Eating a raw food diet is essentially a way of eating
that does not involve the heating of foods. Part of the premise lies in
the fact that heating foods above 118 degrees fahrenheit destroys their
inherent food enzymes, a vast majority of vitamins, minerals,
phytonutrients, and their all important life force.
Chemical Changes in Cooked Foods
Heating foods radically changes their
chemical properties making them less "recognizable" in once ingested.
For instance, heating an egg renders into a solid mass whereas it began
in a liquid, gelatinous. This occurs because the heat of frying or
boiling denatures the protein structure within the egg, essentially
making it more solid. As a result, this heated egg is now much more
difficult for the human digestive tract to break down.
Another process that occurs with cooking
foods is known as glycosylation. This is when sugar literally attaches
to protein molecule. Glycosylation has been linked to the premature
breakdown of the body's cell and many other undesirable health
conditions.
The Importance of Raw Food Enzymes
The reason that the natural food enzymes are
so important is that our bodies have only a limited ability to produce
its own enzymes. Bear in mind that our bodies produce metabolic and
digestive enzymes. The latter are used to breakdown foods whereas the
former are essential to every single reaction in the body. But the
problem is that we only produce a finite number.
When you eat cooked foods, you force your
body to use more of its own enzyme reserves to digest them. Overtime,
this is just like continually withdrawing money from your bank account
without making any deposits. Eventually, you will run out of enzymes!
When you have no more enzymes, you no longer have any life - it's that simple.
Eating raw foods help you make more
"deposits" into your enzyme bank account, allowing your body to preserve
its own precious enzymes for more important uses such as breaking down
problematic cells, immune complexes, and more.
What Can You Eat on a Raw Food Diet?
A raw food diet is mainly vegan for the
simple reason that it isn't healthy or advised to eat raw animal
products. Therefore, a raw diet contains no dairy, meat, or other animal
products. Other than that, the choices are endless. Most raw foodists
have diets that consist of vegetables, fruit, nuts, and seeds.
The amazing part is that the possibilities
are truly endless with raw foods. Many people think of not being able to
eat meat or wheat as a huge limiting factor. But the fact remains that
processed, dead foods are dangerous to your body and there are tons of
delicious and nourishing raw food recipes that will give you so much
more than you can possibly imagine.
My Own Raw Food Experience
I started following a predominantly raw food
diet in 2007 and it literally changed my life. From improved skin
complexion to having more energy and mental clarity, I can't tell you
how much better you can look and feel by eating the way nature intended
for you to eat.
Growing up on dead foods like wheat, dairy,
and meat literally destroyed my body and at the young age of 17, I lost
my hair to Alopecia as a result of my immune system which had gone
hay-wire and began attacking itself. Again, this was caused by years of
abusing my body with foods that it was allergic to.
However, since eating a raw food diet, my
health has never been better. My hair has returned (although I keep my
head shaved because I like it like that now) and I have more energy than
a teenager on red bull!
That's why I wrote Eating for Energy. If
you'd like to experience the same kind of health and vitality then I
urge to make the raw food diet more apart of your lifestyle!
About the Author
Yuri Elkaim is one of the world’s leading
holistic nutrition and health experts. If you want to lose weight and
live your healthiest and most energetic life ever, then you can learn
more about his raw food diet book, Eating for Energy and get started with a FREE 6-part Energy Secrets e-course by visiting EatingforEnergy.ca today.
