“I was never a cook. I only craved sweets, and eating healthy to me was chicken and a vegetable—boring! The Whole30 has really inspired me in a whole new direction. It is so much fun using your guidelines and recipes and experimenting to see what flavors we like, and the Whole30 encouraged us to try more than just lettuce, green beans, and broccoli. My goal this year was to become ‘a cook’ and thanks to you, I am well on my way.”
—Amanda M., Tokyo, Japan
Most processed foods contain additives to maintain color, preserve shelf life, stabilize, or emulsify. It’s not always easy to determine which are healthy and which aren’t, but we’ve simplified it for you during your Whole30 by excluding only MSG, sulfites, and carrageenan during the program. (See these individual entries to learn why we singled them out.) All other additives, including citric acid, ferrous gluconate, and guar gum, are acceptable—although we encourage you to try to find products with no additives whatsoever.
✪Tip: If you’re not sure what an additive is or does, Google it! Wikipedia is a pretty good source of basic information, and it may put your mind at ease to find that the scary-sounding “ascorbic acid” in your dried cranberries is really just a fancy word for vitamin C.
Yes, you can have almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour, and other non-grain flours, but it’s context-dependent. You can use them in place of breadcrumbs in your meatballs, to dredge a piece of chicken, or to thicken a sauce or stew. You may not use them for “Paleo” baking—to make pancakes, bread, tortillas, biscuits, muffins, cupcakes, cookies, pizza crust, waffles, or anything of that nature. Remember, these foods are expressly off-limits during your Whole30. (See “Treats, Food Fixations, and the Scale.”)
Arrowroot powder is a fine choice as a thickener, and can be especially helpful in sauces and gravies. Like almond flour, though, it’s not appropriate for use in baked goods.
It’s really, really hard to find bacon without any added sugar, but if you can, you’re in the clear. (Remember, if there is any form of sugar in the ingredients list the product is out for the Whole30, even if the label says, “Sugar = 0 grams.”) The best option is choosing one of our Whole30 Approved bacons, but you can also check with your local natural foods store, or ask a local farmer or butcher shop.
✪Tip: For the healthiest bacon, look for “pastured” and “organic” on the label—or better yet, ask your local farmer if his pigs are raised in a natural environment and fed a natural diet.
The plant part of the bean (the sprout) is fine to eat. The problematic compounds are found in the bean (the seed) itself.
Bragg’s Amino Acids are made from soy, and all forms of soy are out for your Whole30. A great Whole30-compliant substitute, however, is Coconut Secret’s coconut aminos. It tastes just like soy sauce, without the soy or gluten! (Available online, or in many health food stores.)
Buckwheat is a pseudo-cereal—not botanically a grain, but containing compounds that may cause similar problems. All grains and pseudo-cereals are out for your Whole30.
Cacao (or 100 percent cocoa) is great when used as a savory spice in recipes, like the Mocha Steak Rub found in It Starts With Food. Feel free to add it to your coffee or tea, or brew it on its own as a coffee substitute. However, per the rules of the program, we don’t allow the mixing of cocoa and dates or other fruits to make chocolate-y dessert confections or sweetened “hot chocolate” drinks.
While canned produce may not pack the same micronutritional punch as their fresh or frozen counterparts, we’re not going to discriminate. If canned veggies help you up your intake, we’ll take it. Just watch out for added ingredients like sugar or sulfites, and avoid any fruits packed in syrup.
While carob is technically a legume, carob powder is generally made from the pod of the plant and not the seed. Since all of the potentially problematic parts are contained in the seed, carob powder is fine on your Whole30, but the same no-making-chocolate-y-desserts concept applies.
Carrageenan is a concentrated, processed seaweed extract used to thicken processed foods, and is found in everything from deli meat to yogurt to chocolate. Carrageenan is inflammatory if it gets through the gut lining into the body, which could happen if you have increased gut permeability. (Carrageenan is actually used in laboratory studies to create inflammation in animals.) Furthermore, low-quality carrageenan may be degraded to components that can cross even a healthy gut barrier. For these reasons, we specifically exclude carrageenan on the Whole30.
✪Tip: Deli meats (like turkey or roast beef) may be hard to find without added sugar or carrageenan, but there are compliant brands in both health food markets and grocery stores. Be patient, read all your labels, and ask at the deli—sometimes, the prepackaged meats contain carrageenan, but the fresh-sliced meats at the deli counter don’t.
These “seeds” aren’t the same botanical family of seeds that we eliminate with grains and legumes, so that makes them fine to eat during your Whole30.
