The Natural Diet Primer
by Don Bennett, DAS
The "raw food diet", sometimes referred to as a "living foods diet", has many proponents around the world. This way of eating appeals to those who want to be as healthy as possible.
Organic, natural plant foods make up this diet. Some advocate 100 percent raw foods, others say a high percentage of raw foods in your diet, while not the optimum, is still beneficial (any cooked food that is consumed is plant-based).
Cooking food does the following:
Proteins coagulate and are denatured damaging essential amino acids
Carbohydrates caramelize
Overly heated fats generate numerous carcinogens including acrolein, nitrosamines, hydrocarbons, and benzopyrene (one of the most potent cancer-causing agents known)
Natural fibers break down, and they lose their ability to sweep the alimentary canal clean
Vitamins and minerals are destroyed, some 100%
100% of enzymes are damaged causing the body to direct its enzyme production to digestion, diverting enzymes needed for tissue and organ system maintain and repair
Any pesticides on the food are restructured into even more toxic compounds
Free radicals are produced
Pathogens creates by cooking burden the immune system
Cooking causes inorganic mineral elements to enter the blood and circulate through the body which settle in the arteries and veins causing them to lose their pliability
Chemicals from cooked food causes tumor: Nitrosamines are created from fish, poultry or meat cooked in gas ovens and barbecues, as nitrogen oxides within gas flames interact with fat residues; Hetrocyclic amines form from heating proteins
Mucoid plaque in the intestines is caused by uneliminated, partially digested, putrefying cooked fatty and starch foods eaten in association with protein flesh foods
Cooked animal foods contain hormones (both natural and synthetic), antibiotics, toxins, and pesticide concentrations higher than that of non-organically grown plant foods.
Here is a breakdown of how the diet differs among its proponents
"Living food" proponents advocate the consumption of sprouted seeds, nuts, and beans, fermented foods and beverages and wheatgrass juice as the most healthful foods one can eat. They round out the diet with other raw fruits and vegetables, and advocate regular colon cleansings. Some say this diet is for healing only, others advocate it as a lifestyle.
Comments: Some maintain, myself included, that fermented foods and wheatgrass juice should not be part of a regular diet. Some go further to say that wheatgrass juice is not a "healing food", and that only the body is capable of healing - there is no such thing as "healing foods". Wheatgrass juice can evoke feelings of nausea, and hives and adrenal gland damage can result if enough is ingested.
"Natural Hygiene" is the science of health, and its advocates are called, "Natural Hygienists". They follow a raw food diet but believe regular colon cleansing is unnecessary, and can be detrimental. There are two main schools of thought among natural hygienists. Members of Healthful Living International maintains that all cooked food is harmful, and abstain from eating grains. They believe that green leafy vegetables should be consumed in addition to fruits. Followers of the American Natural Hygiene Society accept the consumption of "enough steamed vegetables, potatoes, grains, and legumes to maintain healthy weight and energy levels".
Comments: A healthy weight and energy levels can be maintained on a fruit and vegetable diet. Some people make the mistake of eating far more vegetables than fruit and therefor may not get enough calories to maintain weight. Enough fatty foods must also be consumed.
Fruitarians believe in the consumption of only raw fruit and seeds. It should be noted that a fruit is anything with a seed or seeds. Many Fruitarians understand the importance of, and consume green leafy vegetables. The Fruitarian Foundation
The Fruitarian Worldwide Network
Comments: While a healthy diet can consist of a large percentage of fruits, some green leafy vegetables like romaine lettuce should be included. And eating a diet of only sweet fruits or only citrus fruits does not constitute a healthy diet. Non-sweet "vegetable fruits" like cucumbers, bell peppers and tomatoes should also be included. Variety is key.
