Raw Food Diet - Day 22 (Blog)

[kevdawg]

There is a lot of interesting but not all accurate information being shared here. Anyone should take Steve's comments as more authoritative than most others here who have never given the very healthy raw vegan lifestyle a fair shake, since he's actually trying to live it and many of you "experts" haven't. I'm no expert, but I have a little experience here, and I am continually learning more. That said,

The dry skin is likely part of your detoxing combined with the cold, dry air you are dealing with. The transition to healthy raw eating takes a long time. Way more than 30 days. Toxins from cooked foods (and of course there are levels of toxic foods) do store up in our fat. And if we are eating cooked foods and any salt whatsoever, we are retaining much more water than we think. Even most muscle "mass" of cooked food eaters is filled with water and marbled with fat. And when we start to transition to a healthy raw lifestyle (translated: not high fat, not gourmet raw, at least not as the end goal), we have a lot of stuff to get rid of. I had terrible rashes for several days last week, for instance, and now they are gone. I also have less dry skin and no dandruff now though I've suffered with these for years before. As for nails, mine grow faster and stronger now than ever--and my hair, too. The point is, every person's body is different, and every transitional/detox period will be different.

Other things to consider: Are you getting enough direct sunlight? Fresh air? Sleep? Pure, clean water? Are you dealing with a lot of stress (who isn't, right?)? Diet and exercise are 2 of several components to health.

I myself had gone back to cooked foods after 3 periods of more than a month raw. This was not because of adverse affects, but because I was weak and liked the taste of certain foods that I know to be bad for me. I am now on day 24 of my current challenge, and I believe it's sticking this time. My wife has been 811rv for over a year now (we have been working toward this together for almost 3 years). She has the most vibrant health of her life, and she has always been pretty healthy. She has more energy and looks better than ever.

My family eats tons of bananas. One thing to watch, though, is that bananas (and all fruit) must be truly ripe. That means they must start to have some speckles on them. And if you can hear the skin ripping when opening, they are probably still too green, not sugary enough, and will give you a stomach ache. I find eating bananas in a smoothie form easier, especially for volume, but I don't add anything but a little water. I ate nothing but bananas for 14 days straight last year, then added some greens, and then added some other fruits. It was glorious. And I've never felt better (except for now, when I'm adding rigorous exercise to the health equation).

And as Steve mentions in one of his posts, the animals most physiologically like us, the different groups of apes, get all their protein from fruit and a few other plant sources (apes might eat bugs if they can't find fruit, but I might too if my other option was starvation). Elephants, the largest land animals alive, only can digest 40% of what they eat, yet they get 100% of their protein and other caloro-nutrients from raw plants. (Sorry, Steve, elephants collect food and eat like 16 hours a day, but thankfully we are much more efficient at digestion!)

I promise, people, we are not deficient in vegan pancakes. If no other animal on the planet has to have cooked food to survive, why do we think we are so special? Shouldn't the healthiest option be something that is not processed or scorched by fire, but has everything in tact as God (or Nature if you aren't a believer) put it out for us so perfectly?

I don't mean to sound like a know-it-all--believe me I have a lot left to learn. But I have had to come a long way just on the intellectual side of this diet, and I've thrown up all the same questions as all of you until I finally have had them answered to my satisfaction. I personally find Dr. Doug Graham (mentioned in a post by Steve) to be an excellent, informed resource. He has trained many world-class athletes and has himself been a raw vegan for nearly 30 years. My personal trainer has been raw for way over a decade, was a rugby player, and now is more strong and cut than ever. Keep in mind all this comes from a Texan raised on "the land." I live in cow town, and know I'm looked on as a weirdo, but my health is more important than what everyone else thinks of my diet.

