Spicy foods and superfoods - good or not?

[bluedragon]

What do you think about peppers? I have read about countless benefits of eating them, but I have also heard that spicy foods should be avoided in a vegan diet and that foods you can't make a meal of are probably suspicious (this would include garlic, onion etc). What do you think about these? Do you use other not-so-nutritious foods that posess various "miracle" properties ?
How about cocoa? I know there are a few treads mentionning it but I couldn't find what I was looking for. Is it a superfood or a drug that should be avoided? And can it be eaten as it is (without boiling it)? How about raw cocoa?

[StellaBlue]

You will get varying replies on this because everyone thinks differently. I don't go out of my way to eat superfoods, but I am not against them. I like acai, but I haven't noticed anything "super" about it. I don't do maca or cacao (I don't even know if those are considered superfoods...?) because I don't really see a need, but I can't say I would never eat them if I felt inspired in some moment to do so. I can't really afford to eat things like that anyways.

I crave spicy foods all of the time. Since I have been back to eating 100% raw, I crave raw onions and garlic I can make a meal out of them. I've heard that they should be avoided by some, but I like to use my intuition and follow what my body is asking for. My body is asking for onions, so I must need onions right now. I used to hate raw onions, so I figure there is some reason that I am craving them. I would just go with whatever you feel is best for you. Try things out and go with what makes you feel good.

[Fullcrum]

Raw cacao can be eaten.

The guys who love it tend to sell it.

It does have more antioxidants by weight than any otehr food, especially raw cacao beans or powder, which is basically the bean minus the fat (otherwise it'd be cacao butter, not powder).

Steve notes from experience it's like a drug for him.

I actually happen to notice something similar. One morning I was like "F*** green smoothies I want some NUT MILK!" So I made like 1 cup cashews, 4 cups water, 2 tablespoons cacao powder, 1 tablespoon maca, handful of goji. Mad nutrition. Mad I tell you, mad.

Anyway my stepdad notices my pupils are dialated and I feel really awake. It felt really good. Then like a couple hours later I felt very tired.

Experiment yourself. Here's how to experiment with these things and find out for yourself.

1. Eat one week without this stuff and get healthy. Like total raw for one week.

2. Add in a superfood or a mix of them and see how you feel for one week. Put in relatively a lot.

3. Week 3 - Remove and see if you have "withdrawal".

4. Remember to eat healthy first or else you might confuse detox with foods.

BTW even teens detox when eating raw, it's just that IME it's not as severe as some descriptions I read of other people's detox.

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Maca does boost your libido IME. Like if you're down or tired it'll bring you up to normal. You won't have a boner/be wet all the time so I wouldn't worry about control. Enjoy though.

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I like the taste of goji berries. I have not noticed any effects with them or without them. Curiously, my 85 yr old step-grandmother started growing a blonde tuft of hair at the base of her hair. This is where the back of the neck meet hair. Everyone was shocked. Give em gojis a try, but don't sweat about it.

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I have not had a change to experiment with spicy foods and their effects on "intestinal flora" or whatnot. Can't give an opinion here. I do love spices though. Cinnamon in smoothies rocks. Allspice rocks, too.