Questions About Raw Diet

[kf9211]

I was wondering what foods you can eat if you only eat raw. I know that raw means that the food is neither cooked, nor processed; but what does it mean for a food to be processed? What are some examples of foods that you can and can't eat? Is tofu considered a raw food?

Also how would going raw affect my health? I'm 15, and slightly overweight. I was considering doing a 30-day trial of only eating raw foods.

Thanks,
Kyle

[Rose of Cairo]

Hello Kyle

Originally Posted by kf9211

I was wondering what foods you can eat if you only eat raw.

You can eat everything that hasn't been heated in some way, through cooking or steaming or roasting or pasteurization or sterilization.

So basically that's fresh fruit, veggies, greens, nuts, seeds, sprouts, seaweed, ...

Conventional nuts often aren't really raw, they have been heated to remove the shell, almonds are often pasteurized. Peanuts are almost always roasted. It's possible to find some really raw nuts though (for instance online or in wholefood shops).

You can eat meat and fish and eggs if you eat them raw. Raw milk and dairy is extremely difficult to find, most of the time it's pasteurized or more.

Some people eat raw grains, too, others don't. Some use salt and spices, others don't. Some use oil, others consider it to be processed and avoid it. For the same reason some avoid fermented products like sauerkraut or fermented soy sauce, others eat them.

I know that raw means that the food is neither cooked, nor processed; but what does it mean for a food to be processed?

A processed food is a food that is not in its original form anymore. Like a cake instead of raw eggs, raw milk, raw whole grains and a chunk of sugar cane. Some foods are only slightly processed, like oil that is just pressed or sauerkraut that's just fermented. Refining grains is processing too, the outer layers of the grains are removed. Many foods are heavily processed. To produce sugar for example the plant goes through a whole bunch of complicated processes. Imagine how many transformations you have to perform before getting a cake. You have to produce sugar, refine the grains, grind them, pasteurize some milk, maybe produce some chemical flavor enhancers and conservatives in some lab... and then mix and bake all that.

Is tofu considered a raw food?

As far as I know, tofu is not raw, no. I don't know exactly how it is made, but I think the soybeans are cooked.

Also how would going raw affect my health? I'm 15, and slightly overweight. I was considering doing a 30-day trial of only eating raw foods.

I don't know how it will affect your health. I'm personally doing great on a raw diet, I've got a lot of energy and lost about 17lbs in two months. But you're not me I'd say, just try it out.

Feel free to ask us if you have any question. Good luck

[Fullcrum]

I'm 16 mate, and if you can get past the whole parents' resistance to raw eating and buying tons of fruits and vegetables and raw nuts (oh but it's so expensive!), you're good as gold!

Raw food will likely get rid of your excess weight. But the only way to know is to try it.

My diet has evolved in about a week, naturally, from 95% cooked to 50% cooked and 50% raw. The raw part is mostly fruit smoothies of my choice or nut milks I make at home. I don't think I've eaten meat in 3 days - never has this happened before!

BTW, if you can convince your parents to buy a Vitamix, it's worth it. Very expensive, but worth it.

I recommend a hearty use of the blender - you can ingest food quickly and more of it before getting full. Awesome if you want to gain weight (like me).

I heartily recommend the green smoothie. 1/2 pineapple, 3 very ripe bananas (or 4 normal ripe bananas), tons of ice, a dozen raw cashews or so, and like 3 cups of spinach. It's a massive serving of smoothie you can snack on all day!

[HlynurT]

Originally Posted by Fullcrum

I heartily recommend the green smoothie. 1/2 pineapple, 3 very ripe bananas (or 4 normal ripe bananas), tons of ice, a dozen raw cashews or so, and like 3 cups of spinach. It's a massive serving of smoothie you can snack on all day!

Wow! That looks delicious! You just store it in the refridgerator thoughout the day? Doesn't it "seperate" from each other, the spinach and the bananans etc?

[Fullcrum]

No the fruits don't separate, only the nut milks a little bit.

I often drink it before it has time to really separate, e.g. 12 hours or so, maybe 6-8 at my quickest.

I have a nifty little container device that has a stick in the middle that I can just pump up and down (think churning motion) and it'll remix everything.

But even if you do not have this, just blend for 2 seconds and it'll be nice and back to normal. Hell, use a spoon. It'll probably work.

[kf9211]

Thanks Everyone. This was really helpful.

Sorry I hadn't replied sooner, I wasn't able to as I was in Mexico.

One more question I have is that I noticed people will say they are X% raw, such as Fullcrum who said he was 50% raw. What does this mean?

How do you determine how much of the food is raw? Is it by calories?

Thanks,
Kyle

[Andrew Michaels]

As for your first question, I just wanted to point out that opinions vary wildly as to what is healthy to eat on a raw food diet. I personally just stick to raw fruits and vegetables with periodic nuts and seeds, and my fat comes in at under 10 percent of calories consumed.

Others will tell you that eating raw meat, "raw chocolate" (raw chocolate isn't actually raw), uncooked grains,or raw processed flax crackers is healthy, but I disagree.

When someone says that they're 50 Percent raw, they've either exactly measured or are estimating that 50 percent of their calories are coming from raw foods.

As for your health, I can say that I've lost weight on this diet. I was 180 when I started and I'm now about 165ish. I feel fantastic, and I never get sick.

If you're interested, check out my site about raw foods: Raw Food Health: A Lifestyle Of Energy, Health, Strength And Joy

I also have a section about weight loss, and another on water weight loss.

[Rapid]

Andrew:

Thanks for setting up your site! Your success story is truly inspirational.

[Andrew Michaels]

No problem at all. I'm trying to make that site a success not just for myself, but because I'd like nothing more than to spread a few of the good things I've found around a little bit.

Originally Posted by Rapid

Andrew:

Thanks for setting up your site! Your success story is truly inspirational.

[kf9211]

Wow! Thanks so much everyone. You have no idea how helpful this was. I especially appreciate Andrew Michaels websites.


Thanks,
Kyle

[Rapid]

Hi, Andrew.

1. When you go out with friends for lunch, do you find yourself having to order salads since fruits are generally not available in restaurants? (I don't know anyone in my area who's a raw foodist and can imagine getting teased for bringing 10 bananas to lunch - not that I should really care about what they think)

2. How long did your craving for cooked food continue after you change your diet to 100% raw?

For the most part during the last two weeks, I've been eating fruits for breakfast, snacks, and dessert. For lunch and dinner, I've had cooked vegetarian meals (some vegetables from your "not recommended" list). A couple of times I had a small piece(s) of chicken/fish (when I was having dinner with other people). I must still feel the detox effect or something because I crave food in between meals. It's a little hard to imagine not eating potatoes or rice. I worry about feeling full and satiated.

[Rose of Cairo]

Originally Posted by Rapid

I crave food in between meals. It's a little hard to imagine not eating potatoes or rice. I worry about feeling full and satiated.

Eat lots of raw greens I bet you don't. They are very (ful)filling.

Potatoes and rice is sugar, when you eat some you need more. When you completely stop eating them, the need will disappear eventually.

You probably won't have this feeling of being full and satiated on raw foods. What you're experiencing now is more a sign that your digestion is having a hard time, not really that you're not hungry anymore. On raw foods, you'll still feel light even when you're not hungry anymore. It might be scary at first, but this is just a matter of habit.

[reflections]

I eat at about 90% raw. I'm loving it and slowly working my way up to the full 100%.

One thing that I had to add was ginger to my juices as I found that I was getting cold. A nice hefty hunk of ginger warms my body real well.