Vegan Nutrition

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What if I came to you and said,

“I have the absolute best diet in the world. You will lose weight, you will have more energy, and you will prevent and even reverse any and all diseases. AND you get to eat 60% OR MORE of your calories from fat!”

You would probably a) laugh in my face, b) turn and run, or c) ask if I was a raw foodist.

That’s right, folks. The average raw foodist eats 60% of his or her calories from fat! That’s over HALF of one’s daily calories, all from fat!

Are you surprised? I know I sure was when I went raw. I could not believe that there were people actually promoting a high fat diet when all the evidence for a healthy diet pointed to the exact opposite!

So why are so many raw foodists eating so much fatty foods? What it boils down to is the “If It’s Raw, It’s Healthy” fallacy.

If It’s Raw, It’s Healthy

Many raw foodists will argue that raw fats are much healthier than cooked fats and do not result in such problems as heart disease and atherosclerosis. As long as it’s raw, you can eat as much avocado, nuts, and seeds as you want.

Yes, it’s true that raw fats are much better than cooked fats. Cooked fatty foods have had the majority of the water removed and many necessary micronutrients along with that water (not to mention all the nutrients that are destroyed by the heat alone).

Once fats are cooked, they quickly go rancid and produce harmful carcinogens. The more oxygen that these foods come into contact with, the more rancid they become and the more dangerous carcinogens they produce.

The Problem With Too Much Fat

However, eating an excess of either cooked or raw fats produces a host of problems for the consumer:

#1: Fat takes a long time to digest and it remains in the bloodstream for a long time. When too much fat is consumed, the excess fat in the bloodstream interferes with insulin production from the pancreas. Under normal circumstances, the insulin would attach itself to sugar molecules within the blood in order to carry them to the cells. With the fat in the way, the insulin does not reach the sugar. The pancreas becomes fatigued from producing extra insulin. The blood-sugar level becomes elevated because the sugar cannot be transported out of the blood by the insulin. As you can see, sugar metabolic disorders like type 2 diabetes and Candida are not caused by a lack of insulin or too much sugar. They can be directly linked to an excess of fat.

#2: An excess of fat in the body slows down digestion of other foods that are eaten. Fruit, which normally takes minutes to digest, now has time to ferment inside the body. This results in uncomfortable bloating and gas.

#3: Too much fat in the bloodstream also interferes with the red blood cells’ ability to transport oxygen. A low oxygenated body is a perfect environment for cancer cells to thrive.

#4: Excess fat consumption is linked to numerous physical and mental ailments, such as:

How Much Fat?

Dr. Graham, author of The 80/10/10 Diet and a leader within the raw food movement, advocates a diet of 10% fat or less. Personally, this is the guideline that I follow and recommend as well. Anymore fat than this and it is likely that you are not consuming enough simple carbohydrates in the form of fruit.

10% of calories from fat is surprising to many people. However, many reputable sources (including the world-renowned Pritikin Center) recommend that only 10-15% of calories come from fat.

Many people around the world eat diets low in fat. In The China Study, the longest nutritional study ever conducted, Dr. Campbell studies people living in rural China who eat as low as 6% of calories from fat!

It is not surprising that in these areas you find much lower rates of heart disease, atherosclerosis, breast cancer, etc. compared to more industrialized places like the US and Britain.

On most days, I do not eat any overt fats and on those days I average about 5% of my calories from fat. I’ve never experienced any adverse reactions from limiting my fat intake.

In fact, I have only experienced great benefits since limiting fat, such as weight loss, increased energy, deeper sleep, mental focus, and improved digestion.

Take Action!

You can take action right now by simply limiting your consumption of fatty foods to 15% or less. A good way to do this is to replace these foods with high-calorie, low-fat sweet fruits.

For instance, if you usually eat avocados with your greens, try peaches sliced up on top instead. You can even make completely fat-free dressings from fruits and veggies. Here is a personal favorite of mine:

*Tangy Tomato Dressing*

Blend all of the ingredients together.

The best way to track your fat consumption is to use www.nutridiary.com. There are many more sites that allow you to track your calories, but this is the site I recommend. It is easy to use and easy on the eyes.

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I have spent a good amount of my time on raw food forums over the past couple of years. It is a great way to learn about eating raw and to gather information from others who are thriving on the diet.

While visiting these forums, I have noticed a problem that is expressed over and over again by various members. Many people complain that they find it too difficult to stick to a raw food diet. They find themselves extremely hungry and experiencing cravings for cooked dishes on a regular basis.

And I’m not talking about brand new raw foodists. I’m talking about people who have been attempting a raw food diet for years and still can’t seem to stick with it!

