Rejuvenate with Raw Food

Why raw foods?

Over the years we have been introduced to a multitude of diets and anti-aging programs. They all promise spectacular benefits to health. And while some of them make a lot of sense, they may work for some people and bring disappointment to others. People differ in constitution and metabolism, but there probably is no better way to rejuvenate than through the raw food diet. Although there can be no single recipe for all, the raw food diet advocates claim increased vitality and exceptional health. People with Type 2 diabetes were able to reverse their condition in only thirty days after going on a raw food diet.

Raw food diet is considered to be the secret key to longevity. It has the potential to detoxify the body, reverse degenerative processes, and deliver all the nutrients needed to sustain optimal health. Raw foods contain vitamins, minerals, live enzymes, fiber, amino acids, antioxidants, anti-carcinogens, phytosterols, plant hormones, and many other compounds with high healing potential.

Raw food diet usually comprises of 75-100 per cent uncooked, "living", mostly organic foods. The raw food diet is a diet based on unprocessed and uncooked plant foods, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, sprouted seeds, grains, and beans, nuts, dried fruit, and seaweed. Raw honey and cold pressed, virgin oils are used. Some proponents of this diet also consume raw, unpasteurized, non homogenized milk and cheese. In some cases nutrient rich organic raw eggs are added to the diet.

There are some foods that are better absorbed when cooked or sprouted. These foods include beans, potatoes, egg plants, asparagus, and most of edible mushrooms. (Although it is possible to eat champignons in their raw state, for instance, one should be aware that these mushrooms contain cancer-causing hydrazides that are normally destroyed by cooking).

Raw foods are considered to be more nutritious as heating food above 118º F is believed to destroy enzymes that normally could assist in digestion and absorption of food. Cooking is also thought to diminish the nutritional value and "life force" of food. The vitamin content of many vitamins diminishes during cooking and minerals are washed away. Researchers agree that cooking destroys over 50 per cent of B vitamins, with as much as 96 per cent of Thiamine (B1), up to 96 per cent folic acid, and up to 72 per cent of biotin being lost. It is estimated that 70-80 per cent of vitamin C is being wasted due to cooking. Protein loses almost half of its bio-availability. Researchers found that cooking alters protein into substances that may disrupt cellular function and accelerate aging and degenerative processes. The nutritional value of fats is lost as they change their molecular structure during the cooking process. Foods that have been baked or burned, particularly these with a high starch content, contain highly carcinogenic compounds called acrylamides.

People on raw food diet report that raw food diet has numerous health benefits such as:

• increased levels of energy and stamina
• increased mental alertness
• strong immune system
• improved joint health
• improved skin tone and overall appearance
• better digestion
• normalized body pH
• weight loss
• reduced risk of developing Type 2 diabetes
• reduced risk of developing cardiovascular disease
• decreased risk of many cancers due to better detoxification of the body

There is a lot of fear and misconception about raw food. Many people do not understand how important it is to consume live foods that are not only rich in vitamins, but also in enzymes. When we eat food that is mostly cooked and denaturated through the industrial process, our bodies need enzymes to digest it. Properly chewed raw digest itself and delivers vital enzymes that are so necessary to support bodily functions. Cooked fats, for instance, lack the enzyme lipase and have much less biologically active fatty acids. When we consume raw, virgin oils, they begin their digestion with their own lipase in the slightly acidic environment of our stomachs and enter the small intestine in a predigested form. Cooked fats, on the other hand, reach the small intestine in a highly undigested form and require body's own lipase for their digestion. It is very much possible that this altered fat metabolism plays some role in obesity and cholesterol levels in the blood, as the body is constantly depleted of its own lipase and loses the capability to fully metabolize dietary fats.

Transition to raw food 

After years of living on a mostly cooked food diet it may not be easy to make the transition to a 100 per cent raw food diet. The transition may be much easier if a person is living in a warm climate or begins the process during the warmer seasons, as the body temperature may drop a bit in the beginning and we crave warming comfort foods. Adding warming spices such as black pepper, chili peppers, and ginger, will keep the blood circulating. Learning about raw foods and joining a support group where like-minded people exchange ideas and experience will help one to experiment and become more creative in the kitchen. It is, however, important to introduce dietary changes gradually. A certified health practitioner should be consulted if there are some health concerns or an existing disease.

