Raw food diet - the path to health or life from hand to mouth? Where to start with a raw food diet? A system for effective transition to a raw food diet.

A raw food diet is a special form of vegetarianism, but more strict and rigid. Raw foodists eat only dairy and plant products without any treatment with fire or steam. They believe that this method of nutrition allows the absorption of substances in their original form, since under the influence of heat treatment and contact with the surface of the dishes, the energy value of the products decreases, and some of the beneficial substances are destroyed.

Raw foodists make an exception only for bread made primarily from whole grains and without yeast. Of the liquids, only simple unboiled or mineral water is allowed. The concept of a raw food diet is based on the fact that raw plant food directly transfers to a person the solar energy stored by the plant during its growth.

For raw foodists, fire is a destructive principle, and food prepared with its help is biologically inferior. There are a number of directions in the raw food diet: some recommend eating raw grains, others - fruits, others - nuts or raw plant products. An extreme manifestation of a raw food diet is feeding on herbs and plant tops.

If we talk about classical and gentle forms, when any raw products of plant origin are allowed, as well as some dairy products, then, strictly speaking, this is no longer quite a raw food diet. Unless, of course, you live in a village and don’t drink new milk. After all, absolutely all dairy products sold in stores have already been subjected to heat treatment to one degree or another and many of them contain artificial chemical substances(for example, preservatives), which fans of this nutrition theory do not accept.

The same can be said about dried fruits that are sold in the store (they are certainly not dried by the sun!), or nuts, which are often toasted. So a raw foodist who lives in modern city and buys food in the store, this is no longer a completely raw foodist!

Rules for a safe raw food diet

The transition from a regular diet to a raw food diet should be careful and gradual so that the body can get used to it. A sudden transition from your usual diet to a completely new diet is extremely dangerous for your health.

Doctors believe that it is better to become vegetarians and raw foodists after 30 years.

It is relatively easy for those who have already weaned themselves from meat and consume few animal products to immediately switch to a dairy-vegetarian diet. If you are used to eating meat or fish every day, this transition will be extremely painful for you. Nutritionists do not recommend abruptly giving up your usual food. This is not only difficult psychologically, but also causes great stress for the entire body.

It is better not to deny yourself the desire to eat anything from your previous diet in the first days and weeks. As the body adapts to the new diet, such cases will appear less and less often. However, there are things that need to be excluded already at this stage: confectionery products, extracts (for example, meat broth), flour soups and pasta.

There are several more rules for newly minted raw foodists. However, it is advisable to adhere to them with any other nutrition system.

• When switching to a raw food diet, at first you should eat less, since moderation in food facilitates digestion and adjusts the body to accept raw food.
• It is necessary to chew food thoroughly - otherwise it simply will not be absorbed.
• In addition, you need to eat only when natural physiological hunger appears.
• You should not drink immediately before or immediately after meals.
• The temperature of food should be at room temperature at all times: you cannot eat food that has just been taken out of the refrigerator or brought in from the cold.
• Cooked raw foods (salads) should not be stored for a long time.
• Fruits and nuts should be eaten before lunch, not after lunch. Then they are better absorbed.
• Raw water must be clean, standing for several hours, filtered. It is better to use mineral or bottled drinking water.

The benefits of a raw food diet

Numerous studies show that people who consume plenty of fruits and vegetables are less likely to develop cancer and heart disease. Fresh, uncooked vegetables and fruits have the best effect on the body. Thus, during cooking, 30-50% of all useful substances that determine the specific pungent taste of cruciferous vegetables are destroyed: mustard, cabbage, watercress and horseradish. These substances not only create a special, incomparable taste sensation, but also protect vegetable lovers from cancer.

The same can be said about natural coloring compounds - carotenoids, found in yellow-red vegetables and fruits and dark leafy vegetables. Carotenoids prevent chronic diseases, stimulate the body's defenses, and prevent the development of tumors.

Some of these substances are destroyed during cleaning and cooking. Biologically active substances contained in celery, cabbage, and cherries are especially sensitive to heat treatment. Garlic also loses most of its healing properties when cooked. This is, first of all, an essential oil with a strong bactericidal effect, killing pathogenic bacteria and fungi and improving blood circulation.

The undoubted advantages include the fact that a raw food diet is an excellent preventive cleansing of the body (not as powerful as fasting, but not as short-term either). Raw food diet is the best remedy against intestinal sluggishness, constipation and hemorrhoids due to increased dietary fiber content.

It is useful for patients with kidney diseases and for facilitating water metabolism. Treatment with a raw food diet gives good results for gout, freeing the body from uric acid. It is useful for atherosclerosis, skin diseases, rheumatism, etc. The use of a raw food diet for hypertension can improve health by sharply limiting intake table salt with food.

A positive aspect of a raw food diet is faster satiety when eating raw foods compared to heat-treated ones. Unprocessed food fills the entire volume of the stomach faster. This makes it possible to use a raw food diet for weight loss. It must be remembered that some products have high energy value(eg dates, nuts, raisins, melons).

By the way, for obesity, treatment with raw food gives even better results than fasting! In addition, raw vegetables and fruits are more beneficial for teeth than mushy soft foods. This also helps strengthen the gums. Contrary to the belief of many, fans of raw food do not deprive themselves of proteins if the diet is prepared correctly. Largest quantity proteins contain nuts, legumes (lentils, beans, peas and soybeans), spinach, cauliflower, kohlrabi and wheat.

The harm of a raw food diet

For some diseases (gastritis, colitis, etc.), raw fruits and vegetables can cause discomfort or exacerbations.

It is believed that beneficial substances located inside cells are absorbed worse, since the dense cell membrane does not always break down and release these substances during the digestion process. Thus, carrot carotene (provitamin A) is tightly blocked by difficult-to-digest cellulose.

Gastric juice can absorb these organic matter only if the carrots are chopped or heat-treated. True, even in this case, fat is needed to absorb the beneficial substances of carrots. Otherwise, fat-soluble substances are not absorbed during any processing.

