A raw food diet is one that promotes the consumption of raw foods. Raw foods, including fruits, vegetables, meats, nuts, seeds and herbs, are foods eaten in their natural, unprocessed, uncooked state. If a person’s raw food consumption consists of 75% to 100% of their overall total food consumption, then he or she is typically considered to be practicing a raw food diet or labeled a raw foodist. Raw foodists believe a raw food diet results in greater health benefits when compared to a diet largely consisting of cooked and or processed foods.

Raw foodists advocate a raw food diet for the following primary reasons:

• Raw foods contain a higher level of nutrients compared to cooked foods. Fruits and vegetables contain their highest level of nutrients just after they are harvested. Nutrient loss begins after harvest, continues through transport and storage and can greatly accelerate depending on the cooking method employed.
• Raw foods, like fruits and vegetables, are high in antioxidants which help prevent certain cancers.
• Cooking various foods can result in vitamin and mineral losses of up to 70% to 80%. In general, the more exposure food has to light, heat and oxygen (cutting foods exposes them to nutrient loss); the worse off food is from a nutritional standpoint. Boiling food typically causes the most nutrient loss.
• Raw foods contain higher levels of enzymes. Enzymes are largely proteins, complex chains of amino acids, which catalyze or increase the rate of chemical reactions such as those involved in metabolism and digestion. The raw food community generally believes that enzymes are destroyed at temperatures above 116 degrees Fahrenheit or 47 degrees Celsius and that consuming raw food releases beneficial enzymes in the mouth and stomach prior to digestion.
• Per the National Cancer Institute, studies have shown that cooking meat, especially grilling meat, can produce harmful chemical toxins, including heterocyclic amines (or HCAs), which are not present in uncooked meat. These chemicals, including HCAs, may increase the risk of developing cancer. In particular, studies have shown that HCAs increase threefold when cooking temperatures are over 400 degrees Fahrenheit or 204 degrees Celsius, temperatures normally associated with barbecuing, grilling and frying.

Raw foods can be prepared and eaten in various ways. Obviously, raw foods can be eaten uncooked right after they are harvested. Juicing various combinations of fruits and vegetables is also a popular choice of raw foodists. Raw food diets also incorporate the use of a food dehydrator. A food dehydrator uses hot air to remove moisture from and dehydrate food. Raw foodists dehydrate food at temperatures below 116 degrees Fahrenheit, or 47 degrees Celsius, so that vital food enzymes are not destroyed and nutrient loss is minimized.

Published 6/21/2009 12:00:00 AM

Tags: Enzymes, Raw Food Diet