One last thing: my children are all 80/10/10 raw vegans. My 3-year-old daughter has never tasted a bite of cooked food in her life. And yet she is super healthy, never had an ear infection, never had trouble "going" (everyone else's kids I know are stopped up a lot), and is super intelligent. My sons who are a few years older were vegan from the time they began eating, but for over a year have been raw and also have great health. I'm anxious to be as glowing as them!

[sebzzz]

Glad to hear some other good comments about the diet.

I've been quiet on this forum, but I'm there religiously each night to see what's happening with Steve.

I decided to try going raw when Steve was in is 3rd day, so I'm at my 19th.

I'm feeling great so far and I don't plan on quitting even after 30 days. It takes some will power, but I'm confident I'll get pretty healthy from this diet.

It's kind of sad to see all the negative comments in the last couple of posts just because Steve is not 100% fine with the diet yet. Things like those take time.

My hope is for Steve to be able to feel absolutely great at the end of the 30 days and to decide to continue. It would give me some more motivation to do the same.

[Vantage72]

Originally Posted by kevdawg

, the animals most physiologically like us, the different groups of apes, get all their protein from fruit and a few other plant sources (apes might eat bugs if they can't find fruit, but I might too if my other option was starvation).

To me your argument makes no sense. Apes are known to eat each other. Does that mean we should to?

If someone wants to justify killing they could say: Apes kill eachother, so should we.

There are also people who say the reason homo sapiens started walking up straight is that they started eating more meat.

And as far as I know, apes eat way more plants than fruit, but I could be wrong here. Here's article on ape diet:
'Ape diet' lowers bad cholesterol levels - 22 July 2003 - New Scientist

[escapee]

, the animals most physiologically like us, the different groups of apes, get all their protein from fruit and a few other plant sources (apes might eat bugs if they can't find fruit, but I might too if my other option was starvation).

Some of them eat inserts, ants, spider, bird egg and even kill each other for concentrated protein source rich in bio available Iron, Zinc and copper.

Even with that, they don't seem to live as long as human being.

Capuchin monkey - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
FACT CHECK

The diet of the capuchins is more varied than other monkeys in the family Cebidae. They are omnivores, eating not only fruits, nuts, seeds and buds, but also insects, spiders, bird eggs and small vertebrates. Capuchins living near water will also eat crabs and shellfish by cracking their shells with stones.

Within four years for females and eight years for males, juveniles become fully mature. In captivity, individuals have reached an age of 45 years, although life expectancy in nature is only 15 to 25 years.

[escapee]

And as far as I know, apes eat way more plants than fruit, but I could be wrong here. Here's article on ape diet:
'Ape diet' lowers bad cholesterol levels - 22 July 2003 - New Scientist

Oh, People still talk about "bad cholesterol" nowdays ?

What about Oxidized LDL cholesterol ( caused by diabetes, bad fats and bad habits, excessive/lack of exercise and etc ) and GLycated LDL cholesterol ( Diabetes, Stress and etc)? Nobody interested ?

oxidized LDL cholesterol - Google Search

Glycated LDL - Google Search

[Joeschmoe]

Originally Posted by escapee

Some of them eat inserts, ants, spider, bird egg and even kill each other for concentrated protein source rich in bio available Iron, Zinc and copper.

Even with that, they don't seem to live as long as human being.

Capuchin monkey - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
FACT CHECK

Oh come on now. Life expectancy in captivity would be longer due to other factors than diet. Do you think they feed them taco bell, or even vegan pancakes? Maybe one should consider the lack of predators, increased sanitation, less chance for accidents that would cause infection, and the ability to be treated for things that might kill a monkey int he wild.

[escapee]

Life expectancy in captivity would be longer due to other factors than diet. Do you think they feed them taco bell, or even vegan pancakes? Maybe one should consider the lack of predators, increased sanitation, less chance for accidents that would cause infection, and the ability to be treated for things that might kill a monkey int he wild.

Of course you are right Joes ( it's always morally wrong to keep wild animals in captivity ), but the above isn't our point of discussion if you would read all of the messages.