Is going Raw BAD for you in the Long Run????

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on March 12, 2008 at 9:47pm

I'm confused how raw vegans don't get enough nutrition. What else is more nutritious than green leafy vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, and sprouts? I can't think of anything. If you have a bagel or cereal for breakfast, a sandwich for lunch, and chicken for dinner, where are the nutrients? It's all white bread and meat. In the long term...I think anyone who eats a lot of fruits and vegetables will be better off. I don't think you necessarily have to be raw, but SAD is disgusting. You should at least be eating brown rice and whole wheat instead of white bread.

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Permalink Reply by coco on July 23, 2008 at 3:45am

so true.
i know MANY people who eat nothing for breakfast (or a soda), a white bread sandwich slathered with mayo and meat and one measly lettuce leaf, and order pizza (meat, no veggies) for dinner. chips and candy for snacks. soda soda soda all day long.
are they "healthy?" hell no.
but they have definitely been eating like this long term, and i can assure you that someone eating raw for the same amount of time would be much better off than they are

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Permalink Reply by Raw by Default on March 13, 2008 at 1:46pm

It depends on the person's body, how they're eating, and how much they know. Some people can develop deficiencies, and unless they know how to correct them, they're going to have problems. For some, that may mean taking supplements; not everyone can extract everything they need from food.

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Permalink Reply by Rebecca on March 13, 2008 at 3:50pm

Vegan is way better than the SAD diet, but if you were vegan before raw vegan or even vegetarian, you remember the frozen 'foods' you used to eat cause they were convienent and supposedly good for you. ?? Just remember that the raw lifestyle provides so many paths to optimum health and wellbeing. Let people say what they will and do not let it get to you.

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Permalink Reply by bueller on July 23, 2008 at 12:58am

I have been thinking about this a lot lately. I pay attention to my nutrition, my acid/alkaline balance, and that I'm getting the right ratio of fat, protein and sugar. My question isn't really if you can do raw food long term the question I'm most interested in is how? What do we need to pay attention to besides the obvious pitfalls. That's the important issue, no if but explaining to people how to do it correctly.

Bueller

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Permalink Reply by coco on July 23, 2008 at 3:40am

even if someone is knowledgeable on the subject of nutrition, it doesn't necessarily mean what they say is 100% accurate or true.

case in point: the other day there was a shooting in my neighborhood. i turned on the television and flipped from channel to channel to watch the news. a daily show caught my eye, because there was a woman who was a "nutritionist" on there (can't remember but i am pretty sure she was a registered dietician) who was talking about "healthy junk foods." she recommended pork rinds because "they have a little protein and no carbs" and animal crackers and beef jerky, among other things.
registered dieticians go to school for a long time, but i'm not buying the healthy pork rind thing.

i think long term can be very healthy. everyone just has to pay attention to nutrients and make sure they eat a variety of foods. i think a lot of people get stuck on eating raw as a way to constantly eat desserts and fats...dehydrated foods and nuts and nut butters...all the time....and nothing else. that is definitely less-than-stellar long term. i'm sure someone who was raw, but ate only raw nut butter, nuts, seeds, and dehydrated snacks, would be missing out on nutrients.
also: from personal experience: i think that being raw for over a year and then going cooked again is probably what causes many long-termers to be unhealthy.

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Permalink Reply by Ian on July 23, 2008 at 7:40am

Perhaps you should ask him "why"?

And then tear his theories apart :-)

Ian

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Permalink Reply by Bananna on July 23, 2008 at 5:05pm

Yes....I am a fan of questioning everyone about all their steadfast beliefs. And I would be all over that guy.
....but not in an offensive way.
And then I would ask questions that make him mull his own beliefs over.

Hey, all I'm doing is asking questions....nobody can take offense to that can they?

.... but then...maybe I should be a psychologist when I grow up, lol.

I would even start with 'why do you say that?' bahahahaha....

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Permalink Reply by nycgrrl on July 23, 2008 at 7:51pm

this is my issue too. I have decided that for me, high raw is best (about 95% in the summer and 80% in the winter.)

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Permalink Reply by VOID on July 24, 2008 at 6:30am

Dairy is the worst food for the environment. Go look at the UN food and agriculture website. Their methane production has 296 times the global warming potential of CO2 and meat and dairy production combined are estimated to be responsible for 18% of the total carbon footprint.

Grains are dreadful too. They demand so much land, and so much water, and they damange the soil so the crops have to be rotated, the land cant be continually used, it has to have a rest. They are a major source of deforestation for this reason, making land to grow new grain crops.

Most of the grains grown in the world are for farming animal feed rather than for human consumption. By supporting that industry you are supporting the destruction of the earth. We the consumer have to pay the supplement fee too. The farmers get it really cheap to feed their cattle. To make up the profit difference, we have to pay massive amounts more so they can afford to sell it to the farmers for the price they do.

Fruit consumption whilst often involving shipping, is not worse than consuming grains because fruit can feed more, per square acre than can grains, and it supports the earth beneath it. It makes the soil stronger not weaker, and the trees do not have to be pulled up for consumption. Just the fruit to be picked, so they keep on growing. They also produce lots of oxygen for us and take up the CO2. Eating ORGANIC fruit is, in this regard a very good thing. The problem with shipping is that regardless of whether a food is grown in your country or not, the food usually ends up getting shipped about all over anyway. At least fruit is better in other ways. Such is the way with a global capitalist market.

Take Care

Adam x

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Permalink Reply by coco on July 24, 2008 at 8:06pm

yes, apparently the gas that cows, um, "emit" is polluting earth more than all the cars do.
that is downright scary.
not to mention their use of water...

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Permalink Reply by VOID on July 24, 2008 at 8:54pm

Yup she is right, take a look for yourself, local or not, grass fed or not, meat and dairy is worse than even FLYING!!!. I think you're missing a key thing here CoolJZB. It is the biggest problem facing the environment at the moment, and the one that is least addressed by the media. they could start a media compaign that would have everyone vegan within 10 years (at the latest) if they wanted to. but they dont.

Eating a local diet is of course the best way to eat. If you want to eat a local diet you can do it with plant foods no probs.

As for packaging, most fruit needs the least packaging than any food. Thats the great thing about it. It comes with its own packaging and you can compost the waste and let it feed the environment.

It actually wouldnt work out better in the grand scheme of things to get animal produce locally that fruit from chile.

Take care

Adam x

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