Why Raw Food?

I have started to experiment with raw food. A new world has opened up to me.

Quite a long time ago, I was reading about raw food to learn a bit more about this movement. After a while I realized that there were not enough incentives for me to go down that path. Well, that is what I thought at the time. My experience was that most people who started eating raw food did so mainly out of three reasons; they were overweight, they had some kind of health related problem, or they had environmental reasons (think meat-eating not good for the planet and environment, to cut a long explanation short). The first two reasons did not really apply to me, and although the third reason appealed to me, I felt that I did not need to go raw to reduce my carbon footprint on the Earth.

Then it turns out that my daughters and I all have gluten intolerance which means that we cannot eat wheat, barley, and rye. Also, we cannot eat oat, which does not contain gluten in itself, but can be cross-contaminated during the milling process. Further, I found out that I was allergic to eggs, and should greatly reduce the intake of dairy products based on cow milk, almonds, sesame seeds, yeast, and a few other things. My oldest daughter also had reaction against dairy products and eggs. We are still waiting for lab results as regards to my youngest one. They youngest one is also the one with the worst symptoms.

She started complaining about tummy aches and had eczema in various places on her body, but mainly concentrated on her arms, legs, and cheeks. Occasionally, she also threw up. When she stopped eating gluten, she stopped having tummy aches and throwing up. Her eczema became better, but continued to bother her. Now we are hoping the lab results will tell us about her other allergies, which I am sure she has, so that we can get rid of her eczema.

Just a quick note about my oldest daughter’s and my symptoms. My oldest daughter has only showed tiredness, and so have I. But I have also suffered from iron deficiency off and on throughout my life, and something I would call “acne” related problems. When I went off gluten my skin problems disappeared. Regarding being tired, Zoe and I are still waiting for results, but she is a night owl and have to go to school very early, and I just stay up a bit too late, so it will take time and discipline before there will be any change in that department.

So, as you can see, suddenly there might be a reason to start considering raw food. So what is raw food? Well basically, you are supposed to just eat raw, uncooked food. This means raw vegetables, fruit, nuts, seed, herbs and spices, and grains that have been sprouted. So forget about hot food, meat, fish, dairy, egg, and everything else you eat daily.

A raw foodist most important tools are a mixer, a dehydrator (“torkugn” for you Swedes), a food processor, knives, and chopping boards.

Over the last few months, the content of my kitchen cupboards and fridge have slowly started to change; more nuts and seeds, carob powder, sprouted grains, fruit, and vegetables.

Above everything, I have bought a good mixer to make smoothies, soups, and once I buy a dehydrator I will start exploring how to make tortillas, crackers and bread.

There is no doubt that it is healthy to eat raw food. Raw foodist says they feel great, their skin is glowing, they hardly ever get sick, and they have so much more energy than they used to have. However, there are critics who say that raw foodist do not get enough carbohydrates and protein, but I think it is the same as with any type of diet; you need to make an effort to ensure that you eat a varied diet.

Someone says that they could never go without hot food. A bowl of hot soup and freshly baked bread on a cold winter’s day. Well, maybe you do not have to go 100% raw, but how about 30% or 50%? Or how about just removing some of the food items that are really bad for you.

I am on a raw food exploratory journey. I have no intention of becoming 100% raw, but I would be happy if I had enough energy to become partly raw.

Yesterday dinner consisted of raw pad thai made by sea kelp, thinly sliced basil and cabbage, and a sauce that I made in the mixer (nuts, chili seeds, water, red pepper, coconut oil, and coconut soy sauce) and it was yummy. No photo I am afraid.

It would be great to get feedback on this post.