The loud thesis of raw food lovers is “The more natural, the healthier!” - doesn't always work. During evolution, different groups of plants have developed one or another survival strategy, and some of them accumulate toxic substances as a protective device. For example, legumes are a staple food for millions of people due to their high protein content.

However, they also contain toxic substances that are completely destroyed during the cooking process. Wheat and other grains contain substances of little use that are removed only by heat treatment. Oxalic acid, which is found in spinach, rhubarb, sorrel and chard, is also harmful in large quantities. It sets the teeth on edge and disrupts the body’s normal absorption of essential minerals.

With an excess of oxalic acid, beneficial proteins and calcium, so necessary for strengthening bones, are not absorbed by the body. Raw vegetables containing oxalic acid are contraindicated for elderly people and children, as well as those who suffer from kidney stones. Our great-great-grandmothers knew that the leaves and stems of sorrel must be scalded or boiled.

The raw food diet also has age restrictions:

• raw food diet should not be used in children;
• It is not recommended for very elderly people.

The raw food diet, a fashionable way of eating today, preaches the idea that food becomes dead when it is processed at high temperatures.

This means that raw foodists are the only category of people who fully enrich their body with useful substances by eating properly, in accordance with human nature.

Raw Food Diet Basics for Beginners

In traditional cooking, there are many ways to prepare food without using heat treatment by boiling, frying or baking. Since ancient times, the preparation of fruits, berries and mushrooms for the winter was carried out by pickling, pickling, and drying. Dried fish, salted lard, balyk, sauerkraut and cucumbers are popular foods ordinary person, which omnivorous raw foodists will not disdain. A raw food diet can also be vegetarian; G. Carringston was the first to scientifically prove the benefits of eating exclusively raw agricultural products.

Raw food diet - products

Raw food diet is a special way of eating in which the following foods are consumed:

• NOT boiled.
• NOT fried.
• NOT smoked.
• NOT baked.

At the same time, cold heat treatment is allowed, dried, dried and other methods of non-hot cooking are also allowed.

You can eat:

• raw fruits and vegetables;
• dried fruits, nuts, seeds and grains;
• other products, depending on the form of raw food diet.

There is an opinion that a raw food diet is one of the strict forms of vegetarianism. This is an erroneous judgment, because there are different forms of raw food diet.

Stages of raw food diet

There are different stages (forms) of raw food diet:

• Omnivore. A wide range of foods is acceptable on an omnivorous form of raw food diet. The diet consists of vegetables and fruits. You can eat meat, fish, milk, eggs and seafood. Among the cooking methods, drying is appropriate.
• Vegetarian. In addition to vegetables and fruits, raw food vegetarians can afford to drink eggs and milk, yogurt and other dairy products, the preparation of which does not require heat treatment. Meat and fish cannot be eaten.
• Vegan. Vegans are people who eat absolutely nothing related to the animal world. You can't have milk - a calf could drink it. You can't have an egg - a chicken could hatch from every egg you drink. Meat and fish are the flesh of living creatures just like us. You can't eat them either.
• Carnivorous. This form, on the contrary, recreates the way cavemen fed. The basis of a carnivorous raw food diet is animal products, especially meat, fish and seafood. At the same time, vegetables are allowed, but are not predominant in the diet. This form of raw food diet has its place, but is not as popular as the vegetarian one.

• Fruitarian. Raw foodists who practice this form of nutrition do not even eat vegetables, not to mention animal products. Raw fruits are the basis and only component of their diet.

Raw food diet: where to start?

Waking up with the decision to become a raw foodist and suddenly switching to a special diet is shock therapy for the body, which can have unpleasant consequences. Before switching to a raw food diet, ask yourself: “Why do I need this?” Answer options:

1. For company with a friend/boyfriend, so that there are more common topics.
2. Many people say it's great.
3. Raw food diet is trending.
4. I don’t understand why cook food, because you can not cook at all, but eat everything raw.
5. I need a raw food diet - that’s what my body wants.

All answers except the last one indicate the wrong approach. Give up the idea of ​​becoming a raw foodist - it’s not your thing. And even if the answer “5” fully reflects your thoughts and state of mind, you should weigh the pros and cons many times. The transition to a raw food diet should not be carried out independently without a medical certificate: not every person is able to survive the transition to a raw food diet and this lifestyle.

Contraindications to switching to a raw food diet

You can't be a raw foodist:

1. People who want to become parents in the near or distant future. A raw food diet will not provide adequate nutrition to the reproductive cells, which can lead to infertility.
2. Pregnant women and nursing mothers whose milk reflects what they eat. The baby should receive all possible beneficial substances from milk, and the mother should help him with this.
3. Children and adolescents are growing organisms whose nutrition must be balanced. Raw food diet causes developmental delays, endocrine system disruptions and energy depletion.
4. Old people. The metabolism of older people is slow, so it will be difficult for their body to synthesize useful substances from exclusively raw foods.
5. Patients with stomach problems (gastritis, colitis, whose digestion of food is difficult).
6. Patients with tuberculosis, whose body should receive the maximum amount of useful and healthy food, especially protein-containing products: meat, fish, seafood, milk.

A raw food diet is recommended for people over 40 who have high arterial pressure, overweight or gout. They are prescribed a special short-term raw food diet.

How to switch to a raw food diet from a regular diet?

• Becoming a raw foodist for a long time is a serious choice for which the body needs to be prepared. For a very long time and smoothly – at least one year – the average person’s body must switch to a raw food diet. The body will need this time to completely adapt to eating from a new source of energy - raw food. The most difficult period for a raw foodist is the first winter, so try to start preparing for a raw food diet in the spring, and start a new way of eating next summer, when a raw food diet will be a pleasant pleasure due to the abundance of vegetables and fruits.
• Gradually, smoked meats, meat and fish products, canned food and semi-finished products need to be removed from the daily menu. Afterwards, you should limit yourself to flour and sweets, tea, coffee, alcohol, gradually removing these products from your diet.
• Drink a lot of water. 2 liters is the minimum volume of liquid allowed when switching to a raw food diet. Do not overeat on fruits and vegetables containing fiber - the microflora of the gastrointestinal tract must be gradually accustomed to eating raw vegetables and fruits.
• Instead of the usual cereals, you can eat cereals and nuts, soaking them overnight in water. For example, oatmeal - left for 8 hours in water, in the company of dried fruits - is a completely decent raw foodist breakfast, not much different from everyday food. Fruit and vegetable salads– what is not tasty, familiar and healthy food from the point of view of a raw food diet? A lot of raw foodist dishes arouse the interest of the average person.

