Twenty Tips For Healthy Raw Eating – Part 1
Last week saw the end of the recent Raw Emotions Study Group, after 14 weeks of weekly readings and discussions together. I personally really enjoyed the process – thanks SO much to all of you who participated 
(The next upcoming Raw Emotions course is with the Academy for Optimal Living – read on below…)
One of the very last sections that we read in the Study Group struck me as smthg potentially very useful to share here with y’all. It is an appendix of the book called “Twenty Tips For Healthy Raw Eating” and my intention is to share the first ten tips on the list this week, followed by the second half next week (N.B. the tips are in NO particular order) – enjoy
There are many ways to eat raw and the following is merely a simple set of guidelines that you may find useful. It is always wise to experiment for yourself and see what feels good to you. There are plenty of other resources out there to tap into for more information on these matters. For example, Matt Monarch’s book Raw Success gives an excellent overview on how eating raw affects the phys!cal body.
*Don’t Eat Anything That Doesn’t Rot
Processed foods, made with all kinds of preservatives and chemicals to prolong their ‘shelf life’, may take many years to break down, if ever. See shocking evidence of this on YouTube.com, where the ‘Bionic Burger’ video shows anscreen shot 2011-09-12 at 9.40.42 am.png intact collecti0n of fast-food burgers dating back to 1989. These ‘foods’ haven’t rotted, e ven after years. Imagine what things like this do inside your body.
*Choose Gluten-Free Foods
Wheat, rye, barley and oats – as well as spelt, couscous and kamut, to a lesser degree – all contain gluten. The protein gluten is a common food allergen; it clogs you up, slows digestion and is an intestinal irritant. Wheat flour mixed with water becomes glue paste – do you want to eat that…? Healthy alternatives include amaranth, buckwheat, corn/maize, rice, quinoa and millet, if you eat grains at all.
*Animal Products
It’s not necessary to be vegan to benefit from being raw. People can feel healthy on animal products, provided they’re raw – it’s cooked/pasteurised animal foods that really cause a lot of damage. Eating cooked meat is like eating leather; it’s very dense to digest. Pasteurised dairy is highly mucus-forming, acidifying and mineral-leaching. All ‘ethics’ aside, it’s the life force of raw animal foods that can nourish people.
*Eat Whole Foods
Processed starches, refined sugars, trans-fats (manufactured, partially hydrogenated fats with long shelf lives, e.g. margarine) and so on cannot be easily recognised or used by the body. Aim for whole foods straight from the Earth instead (cooked if you like). Many vegetarians/vegans don’t look so healthy, as they replace animal products with processed foods like pastas, bread etc. Remember: ‘The middle aisles will kill you’!
*Vegetable Juice
Drink veggie juice daily for optimal health. Use a range of vegetables, especially leafy greens. Veggie juice helps our body become more alkaline and offers incredibly fresh, highly absorbable nutrients. See Norman Walker’s Fresh Vegetable and Fruit Juices book for more info. Drink at least one green veggie drink daily – preferably fresh juice – maybe a green smoothie, or even just green powder in water/coconut water.
*Mineral-Dense Foods
Most people are chronically demineralised, a resu1t of both poor food choices and topsoil erosion. To balance out, consume lots of foods like seaweeds, seeds and nuts, chia, maca, dark green leafy vegetables, green powders, sprouts/greens grown with ocean water solution, etc. You can also supplement minerals if a blo0d/hair analysis shows a deficiency – take the angstrom or colloidal forms.
*Sprouts and Seaweeds
These are two major health keys for a modern raw foodist. Sprouts are packed with enzymes, are very easy and cheap to grow and give year-round fresh nourishment, anywhere. Seaweeds contain all the ocean minerals, including plenty of iodine, helping balance low thyroid activity. Nori and dulse are popular; I also love Sea Spaghetti and wakame. We sell many seaweed products in the RawReform Store.
*At Least 50% Raw
If at least half of what you eat is fresh raw food, you’ll be on a healing path. That’s 50% by the weight of the food and not the volume. (A salad weighs much less than pasta with meatballs, though they may cover half a plate each.) Of the raw foods you consume, also aim for at least 50% of those to be fresh/living raw foods, rather than dehydrated/packaged products.
*Food Combining
For digest!ve ease, eat simple combinations. Wild animals usually eat mono-meals. If we use five ingredients or fewer in meals, it’s easier to digest. This can be refined over time. A few basic ideas: don’t eat nuts and seeds, avocadoes, etc. (fats) with your fruits (sugars), or starchy veggies (e.g. yams) with either. Green leafy veggies combine well with everything. Keep melons separate from all other food.
*Blending
Some people find raw foods hard to digest; they may have weak stomach acid or not be used to much fibre. Sweet or savoury ‘pre-digested’ blended meals help, by breaking fibre down, making nutrient access easier. Few people chew well; blending food is like having the blender chew for you. Be sure to still chew smoothies in your mouth, though. Drinking celery juice daily is also great for raising up stomach acid.
If you don’t yet have your own copy of Raw Emotions, you can get either an e-book or printed book version HERE – http://www.therawfoodworld.com/index.php?main_page=advanced_search_result&search_in_description=0&keyword=raw+emotions&x=34&y=16