To begin, one should gradually add more fresh fruits and vegetables to the menu. Replacing boiled vegetables with a raw salad, snacking on raw carrots or radishes instead of chips, eating an apple instead of doughnut, drinking freshly squeezed fruit or vegetable juice instead of soda, or having a fresh fruit smoothie for breakfast, are just a few ways simple ways to start the transition.

Initially, one may notice changes in digestion. Enzymes and fiber in raw vegetables may speed up the digestion, causing some discomfort. But as the body adjusts to the new diet and the intestines are working to remove old fecal matter, the discomfort disappears and digestion returns to normal. The detoxification organs are working to remove toxins that accumulated in the body over the years. At this stage one should reduce the consumption of animal products and introduce more raw vegetables. People who do not wish to give up meat, should opt for the best, organic quality on the market.

The preparation of raw food is rather simple, although gourmets now create elaborate raw food menus. Preparing a salad or making a juice are rather easy and one can use all the ingredients that are in season. More complex methods involve sprouting and dehydration of foods. As one feels more comfortable with raw foods, it is sensible to introduce new ingredients and new recipes. Nowadays bookstores offer a multitude of raw recipe books. There are also many websites and raw food networks offering valuable advice.

After the initial transition and detoxification process, when the body has regained the ability to absorb nutrients, a person on a raw food diet will notice visible changes in the way he or she looks and feels. As we age, our bodies need support. Energetically charged nutrition rich in vitamins, enzymes, bioflavonoids, and other vital nutrients, helps us heal, regenerate, and reverse aging. It is believed that human cells are designed to live about 120 years. The life extension, however, could only be desirable if we were mentally and physically fit at this age. Raw food diet is probably the best strategy to live a very long and healthy life.

By Dominique Allmon

Dominique Allmon©2011

For raw food recipes please visit Passionately raw!

*This information is for educational purposes only. It is not meant to diagnose or cure a disease.



Rejuvenate with Raw Foods by Dominique Allmon is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Dangers of Excess Body Fat

By Chad Tackett

Most people's primary motivation for weight management is to improve their appearance. Equally important, however, are the many other benefits of proper nutrition and regular exercise.

Weight management through reduction of excess body fat plays a vital role in maintaining good health and fighting disease. In fact, medical evidence shows that obesity poses a major threat to health and longevity. The most common definition of obesity is more than 25 percent body fat for men and more than 32 percent for women. An estimated one in three Americans has some excess body fat; an estimated 20 percent are obese. Excess body fat is linked to major physical threats like heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. Three out of four Americans die of either heart disease or cancer each year; according to the National Health and Nutrition Examination survey, approximately 80 percent of those deaths are associated with life-style factors, including inactivity.

For example, if you're obese, it takes more energy for you to breathe because your heart has to work harder to pump blood to the lungs and to the excess fat throughout the body. This increased work load can cause your heart to become enlarged and can result in high blood pressure and life-threatening erratic heartbeats. Obese people also tend to have high cholesterol levels, making them more prone to arteriosclerosis, a narrowing of the arteries by deposits of plaque. This becomes life-threatening when blood vessels become so narrow or blocked that vital organs like the brain, heart or kidneys are deprived of blood.

Additionally, the narrowing of the blood vessels forces the heart to pump harder, and blood pressure rises. High blood pressure itself poses several health risks, including heart attack, kidney failure, and stroke. About 25 percent of all heart and blood vessel problems are associated with obesity. Clinical studies have found a relationship between excess body fat and the incidence of cancer. By itself, body fat is thought to be a storage place for carcinogens (cancer-causing chemicals) in both men and women. In women, excess body fat has been linked to a higher rate of breast and uterine cancer; in men, the threat comes from colon and prostate cancer. 

There is also a delicate balance between blood sugar, body fat, and the hormone insulin. Excess blood sugar is stored in the liver and other vital organs; when the organs are "full," the excess blood sugar is converted to fat. As fat cells themselves become full, they tend to take in less blood sugar. In some obese people, the pancreas produces more and more insulin, which the body can't use, to regulate blood sugar levels, and the whole system becomes overwhelmed. This poor regulation of blood sugar and insulin results in diabetes, a disease with long-term consequences, including heart disease, kidney failure, blindness, amputation, and death. Excess body fat is also linked to gall bladder disease, gastro-intestinal disease, sexual dysfunction, osteoarthritis, and stroke.  

