient place to get organic produce,  and while I’d prefer to go to the Farmer’s market for all my food, it is not an option.  However, to clarify, the sugar they use is not necessarily organic, and certainily no better than any other sugar.  The sugar in the cookies today was not organic.  Neither was the flour.  It was unbleached, but still refined, meaning NO NUTRITION.

What I object to is that they sell these products to unsuspecting consumers who believe that they are healthy BECAUSE they are at Whole Foods.  They may be new to the health front, and have no experience reading labels.  They TRUST Whole Foods to bring them only health supporting foods.

I’ve known for years that these products were there.  The bakery at whole foods is almost all refined flour products.  I think there may be one bread that is 100% whole grain.  I’m not sure what prompted me to speak up today, but a voice inside said “enough already.”

Someone commented that if Whole Foods took a stand and stopped carrying products with sugar in them that they’d lose customers.  While I find this hard to believe, it could very well be true.  I’m not asking that they stop carrying them.  If they want to satisfy a small segment of the population that expects to be able to buy sugar and refined flour at whole foods, it’s fine for them to carry these products, as long as they are labeled as such.  Perhaps a “transitional foods” aisle, with a disclaimer “These foods contain ingredients that have been shown to have health risks associated with them.   Please read the labels and make an informed choice”

I’m tired of watching people be deceived at the expense of their health.  The Halloween products were not just sitting on a shelf, they were being actively promoted to people who may not have even noticed them had the display not been there.

Maybe I’m naive, but I believe that if enough of us take a stand and let our voices be heard, we can facilitate change.  Thanks for listening to my rants.

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Love and helath,

Dr. Ritamarie

Learn to make healthier Halloween choices:  http://www.FreshnFunLiving.com/Halloween

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Whole Foods halloween Madness

I just got back from Whole Foods and I’m fired up.  There was a lady at a display right at the front of the store with plates of pretty Halloween cookies on display.  She was offering samples.  As I walked past, she offered me one.  Normally I just say no thanks and walk on, but I was compelled to stop and read the ingredients.  After all, I’ve spent the better part of this week writing and talking to people to educate them about the dangers of the Halloween treats that are being pushed on us this week.

White flour, sugar, butter, eggs and other colors and flavorings were being pushed by a health food store called Whole Foods.  Whole foods …let’s see.  Last time I read the definition of whole foods there was something about nutrients intact, as nature created the food.  These treats are total junk.  Yet, the unsuspecting consumer, shopping at whole foods and paying the higher prices, is expecting to get value and health PROMOTING food.  Most of them don’t read the labels.  They just assume that the product is healthy because Whole Foods is selling it.  WRONG!

I explained to the pleasant looking woman offering the samples that I was disappointed that Whole Foods would be promoting such food.  I read the ingredients to her and explained that this was not good for people and that Whole Foods should not promote foods that contribute to the demise of the immune systems of all who consume it.  She just stood there and nodded her head and smiled at me.  It was infuriating.  She didn’t even engage me in the least.  No…”Wow, I didn’t realize”, or even “Well, at least there’s no hydrogenated oil in them”.  She just stood there patronizingly smiling and nodding her head.  She didn’t want to hear a word I said.

I checked out and paid for my groceries, and a little voice in my head told me to go to customer service and let my opinion be known.  The pleasant customer service representative paged a manager to speak with me.

The manager was a youngish, long haired, very nice looking gentleman, and I thought that I’d have a sympathetic ear.  He listened and told me that all the ingredients met the store’s standards.  We got into a discussion about those standards, and I explained my concern for the health of our kids.  I explained to him that a Nobel Prize was awarded to Otto Warburg linking sugar to cancer. http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/nutrition/sugar.htm .  I talked to him about the immune system, and how sugar and white flour contribute to heart disease, cancer, autoimmune disease, colds, ear infections, ADD and autism.  I explained to him that I could probably talk about the dangers of eating those cookies for 3 hours and not be complete.

He explained that there was nothing he could do, and besides, there are no clear cut nutrition guidelines that all agree on.  He explained that they want to give people choices.  I managed to get him to give me the name of someone higher up in the organization to speak with about my concern.

Let’s do a grass roots effort and let Whole Foods know how we feel.  Call Margaret Wittenberg at 512 477-5566 and tell her how you feel about white flour sugary cookies being sold as healthy Halloween alternatives.  You can also mention the gummy drops they sell, in which the first ingredient is corn syrup.   Stop by your local store and ask them why they are selling immune system enemies masquerading as pretty, healthy Halloween treats.

Inform yourself.  Come up with alternatives for yourself and your families.  In my book, Healthy Halloween Treats I have lots of recipes that are quick and easy to make and taste great.  I also have a list of sources of packaged treats that support health rather than destroy it.

Make your voices known.  I don’t know about you, but to me the incidence of childhood cancer, immune system diseases and brain dysfunction amongst kids these days is alarming.  It’s all preventable.  Let’s do something today.  Offer your kids and yourself healthy Halloween treats and learn Halloween recipes that support vibrant health.

Please let me know your thoughts.  Let’s get a discussion going around this issue.

Love and Health,

Dr. Ritamarie

www.FreshnFunLiving.com/Halloween