4 Ways to Improve Your Raw Food Diet

Recently I reviewed an essay on evolution and the human diet and concluded with 4 main ways to improve the modern human diet:

1. Eliminate Salt Intake
2. Eliminate Grains and Replace with Fruits and Vegetables, with an emphasis on sweet fruit
3. Exercise Everyday
4. Limit Fat Intake

Unfortunately, modern Americans with their SAD diet are not the only ones guilty of ignoring the lifestyle points above. Many health conscious individuals and their so-called nutritious diets fail as well.

For instance, vegans are known for eating tons of grain-based meals coupled with staggering levels of salt and oil. And while many vegans don't struggle with hyperadiposity, there is definitely no shortage of under-muscled veg-heads.

But what about RAW vegans? Well, it seems that there is much room for improvement amongst this special class of health hobbyists as well.

Salt

The average raw foodist eats too much salt, as well as other spices and condiments. Here's a raw soup recipe I found while scouring the web:

* South River unpasteurized miso
* Tomato concentrate by Premier Research
* Hijiki
* Goji Berries
* Hemp Seeds
* Raw Honey
* Sea Salt (pink himalayan salt is a great option)
* Other seaweed (optional)
* Nutritional flakes (optional)
* Agaricus mushroom powder (optional)

Can this really be considered a recipe? It seems to be made up of flavorings rather than actual nutritious food.

Grains Over Fruits and Vegetables

You would think that most raw foodists would naturally favor ripe fruits and veggies over difficult to digest grains.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. Many cooked-made-raw recipes, like burgers, wraps, and pizzas, use sprouted grains.

Here's an example of a raw pizza:

* 400g sprouted wheat (or sprouted buckwheat)
* 2 medium fresh tomatoes
* ½ a medium sized onion
* 6-8 sundried tomato halves (ideally pre-soaked)
* About 10 leaves of fresh basil
* Liberal shaking of Italian dried herbs mix
* 1 clove garlic
* ⅓ cup of olive oil

And while many mainstream raw foodists do eat good amounts of greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc., they put WAY too little emphasis on sweet fruit. Some even shun fruit completely!

For more on the problem with eating grains, check out my article here.

Exercise

I don't know what it is, but mainstream raw food vegans seem to HATE to exercise...not including meditation and low-intensity yoga, of course. ;)

Actually I DO know why: they don't eat enough calories! It's impossible to find the energy to work up a good sweat when you're living on heavy fats and low-calorie veggies.

This is why it's so common to see super skinny, yet still over-fat and under-muscled raw foodists.

Fat

Here's the big one: raw foodists eat way too many avocados, nuts, seeds, and oils. They're used in salads, soups, salsas, sauces, and even sweet desserts!

ESPECIALLY the desserts! Here are the ingredients for an almond cake recipe:

* 1 cup walnuts
* 2/3 cup almonds
* 1 cup pitted, packed medjool dates
* 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
* 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

And that doesn't include the almond creme...

* 1 cup cashews
* 1/3 cup almond milk
* 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
* 3 tablespoons maple syrup
* 1 1/2 -2 teaspoons pure almond extract
* 2 tablespoons chopped almonds

...or the whipped creme...

* 3/4 cup almond milk
* 1/2 cup cashews
* 1/2 cup walnuts
* 3 tablespoons cacao powder
* 3 tablespoons maple syrup
* 2 teaspoons carob powder
* Seeds of 1/2 vanilla bean
* Pinch celtic sea salt
* 2 tablespoons melted cacao butter
* 1 tablespoons coconut oil

...that go along with it.

Holy Cannoli!

No wonder so many raw foodists have issues with candida overgrowth.

Raw Rules for Everyone

So yea, unfortunately cooked food lovers are NOT the only ones guilty of dietary sin. But that's okay, because you definitely don't have to follow the trend:

1. Eliminate Salt Intake
2. Eliminate Grains and Replace with Fruits and Vegetables, with an emphasis on sweet fruit
3. Exercise Everyday
4. Limit Fat Intake

No matter what your current diet, you will see tremendous health gains by adopting the 4 guidelines above.

Go raw and be fit,

Raw Food Diet- Weight Loss And Raw Foods

Here are a few important tips to healthy weight loss and raw foods:

* Eat as much raw food as you can (Many people fallow the 80/20 rule. 80% raw foods and 20% cooked/processed foods)
* Eat Organic 99% of the time! Anything that is not organic, is not only completed depleted of nutrients but also filled with toxins such as herbicides, insecticides, hormones, antibiotics, etc.
* Eat a majority of alkaline foods rather than acidic foods. Out bodies are already acidic due to a number of causes and so we must balance that out by adding alkaline food and water to our diets. Here are some suggestions for alkaline and acidic foods.



