Why Raw is Better Than Cooked.

(Part 1)

I’ve spent the last couple of months reading everything I can get my hands on about nutrition. As a nurse I have a pretty good background in understanding how the body works, and what we need. Most nutritionists are still following ‘Canada’s food Guide’ which closely resembles the recommended eating plan supported by the American government. (Do they call it a food pyramid?)

Well I don’t think there is a nutritional purist on the planet that would begin to accept what the government recommends that we eat for health!

Let me explain

Or better yet, allow a medical doctor with a passion for nutritional awareness explain.

On the blog Weighty Matters, in the post entitled Canada’s Food Guide to Unhealthy Eating Dr Freedhoff says

I believe that Canadians deserve a Food Guide that reflects medicine’s best understanding of the effect of diet on chronic disease prevention.

I also believe that Canadians deserve a Food Guide that will not make them gain weight if they follow it.

Here’s the guide.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OK so first off I don’t want to get into a huge analysis of the Food Guide. Suffice to say that Dairy is more and more being shown to NOT be a healthy choice, no one really needs 2-3 servings of meat a day, and the recommendation of 5-12 servings of grains a day is shocking. You could eat white rice, canned peaches in syrup, processed cheese and peanut butter every day and be with in the parameters laid out in Canada’s food guide! Can you think of ANYONE who would need 12 cups of white rice a day?? (When the bovine industry starts promoting the food guide with ads like The Canadian Government says "Put Pork on your Fork", sensible people KNOW we’ve got an ISSUE!

OK so really…. this is supposed to be about raw. The diet being recommended by what I consider REAL nutritionists… people who study nutrition and apply it to their own bodies daily… these people recommend a diet of AT LEAST 80% fresh, locally grown, raw, organic fruits and vegetables.

Real extremists (The Raw Foodist Community) will not EVER eat ANYTHING cooked! Nothing heated at a temperature over 110 degrees. There’s are sone  very specific reasons for that.

Let’s go to famous Raw Foodie Alissa Cohen for the answer to

What is Raw & Living Food?

Raw and Living foods are uncooked, fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and sprouted grains. These raw foods can be eaten whole or combined to make the healthiest, most delicious meals.

Sound boring? NO Way!!! Imagine eating burgers, pizza, pasta, cookies, cakes and pies everyday. Imagine never having to count calories, proteins, fats or carbs! You won’t have to weigh or measure your food. The raw and living food diet is about eating whatever you want, whenever you want! You can lose weight, heal your body, increase your energy, look and feel younger, not in years, not in months but within days!

Now I will admit to being concerned about food variety, but truthfully I do not need a particularly exciting diet to live. I just grab and eat mostly without tasting anyway. That may not be the same relationship everyone has with their food. So Alissa has a recipe book (oh I almost said CookBook LOL) that has yummy looking raw/live food choices such as the amazing looking pizza there.

The best reason I have seen in favor of raw living foods are the enzymes. I mean, never mind that absolutely nothing can compare in flavor to a vine ripened tomato picked from your patio garden, or a crisp Cortland Apple plucked from the tree after the first fall frost. Never mind that you are getting whole nutrients, and plenty of fiber, or that you house fills with the fresh summer aroma of field strawberries brought in by the quart, fresh from the u-pick or farmer’s market. Living foods have enzymes that are beneficial to your body’s health and vitality.

Here are some FAQ’s from Living-Foods.com

 

Raw and Living Foods are foods that contain enzymes. In general, the act of heating  food over 116  degrees F destroys enzymes in food. (Enzymes start to degrade in as little as 106 degrees F).  All cooked food is devoid of enzymes, furthermore cooking food changes the molecular structure of the food and renders it toxic.  Living and raw foods also have enormously higher nutrient values than the foods that have been cooked.

 

What are Enzymes?
Enzymes assist in the digestion of foods.  They are known to be the "Life-Force" and or "energy" of food.

 

From the dictionary:
Noun: Any of the various complex organic substances, as pepsin originating from living cells and capable of producing certain chemical changes in organic substances by catalytic action, as in digestion.

 

Why are Enzymes Important?
Enzymes are important because they assist in the digestion and absorption of food.   If you eat food that is enzyme-less, your body will not get maximum utilization of the food. This causes toxicity in the body.   (Can you guess why over 75% of Americans are overweight?)

 

Doesn’t the acidic ph of the stomach destoy enzymes?
Viktorus Kulvinskas, one of the world’s foremost and most experienced active researchers into enzyme nutrition has information showing then stomach acid merely deactivates food enzymes.  The enzymes are then reactivated in the more alkaline small intestine.  Many people who eat all raw foods, sense a world of healthful difference in our energy, digestion and connectedness with nature by eating enzyme-rich living foods. When we stopped eating cooked protein foods which require large secretions of stomach acid (which is not healthful for several reasons) our stomach doesn’t produce much stomach acid.  Many people who eat  raw foods eat a low protein diet and are free from the stomach acid secretions and have much more energy and a lighter disposition.

 

Is there a difference between living foods and raw foods?
Living and Raw foods both contain enzymes. In living foods, the enzyme
content is much higher. Raw, unsprouted nuts contain enzymes in a "dormant"
state. To activate the enzymes contained in almonds, for example, soak them
in water for as just 24 hours. Once the almonds begin to sprout, the enzymes become "active" and are then considered living. In the context of this web site,
the terms are used loosely.

 

Why eat only Organic Foods?
When juicing or eating foods, it is very important to choose to consume only organically grown produce. "Conventional" or "industrial" produce are grown with pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers, and other chemicals that are toxic and/or harmful to your body. Organic foods are grown without the use of these harmful substances, taste better, and are more nutritious.

Do I need to eat all organic to be raw?
No, you do not NEED to eat all organic to be raw.   I personally reccomend eating as much organic food as possible.  It has been shown that organic produce contains less pesticide and other toxic residues.  In addition, it has been shown that organic food may taste better and contain more nutrition.  I believe its better to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables in most any case.

There is often a concern expressed by meat eaters that vegan, raw-foodists will not get adequate protein. The truth is that there are amino acid complexes in live and raw fruits and vegetables, and eating enough and a wide array of organic living foods will provide you with enough protein. If you are concerned about protein though, you can certainly find a number of vegan protein sources including soy, sprouts, nuts, and if you really must… shake mixes. (I must! LOL)

You will find me talking a lot about raw, and the need to move towards an 80% raw diet. The more I know the more this makes sense. If you think about our body physiology, and our hunter/gatherer ancestors, as a race we survived mostly on fruits, seeds, nuts, and grass. Hunting for meat didn’t come until later. So back to our roots I say.

Again, don’t get me wrong, totally vegan may be an impossible goal for most of us, but to make raw food choices over cooked whenever possible is likely going to be easier than you think, especially if you plan ahead (i.e. BEFORE you go to the grocery store). I do want to make mention of one thing…. I have almost completely removed myself from processed foods when it comes to meals. For the most part, I cook from fresh ingredients whenever possible. I think we ALL need to start preparing meals from real foods. I swear our hips are made up of those gross swanson tv dinners, and big macs that came in styrofoam containers!

So now I want to leave you with this wonderful video…. (I haven’t eaten at McDonald’s since I saw this early this winter!

 

 

 

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Tags: 4 year old McDonald's Hamburger, Canada's Food Guide, enzymes, fruits, living, nutrition, raw, vegetables