When eating a raw food diet, it is important to remember that the body, in addition to the vitamin-mineral complex, must receive sufficient, balanced amounts of proteins and carbohydrates. Meals per day can be from 2 to 6, depending on the individual needs of the body and the energy value of the products.

Switching to a raw food diet - possible consequences

There is no scientific or public consensus on the raw food diet. On the one hand, this is a natural (not distorted by civilization) way of feeding a person as a biological unit, which treats many diseases and helps improve the figure. On the other hand, it is a debilitating abuse of the body that can cause health problems.

Is a raw food diet healthy? Is it harmful? You should understand the experience of practicing raw foodists and medical experts.

The benefits of a raw food diet

People call for a raw food diet for two reasons: it is natural and it is healthy. It is natural for a person to eat a raw food diet, but not everyone is ready to decide on such a way of eating, losing in many ways compared to a raw foodist.

• Raw food treatment. People often become raw foodists, having once switched to a similar diet in the fight against diseases of the cardiovascular, respiratory, nervous or digestive systems. Taras Gavur, a practicing raw foodist from Kyiv, switched to a similar diet for at least five years. The impetus for this was problems with the gastrointestinal tract. He was bothered by sharp pains radiating to his spine. On the recommendation of doctors, he paid attention to his diet and completely abandoned fried foods, and within five years he became a raw foodist. Reason for choosing a diet young man became his wife. The girl got rid of asthma by practicing a raw food diet.

• Human battery charge. Raw foodists admit that they have an abundance energy resources. They are ready not only to work actively, but are also able to anticipate certain life events. According to Artem Voloshchuk, a cook at a specific cafe for creative vegetarians, the feeling of a surge of energy does not evaporate even after a hard day at work. According to statistics, raw foodists sleep less than the average person by 2-4 hours a day. A short six (or less) hours are enough to completely restore human biological resources. A raw foodist is full of energy and ready to work after a deep, quiet short sleep. A raw food diet refreshes the mind, that is, it makes the nervous system work more intensely and productively: thoughts are clear, the mind is enlightened and ready to make the right decisions.
• Raw food diet for weight loss. The transition to a raw food diet causes a sharp weight loss due to a decrease in the amount of energy-rich foods available. Raw foodists cannot eat bread; they can eat porridge only if they are infused in cold water, meat and fish - only raw or dried (which not everyone can eat). Thus, very few high-calorie foods remain in the diet, which leads to the use of reserve resources (accumulated fats) to obtain energy for the day. For this reason, a raw food diet is sometimes prescribed for medicinal purposes as a temporary type of nutrition - a diet. A constant raw food diet can become a habit for the body, which subsequently leads to weight regain.

The harm of a raw food diet

The picture of the raw food lifestyle would be more rosy if it did not cause health problems. Opponents of a raw food diet warn of irreversible negative consequences this method of nutrition.

Raw food diet - the results of an experiment by a novice raw foodist

• Avitaminosis. The period of transition to a special diet of raw foods is the most vulnerable to vitamin deficiency. An unbalanced diet causes insufficient intake of the vitamin and mineral complex into the body. The first symptoms of this are a feeling of numbness in the arms and legs, and a weak ability of the body to heal wounds. Raw foodist Yuri Volkov shares his impressions of a 3-month painful transition to a raw diet. Abdominal pain, constant loss of strength and weakness, aggravated allergic reactions - all this the person suffered during the crisis transition period.
• Poisoning. If the combination of raw foods is incorrect, the food may not be digested at all. Try to follow the rules of nutrition so that everything is in order with digestion. The second cause of poisoning is substances and microorganisms found in products. Meat or fish may contain worm larvae; raw legumes themselves can produce toxic substances in the stomach. A plant protein found in many foods that can cause allergic reactions.
• Aggression . The transition period to a raw food diet can result in a lack of multivitamins of group B. This is a consequence of a vegetarian or vegan raw food diet, in which meat and other animal products are not eaten. B-vitamins are responsible for the ability to control oneself - mental calm. Imbalance among raw foodists often manifests itself in those people who lead the opposite lifestyle.

Raw food diet - reviews from practicing raw foodists

• Forced consistency. The diet of a raw foodist is very strict. You can't do this, you can't do that. What if someone sees it? My conscience will torture me! This is especially true for those who are surrounded by people practicing this lifestyle. Here plays a significant role public opinion. But it is important to remember that you became a raw foodist at the call of your body, and if at the call of the same body you want to deviate a little from the intended path, then you need it. You will come to your senses, admit it is a sin and return to a raw food diet. Voloshchuk Artem, a raw foodist whom we mentioned earlier, frankly says that it is everyone’s personal choice what he eats. And you are doing a raw food diet exclusively for yourself - you don’t care what others think. Even if you call yourself a raw foodist and adhere to a certain way of eating, no one has the right to reproach you for eating a roll of sushi or a piece of kebab. First of all, it is important to listen to your body, and not other people’s words.
• Expensive. This criterion hits not the body, but the wallet. For a city dweller shopping in a supermarket, purchasing a month of raw food diet costs the same as 2 or 3 purchases for 30 days of regular food. The exception is land owners who always have vegetables and fruits on hand - it is cheaper for them to eat a raw food diet than to spend money on meat. Eating in a restaurant for a raw foodist is an unaffordable luxury. It's not even a matter of prices, but the availability of establishments, of which there are very few even in the capital.

Raw food diet - menu

We found out how useful it is to be a raw foodist and how harmful it is to become one. All that remains is to try to cook something from the kitchen of a raw foodist to experience the taste of dishes prepared without hot heat treatment.