Alkaline Foods

* Mineral rich water is going to be one the MOST IMPORTANT alkaline substances you should be feeding your body.
* Vegetables- especially RAW ORGANIC green leafy vegetables
* Fresh herbs and spices – parsley, basil, cilantro, cayenne, ginger
* Fruits – watermelon, avocado, cucumber, young coconuts, wheat grass
* Sprouts – alfalfa, mung bean, broccoli, etc.

Acidic Foods

* Junk/Processed foods
* Sugar
* All animal food (meat, eggs, chicken, fish, lobster, oysters)
* Grains (white; wheat, rice, pasta, flour, bread etc;)
* Some Fruits
* Dairy Products (milk, cheese, butter)
* Bad fats (processed safflower oils, butters, etc.)
* Peanuts and Cashews



Now you are probably wondering how any of these suggestions help you lose weight. The answer is simply this: if you choose to eat wholesome, raw, organic, alkaline foods, you will absolutely loose weight. Your body adds and holds onto storage fat to protect itself from all the harmful toxins we are putting in our bodies. Your body is retaining that fat because your body is acidic! (Although, it is good to remember that we must have a BALANCED body. Too acidic or too alkaline can both be harmful.)



To maintain a healthy long-term weight loss you must have an alkaline pH. The more green vegetables and herbs you eat the more alkaline your body will be. Also through eating an organic raw food diet you will receive a much higher dose of alkaline nutrients and minerals, thus eating organic will speed up your weight loss.

How to Go Raw With the Raw Food Diet

A raw way of eating is becoming the latest trend in many countries around the world. More and more people are hopping on the raw food band wagon in hopes of promoting greater health for themselves and their family.

A raw cookbook can be just the thing and has become quite the craze along with this most popular diet fad. A raw food diet cookbook can offer quite an array of delicious recipes that are not only fun to eat but are completely 100% raw goodness.

It is much easier to incorporate this new way of eating when you have a book that covers all the basics to raw living. There are many kitchen tools that are necessary to perform various culinary tasks such as making nut pates, seed cheese recipes and various raw dessert recipes.

Many of these books recommend the basic food processor, high speed blender, and a good knife. Thousands of people are maintaining this way of life, using everything in their kitchen but the stove itself. No need for heat when you got raw meat!

The authors of these cookbooks have often being doing a raw diet for years and are accustom to all the questions that come up when eating purely non processed, living foods. They have usually seen it all and don't mind sharing the information collected in their books.

This is quite handy for the newbie just starting out. You can be assured that many of the recipes have been put to the test and are full proof. There are so many beginner books with this diet that are easy to understand, giving basic steps and instructions for many of the simplest raw meals.

Often you just need a good knife and chopping block and your good to go... go raw that is! Who knows where your delicious recipes may evolve. You could end up adding other ingredients to make them extra yummy, adding your favorite herbs and spices to get just the right flavor.

Other books offer more complex recipes that involve the use of more high tech kitchen appliances. A lot of people already are well familiar with the processor and blender, so this makes it easy. Raw entrees, smoothies and shakes can be blended, whipped and processed into culinary works of art.

It is good to practice a bit to get it down, but using these tools instead of your frying pan with give you a healthier way of eating that will catch on quick. Children love to a raw cookbook because they are usually kid friendly. They do not involve the dangers of cooking at high temperatures.

You can try making some tasty desserts that the whole family will instantly love. I mean, who can usually refuse a fresh fruit pie or strawberry mouse. They won't even know that it is raw at first, until you tell them, of course.

Raw recipes from a cookbook are the way to go for making the best desserts and meals anywhere. They make it easy for anyone to become a chef in the kitchen, exploring all the raw fruits, nuts and vegetables to create an abundant array of raw dishes.

Easy Raw Food Diet Plans

Changing your diet to a raw food diet could just be the answer to help you boost your overall health. Nowadays, we're all so busy and dropping to the local takeaway on the way home from work is often the quickest and easiest option for dinner. You may think it's really difficult finding the time and making the effort to eat better for your health. but if you break down the time it takes to prepare everyday meals, you may be quite surprised to learn just how quick and easy it is to prepare meals if you have some easy raw food diet plans.

Breakfast:

Simply grab a handful of green vegetables (spinach, broccoli, lettuce should all work here) perhaps left over from last evening's salad. Place them in the blender; add a squeeze of lemon or lime and a sliced pear. Mix for twenty seconds, pour and enjoy. This is a delicious green smoothie that will give you a great lift of energy every day, as well as providing plenty important nutrients. Time frame all up - about 5 minutes to prepare and drink!