✪Tip: Chia seeds aren’t likely to cause you any serious trouble, but they’re not the omega-3 superfood they’re made out to be, either. Chia should be treated like any other nut or seed and consumed in limited quantities.
While we recognize that potatoes are a real food, we also know that eating them in the form of fries and chips has turned them from “produce” into an adulterated commercial “product.” It’s easy to find sweet potato, beet, or vegetable chips that meet the Whole30 ingredient standards. It is not easy, however, to consume those chips in a way that’s true to the spirit of the Whole30. It’s hard to find a suitable place for them in our meal template (no, half a bag of “Sweets and Beets” is not an appropriate way to fill your plate with vegetables), and even harder to stop yourself from eating them when the designated serving comes to an end. For most of us, chips are a bona fide food-with-no-brakes, and fall into that deep, dark area of less-healthy foods with technically compliant ingredients. For that reason we do not allow frying starchy veggies and turning them into chips during your Whole30. (However, if you want to roast some kale until it’s crispy, or thinly slice jicama into a scoop for your guacamole, be our guest.)
This is a common preservative and flavoring agent in canned or jarred foods, like tomatoes or olives. The addition of citric acid to your food won’t affect your Whole30 results in any way.
Let’s be clear: God > Whole30, and whether you decide to take communion during your program is entirely up to you. While most communion wafers do contain gluten, and that gluten may impact the “reset” process and your Whole30 results, we would never ask you to compromise your faith for our rules.
✪Tip: Some progressive churches do offer gluten-free wafers these days, which would have less impact on your Whole30 gut-healing efforts. You might take this opportunity to speak with your church group or leaders to see if there are others in the community who would prefer a gluten-free offering.
We want you to eat the best quality food you can afford, especially when it comes to animal products. In It Starts With Food, we discuss how the best meat, seafood, eggs, and animal fats come from animals raised in their natural environments (ideally organically) and fed their natural diets. This means looking for “grass-fed,” “organic,” “pastured,” or “wild-caught” on your labels. However, this is just a best-case recommendation, not a requirement of the Whole30 program. Conventionally raised (factory-farmed) animal products are also acceptable on the program.
Anything less than 100 percent cocoa (cacao) is off-limits during your Whole30. Even 90 percent dark chocolate is still sweetened—and therefore candy.
All fruits, including dates, are allowed on your Whole30. However, please don’t try to turn dates into a form of added sweetener (like boiling them down into a syruplike paste)—while technically within the rules, that kind of thing goes against the spirit and intention of the program.
✪Tip: These little sugar bombs pack a huge punch—they’re as close to candy as you can get on the Whole30. We strongly recommend against using them as a “treat” to feed your Sugar Dragon.
These “seeds” aren’t the same botanical family of seeds that we eliminate with grains and legumes, so that makes them fine to eat during your Whole30.
✪Tip: Flax isn’t likely to cause you any serious trouble, but it’s not the omega-3 super-food it’s made out to be, either. Flax should be treated like any other nut or seed and consumed in limited quantities.
It’s kind of like the argument against chips—anything deep-fried in vegetable oil is by default not that healthy, and fries are one of those foods-with-no-brakes we warned you about. For most of us, fries of any kind fall into that deep, dark area of less-healthy foods with technically compliant ingredients. For that reason we do not allow deep-fried potatoes, whether commercial or homemade, for the duration of Whole30. (Potatoes of any variety in boiled, baked, steamed, pan-fried, grilled, microwaved, or roasted form are good to go, however.)
The problem with legumes comes when you consume the seed. As with snow peas or sugar snap peas, green beans are mostly plant matter (the pod), with only tiny, immature seeds. As such, we’re not too worried about their potential downsides—if green beans are the worst thing in your Whole30 diet, you’re doing okay.
This is a common vegetable gum thickener, often found in canned coconut milk, and should not pose any significant negative health consequences during your Whole30. (This also applies to other thickening, stabilizing, and emulsifying “gums,” like locust bean gum, xanthan gum, or gellan gum.)
✪Tip: Very few people report a sensitivity to guar gum, but if you notice any digestive issues after consuming coconut milk, first try reducing the quantity you consume in any one sitting. If that doesn’t help, switch to a brand without guar gum, like Native Forest.
All chewing gums contain some form of added sweeteners (including xylitol) that aren’t acceptable under Whole30 guidelines.
✪Tip: Chewing for hours and hours at a time sends a message to your body that you’re eating. If you spend a lot of time chewing but not actually eating, your body is going to get quite confused in its responses, including secreting stomach acid and saliva in the absence of incoming food. Consider brushing your teeth more frequently or eating small amounts of mint leaves or fennel seeds as a fresh-breath alternative.
