Alternative spellings

• healthfood

Noun

health food (countable and uncountable; plural health foods)

1. Any food that is especially beneficial to health.

Health food is used to describe any food that is considered to be healthy, or it can mean specific foods claimed to be especially beneficial to health. "Health food" is not precisely defined by the USDA or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration; Health foods are not necessarily organic foods.

Health food labeling

While there is no precise definition for "health food", the FDA has warned food manufacturers against labeling foods "healthy" that have high sugar, salt, or fat content.

Specific health food claims

A common definition of "health food" is a food that acts like a medicine, providing specific favorable effects on health. Purported examples of health foods include alfalfa or broccoli sprouts, wheat germ, and yogurt. In general, these claims of health benefits have not been evaluated by the FDA. Health foods are sold in health food stores or in the health/organic section of supermarkets.

In the United States, the term is often used for foods that are low in fat and/or sugar, since overconsumption of fatty and sugary foods is seen as contributing to the obesity epidemic.