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Eating Food Raw
On the raw food diet, you should eat foods in
their uncooked state - in other words, you are eating food raw. Raw
foodists avoid cooking, freezing, and anything involving chemical
preservatives. Some raw foodists refuse to use juicers, blenders, or
food processors, believing that food should be eaten in its natural
state. Most raw foodists will use kitchen appliances such as a
juicer that do not change the chemical makeup of the food. Some raw
foodists will not do anything more than cut their foods, believing
they should eat food in its most natural state. You need to decide
for yourself where on the spectrum you are.
Some examples of foods you might eat include: fruits, vegetables,
nuts, sprouts, seeds, and different types of seaweed. These foods
contain a wide variety of vitamins and minerals, and with care, it
is possible to get all of the essential amino acids (amino acids are
what make up proteins). It may be necessary to take a nutritional
supplement in order to be sure to get all the essential nutrients.
You need to make sure you get at least 2000 calories a day from your
food and drinks, just for basic energy needs. If you eat less than
900 calories in a day, your body will go into starvation mode, which
is not an efficient way to lose weight. Your body will want to hold
onto its energy stores, as well as protect your brain (which is
mostly made up of fat), by breaking down muscle tissues instead of
fat tissues. These numbers vary from person to person depending on
weight, but it is important to aim for about 2000 calories per day.
What people drink on a raw food diet:
On a raw food diet, drinks should also be raw. Raw foodists will
drink purified water, freshly made juices straight from the juicer,
and coconut milk. Coconut milk comes from young coconuts, which you
can often buy during the right season at a produce stand. Soda,
juice, and other drinks purchased in stores have often been
processed in some way, and thus are not raw.
Juice made from the juicer can be made from a variety of fruits or
vegetables, such as apples, carrots, lemons, and mangos. You can
experiment with your own combination, or pick up a book on juicing.
Be sure to clean the juicer very well in between, or it will quickly
become an unpleasant mess.
Tea leaves from stores have often been dried at high temperatures,
and so are not considered raw. Tea leaves can be made at home by
growing your own herbs and laying them in the sun to dry. The tea
made with these leaves is often called Sun Tea. Do not immediately
follow this by putting your new tea leaves in boiling water, as that
would not be considered raw by some. Use warm water that is below
100 degrees, and you should be fine. Mint leaves can make nice teas
if you are thinking about growing your own, or experiment with
different herbs. Some honey can be an easy addition if you like your
drinks to be sweet, or add a lemon for extra flavor.
We Recommend:
The Raw Secrets
The most complete book on living on an optimal raw food diet for
better health.
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