Raw Food Diet

A Raw Food Diet is a diet which encourages the eating of uncooked foods.  Foods are eaten in their uncooked, natural, unprocessed form. This would include fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and meat.  You will need to eat at least 75% of Raw Food to be considered to be on the Raw Food Diet.  It is considered to promote greater health than eating cooked and processed foods.

It is the belief that uncooked foods contain more nutrients.  Fruit and vegetables nutrient content is at its highest when it has just been picked.  The nutrients are depleted from this time; it can take from 3 days to a week or even longer for food to reach the supermarkets. When food is exposed to light and oxygen foods nutrient value decreases. Foods such as fruit and vegetables contain a large amount of antioxidants when eaten uncooked.  A Raw Food Diet can contain 70% to 80% more vitamins and minerals. When boiling food this causing the most nutrient loss. Eating raw food releases valuable enzymes in the stomach before digestion.  This way of eating falls into the category of a Low Fat Diet, as processed food and added fat usually occurs with cooking and processing food.

It is believed that cooking food higher than 116 degrees Fahrenheit or 47 degrees Celsius destroys enzymes which are proteins, complex chains of amino acids which aid metabolism and digestion.  It is important to prepare your raw food and store it well.  After you have purchased or harvested your food you must wash it and store it in a dark chilled place.  This will preserve your food as much as possible.  This diet can be used as a Cleansing Diet.