Whole Foods is one of my favorite stores, but I’m not writing about that market. Instead, this is about the need to return to a time when we sat at the dinner table or grabbed a snack and ate food that was whole—complete in itself—not manufactured using tons of chemicals making it highly processed, less nutritious, and fattening.

My journey in life is to learn as much as I can about living well. It’s a passion and deep desire that fulfills me. What I learn isn’t always easy to apply. But when I see and feel the difference it makes, making the right whole food choices for me and my family (including our dog, Lucky) are easier to do each day.

About a month ago, our Jack Russell Terrier took a turn for the worse. These dogs have so much energy they’re often accused of being annoyingly cute, hyperactive, and hilariously charming. Lucky is a mild-mannered JRT but when he quit walking in the house and refused to move, I knew it wasn’t good.

My daughter, Siena, and I did everything we could think of to coax him to move. We dangled his favorite toy (a noisy chicken that squawks loudly), pulled out favorite commercial-food treats, and even shouted out ‘Go for a walk’—in the past that always produced a strong tail-wagging, ears perking up, and head-tilting to the side… but not this time. I have to admit I was scared. He’s only eight and these dogs can live upwards of 15 years but it wasn’t looking good at the moment.

With my busy schedule, raising a teenage daughter, reporting and producing feature news stories, trying to keep fit and healthy, all the while having some sort of social life, and finding time to really study Lucky’s diet was not a top priority. I figured the commercial dog food would do the trick and keep him healthy. It was expensive and supposedly exactly what he needed.

Now, I’m not knocking all commercial dog food and I’m certainly not a veterinarian. However, one thing I believe at my core to be true for people and dogs is that eating less processed, whole, nutritious foods is best. That means keeping it simple with relatively few ingredients (but the right ones).

So, I began to find time to cook for Lucky—foods with just a few ingredients. Of course, I researched and read about doggy needs. I cooked chicken (even salmon) and added broccoli and organic flax oil. Some meals he had oatmeal with eggs, and apples—blended into an unrecognizable form. And each time I added just a bit of dry, high-end dog food to ensure that if he were missing nutrients, he’d get them as well as have something crunchy with his meals. Wow! Within a few weeks, Lucky was bouncing with energy--fit, healthy, walking again, and excited.

It dawned on me that whole foods are the essence of eating, are what I believe to be real food. The aisles that contain the beckoning sugary cookies, salty snacks, canned concoctions may be very tempting but definitely not fulfilling, high-nutrient-based foods. These are the foods that make you want to eat more because of those sneaky mind-altering ingredients. I’ll write more on this in upcoming columns.

Getting back to the basics, for pets and people, can create a rejuvenating life. I have found the simplest meals often produce the most energy. So salmon, a deep green salad (with arugula), and a full glass of water makes me enthusiastically energetic. Apples and almond butter or a trail mix that I make consisting of pumpkin and sunflower seeds, almonds, and a sprinkling of dried cranberries are the perfect snack. I know what’s in them—it’s whole food without the preservatives. It’s healthy eating that produces the ability to live well.

There aren’t many silver linings to the otherwise ominous financial clouds that have blanketed the nation for a long time. There is, however, at least one possible positive outcome. Some nutrition experts think more people might go back to the basics of eating simple, clean, easy-to-fix foods. Consumers may also take a break from the more expensive restaurants that often serve rich and fatty foods (albeit tasty) and instead head to the kitchen to prepare a home-cooked meal. However, it’s the snacks that might keep the waistline expanding.

According to the NPD Group, a leading market research company, consumer spending at restaurants for the quarter ending September 2009 declined.  Visits to quick service/fast food restaurants, which represent the largest share of the industry, as well as casual and mid-scale establishments declined slightly. The company writes on its Web site that an increase in traffic for the restaurant industry might not come until the second half of 2010.

One thing is certain; perhaps thanks to the Internet and other sources that provide easily accessible information, people are becoming more aware of the types of foods that create a healthier diet. Whether or not they’re choosing those foods when they’re hungry is maybe a matter of changing old habits and tastes. But we’re bombarded with poorly made food products and intense marketing campaigns that aim to make consumers want a product that offers no, or very little, real value to them.

The problem, not just during tough economic times, but even in the glory days, is that the busier, more stressed we are, the more we reach for snacks. Unfortunately, many times those snacks are unhealthy but convenient choices. Those poor choices are leading to American’s deteriorating health.

Mintel, a market-research firm, reported double-digit sales gains for salty snacks, popcorn and cheese. The potato-chip market grew 22 percent (a comparison of market data against Mintel's market estimate for full-year 2009).  It seems we’re programmed to enjoy these tastes and, when they’re sold extra cheap, we can’t resist picking them up.

Consumers say finding healthier, delicious-tasting, and fast snacks is challenging. But that doesn’t have to discourage us from trying. I like these snacks for a quick, healthy, boost of energy: pomegranate seeds provide Vitamin C and fiber (you don’t have to do the work to get the goods; Trader Joe’s sells the seeds in plastic packaging, ready to enjoy), almonds (three-ounces a day can provide a good amount of unsaturated fat that helps fight illness and lower cholesterol), and apples. A medium-sized apple is perfect to take the edge off hunger pangs while providing excellent nutrients instead of high-calorie, non-nutritional snacks like chips. These certainly aren’t new snacks and they’re not packaged to entice kids to want them. However, they’re consistent, high quality choices that represent real food instead of modified substances—(high in fat, calories and low in nutrients)—that do little more than make you crave more, eat more, spend more, and thicken your waistline.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 75 percent of U.S. health care spending treats "preventable chronic diseases," (and, yes, that includes those linked to diet). Obesity alone, in the last two decades, is responsible for 30 percent of the increase in health care costs. So, while the nation remains embattled in contemplating health care reform, you’ve got to wonder what success will come if Americans continue to reach for low quality, nutritionally lacking products that are cheap but provide no other real value.  Returning to the basics—real food, more home-cooked meals, and simple living—might be the healthiest and most economical start to decreasing health care spending.