Raw food diet: menu schedule for the week

There is no strict raw food diet schedule. This is a way of life that takes several years to achieve and live constantly. Try not to forget about necessary receipt calories and vitamins into the body. For this purpose, you need to be able to correctly combine foods when eating a raw food diet. There are several rules for this:

1. Do not eat fat-containing foods (nuts, avocado, coconut) with sweet berries, dried fruits or fruits. A thoughtless combination of fat and sugar will result in fermentation in the stomach, minimizing the benefits of the foods eaten.
2. But sour fruits (orange) are an exception to the previous rule. Acid promotes the breakdown of fat, and such fruits contain less fructose than others.
3. In turn, sour foods (tomato, orange) should not be eaten with starchy foods (potatoes, banana). The carbohydrates that make up starch cannot be synthesized by saliva, which contains a lot of acid. It is better to avoid eating potatoes and tomatoes, and eat bananas with sweet fruits (mangoes, apples).
4. An abundance of fat can lead to digestive problems. Don't eat fatty foods with fatty foods - avoid combining any of the following foods (nuts, coconut, avocado, vegetable oil).
5. Eat everything with greens - they are ready to be combined with any other food.
6. Eat fruits, sweet with sweet, sour with sour.
7. Eat vegetables only with vegetables.
8. Sprouts of grains or legumes, nuts soaked in water should be eaten as independent dishes, not combined with anything else.

Knowing the simple basics of combining products, you can create your own recipes.

Raw food diet, recipes

The raw food diet is interesting because of its inventive varieties of dishes. If you use grinding kitchen appliances, you can prepare very tasty nutritious goodness.

Raw food diet - simple recipes for the first and second

• Borsch. Even such a dish can be eaten by raw foodists, but it is prepared somewhat differently than we imagine. We chop the carrots and beets partly on a grater, partly in a blender. Celery and greens - cut as convenient for us. Mix everything, add salt (not table salt), spices and water. The first dish is ready. Please note that just enough water is needed to turn the thick mixture from a blender and coarsely chopped products into a slightly liquid dish, but not into slop.
• As for the second courses, porridges of non-standard preparation predominate: cereals soaked in water, sprouted green sprouts of cereals and many other hearty foods. Vegetables, oils, and herbs are added to grains, turning them into worthy dishes that are pleasant to eat. For example, a salad of sprouted green buckwheat with cucumber, bell pepper and dill is varied, healthy and satisfying.

Raw food recipes for snacks

• Almond cheese. Almonds in a volume of 2 glasses are poured with a large amount of water and left for 8 hours. After this, the swollen nuts are ground in a food processor, adding mineral water little by little (no more than 2 glasses). Lemon juice, crushed garlic and other seasonings are added to the mixture for taste. Place gauze folded in 3 layers into a deep plate. They pour out the pulp, tie the gauze scroll with a rope and hang it up, just like cheese. The bundle can hang indoors or outdoors at a moderate air temperature of about 23 ° C.
• Champignon mushrooms, which can be eaten even raw, can be marinated with green onions in lemon juice, salt and oil. Within 2 hours the dish is ready.

Raw food diet - sweets for every day and on holidays

Desserts are often based on nuts, dried fruits, bananas and other delicious foods. They are crushed, dried with dehydrate, laid in layers, mixed or frozen. The result is wonderful sweets: cakes, rolls, ice cream and other desserts.

Rafaelki. For 300 g kernels walnut take 250 g of liquid honey, 3 tsp of lemon juice and 1 tsp. ground cinnamon(or nutmeg, ginger - as you like). Crush the nuts in a blender and mix with the rest of the ingredients. Roll in sesame seeds or coconut flakes. The result is an energy-rich dish that contains proteins and fats, which is important for maintaining the vital functions of the body.

Beverages

Prepare drinks by mixing vegetables or fruits in a blender. For example, pumpkin, beets and apples in equal proportions or celery and banana are very tasty combinations. It's easy to come up with your own drink recipe. If the juice or gruel turns out to be thick or concentrated, the mix is ​​diluted with water.

Fresh fruits and berries are very tasty and healthy.

Raw food diet: before and after

Becoming a raw foodist is a person’s personal choice. This is not to say that it is irreversible, but this is often what happens. A raw food diet is becoming not only a way of eating, but also a way of life.

The worst thing about a raw food diet is the transition to a way of eating that can destroy the body. Therefore, you need to change the menu very slowly and unobtrusively. Adaptation of the body should occur from 1 to 5 years so as not to cause complications.

When eating food in correct sequence and with the required energy value, a raw food diet will not turn you into a living skeleton. A raw food diet can maintain a person’s normal weight and enrich him with essential substances.

The choice is yours.

Raw food diet is a popular nutrition system today that does not leave anyone indifferent. Some consider the raw food diet to be a philosophical way of life, thanks to which you can lose weight, improve your health and prolong your life. Others do not share this optimism, believing that raw foodists are dooming themselves to a life of hand to mouth and causing irreparable damage to their health by refusing any processing of foods.

So who are raw foodists? Happy and energetic individuals or people who have deprived themselves of the pleasures of modern cooking? We will answer all your questions, and at the same time tell you what a raw food diet is for beginners.

What is a raw food diet?

The raw food diet is a special nutrition system that recommends eating exclusively plant foods, without heat treatment (no boiling, frying, baking, smoking or pasteurization).

It is worth saying that there are several types of raw food diet, for example:

1. Raw food diet is omnivorous. Allows the consumption of meat, fish and eggs, as well as any vegetables, fruits and herbs, exclusively in raw form.
2. Vegetarian raw food diet. Prohibits the consumption of fish and meat, but allows the inclusion of eggs and dairy products in the diet exclusively in raw form. By the way, a vegetarian raw food diet is the most common type of such nutrition in the world.
3. Raw vegan diet. With this approach to nutrition, any food of animal origin, including eggs and milk, is excluded from the diet. A vegan diet involves eating only plant foods.
4. Fruitarianism. This is one of the most in-depth forms of raw food diet, which involves eating plant fruits, in particular fruits, vegetables and fruits, nuts and berries.

