Raw foodism (or rawism ) is a lifestyle promoting the consumption of un-cooked, un-processed, and often organic foods as a large percentage of the diet. Raw foodists typically believe that the greater the percentage of raw food in the diet, the greater the health benefits. Raw foodism or a raw diet is usually equated with raw veganism in which only raw plant foods are eaten, but other raw foodists emphasize raw meat and other raw animal products. Depending on the type of lifestyle and results desired, raw food diets may include a selection of raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds (including sprouted whole grains such as gaba rice), eggs, fish (such as sashimi), meat (such as carpaccio), and non-pasteurized/non-homogenized dairy products (such as raw milk, raw milk cheese, and raw milk yogurt). Raw foodists can be divided between those that advocate raw vegetarianism or raw veganism, those that advocate a raw omnivorous diet, and those that advocate a diet of only raw animal foods (carnivorous).
Adherents of raw foodism believe that consumption of uncooked foods encourages weight loss (and stability, without the risk of re-gaining), while also preventing and/or healing many forms of sickness and chronic diseases. Some medical studies have indicated that different forms of raw food diets may lead to various health problems, while other studies have shown positive health outcomes with such diets.
Diets
Raw foodism can include any diet of primarily unheated food, or food warmed to a temperature less than 40 °C (104 °F) to 46 °C (115 °F). The most popular raw food diet is a raw vegan diet, but other forms include animal products and/or meat.
Raw veganism
Main article: Raw veganismA raw vegan diet consists of unprocessed, raw plant foods that have not been heated above 46 °C (115 °F). “Raw foodists” believe that foods cooked above this temperature have lost much of their nutritional value and are less healthy or even harmful to the body. Typical foods include fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and sprouted grains and legumes.
Some raw vegans can be subdivided into fruitarians, juicearians, or sproutarians. Fruitarians eat primarily or exclusively fruits and nuts. Juicearians process their raw plant foods into juice. Sproutarians adhere to a diet consisting mainly of sprouted seeds.
Personal claims have been made following a raw vegan diet, including weight loss, more energy, clear skin, improved insulin tolerance, and improved overall health. David Wolfe, Gabriel Cousens, Rene Oswald, RawMatt, Daniel Vitalis, and Victoria Boutenko are notable adherents of raw veganism.
Raw vegetarianism
See also: VegetarianismRaw Vegetarianism is a diet that excludes meat, (including game and slaughter by-products like gelatin), fish (including shellfish and other sea animals) and poultry, but allows dairy and eggs. Common foods include fruit, vegetables, sprouts, nuts, seeds, grains, legumes, dairy, eggs and honey. There are several variants of this diet. This diet is less common than raw veganism.
Raw animal food diets
Main article: Raw animal food dietsIncluded in raw animal food diets are any food that can be eaten raw, such as uncooked, unprocessed meats/organ-meats/eggs, raw dairy, and aged, raw animal foods such as century eggs, rotting (fermenting) meat/fish/shellfish/kefir, as well as, to a much higher extent, vegetables/fruits/nuts/sprouts, but generally not raw grains, raw beans, raw soy, etc., because of digestibility and toxicity issues and also because paleolists tend to reject Neolithic or domesticated foods. Raw foods on such diets have not been heated at temperatures above 104 °F (40 °C). "Raw Animal Foodists" believe that foods cooked above this temperature have lost much of their nutritional value and are harmful to the body. Smoked meats are frowned upon by many Raw-Omnivores. Some make a distinction between hot-smoked and cold-smoked.
Those who eat a raw omnivorous diet usually choose to obtain their meats from free-range and grass-fed sources. This greatly diminishes the risk of harmful bacteria. A study by Cornell University has determined that grass-fed animals have far fewer E. coli (approx. 300 times less) than their grain fed counterparts. Also in the same study, the amount of E. coli they do have is much less likely to survive our first line defense against infection, gastric acid. Grass-fed meat also contains more nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, and omega-3 fatty acids, than grain-finished meat. Other studies show that E. coli O157:H7, Campylobacter, Salmonella, and other dangerous pathogens have been repeatedly isolated from both grass and grain fed livestock and there are conflicting results regarding whether the levels of pathogens are higher, lower, or the same when animals are fed grass- or grain-based diets.
