Dear All,
I need advice urgently, please. My apology if this ought to have been added to someone else's thread. And I hope that this will all appear. I don't like instructions, especially when they are in small rectangles.
I am vegetarian, and being a strict food combiner, virtually vegan because I don’t want eggs without bread, cereal without milk and I don’t eat cheese because of the salt.
As always, food combining has its doubters, but I know that it works. Almost from the start, I have enjoyed great benefits.
I can’t say the same about eating raw, which I did for several weeks. Not entirely: I still had home made houmous with cooked chick peas, spelt crackers, and occasional strong, dark chocolate. Constantly lacking time and money, my meals were variations of crunchy vegetables with houmous or home-made chunky guacamole (I don’t like it as a mush: I prefer to taste the avoacado and tomato separately but together.) I did feel better and certainly lost weight, but there has been one huge problem. Unlike food combining, which was the most beneficial of things for my tummy, while doing the raw food, well, I now know what it is like to give birth to a very large baby. And whereas women have at least nine months to recover, I had to endure it every day for several weeks. Continuing the analogy, it’s the start of the process that’s the terrible part.
How can this be, with all that fresh, fibrey food?
Do I need more variety? How can I do that with so little time and money? I could resort to large quantities of dried fruits and linseeds, but that’s cheating, and replaces ‘becalmed’ with ‘very stormy’. (When vegans have artificially made B12 supplements, that, too, is cheating.)
Are we really meant to be raw? I refute the suggestion that people used to live off fresh fruits, as though the Earth used to be a balmy paradise all the year round. For thousands of years, much of the human race has lived in temperate to cold climates, struggling to avoid starvation by pickling, salting and smoking, mainly meat of one sort or another. Fruits would have been available for only a few weeks in the late summer and autumn, and would have included hips, hawthorns, blackberries, rowans and crab apples. Even relatively recently, fruits have been seasonal (and even now, it seems to be a bad time for avocadoes, being slow to ripen and being tough and inconsistent). Not long ago, avocadoes weren’t available; then they became associated with wealthy people; and eventually became generally popular through their establishment as a popular starter, buried under prawns and pink sauce.
Finally, I suffer losses of confidence when I read the claims by certain people who seem to take great pleasure in declaring reputedly healthy foods as ‘poison’. There are no half-measures with these people (and, of course, there aren’t on the’pro’ side, either). They never say that something is good but with certain drawbacks. No, the thing is poison. Separate articles have stated, and apparently proved with facts, that raw chocolate, molasses, honey, garlic (in fact, all the aliums) and even herbs, are all highly toxic, and that the people who claim otherwise are wicked or stupid. Unfortunately, those experts who are in favour of raw foods are usually trying to sell something, and those who argue against it seem to have a grudge against people who are trying to do something about their food.
So, I should be grateful for some practical advice on how to do this successfully.
Where is the 'Send' button? I'm going to make a mess of this. I'll try 'Save'.
Regards,
Gabrielle.
Hi...from my personal experience, about within 2 weeks of being 100% raw, I too looked PREGO's , like majorly. I was actually getting worried. I experimented...it was all the dried fruit I was munching on. I said goodbye to that , and the bloat went away. Also, salt has the same effect on me. Make sure you are going poo too!!
Here is a thread with good info relating to your questions:
http://goneraw.com/forum/abdominal-distention-enemas-and-beyond
I'm not surprised you didn't feel well. Guacamole and hummus are high in fat, number one, and then you're combining legumes with starchy vegetables.
Have you tried green smoothies?
Humans meant to eat raw? I certainly don't think cooked food is doing anything good for us.....are people assuming that because presently people eat cooked food that that is what we are "meant" to do? I'd argue we are not meant to have such severe joint pain and most people rid themselves of it when they rid themselves of cooked food.
(When vegans have artificially made B12 supplements, that, too, is cheating.)
As for B12, you don't seem to have read up on this issue. ALL foods that have B12 are supplemented, even animal based. Look at the feed that chickens, cows, pigs, and other tortured & killed animals are fed. It's supplemented with B12.
And if I'm "cheating" by not causing harm to nonhuman animals because our soil was eroded by the same exploiters of animals and thus has no B12 anymore, so be it. I'll cheat all the way through med school. Teehee!! :)
I LOVE chickpeas and don't usually have a problem with them. But, I know lots of people do. If you are hitting the chickpeas really heavy, maybe that's the problem. Are you soaking them first for several hours (like overnight), draining, and then cooking in fresh water. That gets rid of the gas (or at least some). You could try sprouting them, and making humus from that (they'd be raw then). Lots of people seem to like sprouted chickpeas.
I support peoples' choice to eat ALL raw (this is a raw vegan site). But, imho, totally raw diet doesn't seem to work for everyone. There are a lot of people who have cooked brown rice, quinoa, and steamed veggies, etc, but incorporate lots of raw fruits and vegetables with it. High raw may suit you better than all raw? Just a thought.
You could also look into different "types" of raw diets:
There is the high fruit/ low fat/ and leafy green diet (80/10/10). There are people that don't do so well on so much fruit and eat more vegetables.
Maybe it is the "crunchy vegetables" you are eating most days. If I eat a lot of raw carrots, celery, and brocolli each day in large amounts, I get an upset stomach. I can eat them in a salad, with some olive or canola oil and vinegar and they don't bother me. But large amounts, yet.
Just some things to think about....
Thank you for the advice and the link. It all looks helpful.
I was sorry to raise a couple of carnivorous responses. I am trying to be a raw vegan; therefore, I am interested in the matter; therefore, I want to discuss and learn. Those who have fully adjusted to raw veganism ought to want to help those who struggle, both in the brain and in the tummy.
