Don’t Be Fooled By The Word “Natural” On A Food Label. It Doesn’t Mean Healthy.

Most people associate the word “natural” with healthy. When you see a food package that says “All Natural”, you might be more likely to choose that item.

These days, food companies are putting the “natural” label on just about everything, and it’s easy to get caught up in the natural = healthy mindset.

So, is “natural” food healthy? Not necessarily.

When it comes to food, “natural” is a marketing term. It has no legal or binding definition, and it really means nothing in terms of a food’s health effects.

It’s a myth that anything natural is safe and healthy and anything artificial or synthetic must be dangerous or unhealthy.

Do you remember “ephedra”, which was a supplement used in weight-loss products and to increase energy?

Ephedra is a herb that occurs naturally in a plant called ma huang. It was banned by the FDA in 2004 because people died from taking it.

Apple seeds release cyanide, which could kill you if you ate a whole cup of them (which of course no one would ever do).

On the other hand, plenty of synthetic chemicals are perfectly harmless. Natural doesn’t necessarily mean safe, and artificial doesn’t necessarily mean unsafe.

Still, a lot of people are avoiding “artificial” foods these days and looking for foods that are closer to their natural state. That’s a good thing if it means eating more minimally processed foods, but unfortunately food companies have taken advantage of this trend as a way to sell more ultra-processed foods.

Instead of making ultra-processed foods with artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives, they use colors, flavors and preservatives extracted from natural sources.

"Natural" food extracts, concentrates, and powders start from a raw material like a fresh fruit or vegetable.

Those raw materials are heavily processed by food companies in ways you wouldn’t be able to do at home. They use extreme temperatures and pressures, ultrasounds, industrial enzymes, and solvents to extract what they want. That makes the process faster and more efficient (i.e. cheaper, to increase profits). Doesn’t sound so “natural”, does it?

The end result is something different than the food they started with. It’s no longer a whole food, it’s a food product. When you make a food product (even if it started as a whole food), many of its health benefits are lost.

The farther away that food gets from its original state, the more healthy compounds you lose. This is probably why most supplements don't really improve health.

Orange concentrate is not the same as an orange. Rosemary extract is not the same as rosemary. It doesn’t matter whether that green powder was once a piece of kale or spinach, that was many steps ago in the manufacturing process.

Your coffee table might be natural because it’s made of wood, but it’s no longer a tree.

Don’t be fooled by marketing terms. It doesn’t really matter if a food product started as a whole food or whether a scientist made a chemically identical food product from scratch.

If it’s been processed in a way that fundamentally changes it from its original state, it’s by definition a processed food and you should try to eat less of it.

We know that ultra-processed foods (which are made with commercially processed ingredients, natural or not) are associated with poor health, and that replacing those foods with minimally processed foods can lead to better health.

If you focus on what matters – shifting to eating mostly whole, minimally processed foods, the details take care of themselves.

A banana doesn’t need an “all-natural” sticker to tell you it’s healthy. When we start to get into these details – “natural” sources vs. “artificial” sources, how many calories or grams of carbohydrates are in a certain food, we are losing sight of the big picture.

Aim for about 80% of the food you eat each day to be minimally processed, and you’ll be all set!

If you need help figuring out what's a minimally processed food, download my FREE Guide To Healthy Eating. This eBook includes a system for categorizing foods according to how processed they are, and more guidelines for creating a sustainable healthy eating pattern.