The benefits of a raw food diet

People who are passionate about this approach to nutrition consider the heat treatment of foods to be unnatural, because our ancestors ate exclusively raw, natural foods, which means that a raw food diet is a return to its natural beginning. Moreover, it has long been proven that heat treatment destroys a significant portion of vitamins and minerals, while in raw foods the beneficial substances are retained in full and are moreover better digested by the body.

But there are other, much more serious reasons to become a raw foodist. For example:

• by eating exclusively raw plant foods, you can cleanse the body of waste, toxins and heavy metal salts;
• raw foodists strengthen their immune system and develop resistance to infectious diseases;
• by eliminating animal fats from the diet, a person loses weight naturally, which not only guarantees him slim figure, but also prevents the development of a number of serious diseases caused by excess body weight;
• avoidance of saturated fats and harmful trans fats has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the heart and blood vessels, and therefore prevents a number of diseases of the cardiovascular system;
• raw food diet improves body tone, increases performance, improves mood and reinforces the desire to lead healthy image life;
• the so-called “food endurance” increases, thanks to which the body begins to better identify and, without harm to health, reject harmful substances present in foods.

The harm of a raw food diet

But there is another opinion, according to which eating only vegetables and fruits can cause irreparable harm to health. It is known that proper human nutrition involves the consumption of 6 elements (fats, proteins and carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and water). And with a raw food diet, a person is simply not able to receive all these elements in the volume he needs.

1. Lack of protein foods. You need to understand that some essential amino acids are present only in animal foods. According to doctors, when deprived of these products, a person weakens his immunity.

2. Lack of B vitamins. Experts note that important for nervous systems Vitamins B2 and B12 are found in sufficient quantities only in milk and beef liver, and therefore depriving yourself of these products can disrupt the functioning of the central nervous system and proper metabolism.

3. Lack of healthy plant foods in winter. You need to understand that the raw food diet originated in hot countries where plant foods grow freely all year round. But the residents of our country will be able to eat natural products only 6-7 months a year, while the rest of the time they will have to buy overseas vegetables and fruits, which are not always of good quality. It is no secret that products grown in greenhouses contain a lot of chemical additives. In this case, the benefits of a raw food diet can be reduced to zero.

Who is contraindicated for a raw food diet?

• persons with gastrointestinal diseases (the acid present in raw foods greatly irritates the gastric mucosa);
• allergic reactions to certain foods (citrus fruits, honey or nuts);
• pregnancy (women during pregnancy need complete protein nutrition, which cannot be achieved without eating meat and offal);
• Experts do not recommend switching to a raw food diet for people under 30 years of age, since before this age some processes in the body are still developing. And after 30 years the body is already fully developed;
• persons over 70 years of age, whose body is in the process of withering, are not recommended to switch to a raw food diet;
• People who are underweight, have recently undergone surgery, or suffer from anemia should also not switch to a raw food diet.

Read also:

Books on raw food diet

Before you become a raw foodist, it would be a good idea to read the beginner's guide. There are plenty of books on this topic on the Internet, but we would recommend you the following literature:

1. “Raw food diet. A guide for beginners" - author Sergei Zdravin.
2. “Eating Raw” - by Carol Ault.
3. “The China Study” - by Colin Campbell.
4. “Green for life. Real story healing" - author Victoria Butenko.

How to switch to a raw food diet correctly

It is important to understand that a raw food diet is not a diet, but a lifestyle, and therefore, before you make changes to your diet, you should understand why you need it. By the way, most raw foodists agree that such food not only benefits the body, but is also a means of spiritual growth.

Only after fully realizing that a raw food diet is exactly your path can you proceed directly to the transition to eating plant foods. At the same time, remember that a sudden refusal of food that is familiar to you can negatively affect the condition of the body, and therefore you need to start with a gradual refusal of certain foods.

It looks like this:

• Week 1: give up all industrially produced products (sausages, sausages, confectionery);
• Week 2: eliminate red meat;
• Week 3: Avoid white meat;
• Week 4: eliminate eggs;
• Week 5: give up fish;
• Week 6: remove milk and dairy products from your diet;
• Week 7: give up cereals.

At the same time, more and more plant foods should enter your diet every week.

You will need to keep a raw food diary to record your feelings, information about unhealthy foods, and the goals you are trying to achieve through a raw food diet. A separate column in the diary should indicate the results of your work, which will motivate you to maintain the chosen nutrition system.

The most favorable times The years to start switching to a raw food diet will be summer and autumn, because during these periods there will be an abundance of all kinds of vegetables and fruits on your table. As for winter, during this period the basis of nutrition will be the products stored in your cellar (apples, potatoes, carrots, cabbage, beets and onions). In the spring, your diet will include fresh herbs, Jerusalem artichoke and radishes.

And further. An important factor in switching to a raw food diet should be willpower, without which it will not be possible to adhere to the chosen diet for a long time. That is, if you suddenly feel an uncontrollable urge to eat a piece of fried meat, do not deny yourself this, but such temptations should not become systemic.

Mistakes of beginner raw foodists

As we have already learned, a raw food diet must be approached gradually, week after week giving up certain foods. If you give up animal food in one fell swoop, there is a high risk of “relapse” and returning to your previous diet. But there are other mistakes that beginner raw foodists make.

1. Lack of water. Once they start eating a plant-based diet, some people find that they get enough water from green foods. Actually this is not true. Whatever your diet, you should drink at least 6-8 glasses of clean water per day.

2. Lack of greenery. When switching to a raw food diet, the risk of lack of animal protein in the body increases. To cope with this problem, you need to include greens (lettuce, parsley, dill, nettle and celery) in your diet more often, and also eat nuts.

3. Excessive consumption of vegetable oils, dried fruits and honey, fermented and canned foods. Oils contain a lot of fat, which disrupts the digestion of food. Dried fruits and honey should also not be consumed constantly; you should switch to these products only when plant foods are not available.

4. Overeating. It should be remembered that if you eat too many vegetables and fruits, you risk experiencing lethargy and apathy, drowsiness and lack of energy. Over time, it will be necessary to reduce the amount of food consumed.