Lunch:

A suggestion for a raw food lunch could be lettuce wraps stuffed with carrot slices, banana and avocado; a small bag of mixed unsalted nuts; as well as a healthy tomato veggie juice. You could probably make the juice yourself at home or else buy it on the way to work at a good juice takeaway. Time frame all up (including eating) - around 25 minutes

Dinner:

For dinner, a typical raw food menu could be a hassle-free tossed salad to start, raw zucchini pasta together with homemade pesto, accompanied by a side dish made of almond flour garlic bread, and then for dessert, banana ice cream. For the zucchini pasta, simply peel the zucchini and mix in with your noodles. The pesto is usually a quick mix of garlic, pine nuts and extra virgin olive oil. Some people prefer to use a dehydrator instead of an stove for the almond flour bread. As easy way to make banana ice cream is to freeze a couple of bananas then peel them and puree through the blender. This, surprisingly gives you very much the same consistency as ice cream. Time frame all up (including eating) - about 1 hour, not counting the time it would take to freeze the bananas and dehydrate the bread.

With the right eating plans, you will find a raw food diet that can easily work for you. It's really just a small change to your current eating and living habits but will mean a huge change to your life. You'll be amazed at how healthy and energetic you'll feel!

Raw Food Diet - An Option For Effective Fast Weight Loss

The increasing popularity of a raw food diet is contributed to its benefit - effective but natural and swift weight loss. On top of that, it is known to boost the energy level and to prevent illness such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and so on.

This type of diet is no doubt beneficial to your health because you are consuming foods in its purest condition possible. It means the nutrients of the green leafy vegetables and fruits are still intact.

All raw and living foods contain enzymes which aid the digestion and absorption of the food nutrients in your body. These enzymes are responsible also for securing the vitamins and nutrients content of the food. Unfortunately, enzymes are destroyed in any cooking process that has a temperature of 116 degrees Fahrenheit and above that leads to its degradation. More so, further cooking procedures can break the original molecular structure of the food and in return can be toxic to your body.

So, imagine the food you are eating every day. It is fried, baked, steamed, grilled or broiled, right? These cooking methods involve heat which definitely depletes not only the nutrients but the enzymes content of the food. If you wish that your body will get the maximum health-giving benefits in what you eat, then opt for raw food diet.

Not only that you gain the health benefits of adapting this lifestyle, you are also being kind to animals because most of the raw foods are vegan. The diet is mainly comprised of fresh vegetables, fruits, unprocessed nuts and seeds, sea vegetable like seaweeds, and natural oils such as olive oil.

Therefore, there are no alcohol, caffeine and sugar products which are also beneficial to your health.

It is no doubt that raw food diet is good to your health and an effective way to lose weight however it is not an easy journey to embark also. You live in a modern world where you are bombarded with processed foods items and wide range of dining options offering delectable dishes. Hence, adapting this kind of diet will be a real challenge.

The best way to get started is to slowly incorporating raw food menu in your day to day life. Then progress gradually by increasing from 20% to 40% the ratio of raw food in your meals until you get used to eating totally on raw food diet.

Remember that if others did it, why can't you?

How A Raw Food Diet Can Improve Your Health

In the age of fast food take outs and food on the go, we are taking risks with our health because of what we eat. Actually it is not always what we eat that is the problem; it is how we prepare our food. It is though that twenty five percent of people are over weight, and many are obese. Maintaining an active lifestyle is very important to your general health, but what you eat is extremely important to keeping your body healthy. Even thought many people do not regularly include raw food in their diet.

When raw food is mentioned, people tend to think of meat, fish and other foods that you would not normally eat raw. Fresh and dried fruit, vegetables, nuts etc, are raw foods, basically anything that is can be consumed without being cooked. If you give it some thought and add some Creativity you will be surprised what you can come up with.

This however does not mean that a well prepared home cooked meal is not nutritious; meals made with the right ingredients can be healthy, especially if they are prepared and cooked correctly.

It is a well known fact that if people ate more uncooked foods in their diets, their well being and overall health and fitness would be greatly improved. They are many people who do not think about eating food that has not been cooked first, and they do not realize the many benefits this could have.

One good thing about uncooked food, you can generally eat as much as your want without weight gain. This is because it is low in calories, and you will probably eat less than you would cooked food, and it helps increase metabolism. Uncooked foods are full of fibers called cellulose which helps the body lose weight. Eating raw foods also increases the energy levels in the body making you feel more lively and active.

When fresh plant foods are cooked in a temperature above 115 degrees they lose much needed nutrients and enzymes that are important in digestion and general health. The heat applied to cook food removes many vitamins and proteins that the body needs to stay healthy.

Another great benefit of eating uncooked food is the reduction of saturated fats. Uncooked foods contain high levels of fiber, vitamins and potassium. Phytochemical also found in raw products are thought to help keep the risk of heart disease at a low. There are also high levels of antioxidants in uncooked foods, these antioxidants help your body keep its youthful, and are also known to inhibit the formation of plaque, a cause of heart disease.

