Your Ticket to Raw Foods

Your Ticket to Raw Foods!

            So with all these diet trends out there you hear some pretty crazy things. Like the maple syrup, cayenne pepper and lemon juice cleanse. I don’t recommend that one. But one trend that is really taking off is the Raw Foods diet.

The idea of the diet is to basically eat raw plant foods rather than cooked or processed foods. This way you keep in all of the foods nutriants. This sounds all well and good, but what is really involved in pulling this off?

First, the Raw Foods diet is made up of 75% fruits and vegetables. A lot of the foods people on this diet eat are seaweed, sprouts, whole grains, beans, and nuts. Usually people who follow this Raw Food diet are vegans, meaning that they do not eat any animal products. However, if you decide to take of this diet, eating eggs, cheese and milk are perfectly acceptable…if its all raw or unpasteurized.

So do you just eat apples and carrots all day? Don’t worry there are plenty of recipes and websites out there on how to prepare foods for a raw diets. You can juice, dehydrate and much more.

The research is still out of whether this is the way to go. Scientist have noted that vegetarians and vegan do tend to have lower cholesterol and better glucose levels. And studies do show that eating raw can reduce risks for a number of cancers.

HOWEVER, there are several downsides. Studies have shown that people

who live a raw foods lifestyle have B12 deficiency which can lead to anemia and neurological impairment. B12 is essential for red blood cell growth and nerve development. And B12 is only found is animal products. This means if you go raw, you still need to be sure to eat meat, eggs, cheese, or milk. (I don’t recommend eating raw meat or eggs).

            There are plenty of benefit to at least a semi raw diet, but if you decide to go all the way raw you should follow these guidelines from the American Dietetic Association:

• Eat almost twice the iron as nonvegetarians. Good sources of iron are tofu, legumes, almonds and cashews.
• Eat at least eight servings a day of calcium-rich foods like bok choy, cabbage, soybeans, tempeh, and figs.
• Eat fortified breakfast cereals, nutritional yeast, and fortified soy milk for B12. Supplements are a good idea.
• Eat flaxseed and walnuts. Use canola, flaxseed, walnut, and soybean oil. These are all sources of omega-3 fatty acids. You may also want to take an omega-3 supplement.