So what’s the problem? Why is it that such a vast majority of raw foodists fail on a raw food diet?

Not enough calories, Too much fat

In general, the raw foodists I’m talking about are consuming lots of greens and vegetables, avocados, nuts, oils, dehydrated mixtures like flax seed crackers, some vinegars, and dried fruit.

Even though the raw foodists described above are eating large amounts of greens and other vegetables, these foods do not offer a substantial amount of calories.

Here’s an example…

*Typical Salad without Overt Fats*

A large salad of 1 pound of romaine lettuce, 1 medium red bell pepper, and one medium cucumber is only 153 calories. All of that food has less calories than just two bananas!

This is a problem because the average person needs between 2000-2500 calories a day. To eat that much food from romaine lettuce, you would need to eat 25 pounds (about 50 heads) of lettuce per day! This is completely impractical, not to mention rather unpleasant. My jaw aches just thinking about it!

We’ve now established that it’s nearly impossible to get enough calories from vegetables. While salads like this are high in volume, the satiation is short lived because the caloric needs are not being met.

So where do these raw foodists get their calories from?

Avocados, raw nuts and seeds, and cold-pressed olive oils. To be precise, fat. These fatty foods are used to make dehydrated dishes like “raw” crackers, breads, and “mock” pizzas. They are also eaten on their own or put atop salads.

Let’s return to the salad example…

*Typical Salad with Overt Fats*

1 head of romaine, 1 medium bell pepper, and one medium cucumber is 153 calories. Now, add just one medium avocado and one tablespoon of olive oil. That takes the calories up to 561 calories!

The avocado and oil alone provide 2/3 of the total calories in this dish. Not only that, but the addition of the avocado and oil took the fat content from 10% to a staggering 61% of fat!

As you can see, it only takes a small amount of these foods (fatty fruits, nuts and seeds, and oils) to exceed your needed calories and fat content for the day.

Again, this is just one meal. Many raw foodists have two salads during their day and often times these are even more fat laden than the example I have shown above. This does not even consider the popular complex, dehydrated recipes that are mostly comprised of high-fat nuts and seeds.

With this knowledge in mind, is it surprising that the average raw foodist consumes a whopping 60% of his or her calories from fat everyday? How many times have you come across people who claim to eat several avocados a day and handfuls of nuts in just one sitting? Maybe this isn’t surprising, but it’s certainly unhealthy.

What’s the Alternative?

While greens and vegetable fruits are very important in a healthy raw diet, they simply do not provide the necessary calories to fill you up and combat cooked cravings. However, you do not have to get your calories from low-volume fatty foods.

You are not destined for raw food failure.

There is another way…

*Sweet fruit*

By eating substantial amounts of whole, raw, simple, delicious fruits, you will feel completely satiated and will no longer suffer from cooked food cravings. You will also be getting the absolute best nutrition available and fueling your body right!

And it’s so easy to get started! If you still eat a cooked diet, simply replace your breakfast with as much fruit as you can eat and move on from there. If you already eat raw, just replace the majority of the raw veggies and fats you eat with sweet fruit.

If you are having a hard time getting enough calories via whole fruit, try blending them into tasty smoothies!

So put down the avocado, pick up an apple, and start succeeding on a raw diet today!

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I often hear how “simple” eating raw is compared to eating cooked.  I couldn’t agree more!  There is just no comparison between a beautiful, simple breakfast of a whole cantaloupe and a SAD breakfast of bacon, eggs, hash browns, toast, and a cup of coffee.

Talk about indigestion!

However, the low fat raw way of eating that I was referring to is not the norm.  Instead, many raw foodists rely upon recipes modeled after their favorite foods, often called “mock” recipes.  These recipes contain various ingredients such as nuts, seeds, salt, spices, onions, garlic, etc.

Are these meals really simple?  Here are 3 guidelines for making simple raw recipes:

#1: The recipe has few ingredients

By few ingredients, I mean no more than 5 with the ideal being 1.  Not only does this mean that you can actually taste and identify all of the ingredients, but you will spend far less time in the kitchen.

The ingredients should also be easy to find.  You should be fine with a quick trip to your local grocery store or farmer’s market.

Many raw recipes contain more than 5 ingredients.  They are made with all kinds of raw nuts, seeds, spices, and vegetables.  Not to mention all the salt, pepper, and oil that is commonly used in a single dish.

#2: The recipe is easy to prepare

Each recipe should not take a lot of time nor equipment to put together.  At most, you might need a blender or food processor.  The *best* recipes only require opposable thumbs and take seconds to make!