If you include more raw food into your daily diet, you will feel the benefit in a surprisingly short time. Your skin will look and feel healthier, if you are over weight you will soon start to notice weight loss. Your general health will improve and you will feel much fit than before. The toxins in your body from eating a diet full of cooked food will disperse, and your risk of heart problems and other related health issues will be drastically reduced.

Raw Food Diet Recipes For A Healthy Meal Plan

There are many proven benefits to using raw food diet recipes. When you consume fruits and veggies in a raw state, you are getting all of the nutrients that the food has to offer. There are many food ideas that can have you carefully planning out your meals and snacks. Discover what kind of food choices sound appealing to your taste buds.

Using smoothies as a snack choice or along with a healthy meal is a great way to consume lots of nutrients. These shakes are fairly simple to make. All you need is a few different fruit choices and a blender. When you learn what combos of fruit you like, it will help you make a variety of smoothie options.

The best way to make a healthy smoothie is to start with the main fruit and then add some additional ones. If you crave a banana smoothie, try adding a few melon wedges or grapes to a handful of bananas. The smoothie will have a strong banana flavor with a hint of the secondary fruits. Another great choice for smoothies is a papaya based drink. For this recipe, you can try adding some tangerines and green chard. The flavors have a great way of blending together for the perfect mixture.

With the variety of salads available for lunches and dinners, there is enough to fill a few weeks with delicious choices. The trick to making a salad taste good, is to try a mixture of fruit and vegetable choices. Mandarins and tangerines can compliment a salad quite well, as the fruits seem to add a little dressing to the lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers.

Topping a salad with fruit can create a flavor explosion for your taste buds. The combo of soft fruit and crunchy veggies can make a great meal for anyone trying to eat healthier. Not only can you add tossed fruit to a salad, but you may also try shredding up your favorite veggies and adding them to the top. This works well for carrots, as they can be shaved and put over the salad. Diced cucumber and peppers can also create an exciting salad topper.

To make a salad different, playing around with the fruits and veggies is just the beginning. There are many different varieties of lettuce to pick from that will give your salad a new flavor. Popular ones to try are; rapini and romaine. The varying texture that lettuce can bring will help you change the menu of your salads during the week.

When you plan your meals for the week, try to make each day a little different so that your taste buds have a variety of flavors. Salads can be combined with a smoothie for the ultimate lunch or dinner. Smoothies can also be so filling that they make a breakfast for someone on the move. A side dish of raw veggies or sliced fruit can make a nice snack between meals.

As you discover the many fruit and vegetable varieties that you can create, you will be on your way to eating healthier and feeling better. There are lots of raw food diet recipes to select from. When you do some research into popular recipes and experiment with what you like to eat the possibilities are endless.

A Simple Raw Food Diet Menu

With all the new dieting trends going around, many people are wondering what is the right diet that will assist them with weight loss, encourage better health, and yet at the same time, still taste good. There is a diet out there that fits all that criteria and is very simple to prepare because it involves no cooking whatsoever. Let's take a look at the raw food diet menu.

The raw food diet consists of food that is essentially raw. People following this diet will eat fresh vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans and in general anything that is organic and unprocessed. While this may sound like a boring diet, there are many simple recipes one can prepare that is tasty and nutritious. Following this diet will help you lose weight, digest your food better, increase your energy and help you to improve the appearance of your skin.

The first rule of the raw food diet is no cooking! None of the food can be heated up because it is believed that cooking will take away from the nutritional value of the food. But there are still many creative ways to prepare food that include dehydrating fruit, or putting your favorite fruits and veggies in a blender to mix them up. The key here is not heating the ingredients because heat destroys some of the enzymes in food.

So far this diet seems like just eating raw salads, snacking on seeds or nuts, and eating grain doesn't it? That is not necessarily the case. Below is a recipe for a treat that will make your mouth water in anticipation, and it involves no cooking at all.

The ingredients needed are: 2 ripe avocados
, 3 tomatoes, half a jalapeno, 3 cloves of garlic, kernels from 1 ear of organic corn, 2 teaspoons of lime juice, a quarter cup fresh cilantro, a quarter of a yellow onion, and 8 large romaine lettuce leaves.

Set the lettuce leaves on the side at first and get a knife and cutting board. Dice the tomatoes, the jalapeno, and the onion. Next, chop the cilantro and mince the garlic cloves. Now get a bowl and mash the avocado. Add all the other ingredients and stir until everything is mixed together.

With a spoon, scoop some of the mixture out and place on a piece of romaine lettuce and wrap. Once you are done, you have just created a great snack to enjoy, without having to cook anything at all.

If you are shopping around for a lifestyle change to lose weight, get more energized or just to try something new, the raw food diet may be just for you. It is easy to follow and one of the easiest diet systems to prepare because you do not even need to have a stove to stay on this diet. Have you ever been too tired to cook, or just wanted to save some money on electricity by not needing a stove or microwave? Well then the raw food diet is just for you! You can eat well, feel great and get back to a much simpler lifestyle where nature provides all you need.

