Raw Cuisine
Enjoy the Benefits of "Living" Foods
Taste For Life Magazine, April 2006
"Living" Foods
Welcome to the world of raw cuisine - "living" foods that,
according to their advocates, increase energy, improve skin texture, aid
digestion, encourage weight loss, reduce the risk of heart disease, and improve
overall health. Actors Woody Harrelson and Demi Moore, model Carol Alt, fashion
designer Donna Karan, and musician Sting have helped to promote raw diets. What
are they eating? Organically grown fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, and
legumes, none of which are heated above 115 to 118 degrees Fahrenheit. Instead,
these ingredients are soaked, sprouted, juiced, fermented, dehydrated, blended,
chopped, and artfully arranged.
Everyone agrees that fresh fruits and vegetables are good for us - even the
federal governemnt encourages us to eat more. But raw foods advocates aim for a
vegan diet (no animal or dairy products) that is 75 to 100 percent raw. Thanks
to books like Raw by celebrity chefs Charlie Trotter and Roxanne Klein,
this no longer means just salads and juices. While many raw many raw dishes are
complicated and time-consuming, guides like Raw in Ten Minutes by Bryan
Au simplify preparation while producing gourmet results.
Healthier Dining
Enthusiasts rave about taste, but most raw foodists attribute their interest
in raw foods to health concerns. Alt, for example, suffered recurring headaches,
heartburn, sinus problems, and insomnia until she changed her diet. Today, after
nine years on a raw-foods diet, she continues to enjoy perfect health.
Most raw-foods enthusiasts credit the enzymes in fresh fruits and vegetables,
noting that these catalysts for improved digestion and assimilation tend to be
destroyed by heat in cooking. Enzymes, they say, are the reason raw foods
improve health.
Research has verified at least some of the claims made on behalf of raw
foods. Last October, the Journal of Nutrition published a study linking
long-term consumption of a 70- to 100-percent raw-foods diet with favorable
serum LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels. In a recent review of the medical
literature on raw foods, studies showed that vegan "living foods"
diets produced significant weight loss along with lower blood pressure and
reduced symptoms of fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, and irregular menstrual
cycles. In addition, raw foods may help protect against cancer, while frying and
baking starchy foods or cooking meat at high temperatures can cause carcinogenic
chemicals to form. Some cancer survivors credit consuming freshly pressed carrot
juice and other raw foods with their recovery.
Natural Health Hut
