50 Percent Raw 100 Percent Healthy

Table of Contents

Many have discovered the wonders of raw foods and have managed to transform their health. Gone is that hard-to-shift fat and not so good-looking skin, replaced by a slim body and skin that positively glows. A raw food diet, when done correctly, can positively impact blood sugar levels. The raw food diet consists mainly of whole fruits and vegetables. Medical experts and dieticians recommend that pre-diabetics and those with diabetes eat more whole vegetables and fruit to help keep blood sugar at a healthy level.

Many people do not know what to do when they first start eating raw. They end up making mistakes. For example, they may eat more nuts and fats than they should have, which does not favor any other body. Over the years, we have also seen many others make the same mistakes. Because they heard that following a raw food diet is excellent, they jump headlong into it without first educating themselves on what following a raw food diet entails.

With lots of trial and error, and by educating ourselves on eating raw foods, we discovered what worked for us and what did not. Friends are always asking for advice, so we thought we would put everything we know about eating raw food into a book so that others who want to eat more raw foods can build from a solid foundation.

This book’s plan is first to tell you a little about raw foods and how they can benefit your health. We will then introduce you to the natural superfoods. These are the foods that will give you the most nutrition. We will tell you what each one is, why it is right for you, and how you can use it. We will also let you know what essential equipment you need to have in your kitchen to prepare delicious and tasty raw food meals in minutes. There will also be a list of basic foodstuffs that you should always try to keep handy. There is nothing worse than starting to prepare a meal, only to realize that you do not have all the ingredients. Then we will give some simple but delicious recipes to get you started.

When people are new to something, they need to start with the basics, to ensure success and reduce. When we began this journey, we found that most raw food recipes were overly complicated and took far too much time to prepare. These recipes have a place, but when starting, you need to start at step one. And step one is to start with simple recipes that are easy to make and enjoy making. Too many raw food recipe books are full of gourmet dishes that can take hours to prepare. However, most people do not eat like this daily, so do not think that every raw meal needs to be a gourmet meal.

We would say that the complete opposite is true. Gourmet meals should be left for special occasions, and not be part of your regular diet. We no longer visit raw gourmet restaurants because we always felt very bloated and tired after visiting them. We find that they use far too many nuts in their recipes, which can be difficult for most people to digest. Many people remark that they do not feel too good after eating a large gourmet raw meal. So, please keep it simple.

We will also give plenty of tips along the way, as sometimes the little things are the most important. And these are the things that you sometimes do not get told. And our first tip is not to try to go 100% raw right away. Most people we know that follow a raw food diet successfully only eat between 50-90% raw foods. We usually eat around 50% raw food, hence the title of this book. We enjoy this; it works well for us and should work well for you, as well. Once you get started, you can experiment a little to see what suits you best. Do not just listen to what some raw food guru says but listen to your body. Although this sounds difficult, we can assure you that you will get the hang of it quickly.

Eating lots of raw food is hugely beneficial for your health, but we are not convinced that eating 100% natural is the way to go. Dr. Joel Fuhrman, an American board-certified family physician, specializing in nutrition-based treatments for obesity and chronic disease, comes out firmly against a 100% raw food diet. He believes that excluding all cooked foods narrows the diversity of the nutrients you consume and tends to favor calories from fruit and nuts over vegetables. Fuhrman says that our caloric needs are only met on a raw food diet by eating large amounts of nuts, seeds, fruit, and avocado. While he thinks this may be ok for some people, he has seen many people on raw food and vegan diets that have weakened their health. So, he is in favor of eating natural foods, but not eating them exclusively. We agree with his assessment.

It is simply not true that all cooked food is bad for you. Many nutrients in fried foods are more absorbable than the equivalent raw food, so you need to consider that. There is also the fact that many people do not have a healthy, enough digestive system to cope with a 100% raw diet. Raw foods are more difficult to digest, so going from 100% cooked to 100% raw can be problematic.

Some people can also get quite obsessive about whether their food is 100% raw or not. Our advice is to follow the basics and not to worry about whether something is raw or not. If you do not usually eat any raw food and then move to a 50% raw food diet, you should notice a big difference in your health. If you eat 98% raw instead of 100%, you would unlikely see any difference at all. So please do not obsess about the little details. Always keep the big picture in mind.

Another tip that will help is that the wrong foods you avoid will do you as much good as the right foods you eat. Cut the terrible foods out of your diet, and you will see a significant improvement in your health. You will see this is true even if that is all that you change about your food. But avoid the bad stuff and add the right thing, and you will be doing your body a favor. Later in the book, there is a section on what foods are best to avoid. Do not worry; there are only a few of them. And there is plenty of great stuff to add.

We have tried to keep this book simple. We want you to read over a day or two and get started on your new life. You have the rest of your life to delve into the more advanced stuff. But for now, just get started, as that is the first and most crucial step.

So, all you need to know to begin with is what foods to avoid, what foods to eat more, and how to get more raw food. It is effortless to do. If it is something that you do not think you can do, then it is ok to change one thing at a time until you get used to it. After a week or so later, when you’re comfortable avoiding some foods and eating more raw foods, you can change. In time, the small changes add up, and you will have a new and healthier you.