Why the Raw Food Diet?

So why the raw food diet? One of the best explanations I've heard for why we should eat raw, living foods is because they are LIVING! They are actually still alive, their nutrients and enzymes are 100% intact.

If you take fruit for example and put it in your fruit bowl and ignore it for a few days, it will continue to ripen until it spoils. If you take that same fruit and stew it with some sugar, will it continue to ripen? Of course not! But why? Because it is dead. Cooking food effectively kills it.

There are plenty of arguments that cooking expresses certain nutrients that would not otherwise be available and that is true. But for every one nutrient that is expressed through cooking, 10 000 are destroyed! I prefer to lose one rather than 10 000, wouldn't you?

Cooking is one of the most nutritionally damaging things we can do to food, and for what? Without artificially spicing and salting it to high heaven, it's pretty bland. Okay I'm sure the arguments will come thick and fast about how delicious various dishes are, but the truth is, you educate your taste buds about what to like.

If you are accustomed to eating salty spicy food, then natural raw foods taste bland. But if you eat lots of whole, raw, natural foods you come to appreciate the natural flavors of the food even more!

If you eat whole, fresh, ripe, raw foods, digestion is quick and easy, which frees your body from the process of complex digestion which then gives YOU more energy. The concept of needing to have a snooze after a meal becomes a distant memory on the raw food diet.

That sluggish feeling you get after a heavy meal occurs because your body needs to focus all its energy on the task at hand; breaking down this complex cooked meal into the amino acids and sugars that it can actually utilize. Raw fruits and plants contain these sugars and amino acids in their simplest form so they require very little work before they can be utilized by the body. They are the perfect ENERGY food.

Beauty is another answer to the question of why the raw food diet. Eating raw food will allow you to sculpt the most beautiful you. Whether you won the genetic lottery or not, your true beauty is likely hiding away under puffiness, blotches, acne, cellulite, excess weight, eye bags, wrinkles, varicose veins, broken blood vessels and bloodshot cloudy eyes. Even if you're still young enough not to have begun to show the degeneration of your body, internally that is exactly what is happening. Wouldn't you prefer to be regenerating?

With the raw food diet you give your body the chance to clear out years of accumulated junk, all those toxins that have been tucked away in your fat cells, in your eye bags, your acne and your blotches. As those toxins clear out, your most beautiful self will be given the chance to shine.

But its not just physical! The physical part is just a happy side effect. Another compelling reason for why the raw food diet is the mental clarity and spiritual connectedness you feel. Your memory will improve, along with your concentration and focus.

Since I have gone raw I have made the most life changing decisions effortlessly. I feel so much more in touch with who I truly am and I can no longer do anything BUT live congruently. I must be who I truly am and I must follow my heart. My intuition is growing stronger by the day and I am beginning to feel so in touch! In touch with myself and in tune with my intuition and my life's purpose. This is the most amazing thing of all.

Some Information About The Raw Food Detox Diet

Most of the information about the raw food detox diet can be found on the Internet or in published form in a book of the same name published by author Natalia Rose. This diet, as defined by Rose, consists of five levels of food with variations in the percentage of raw food that is consumed at each level. Dieters can decide at which level to begin and progress through the stages as desired.

A dieter can enter the program at Level 5 which is the most lenient. In this phase, you eat approximately 3/4 of your food choices from raw foods. This level includes foods that are cooked in one meal each day. A typical choice is a vegetarian dish such as pasta. Level five allows moderate animal products which might be selected from fish, chicken or eggs, but goat cheese is the only dairy product permitted.

At the other end or the levels is Level 1. It is the most severe. It consists only of juices, raw vegetables and raw fruits until the evening meal. On most days the dinner meal is also a raw vegan repast, but salmon is permitted once per week.

The raw food diet is a totally different way of eating for most people. You may find that you can't progress to the more strict levels comfortably, but that's acceptable, since the program is meant to be used at your own comfort level. Because the body naturally cleanses and detoxifies itself over time, you will usually find that you feel better and lose weight at the same time, but it may be a more gentle pace than with other types of eating regimens.

Contrary to popular belief, you don't need to eat 100 percent raw foods in order to benefit from the diet. Keeping some cooked food helps to prevent detoxification that is overly rapid. Cooked foods are also helpful to maintain emotional satisfaction in the foods you eat. Getting bored with a meal choice too quickly will be detrimental in staying on the diet.