5. Absence physical activity. Raw vegetables and fruits themselves will not strengthen your muscles or improve your body's health if you do not pay attention to physical exercise at the same time. Jogging in the morning, exercising or going to the gym should be done regularly to keep your body healthy and strong.

Raw food diet for weight loss

Switching to eating raw plant foods in order to get rid of extra pounds has many advantages. Firstly, due to the large amount of fiber, the body is quickly cleansed of toxins and waste. Secondly, the absence of fats and carbohydrates in the diet allows you to quickly lose weight, using up your own fat reserves. Thirdly, with a raw food diet, the amount of food consumed is reduced. Uncooked food has a coarser consistency, which means more time and energy is spent processing it. Finally, individuals who practice a raw food diet gain not only a beautiful figure, but also activity and clarity of mind.

Approximate daily diet for a raw foodist

• 45–50% raw fruits and berries;
• 30–40% raw vegetables;
• 10–15% legumes and grains;
• 5–10% nuts, seeds, dried fruits and honey;
• 1% vegetable oil, garlic and spices.

Sample menu for a raw foodist in summer

Cucumbers + radishes + parsley + dill + lettuce;
Nettle + tomatoes + dandelion leaves;
Carrots + cucumbers + leafy green vegetables;
bell pepper+ tomatoes + greens;
White cabbage+ apples + peaches;
Carrots + cauliflower (broccoli) + peaches;
Plums + cabbage + apricots;
Several types of berries + cabbage;
Sweet apple + black currant + nectarines;
Zucchini + cabbage + cucumbers;
Zucchini + tart apple + leafy greens.

Sample menu for a raw foodist in winter

Apple + carrots + celery root;
Carrots + cabbage + apple;
Apple + beets + prunes;
Carrots + cauliflower + garlic + beets;
Turnip + pumpkin + apple;
Broccoli + cauliflower;
Apple + dried apricots + radish (rutabaga).

IN winter period You can include exotic vegetables and fruits in your diet, always in combination with familiar foods:

Orange (grapefruit) + banana + apple;
Carrots + Chinese cabbage + orange;
Apple + cabbage + orange;
Orange + carrots + seeds;
Sweet and sour apple + orange + dates;
Avocado + pistachios.

At the same time, you can prepare salads for breakfast with the addition of cold-pressed oil, adding, if desired, lemon juice, honey, apple cider vinegar, mustard powder or garlic.

By the way, any salad can be seasoned with nuts or seeds that have been previously soaked for 8 hours in water at room temperature. Almonds and walnuts and pine nuts are best suited for this purpose, as well as pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds.

In this article I would like to continue to reflect on the topic of proper, healthy raw food diet. In Healthy Tips, we have already discussed some aspects of eating live foods and have focused more on what not to do. Here I would like to expand on everything that has already been discussed, and also add a few simple rules, which it is advisable to observe not only on a raw food diet, but especially on this type of diet.

So let's get started rules for switching to a raw food diet:

1) The most important rule is not to force anything. That is, do not rush to get rid of all addictions and all non-raw foods. If you feel that you are not yet mentally prepared for this, then you will definitely not get anything good from such a leap. At one time I tried to immediately stop eating everything except fruit, and also mono. Believe me, the bodies of many people are simply not prepared for a sharp transition from omni-eating to fruitarianism or, for example, prana. The same applies to attempts to immediately reduce your portions to the minimum amount per day. I know several stories of such an instantaneous click in the mind, but these are exceptions rather than a pattern.

This is especially true for those who, before understanding what they needed from life, smoked a lot, drank a lot, ate meat every day, moved little, and didn’t really think about a healthy lifestyle. Consider your age, the number of years you have been on an all-eating diet, and the degree of slagging in your body. I will definitely talk about fasting as a way to speed up the transition to a raw food diet in another post.

2) But, of course, eating a lot is also not an option for a raw food diet. You shouldn’t immediately give yourself freedom in everything and in any quantity. The erroneous opinion that a raw foodist can eat as many calories as he wants per day and nothing will come from it has already been refuted by people who have completely completed their transition and simply gained weight with this diet. After all, the habit of chewing something every 5 minutes is a problem for many raw foodists. Be smarter from the very first minutes of your conscious choice, eat according to your feelings, listening specifically to hunger, not appetite, the painful habit of eating joy, grief, boredom, and so on. Moderation in food is the main rule of a long-liver, whose body gets used to minimal portions of life-giving food over time.

3) Be sure to chew your food thoroughly, I am not encouraging everyone to drink hard foods and eat liquids. However, I have seen for myself that if you stretch out your meal for at least another 15 additional minutes, then satiety and the benefits of such eating increase significantly. And of course, I hope everyone remembers that you need to eat only in a good mood, in goodness and without thinking about any problems.

4) If someone doesn’t remember, then I want to recall the information that half an hour before, and also half an hour after a meal, it is undesirable to drink any liquid, even water. If you don’t want all sorts of putrefactive processes to begin in the intestines and you want any food to be absorbed in the best possible way, then this is right for you.

5) If your diet contains a lot of nuts and honey, then it is recommended to eat them before lunch, when they are best absorbed, the same goes for sweet fruits. And, of course, it is advisable to remember that the longer the breaks between meals, the heavier and more varied your food was immediately before. Mono-eating in most cases generally involves eating one type of fruit, vegetable or nut for a day or more. The most advanced raw foodists make do with seasonal fruit, for example, grapes for a month in the summer or persimmons in the autumn.

6) Never store cooked food for too long. This general rule, but for raw foodists it is especially important. Ideally, as we all know, eat everything that is prepared right there, without leaving the table. If this is not possible, then try to eat everything throughout the day or at least a day, no longer.

7) Carefully monitor the quality of the water you drink. I’ll think about water separately in another specialized article. But the essence is clear, I think, to everyone. What we drink is no less important than what we eat. This means that you need to find your own way to obtain clean, healthy water. Mineral and drinking water are also not bad, but still their own filtration with sedimentation is the very case when you can be sure that you have not poured ordinary tap water into a beautiful bottle.