These “seeds” aren’t the same botanical family of seeds that we eliminate with grains and legumes, so that makes them fine to eat during your Whole30.
Hot sauce is a great way to add spice and flavor to your Whole30 dishes, just read your labels carefully, or choose a Whole30 Approved brand like Tessemae’s or Horsetooth Hot Sauce, both available online. (See Resources for details.)
✪Tip: Many national hot sauce brands include only Whole30 Approved ingredients, including Frank’s Red Hot (Original, Chili and Lime, and Extra Hot), Tabasco (Original, Buffalo Style, and Garlic Pepper), Cholula, Texas Pete Hot Sauce, Valentina Mexican Hot Sauce, Tapatio, Louisiana Hot Sauce, and Crystal Hot Sauce.
Traditional hummus is made from garbanzo beans, which are a legume. Consider eggplant-based baba ghanoush instead.
All commercial ketchups contain added sugar in some form, with the exception of Tessemae’s (the only Whole30 Approved ketchup). Otherwise, you can substitute salsa, or make your own with our recipe. Note, don’t expect these to taste super-sweet like your old ketchup. Whole30 ketchup tends to have more of a vinegar tang than a syrupy sweetness.
There are many brands and varieties of fruit and nut bars that are acceptable during your Whole30, but you have to read your labels. Make sure there is no added sugar in any form, or other off-plan ingredients like peanuts or gluten-free grains.
✪Tip: We highly recommend using these bars as emergency snacks, on-the-go or travel food, or as fuel during endurance athletics. They’re as close to candy as you can get on the Whole30 (using dates as a binder), so don’t use them to satisfy sugar cravings. Your brain doesn’t know the difference between a Snickers bar and a Larabar!
You’ll be hard-pressed to find a commercial mayonnaise that doesn’t contain off-plan ingredients—especially added sugar. Even the “olive oil” mayo is mostly soybean oil. The good news is that making your own compliant mayo is easy! (See our Basic Mayo recipe.)
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a common flavor enhancer in many processed foods. This chemically structured ingredient is shown to have neurotoxic effects and is also linked to obesity. Because we think it’s such noxious stuff, it’s specifically off-limits for your Whole30, so if you see it on the label (like with some canned tunas), find a healthier alternative. The good news is that most of the foods that contain MSG are already off your plate on the program, but you can download our Common Additive Cheat-Sheet at www.whole30.com/pdf-downloads to learn other sneaky names for MSG.
Mustard is a fine choice, just read your labels carefully. Yellow mustards are generally compliant, but most other varieties often contain sulfites, which are out for the program.
✪Tip: Many national mustard brands include only Whole30 Approved ingredients, including Annie’s Naturals Organic Dijon and Horseradish Mustards, French’s Yellow, Nathan’s Deli-Style Mustard, and Gulden’s Spicy Brown. Be extra careful with Dijon flavors, as most contain white wine.
The ingredient category “Natural Flavors” can stump even the most diligent label reader. It’s impossible to say what’s included in these flavors or where they come from, but they’re not explicitly ruled out on the Whole30.
Nightshades are a group of plants that contain compounds that may be inflammatory in certain populations (like those with an autoimmune disease, or those with chronic inflammation or joint pain). While nightshades may prove inflammatory in special populations, they’re a healthy, nutrient-dense choice for most. Feel free to enjoy all forms of nightshades during your Whole30, unless you are specifically eliminating them due to a known sensitivity.
✪Tip: Nightshades include: ashwagandha, bell peppers (aka sweet peppers), bush tomato, cape gooseberries, cocona, eggplant, garden huckleberries, goji berries (aka wolfberry), hot peppers (such as chili peppers, jalapeños, and habaneros), kutjera, naranjillas, pepinos, pimentos, potatoes (red, white, Yukon gold, baby, purple, etc.; but not sweet potatoes or yams), tamarillos, tomatillos, tomatoes, and spices like cayenne, chili pepper flakes, chili powder, curry, paprika, and red pepper.
Nutritional yeast can add a delicious texture and nutty flavor to casseroles, vegetable side dishes, and salads. Just consider your source carefully and make sure the option you choose is gluten-free.
What we actually wanted to say here was, “Hell, no.” Buying (or baking) Paleo bread during your Whole30 is an exercise in missing the point. We’re asking you to change your food habits here, not just your ingredients. Bread is the very definition of nutrient-poor food-with-no-brakes, and is as off-limits as it gets, even if it is made from coconut flour. In addition, all bread pushes more nutritious foods off your plate. Just say no, and sandwich your meat in lettuce leaves, Portobello mushroom caps, or grilled eggplant instead.
