What Makes a Food Fx™-Approved?
The following article was written by Heinen’s Chief Dietitian, Melanie Jatsek RD, LD.
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Stroll through any department at your local Heinen’s and you’ll notice the “Club Fx™ Approved” button affixed to certain products. This stamp indicates that it meets our Fx™ (food as medicine) criteria as a whole food, whole food derivative, or smart alternative to more conventional products.
At Heinen’s, we’ve taken great care to ensure the foods wearing this button are the healthiest options available to you.
Before we get into specific criteria, it’s important to understand the meaning of whole food and whole food derivative.
Whole Food and Whole Food Derivative
A whole food is defined as a natural or unprocessed food, such as a vegetable or fruit.
Another definition to consider is a food that has been processed or refined as little as possible and is free from additives or other artificial substances. For example, raw walnuts are a whole food and when ground into Heinen’s fresh ground walnut butter, they are considered a whole food derivative—a food that has been lightly processed without the addition of oils, salt, sugar, or any other ingredients.
Whole food and whole food derivatives are the foods that fall under the Fx™ Pillars, which are seven eating guidelines to help you achieve optimal health. They include greens, fresh fruits and vegetables, herbs and spices, fermented foods, nuts and seeds, beans, whole grains, fish, poultry, and grass-fed beef.
Four Fx™-Approved Food Rules
To meet our customers’ desires for healthier alternatives to more traditional products like chips, cookies, and salad dressings, we’ve developed four additional criteria that Fx™-approved foods must meet.
1. Low in Added Sugar
The American Heart Association developed these daily guidelines for added sugar:
- Women: no more than 25 grams
- Men: no more than 36 grams
To help you meet this goal, Fx™-approved foods can have no more than 10 grams of added sugar per serving. If you’re aiming for optimal, I recommend no more than 5 grams of added sugar per serving.
2. Free of Artificial Sweeteners or High Fructose Corn Syrup
If you’re going to sweeten your food, we’d prefer you use lower glycemic sweeteners like raw honey, pure maple syrup, dates, or molasses. These forms of sugar tend to be a bit gentler on blood sugar; however, you still want to take caution and use them only sparingly. Also included in this list are more natural zero-calorie sweeteners such as stevia, monk fruit, and allulose.
Corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, and artificial sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose, and saccharine are forbidden ingredients in Fx™-approved foods.
3. Free of Seed Oils
Fx™-approved fats and oils contain more anti-inflammatory omega-3 and monounsaturated fats and less omega-6 fats. They include avocado oil, coconut oil, coconut butter, extra virgin olive oil, flax seed oil, grass-fed butter/ghee, palm oil (sustainably sourced), and expeller-pressed high oleic sunflower/safflower oil.
Both omega-3 and omega-6 fats are considered essential because your body can’t make them on its own. Omega-6 fats are found in balanced amounts in whole nuts and seeds. But when overconsumed in the form of concentrated seed oils, they can create a storm of chronic inflammation in the body.
Another undesirable effect of seed oils is their unstable nature. When heated to high temperatures, these oils easily oxidize and create toxic compounds called aldehydes.
Examples of omega-6 seed oils you won’t find in Fx™-approved foods are corn, canola, soybean, sunflower, and vegetable oils.
Hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils are also forbidden.
4. Free of Artificial Colors and Preservatives
The artificial food dyes Blue #1, Blue #2, Red #3, Red #40, Yellow #5, and Yellow #6 are not allowed in Fx™-approved foods.
Sodium nitrite, BHA and BHT are a few of the many preservatives that are also prohibited.
Key Takeaway
Our goal at Heinen’s is to make your shopping experience healthy and enjoyable. Just look for the “Club Fx™ Approved” buttons and you’ll feel more confident stocking your kitchen with foods to support an Fx™ lifestyle.