There are some disadvantages to the raw food diet. This is not a diet for those people who must eat out often, Meals are prepared fresh and from scratch in most instances. If you are sensitive to carbohydrates or to grains, the diet is not for you. The early phases of the diet include large amounts of grain and pasta. There are numerous rules to follow in order to avoid combining foods incorrectly. In many instances, you must purchase a juicer or other kitchen equipment, which can be costly. Finally, the diet doesn't recommend exercise, so it is unbalanced in one sense.

On the other side of the equation, there are many good features about the diet. The wide variety of foods included means it is better balanced nutritionally than many other weight loss or detox diets. Desserts are allowed on all levels with certain restrictions. A specific kind of chocolate is allowed as a treat. Dieters can proceed at their own pace.

The raw food detox diet is healthy eating at its best, but it is not for everyone. You don't have to be a vegetarian or vegan to enjoy the diet, but it helps. Even though there is little cooking in the later levels of the diet, you have the opportunity to eat a wide variety of nutritious and delicious foods.

The Joy Of Raw Food Diet Weight Loss

The raw food diet is rapidly gaining popularity and awareness among knowledgeable health conscious consumers. As we enter the 21st century people are becoming more diet conscious due to an increase in understanding about how the body works. When people pursue raw food diet weight loss and abandon modern processed foods they quickly see a change in the way they feel and an increase in their energy levels. The benefits of turning from soda pop and processed food to more healthy things like uncooked vegetables, seeds, nuts, grains, beans, dried fruit, and even seaweed are bringing millions of people benefits like increased energy, better skin tone and even reduced illnesses.

Raw food diet weight loss revolves around cutting out foods that are not readily processed by the body. By replacing these processed foods with natural foods that are not cooked at excessive temperature many enzymes and nutrients are left intact. Studies have shown that heating food above 115 degrees F can destroy enzymes in food that can assist in the digestion and absorption of food. At least 75% of the diet must be uncooked or raw food in order for the diet to be a true raw food diet.
If you are thinking about pursuing raw food diet weight loss you need to make sure that your body's PH is not moving towards being more acidic than alkaline. An acidic body is a fat body as the metabolism will be slowed down and more inefficient. When an unhealthy diet of processed foods is consumed this will create an acidic condition in the body. To test the body's acidity you can use PH test strips, these are inexpensive and they can be used to help determine not only your PH but the right diet schedule needed to meet your weight loss goals. By eating an alkaline diet you will find weight loss is more effective. This is the major tip in achieving long term weight loss. Fruits, vegetables and herbs will help assist you in your efforts to maintain a more alkaline body.

Eat Fresh and Organic
Eating organic foods can help as they contain higher nutrient levels. Organic foods have more alkalizing minerals than conventionally grown foods and eating organic will speed up your weight loss efforts. Make sure to buy the highest quality and most delicious food. It may cost more but the great taste and higher quality will ensure that your raw food diet weight loss plans are successful. The lowest calorie count per ounce will be found with raw greens and vegetables. Fruits are next in line. In general, fruits have a slightly higher calorie count because of their naturally occurring sugars which will help with weight loss due to the fact that this will raise the body's blood sugar and reduce hunger levels. People will often eat a piece of fruit before their meal to reduce over eating. If you eat a piece of sweet fruit like some pineapple or an apple 30 minutes before your main meal this can significantly reduce your hunger cravings so that when you do finally eat you will want to eat less. Raw food diet weight loss is usually successful when a complete lifestyle change is made. This change is typically rewarded with a higher energy level and possibly a reduction in illness.

Heal Your Body With A Raw Food Diet

Health Benefits of a Raw Food Diet


Easier Digestion Raw food presents lesser problems to your digestive system. The absence of oil and other harmful cooking ingredients allows your digestive system to quickly and smoothly digest food and eliminate waste from your system without making you experience any acidic reaction. Digesting raw food also does not lead to bile or any other residual effects. If you start with a raw diet, however, be sure not to immediately mix it with cooked food as the instant combination will not react well inside your stomach.

Easier digestion is also caused by the increased content of enzymes in raw food. With more enzymes at work within your body, you get to have lesser toxins which will consequently lead to lower health risks and weight gain.Better Immune System Bacteria as well as other microorganisms found within raw food benefit your health by strengthening your body immune system. Since prevention is always the best cure, strengthening your body defense system will make you tougher against all sorts of disease.

Stabilizing Body Mass Index If you are worried about your weight, taking a raw food diet could help you achieve your weight loss goals. When you want to lose weight, you need to look at the bigger picture of things and know your body mass index. If you already have the right Stabilizing Body Mass, a raw food diet will help you keep your body mass Index stable. Lower Heart Disease Your heart will greatly benefit from a raw food diet since it eliminates most of the ingredients and food types that lead to higher heart risk. With a raw food diet, you can look forward to leading a happier and healthier life.