✪Tip: This goes for tortillas, wraps, biscuits, English muffins, flatbread, pita bread, and any other breadlike products that you may see recreated with Whole30-compliant ingredients on a Pinterest board. We’d say sorry but we wouldn’t mean it—your bread-lovin’ brain will thank us when your 30 days are over.
Paleo cereal recreations are generally made with a base of nuts and seeds, and are almost always sweetened to mimic your favorite childhood cereal. While nuts and seeds are a fine inclusion in your Whole30, we recommend them in limited quantities because the kind of fat they contain isn’t the healthiest. In addition, eating a big bowl of “cereal” doesn’t leave much room for more nutrient-dense foods (like eggs, salmon, spinach, and berries) on your breakfast plate. Finally, replicating cereal—which many of us used to consume by the box—isn’t the habit-changing behavior we want to encourage on the program. You can do better.
It doesn’t matter whether it’s made from coconut milk or frozen bananas—the only purpose of this confection is to replicate the taste, texture, and reward sensation of ice cream. (Don’t tell us you’d get the same satisfaction from eating a frozen banana because we call your bluff.) Plus the addition of cocoa, nut butters, nuts, or other fruits to your creamy concoction takes this recipe straight into “sugar treat” territory, which is expressly forbidden during your Whole30. (See “Treats, Food Fixations, and the Scale.”)
No, you can’t have pancakes. Yes, even if they’re just bananas and eggs. First, they are explicitly ruled out in the Whole30 program guidelines. This should be enough of a reason, but in case you’re still wondering why (they’re just bananas and eggs!) . . .
Pancakes in any form do not facilitate success with the Whole30 program. Reaching your health goals depends on committing to the rules, spirit, and intention of the program. The Whole30 is designed first and foremost to change your relationship with food. And the psychological impact of eating pancakes as part of your healthy eating, life-changing plan cannot be ignored.
Eating eggs, a banana, and some olive oil is not the same as combining those ingredients into a pancake. There are studies that show that how your brain perceives the food influences satiation. This is often cited with liquid food (smoothies or shakes), but experientially we see this with whole foods as well, depending on how they are combined. Pancakes bring up a totally different psychological response than frying some eggs and eating a banana. And it’s that psychological (and emotional) response that we are trying to target with the program.
You may not have an affinity for pancakes, but we find that most people who complete our program do best without any of these comfort/trigger foods. So, because we need to create one program that applies to as many people as possible, we rule these Paleo recreations out. In our experience, this sets everyone up for the best Whole30 success possible. And, of course, what you choose to do after your 30 days are up is entirely up to you. (Also see “Treats, Food Fixations, and the Scale.”)
Many big-name brands of pickles contain off-plan ingredients (like sugar) or chemical-sounding additives (like polysorbate 80). Just read your labels, and perhaps visit a local health food store if you have a craving for pickles.
✪Tip: Many national pickle brands are Whole30-compliant, including Cascadian Farms Kosher Dill, Bubbies Kosher Dill, Trader Joe’s Kosher Dill, and Whole Foods 365 Organic Baby Dills. Also, Rick’s Picks (a national brand sold at many health food stores) pickles some really interesting vegetables. Try the Whole30-compliant Mean Beans, Classic Sours, or Smokra.
Quinoa is a pseudo-cereal—not botanically a grain, but containing compounds that may cause similar problems. All grains and pseudo-cereals are out for your Whole30.
Nearly all commercial salad dressings contain off-plan ingredients like soybean oil or added sugar. Tessemae’s makes the only Whole30 Approved dressing and marinade line, but it’s just as easy to make your own. (See Dressings, Dips, and Sauces for our dressing recipes.)
When you cut out processed and packaged foods, you remove the vast majority of sodium from your diet. Adding salt to your Whole30 plate won’t push you above healthy sodium limits, and if you avoid salt altogether, you run the risk of an electrolyte imbalance (not to mention serious food boredom). We encourage a mix of iodized table salt and sea salt.
✪Tip: Did you know that all iodized table salt contains sugar? Sugar (often in the form of dextrose) is chemically essential to keep the potassium iodide from oxidizing and being lost. That’s why salt is an exception to the Whole30 “no added sugar” rules. Without this exception, you’d never be able to eat outside of your own home, because iodized table salt is added to all restaurant and prepackaged foods.