I don't want to to follow a diet that requires me to live in a particular time, in a state of relative affluence. If raw veganism is 'natural', the way that we are meant to be, and the way that we used to be (both according to many views), then it ought not to be dependent on modern conditions. Could I effectively follow a sufficiently nutritious raw diet anywhere in the World, with only the locally available sources of nutrition and with no artificial supplements? That's a question, not a challenge to anyone's beliefs. I want the honest answer to be 'yes'.
Superfood 2, I think that you are referring to the process in which animals produce B12 from what they consume. However, everything that I read on the subject states that other than in supplements, the B12 that is available and beneficial for humans comes from animals. The Vegan Society recommends that vegans take B12 supplements. Isn't that why pernicious anaemia used to be very common in vegans? I keep trying to find B12 in plant sources and was delighted to find that dark chocolate is a source. Perhaps we can find others.
I find the eating of meat abhorrent, and I have developed a distaste for eggs and milk. I want to eat only fruit, vegetables, cereals and nuts. But I want to understand what I am doing and why.
Now, assuming that I manage to sort out the tummy, I'd be grateful for some practical recipes (which are probably in the other forums, but don't people like spreading their advice around?). Recently, I had a five hours rail journey, followed by dinner with a colleague at a hotel, followed next day by a long meeting and another five hours railway journey. (I asked for salad starter and main course at the hotel and was presented with two heaps of rocket with some tiny bits of cucumber and cherry tomato, all floating in dressing). What simple meals could I prepare that I could eat in various states of transit, and which wouldn't leave me needing comfort breaks every few minutes. (because leaves just don't do the trick when it comes to soaking up liquids)?
I hope for further helpful responses.
Regards,
Gabrielle.
I don't think your natural diet would include your processed cereals and nuts. If you lived near the equator (as we all need sunshine as well as tropical fruits), you could live your natural diet of fruits and vegetables seasonally and locally. Wherever you are, if you want to live frugally, why not plant a garden?
I don't see, however, what our society's reliance on a made-up idea of a piece of paper being worth something and subsequently assigning a value and charging a dollar amount to something, has to do with the best diet. I would get another job if I couldn't afford to live healthfully. Really. I have before, too, where I worked full-time during the week and then also both weekend days from 4 a.m. to 11 a.m. That wasn't fun, but I wanted to live a certain lifestyle. I ended up burning more energy/calories that way and needing to eat more. haha!!
Animals are fed SYNTHETIC B12 supplements.
For your rail trips and such, have you considered green smoothies with bananas and spinach, water? Maybe apples or apple juice? That's what I would do!
I don't know all the answers, but I think the best thing you can do, is listen to your own body. Do what you need to do to feel your best mentally, and physically. We are all different, and have different needs.
I want to be able to stick to this type of eating, but I end up eating cooked food sometimes. I don't feel bad about it. The only time I feel bad, is if it makes me feel bad physically. From listening to my body, I know what I can, and can't tolerate, and how much.
Now, your tummy issues. Are you going to the bathroom regularly? When I go to raw from eating mostly cooked, I use the bathroom frequently, and then I have a period where I almost feel bloated, and my bathroom trips are not as frequent. When I feel more bloated, I drink more water, and eat more fruit, greens, and green tea.
I know I am interested in learning more about our history of what people ate long ago. I am very, very interested in eating foods that are only in your area, and seasonal. or what about foraging? So many things to make my head go a bit stir crazy. So, in the mean time, I love what raw does for me, and I'll continue to eat this way with some cooked variations. Don't worry so much about others who are into finding the negatives on foods. It is THEIR passion, and what is right and wonderful to them. Take what you need from message boards, and websites, and leave the rest.
More good advice. Thank you, all.
I'm surprised that B12 from animals is from synthetic sources. Doesn't this vital vitamin occur naturally in anything?
I might have been drinking too little water in my attempt to avoid comfort breaks every few minutes.
Sadly, I'm well past marketable age and in addition to all the other expenses, I'm paying for education and career development for four children. So, the change of job is out. But well done to all the young ones who are living healthily now. Although you are enjoying the benefits now, you will enjoy them much more in twenty years. I'm striving to put right all those years of idiocy. I agree with listening to my body. Unfortunately, you never lose your addictions, which often go back for generations. Perhaps, it's best to keep the brain out of it. That's the thing that remembers past pleasures and shuts out the accompanying effects.
I shan't go for all raw (especially after causing chronic toothache today after crunching on a carrot). I have begun to have a bit of high fibre rice (which takes a very long time to cook slowly). In general, I shall do raw for breakfast and lunch, and gently cooked evening meal.
And I shall continue to scrutinise the forums for tips.
Regards,
Gabrielle.
Animals do produce B12 (including humans) but not as much is available as there use to be.
All raw never sat that great with me, after the detox period I was just out of energy all the time even though I was eating a lot of veggies and fruit.
I personally function better on raw milk, some cooked rice, quinoa, etc. and mostly raw.
And a green smoothie every morning, fruit, greens, flax and hemp seeds. A smoothie once a day is a must in my opinion, I just don't feel or operate that great without a smoothie at least once a day.
wheatgrass, wild blue green algae, and other green sea plants have b12. lots of it.
More good advice. Thank you.
As usual, it leads to another question. I soak seaweed to remove the salt, but the result is a very unpalatable sludge. Any suggestions? Would a long drying in the lowest oven heat restore it?
I think that a smoothie maker will be on my Christmas list.
Regards,
Gabrielle.