I'm sure many of us have met someone who just HAS to let you know about their diet.
If they don't tell you about it, they might just DIE
Shit. I've met those people, and if I'm being honest, they aren't as crazy as they may seem...
But, most of these vegan/ raw food diets actually have some very beneficial aspects to them.
Now, I'm not here to annoy people or police people about their diet.
Nor am I trying to bother you about veganism until your brain turns to lettuce.
BUT
What I will do, is to tell you how eating raw foods is beneficial,
AND
How you can incorporate more raw foods into your diet if you wish to!
Firstly,
organically grown fruits and vegetables are some of the most bountiful sources of vitamins and minerals that you can find.
These foods are quickly digested and absorbed by our bodies, making them very efficient in supplying our body with the things we need.
Some of the beneficial properties contained in raw fruits and vegetables are:
And the list goes on...
Additionally, diets high in fruits, vegetables, legumes, and grains are high in biologically active substances known as:
Phytochemicals
Phytochemicals are chemicals found in such foods that are responsible for their
flavor, color, and natural disease resistance.
These Phytochemicals have been proven to prevent cancer by destroying carcinogenic molecules that are found in cells before they pose any real problems.
One Phytochemical in particular called Flavonoids, prevent cancer-causing hormones from attaching themselves to cells.
The good thing about Phytochemicals, as opposed to other beneficial vitamins and enzymes, is that Phytochemicals are NOT destroyed in the cooking process!
Just try to incorporate a variety of colorful foods into your diet to obtain some of these nutritional benefits!
The cooking issue comes in with the vitamins, minerals, and enzymes that are found in raw foods.
The beneficial enzymes, vitamins, and nutrients that are contained in these foods are EXTREMELY sensitive to heat; usually being destroyed in the cooking process.
For some Vitamins, (Vitamin C for example) water exposure also destroys them.
So what can you do
to get the most benefit out of your food?
EASY! DON'T COOK!
For one, fresh produce is relatively cheap. If you go to a supermarket, they usually have fresh fruits and vegetables near the entrance.
Go there, pick out a variety of fruits and vegetables (at the peak of ripeness), and throw them in your cart.
If you can buy organically grown foods, it will be better as there is not as much chemical residue that needs to be washed off.
The next step is easy. Just eat them raw.
I am not a vegan, but I eat A LOT of raw foods along with my meat and animal products.
If I'm eating a steak or whatever, I will just throw in the fresh produce on the side or in a salad bowl.
No cooking required.
In addition to that, you can prepare a nice bowl of fruit to go along with that meal.
Again, fast and no cooking needed.
Some vegetables such as broccoli and spinach are more beneficial if you steam them, which is also a very quick process.
But what if you don't like vegetables?
If you are one of those people who refuses to eat vegetables.... well... you cannot be saved!
References:
-Balch, Phyllis A. Prescription for nutritional healing: a practical A-to-Z reference to drug-free remedies using vitamins, minerals, herbs & food supplements. London: Penguin, 2011. Print.
-http://www.phytochemicals.info/
-http://www2.ca.uky.edu/hes/fcs/factshts/FN-SSB.006.pdf
THANKS FOR READING
Stay Awesome
-Zey