Reducing Body Fat Reduces Disease Risk

The good news is that reducing body fat reduces the risk of disease. At the University of Pittsburgh, researchers studied 159 people as they followed a weight management program. The subjects were under age 45 and 30-70 pounds overweight. Those subjects who were able to shed just 10-15 percent of their weight and keep it off during the 18-month study showed significant improvement in HDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels, waist-to-hip ratio, and blood pressure. In fact, according to the New England Journal of Medicine, body fat reduction is a more powerful modulator of cardiac structure than drug therapy. For people with a family history of heart disease, an active lifestyle can slow or stop the process for all but those with serious genetic disorders. Studies by Dean Ornish, MD, have shown that a comprehensive intervention program that includes regular physical activity, a low-fat diet and a stress reduction program can even reverse the heart disease process.

Evidence also shows that an active lifestyle and its help in reducing body fat is associated with a reduced risk for some types of cancers: prostate for men, breast and uterine cancers for women.

In addition, regular physical activity and a low-fat diet are successful in treating non-insulin dependent diabetes (NIDDM); for some patients, it has reduced or eliminated the need for insulin substitutes. In general, regularly active adults have 42 percent lower risk of developing NIDDM.

Gaining Weight Happens to Most of Us

The average American gains at least one pound a year after age 25. Think about it. If you're like most Americans, by the time you're 50, you're likely to gain 25 pounds of fat, or more. In addition, your metabolism is also slowing down, causing your body to work less efficiently at burning the fat it has. At the same time, if you don't exercise regularly, you lose a pound of muscle each year. Consequently, people are not only increasing their body fat stores, increasing their risk of disease, but they're also losing muscle, increasing the risk of injury, decreasing activity performance, and further slowing down metabolism.

Very few Americans exercise in any significant way. The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports estimates that only one in five Americans exercises for the healthy minimum of 20 minutes, three or more days a week. In fact, the average American gets less than 50 minutes of exercise per week. Even worse, two out of five Americans are completely sedentary.

The Answer: Healthy Eating and Physical Fitness

But there is hope. Moderate weight loss - of fat, not muscle - and a healthy and active lifestyle - not dieting - have been found to lower health risks and medical problems in 90 percent of overweight patients, improving their heart function, blood pressure, glucose tolerance, sleep disorders, and cholesterol levels, as well as lowering their requirements for medication, lowering the incidence and duration of hospitalization, and reducing post-operative complications eight times less likely to die from cancer than the unfit, and 53 percent less likely to die from other diseases. Fit people are also eight times less likely to die from heart disease.

So, are you willing to be patient and make gradual changes in your life that will lead to a healthier, happier you? Once you have made the decision to go forward and accept change, the hard part is over. Sure, there is plenty of work to be done, but it really doesn't matter how long this new process takes. If you allow changes to take place over several years, your body will adjust comfortably, and you will be more likely to maintain the healthy lifestyle permanently.

When you begin achieving improvements in energy and physical and psychological performance, the fun and excitement you experience will make the change well worth the effort. Action creates motivation! Good luck: I hope you enjoy all the wonderful benefits of a safe and effective weight management program. 

* Be sure to check with your health care professional before making any changes in your activity or eating habits.

Chad Tackett, the President of Global Health and Fitness (GHF), has degrees in Exercise and Heath Science and Nutrition, is a Certified Personal Trainer, and is a regular guest lecturer to both professional and lay audiences on the principles of effective exercise and good nutrition. Visit GHF (http://www.global-fitness.com) and you'll find easy to follow fitness recommendations, hundreds of exercise instructions and video demonstrations, customized programs, healthy recipes and meal plans, a free nutrition analysis, health club and personal trainer directories, and much more! 

* This information is published for educational purposes only and is not meant to diagnose, treat or cure a disease.

Missed the Train?

 Santa Fe Railway train at the turn of the 20th century

If we miss our train, it makes no sense to keep kicking ourselves for missing it as it moves further away from the station. We simply have to make arrangements to catch another. The train is long gone and there is nothing we can do about it now. It is over and done with. The same applies to many other things. We perhaps carry around regrets, rue about mistakes, tote grudges like heavy suitcases. But to what end? We should learn from these situations and move on. Things are over and done with. The old train has passed and a new one is on the way. Live for today’s train. - Roshi Hogan

Image source here