Speedier Healing Not all of us are like Superman and able to heal bullet wounds in an instant. We are not like other magical creatures either that can regenerate lost limbs. As we are all ordinary humans only, we can simply rely on natural sources to keep our body heal faster and one way of doing that is by increasing intake of omega fatty acids.Omega fatty acids are one of the most important components of a raw food diet. They can be found in certain types of fish and leafy green vegetables. Omega 3 promotes cell growth and you can just imagine what would happen to your body without a healthy supply of Omega 3.

Healthier Skin Skin is the most commonly afflicted part of your body by cancer. With a healthy raw food diet, however, you will be able to give your skin added protection protection that mere skin care products can not really give you with.In spite of the numerous healthy benefits one can derive from raw food diet, it is not a dietary regime that is considered flawless. There are medical experts expressing concern regarding its safety and effectiveness. For one, people must make sure that the raw foods they eat are not greatly exposed to pesticides.

But if you can make sure that all produce you consume are organic then you are in the right track.

Raw Food Diet - Water And Diabetes - Nurse's Guide

One of the amazing things that happened to me after I started to eat a raw food diet to cure my breast cancer, years ago, is that I found I didn't need to drink as much water. When you start eating foods that are raw you'll find you're just not as thirsty as before. You just don't need as much water as you used to. There are quite a few reasons for this. Overall, raw foods, such as raw fruits and vegetables, have a much higher volume of water in them, so your body doesn't need as much from beverages and other foods. Cooked foods don't contain much water as a rule.

And because of the large amount of living food that one eats on a raw food diet one easily gets plenty of water.

However this doesn't mean you should stop drinking water. I also drink a lot of carrot juice and green juice which hydrates my body even more. Your body will let you know if it's thirsty most of the time but if you are distracted or involved in activities you may not be paying attention. So first of all listen to your body. It'll tell you what it needs. If you need to lose weight, have health issues or ailments and diseases or lack energy your body might be telling you to change your diet or drink more water or both. And raw foods are the best way to get rid of many aches and pains, ailments, diseases and physical disorders that are caused by eating cooked, processed food.

But if you're overweight constantly, are thirsty and hungry and have other symptoms of Type II Diabetes, this overwhelming thirst and hunger are just two diabetes symptoms that plague many. When you start eating more raw foods, which are foods that have a high fiber and moisture content, you may start to lose weight fast and you will start to reverse the diabetes symptoms rapidly and help keep your blood sugar in the normal range.

Even if you're not overweight and don't have any health issues such as Type II diabetes, you still will find you no longer have the hunger and thirst problems you used to have. If you're eating a raw food diet, drinking water and juices it's not very likely you're drinking coffee or getting any caffeine from colas. Caffeine is a diuretic and depletes vital water from your body increasing thirst. And by eating less cooked foods or less processed foods, you'll be getting less sodium and you'll find you're just not as thirsty either.

By eating living food, drinking pure filtered water, green juice and carrot juice, you'll be providing you body with plenty of vital nutrients and water. And by keeping the sodium amounts to a minimum you'll start to feel less thirsty too.

Make sure to continue drinking water every day as you feel the need and then add more. Make sure to drink plenty during physical activities when your requirements are sure to go up. Eating a raw food diet completely changed my life. I got rid of breast cancer naturally, fibromyalgia, arthritis, acid reflux and many other ailments. You can do it too.

Superfoods: Raw Foods Diet is Beneficial to Your Health

The benefits advocated from eating such a diet seem endless: lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels, eliminating cravings, preventing overeating, purging the body of accumulated toxins, balancing hormones, maintaining blood glucose levels and reversing degenerative diseases.


Followers of a raw diet cite numerous health benefits, including increased energy levels, improved appearance of skin, improved digestion, weight loss and reduced risk of heart disease, just to name a few. Proponents believe that enzymes are the life force of a food and that every food contains its own perfect mix. These enzymes help us digest foods completely, without relying on our body to produce its own cocktail of digestive enzymes.


There can be some side effects when you are first starting a raw foods diet. Some detoxification effects may be experienced as your body attempts to shed some toxicity. This may include occasional headaches, nausea sensations and mild depression. If these symptoms persist, you should seek the help of somebody who is experienced with detoxification symptoms.


Following a raw food diet means that you have to carefully plan your meals to make sure you don't fall short of essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals. In some instances it might be appropriate to consider taking dietary supplements, especially when just starting out. You'll need to invest in some appliances so that you are able to prepare the food, if you don’t already have them available. A durable juicer, a blender and a large food processor make raw food preparation a breeze. You may also want to look into purchasing large containers to soak sprouts, grains and beans, as well as for storage. A durable juice extractor for your fruits and vegetables


The smoothest way to begin a raw foods lifestyle is to slowly transition into it. Try starting off by eating approximately 70 to 80 percent raw foods in your diet. Have fruit and salads throughout the day and a cooked vegetable meal with a salad in the evening. This should help make the transition easier on your body and hopefully lessen side effects associated with detoxification. This is an emotional time as well, so you should allow yourself plenty of time to make the switch. Journaling during the process can help. Before you know it, you’ll be feeling the positive effects of a healthy, detoxifying raw foods diet.