In the following articles we will continue to examine the burning issues of raw food diet; I hope that many will benefit from the experience of people I know personally, my own, my family and loved ones. There is no ideal option for everyone, but it is quite possible to navigate various streams of information.

Where to start with a raw food diet? This frequently asked question V Lately. Let's take a closer look. Eating raw food is extremely popular today. You could even say that this is not a regular diet, but a whole way of life. Many people change their lives radically when they become raw foodists. In particular, the circle of friends, profession and interests change. Adherents of this idea live according to the laws of nature, increase immunity by swimming in an ice hole, meditating, and spreading positivity. But first of all, they are healed through food. In this regard, there are fanatical supporters of a raw food diet or, conversely, its fierce opponents. And yet, what is it: a fashionable diet or best image life?

The benefits and harms of a raw food diet will be presented below.

What it is?

The main idea of ​​all this nutrition is the statement that man is an integral part of nature. Therefore, he cannot eat what is not in it, for example fried potatoes, grilled chicken and other similar products. Therefore, a raw food diet requires abandoning the standard menu to which we have long been accustomed. Where to start with a raw food diet?

Natural products, which adherents of this diet call live, contain many vitamins, as well as minerals and trace elements, a significant part of which is destroyed during heat treatment. And in their raw form, they are better preserved and are perfectly absorbed by the body. Thus, main principle building a raw food diet menu involves eating food exclusively in raw form.

Processed food is considered poison. And we’re not just talking about the one sold in fast food. This statement is partly explained by science. Frying, along with boiling and even steaming, lead to the fact that products not only lose all their useful qualities, but also acquire harmful properties. For example, carcinogens appear in it - substances that can cause the formation of a malignant tumor, and in addition, isomers or free radicals. Therefore, the raw food diet insists on “live” nutrition and avoidance of junk food. This approach reduces income hazardous substances into the body to zero.

Basic principles of a raw food diet for beginners

To prove their rightness, raw foodists emphasize that only foods untouched by heat treatment contain so-called enzymes, which are particles of all life on earth, which allow vegetables and fruits to be properly digested in the body. The supply of these substances is maximum in the infant’s body, but decreases over time as they age. But it can be replenished regularly. Switching to a raw food diet helps with this.

The usual menu for all people consists of peeled food. But it is in the peel that the maximum amount of useful substances is found. In addition, products that are stored for a long time contain harmful preservatives in the form of dyes or flavor enhancers. They are, of course, unacceptable in a raw food diet system.

The issue of simultaneous consumption of various products deserves special attention. Often with each other, they require a lot of time, and in addition, energy for their digestion, which as a result leads to malabsorption. Maintaining an interval between eating bananas and then sprouted grains helps the body digest them with little energy expenditure. And the body uses unspent energy for self-medication. Many people are interested in where to start a raw food diet.

Raw foodists believe that poor nutrition is the cornerstone of all diseases, be it metabolic disorders, heart pathologies or nervous ailments. And only thanks to a raw food diet can you lead a truly high-quality lifestyle, and in addition, get rid of health problems, achieving the desired longevity.

Kinds

There are several types of raw food. In this case, the opinions of raw foodists differ. Some of them believe that in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle, it will be enough just to follow a fruit and vegetable diet, while others note that it would not be a bad idea to diversify it with meat and milk. So, today there are the following types of raw food diet:

• Mixed or in other words - omnivorous raw food diet. Within this type, you can consume any raw food without restrictions, be it plant or animal food. Meat, along with fish, milk and eggs can be boiled. Dried meat may be consumed. In addition, raw foodists add a small amount of pepper and salt, as well as vegetable oil and honey to their food to taste.
• Vegan raw food diet. This option is widespread. Its supporters use exclusively plant foods in berries, fruits, vegetables and cereals. Such raw foodists include Sprutorians and Jusorians. The former feed mainly on sprouted cereal grains. And raw foodists-Jusorians consume only freshly prepared vegetable and fruit juices. They are also called green smoothies. We will consider recipes for this type of raw food diet at the end of the article.
• Vegetarian raw food diet. As the name implies, this type of diet prohibits the consumption of meat and fish. But you can eat plant foods, eggs and milk.
• Fruitarianism. Supporters of this species include only fruits and berries in their diet. They exclude vegetables and any other foods. For example, orthodox raw foodists may patiently wait until the fruits themselves fall from a tree or bush. The natural fall, which occurs without additional help, serves as the moment when the fruit is at the peak of its ripeness, and therefore usefulness.
• Carnivorous raw food diet. In this case, fruits and vegetables are almost not added to the diet. Such raw foodists place the main emphasis on seafood, meat and eggs, and in addition, on animal fats instead of traditional carbohydrates. Some northern peoples on the planet have been eating this way since Paleolithic times. Raw food diet recipes can be very diverse.
• Monotrophic raw food diet. According to this type of nutrition, only one type of food is eaten at one meal. There is a pause between doses. For example, apples are eaten for breakfast, and an hour later sprouted grains are used, and so on.
• Raw food diet based on the amount of useful components. There are special tables that indicate the content of vitamins along with microelements, fats, proteins and carbohydrates in a particular product. According to them, products can only be mixed in a certain quantity, and in addition, they can be consumed separately from each other.

We continue to consider the benefits and harms of a raw food diet.

Minuses

Like any other diet, a raw food diet has its disadvantages:

• With strict adherence to the rules, for example, against the background of a complete refusal even of vegetables, grains and root vegetables, the body may not receive enough vitamins and microelements. Because of this, metabolism will be disrupted.
• If you refuse to eat fish and seafood, iodine deficiency appears. A connection between a raw food diet and factors of bone and tooth destruction, as well as enamel damage, has also been proven. For this reason, adherents of this diet encourage all their supporters to regularly take sunbathing in order to provide the body with vitamin D.
• According to some reports, fanatical raw foodists have a significant decrease in vitamin B12.
• In addition, the benefits of a raw food diet for pregnant and lactating women, when the body is in dire need of a comprehensive supply of nutrition, also remains a big question.