Most raw recipes require a lot of your time and a bunch of expensive equipment.  Many of the popular raw dishes require a dehydrator, which is rather expensive.  And because it works at such a low heat (yes, HEAT), it can take all day.  Not to mention all the prep time you have to do before, hand chopping veggies and herbs and whatnot.

#3: The recipe is easy to digest

This is probably the most important guideline and relies upon the first two.  If your meal contains too many ingredients, it will be difficult for the body to digest it all.  If your meal is difficult to prepare, it probably means that there are too many ingredients and the meal is very processed.  These conditions also lead to difficult digestion.

As you have probably guessed, most raw recipes do not lend themselves to good digestion.  They are just too complicated!  Most of them are also full of fat, which slows down digestion.

Worst of all, these recipes break the most important food combining rule…

Sugar and Fat

In almost every raw recipe, you will find nuts mixed with dates or some other kind of fruit (usually dried).  While this may taste good and create a suitable texture for many mock recipes, it is not good for digestion.

Simple sugars, like the ones found in fruits, are quickly digested by the body.  It literally takes 30 minutes or less for your body to digest a whole fruit meal!

Fatty foods, like nuts and oils, take much longer to digest.  Just a handful of nuts can take hours to be fully processed by the stomach and intestines.

When you eat these two foods together, the rate of digestion is slowed down by the fatty foods.  Rather than getting through your system quickly, the fruit has to wait for the fat to be digested.

The result?  The sugars ferment inside of you, leaving you bloated, gassy, and uncomfortable.

Putting these guidelines into action

A truly simple meal is one that has few ingredients, can be easily prepared and is easily digested.  The perfect example is known as a mono-meal, or a meal of only one type of fruit.  In this case, you have one ingredient, it can be as easy as peeling a banana, and it digests within 30 minutes.

Not to mention the sense of accomplishment after eating 12 bananas in one sitting.

However, many of you are brand new to raw and cannot fathom eating only one type of fruit at a time.  You certainly do not have to!  You can eat fruit bowls of various mixes or combine your favorite fruits into a delicious, easy to eat smoothie.  You can even add greens to make a green smoothie!  All these options still adhere to the 3 guidelines for making simple raw recipes.

Whatever option you choose, remember to keep things simple.  By eating simple meals of sweet fruit, limiting your fat intake, and consuming moderate amounts of vegetable fruits and greens, you will receive the best nutrition and experience optimal digestion.

And what’s more simple than peeling a banana (or 10)?

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My biggest problem when I first learned about raw back in 2007 stemmed from information overload. There was just so much advice out there about raw foods and so many different educators…all providing very different guidelines for living the raw lifestyle. And all I wanted to know was which raw diet was best and what I had to do to implement it!

Fortunately for me, I stumbled upon the healthiest diet of all rather quickly. Fortunately for you, I can explain what that diet is just as quickly, with 3 easy guidelines! So let’s get started…

#1: Eat More Sweet Fruit

I want you to think back to a time when you ate some delicious fruit. Maybe it was an exotic mango, a perfect peach, or a juicy orange. Whatever it was, I’m sure it was scrumptious, sweet, and satisfying. And the best part? No guilt! In fact, you probably felt pretty happy with yourself for choosing such a healthful snack over greasy chips or fatty cookies. Now imagine experiencing that satisfaction, both with yourself and your food, every single day… Pretty sweet, huh? How can you experience this? By simply eating a diet based on raw, sweet fruit.

Fruit is full of water-soluble fiber, packed with essential vitamins and nutrients (not too mention the oh-so-popular antioxidants and phyto-nutrients), calorically dense and water-rich, and provides easy to digest healthy sugar in its simplest form.

#2: Don’t Forget Your Veggies!

But it isn’t all about the sweet stuff. A well-rounded, healthy raw diet also incorporates moderate amounts of mineral-rich vegetables. These include tender leafy greens like romaine and non-sweet fruits like tomatoes and zucchini. Not only do these foods provide some extra variety (and maybe a nice break from all the sweetness) in your diet, they also provide higher levels of necessary minerals than their fruity friends.

#3: Hold It On the Fat

Although many raw foodists eat and promote a fatty diet that rivals any standard cooked diet, this is *not* optimal. While raw overt fats like avocados and nuts are healthier than their cooked versions, too much fat in a diet still results in many health issues, including but not limited to heart disease, arthritis, and even depression.

This is certainly not the makings of the best raw diet. The best raw diet does contain these healthy raw fats, but in a limited quantity. For optimal nutrition, the bulk of your calories should come from low fat sweet fruit, not fat.

Final Words

So there you have it! The best raw food diet, in a raw nutshell!

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