Can You Cook Food on a Raw Food Diet?

Since moving to a raw food diet I have been asked by friends and family whether you can cook food on a raw food diet. What they mean of course is do you allow yourself any cooked food or is everything you eat completely raw. Going round for dinner could be a nightmare explaining what I can and cannot eat. It wouldn't take long to become "Mr Weird Foodie" with no friends.


While some people do eat completely raw food as raw foodists I will eat cooked food. In fact I still enjoy cooked food although I do limit this type of food for the reasons I explain below.


Behind this question is a serious point about cooking temperatures and enzymes which I will try to explain. Raw foods, when cooked, start to change and breakdown. When they break down the enzymes change their structure and make it much harder for you to digest the food. Your digestive organs will have to work harder to overcome the lack of enzymes in the cooked food. Eventually your organs will wear themselves out with all the work of trying to compensate for the change in the foods structure.


The cooking temperature that all this change happens to food is 118 degrees Fahrenheit. The only way to get around this change in the foods structure is to quickly blanch food or steam it. It requires a good thermometer and some skill to cook the food and keep it below this temperature.


Once enzymes are exposed to heat, they are no longer able to provide the function for which they were designed. Cooked foods contribute to chronic illness, because their enzyme content is damaged and thus requires us to make our own enzymes to process the food. The digestion of cooked food uses valuable metabolic enzymes in order to help digest your food. Digestion of cooked food demands much more energy than the digestion of raw food. In general, raw food is so much more easily digested that it passes through the digestive tract in 1/2 to 1/3 of the time it takes for cooked food.


Eating enzyme-dead foods places a burden on your pancreas and other organs and overworks them, which eventually exhausts these organs. Many people gradually impair their pancreas and progressively lose the ability to digest their food after a lifetime of ingesting processed foods.


If you have lived on processed food for most of your life then you should be looking to change your eating towards more raw food. If you were to return to cooked and processed food then you may find that it has a greater detrimental affect on your digestive system.


For people who eat a large amount of their food there will not be too much harm done by just cooking and tucking in to your food. You can hardly expect your host at dinner to bed running round checking the food temperature. So you can eat cooked food on a raw food diet but just do not overdo it.

Raw Food Diet - A Novel Way to Help Weight Loss

Raw food diets are becoming more widespread, not only amongst people who are one of the types of vegetarians, but also amongst people who eat conventional food.

These people believe that if food is heated to over 115 degrees F the enzymes in the food are destroyed. It's said that these enzymes assist in the digestion and absorption of food in the body.

For a person to be considered a raw food person then 75% of the diet must consist of raw and uncooked food. This means raw vegetables, fruits, seeds, grains, nuts and dried fruits.

This type of food is low in all sorts of fats and oils compared to regular cooked food; it has fewer calories and sodium products, but has a higher fiber content together with more trace elements and vitamins. These last two are lost when food is heated.

The benefits of eating a raw food diet are an improvement in digestion; an increase in physical energy; reduced risks of heart problems, diabetes and some types of cancer. As it also leads to weight loss, many overweight people are changing over to a diet consisting mainly of uncooked food.

Raw food exponents usually eat organic food including dried fruits such as dates, figs, sultanas, raisins; a selection of unprocessed, raw nuts; dried pulses and legumes. The liquid component of their diet comes from mineral water, coconut milk and self-prepared fruit and vegetable juices.

Some raw food people would eat raw animal products such as meat and fish. These can be made more palatable by marinating in a suitable liquid. Not only would this improve the flavor, it would also tenderize the meat. This is particularly so with fish.

Although eating uncooked food is considered to be healthy, for people changing over from a conventional diet there may be some initial, but short lived, difficulties. Nausea, headaches and other slight discomforts may be experienced if a person's previous diet included plenty of sugar and caffeine. The discomfort should last for a few days only.

A raw food diet is not suitable for pregnant or nursing women, or young children. People with certain medical conditions should not eat a raw food diet. Medical advice should be sought at all times.

Because of the absence of some trace minerals, vitamins and other essential components of a healthy diet, it will be necessary to enhance the diet with suitable supplements. Again advice from a nutritionist or doctor should be taken.

Although the raw food supporters claim that cooking destroys the enzymes in food thus making it more difficult for the digestive system to deal with food, many nutritionists and health experts dismiss this as nonsense. They point to the fact that the human body and its digestive system is more than capable of dealing with all the food eaten, and that the enzymes from the raw food are not needed.

In spite of this opinion, however, the number of people world wide changing over to a diet based on raw and uncooked food is increasing.