Contraindications

Despite the fact that for many people a raw food diet is a miracle, there are still certain diseases for which eating unprocessed food is not recommended. Among these ailments are the following pathologies:

• Presence of diseases digestive system. The acids contained in raw foods can irritate the mucous membranes of organs, and this will happen constantly. Therefore, when switching to a raw diet, you need to carefully weigh all the pros and cons of this lifestyle.
• Presence of allergic diseases. Many types of fruits, especially red ones, as well as nuts and pollen, can provoke severe allergic conditions or lead to aggravation of existing ones.

It is important to find out in advance what you can eat on a raw food diet and what you cannot.

When can you switch to such a shelter?

It is believed that the maximum need for nutritional components is required by a growing body, and therefore by children and adolescents. True, even at the age of twenty, some structures in the body still continue to develop. Therefore, the optimal transition to a new diet is considered to be after thirty, when the body is fully formed. There is another explanation. Around middle age, people acquire specific beliefs with intentions about what they expect from themselves and what they desire to receive. With clear goals, it is much easier to completely change your lifestyle.

List of raw food products

It includes the following titles:

• Greenery.
• Mushrooms.
• Vegetables.
• Berries.
• Any fresh fruits.
• Dried fruits.
• Sweeteners.
• Vegetable oils.
• Seaweed.
• Honey and pollen.
• Seeds and nuts.
• Green buckwheat and some legumes.
• Seasonings.

Transition

First you need to decide why a person wants to try this system nutrition. You need to understand whether this is required as part of a permanent diet or temporary, for example as a way to lose weight. Many people make the transition to a raw food diet as part of an experiment, for the sake of something new in life, and also because it is fashionable today. But, of course, you shouldn’t follow fashion or your next-door neighbor. And if a person has chosen such nutrition as a standard for himself, then he should approach it with all responsibility. This is the only way to achieve real results. There are two options for switching to a raw diet:

• The first requires including as many raw foods as possible in the menu every day with gradual replacement of the rest. At the same time, on the first day, fried and, in addition, smoked foods, along with coffee and sweets, should disappear from the diet.
• You can immediately stop eating thermally processed foods. Most raw foodists claim that the second method makes it possible to get used to it faster. But the chances of failure are, of course, much greater.

There are always several critical moments due to which a person may not be able to stand returning to the old menu. Knowing about them, beginners will be able to adapt more easily. As a rule, the pitfalls in this case are constant thoughts about tasty, previously familiar food and the lack of a clear goal.

Not everyone knows how to start a raw food diet correctly.

How to switch to a raw food diet correctly?

First of all, you need to remember all the time that the process of switching to a raw food diet is not a simple whim, but a conscious decision that will allow you to improve your health by reducing excess weight, increasing interest in life, and in addition, in active pastime, making new friends. To begin with, you should give up specific foods, for example, your favorite carbonated drinks along with beer on the weekends. It is important to pay attention to how difficult this period will be.

It is also recommended to keep a raw food diary. In the diary you can record any sensations with thoughts and information about products that you like, as well as those that are best avoided, that is, you need to record everything that has changed in a person since the transition. The main page should list and highlight bright color all the reasons for which a person agreed to give up delicious pies and Coca-Cola. You should also write down all your achievements in your diary, for example, how easily you managed to switch to a raw diet, how the first day went on eating healthy food, and so on. You can also celebrate your failures, as well as how you plan to deal with them. Where to start a raw food diet and how to adjust yourself?

It is equally important that there is sufficient willpower so as not to abandon your idea halfway. If you really want fried chicken with pickled cucumbers, it’s better to eat them, but so that it doesn’t eventually turn into a habit.

It is imperative to inform the people with whom you plan to continue communicating. This will help avoid unnecessary arguments and conversations.

And finally, you should plan your diet based on the time of year. For example, summer and autumn are rich in vegetables and fruits, and spring is rich in greens. In winter, on a raw food diet, you can eat foods that can be stored in the cellar for a long time. And then the dining table and stomach will never be empty.

Errors during transition

When making the transition, people should try to avoid the following mistakes:

• Try to sit on two chairs at once. In this case, you cannot violate the ban on mixing food, especially drinking alcoholic beverages. Sometimes it happens that people eat right every other day, and the rest of the time they allow themselves any food. This, of course, is self-deception. With such a diet, raw foodists often experience breakdowns. Therefore, if you have already made a decision, then you need to forget about many things from your usual diet.
• Excessive consumption of legumes. Everyone was told that meat is healthy because of the protein. But raw foodists don’t eat it. Where then does the precious protein come from? Most of it is found in beans, beans and peas. Therefore, newly minted raw foodists begin to absorb them in huge quantities. Trying to take in as much of the right food as possible, people forget that the body is not yet accustomed to it. This can only cause stomach upset. Therefore, moderation in nutrition, even the healthiest, is what raw foodists practice.
• Force yourself to eat everything. Everyone has their own taste preferences. Therefore, if a person does not like cabbage, one should not force oneself to eat it, even with the deep conviction that it is for the good. Everything has its time. Maybe after a few years it will turn into a favorite product, but until this happens, you shouldn’t force your body.

Thus, a raw food diet has become a very popular way of eating today. But before you decide to switch to it, you need to decide on your goals, and also understand whether this is really what the person himself and his body really need.

Raw food menu

What a sample menu for a day?

• For breakfast: banana, kiwi, orange.
• Second breakfast: any raw nuts.
• Lunch: vegetable salad (cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers), green buckwheat.
• Afternoon snack: dried fruits.
• Dinner: vegetable smoothie from avocado, tomato, herbs, raw bread.

Let's look at simple recipes.

Vegetable puree soup

Preparing the cream requires a minimum amount of time and effort. To do this, fresh onions, cauliflower, carrots, peas, celery and parsley are ground in a blender until a homogeneous puree is formed. Everything is falling on top pumpkin seeds or pine nuts.

Korean zucchini salad

Grate young zucchini on a fine grater. Grated carrots, coriander, nutmeg, finely chopped garlic, salt are added to them, and all this is seasoned with olive or linseed oil. The salad must be left to marinate for half an hour.