Like bacon, it can be hard to find sausage without any added sugar or other off-plan ingredients, but if you can, you’re in the clear. (Remember, if there is any form of sugar in the ingredient list the product is out for the Whole30, even if the label says, “Sugar = 0 grams.”) Check with your local natural foods store, ask a local farmer or butcher shop, or make your own sausage, using our recipe.
✪Tip: For the healthiest sausage, look for “pastured” and “organic” on the label—or better yet, ask your local farmer if his pigs are raised in a natural environment and fed a natural diet.
Sesame oil is approved for the program, but the healthiest way to use it is in small quantities as part of a dressing or sauce, or splashed on food just before you pull it off the stove. Cooking such a fragile oil (especially with high heat) can lead to oxidation, which then promotes inflammation in the body when consumed.
The problem with legumes comes when you consume the seed. As with green beans, snow peas and sugar snap peas are mostly plant matter (the pod), with only tiny, immature seeds. As such, we’re not too worried about their potential downsides.
Spices, herbs, and spice mixtures are a great way to add flavor and excitement to your food, but when it comes to spices and spice mixtures, read your labels and avoid those with off-plan ingredients.
✪Tip: Whole30 Approved Spice Hound has over 100 spices and spice mixtures compliant with the program. (See Resources for where to buy Spice Hound products.)
While it’s not highly processed like its liquid or powdery cousins, the only purpose of stevia leaf is to sweeten something that was not already sweet. This is something we want you to avoid during your Whole30. Instead, learn to appreciate the natural flavors of your foods, and don’t rely on sweet tastes to prop up sugar cravings.
✪Tip: Remember, just because a food is “natural” doesn’t automatically make it healthy. You’ll see sales pitches for things like stevia, coconut nectar, and agave syrup as a healthier alternative to white sugar, but the reward and habit centers in your brain don’t know the difference between those and high-fructose corn syrup or table sugar. That’s why we say “sugar is sugar”—because from a psychological perspective, it’s all the same.
Sulfites occur naturally in many foods and beverages, and are a by-product of fermentation. Found in most wines and balsamic and red wine vinegars, they are also added to processed foods to increase shelf life, preserve color, and inhibit microbial growth. Sulfites can cause significant dermatological, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, and cardiovascular symptoms in sensitive people, which is why we explicitly exclude them during the Whole30. Read your labels: if any form of sulfite is listed in the ingredients (including potassium metabisulfite, a common additive in coconut milk), it’s off-limits.
Tahini is a paste made from sesame seeds. Sesame seeds are compliant with the Whole30 program, so tahini paste is too, if all the other ingredients in the paste are compliant.
Tapioca is the starch extracted from the root of the cassava plant. It may come in the form of flour, flakes, or pearls. It’s perfectly acceptable on the Whole30 as a thickener, and may be used by those needing lots of calories or carbohydrates. Use caution, however—some “tapioca flour” is actually a mix of tapioca and wheat. As always, read your labels.
✪Tip: Tapioca is pure starch—practically no nutrition and all carbohydrate. This may come in handy for very active carb-driven athletes, but most of us don’t need that concentration of calories or energy on a daily basis. If you’re coming from a place of metabolic dysfunction or inflammation, tapioca-based dishes aren’t the right choice for your Whole30.
We’ll be honest—we think this ruling is kind of silly (nobody uses vanilla extract for the buzz), but we must be consistent with the guidelines to avoid confusion. All vanilla extracts contain alcohol or sugar alcohol, which are off-limits for your Whole30. (If you see vanilla extract listed as an ingredient, you can count that product out for your Whole30, too.)
✪Tip: You can use 100 percent vanilla bean powder in place of vanilla extract, or just scrape the inside of a vanilla bean pod. We use it in a 1:1 ratio in recipes; 1 tsp. vanilla extract = 1 tsp. vanilla bean or vanilla bean powder.
While we don’t think vegetable oils are ever a healthy choice, we don’t expressly rule them all out on the Whole30. If we did, you’d never be able to eat outside of your own kitchen, because all restaurants use them in some form in their cooking. We wanted to create the healthiest program we could, but we also need it to be possible for those who travel for business or pleasure, or simply want to dine out during the month.
Corn, rice bran, soybean, and peanut oils are out for your program because we rule out all forms of grains (corn and rice) and legumes (soy and peanuts) on the Whole30. However, canola (also known as rapeseed), safflower, sunflower, and grapeseed oils are all allowed—just not encouraged.
✪Tip: Eliminate the consumption of vegetable oils at home, even if you’re not on the Whole30, and make sure the rest of your diet is focused on the most nutritious choices possible, especially if you dine out frequently. For our best tips and tricks on dining out on the Whole30, see Dining Out.