Examples of raw animal food diets include the Primal Diet, Anopsology (otherwise known as "Instinctive Eating" or "Instincto"), and the Raw, Palaeolithic diet ("otherwise known as the "Raw Meat Diet").
The Primal Diet, is a diet consisting of fatty meats, organ meats, dairy, honey, minimal fruit and vegetable juices and coconut cream, all raw. The founder of the Primal Diet is Aajonus Vonderplanitz. Vonderplanitz has estimated that there are 20,000 followers of his raw-meat-heavy Primal Diet in North America, alone. Books by Vonderplanitz include "The Recipe for Living Without Disease" and "We Want To Live".
There are also those who follow the "Raw Meat Diet", otherwise known as the "Raw, Paleolithic Diet", which is a raw version of the (cooked) Paleolithic Diet, incorporating large amounts of raw animal foods such as raw meats/organ-meats, raw seafood, raw eggs, and some raw plant-foods, but usually avoiding non-Paleo foods such as raw dairy, grains and legumes.
A number of traditional aboriginal diets consisted of large quantities of raw meats, organ meats, and berries, including the traditional diet of the Nenet tribe of Siberia and the Inuit people.
Food preparation
Many foods in raw food diets are simple to prepare, such as fruits, salads, meat, and dairy. Other foods can require considerable advanced planning to prepare for eating. Rice and some other grains, for example, require sprouting or overnight soaking to become digestible. Many raw foodists believe it is best to soak nuts and seeds before eating them, in order to activate their enzymes, and deactivate enzyme inhibitors.
According to some cookbook authors, preparation of gourmet raw food recipes usually calls for a blender, food processor, juicer, and dehydrator. Depending on the recipe, some food (such as crackers, breads and cookies) may need to be dehydrated. These processes, which produce foods with the taste and texture of cooked food, are lengthy. Some raw foodists dispense with these recipes, feeling that there is no need to emulate the other non-raw diets or increase sales of kitchen appliances.
Freezing food is acceptable, even though freezing lowers enzyme activity. This view is only held by some raw-foodists, with many raw-foodists actually viewing freezing as harmful, though not as unhealthy as cooking.
Several raw food preparation books have been published including Transitioning to Living Cuisine by Rene Oswald, Raw: The Uncook Book: New Vegetarian Food for Life by Juliano Brotman and Erika Lenkert (Regan Books, 1999), Raw by Charlie Trotter, Roxanne Klein, Jason Smith, and Tim Turner (Ten Speed Press, 2003), Raw Food/Real World: 100 Recipes to Get the Glow by Matthew Kenney and Sarma Melngailis (William Morrow, 2005) and RAWvolution: Gourmet Living Cuisine by Matt Amsden (William Morrow, 2006).
Avoiding poisoning
As the consumption of raw foods gains popularity, some potentially unsafe foods have re-entered the diets of humans.
- Buckwheat greens are toxic when raw, particularly if juiced or eaten in large quantities by fair skinned individuals. The chemical component fagopyrin is known to cause severe photosensitivity and other dermatological complaints.
- Kidney beans, including sprouts, are toxic when raw, due to the chemical phytohaemagglutinin.
- Alfalfa sprouts contain the toxin canavanine.
- Some types of raw cassava or cassava flour can be toxic.
- Raw eggs contain avidin, a vitamin B7 or biotin inhibitor, which can cause “egg white injury”. As many as 24 egg whites would have to be eaten to inactivate biotin. Avidin is denatured by heat.
- Raw seeds of the genus lathyrus (peas), can cause lathyrism.
- Raw brassica species can contain glucosinolate.
- Apricot kernels contain amygdalin, which contains the toxin cyanide.
- Raw parsnips contain furanocoumarin.
- Raw foods, particularly raw meat, may contain harmful bacteria and their associated bacterial toxins. Other parasites and viruses may also be present, such as toxoplasma, trichinella, or rotavirus, which may cause serious foodborne illnesses.
- Raw milk may contain Mycobacteria bovis (which can cause non-pulmonary tuberculosis).
- Raw sweet potato, cabbage, cauliflower, turnips, rutabaga, canola oil, cassava, pinenuts, mustard, millet, soybeans and peanuts contain small amounts of Goitrogens which can interfere with iodine utilization and cause Hypothyroidism.
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