Raw Food Vegan Diet FAQ
My Beauty Secrets Raw Food Journal My Raw Food Recipes The Raw Food Diet
The raw food diet takes a LOT of willpower and determination, especially if you are 90% raw vegan or higher. But the boundless energy and vibrant health are worth it! I've listed some of the biggest challenges people face on this diet along with solutions that work for me. Remember, the point of following any health program, including a raw vegan diet, is to look and feel your best. Try not to worry about being "100% Raw", unless this is what really makes you feel the best. Just incorporate as many fresh veggies, juices and fruits into your diet and you'll reap tons of health benefits!
1) What is "Raw Food"?
Raw Food is fresh food that has not been heated over 108F. It includes fresh, unpastuerized juices, sprouts, fresh raw (ideally organic) vegetables and fruits, and raw nuts and seeds. If you are a Vegan Raw Foodist, it doesn't include any animal derived products, (except for maybe honey and bee products, but that's a personal choice.) It does NOT include canned fruits, vegetables or nuts, bread, chips, pasta, steamed veggies, baked potatoes or any type of processed food. You can make your own raw bread and chips in a dehydrator, with the heat set below 108F. See the Raw Food Recipes section for ideas or peruse your health food store for raw food recipe books. Here's all the raw food I usually have in my Kitchen.
2) Do I Really Need To Buy Everything Organic? It's expensive!
Eating organic is the very best, otherwise you're consuming chemicals and pesticides. But it is expensive, so why not grow your own sprouts, sunflower and buckwheat greens and that way most of your greens will be organic! Limit your organic purchases to produce that is most heavily sprayed, like strawberries, bell peppers, cucumbers, and spinach, and save money by buying non-organic fruits with skins, like bananas, avos, and oranges. A good produce washing spray is also a great idea! Try not to worry, and remember, Any organic fruits & veggies that you incorporate into your diet is a terrific start!
3) My Roommate/Husband/Wife/Family Isn't Raw, and Prepares Food All the Time!
In my opinion, this is the biggest challenge on the raw diet. What should you do when your roommate is constantly cooking and crunching your favorite cooked food treats right in front of you? There is no easy solution to this dilema, and your willpower has to be Really strong! Have all your favorite raw treats handy so you can have your own snack whenever your roommate is eating. Maybe brush your teeth right before they prepare something, swish with peppermint oil breath freshener or take a walk. Have raw treats and snacks available that mimic the meals you crave the most, so when they eat their's, you can eat your own healthy raw version! Even though what they're cooking will smell really good, think to yourself: How will I feel if I eat that pizza? Tired? Sluggish? How will I feel if I eat a salad or smoothie? Energized and turbo charged!
4) How Do I Overcome My Cooked Food Cravings?
All cooked food is not "bad" or toxic or poison in my opinion, as many raw food books claim. But I know it makes me feel sluggish and less "alive", so I try to avoid it at all times. Bread cravings are very common on the raw food diet, along with chocolate cravings. Eating more fruit is a great way to diminish these cravings! The next time you want some sugary high fat dessert, blend up some frozen strawberries or mangos and bananas! Yum! It's amazing how satisfying this is. Make sure you don't have a vitamin deficiency, which might be causing you to crave a certain food.
For salt cravings, celery juice is an excellent source of sodium. Snacking on dried dulse (a variety of seaweed) is a super way to satisfy salt cravings and get superior nutrition at the same time! Avoid social gatherings where you know you're going to eat things you'll regret, or bring your own snacks with you. Exercise, brush your teeth, drink wheatgrass juice, all these will suppress your appetite for a little while, and keep your mind off food.
Try new raw recipes to mimic your favorite cooked food favorites, and keep the ingredients on hand for when a serious craving strikes! If you don't buy cooked food, you can't eat it! Not watching TV is a terrific way to miss all those mouth-watering pizza ads. Bring your own food with you whenever you leave the house. If you are having a Huge bread craving, try Manna bread, (hopefully) available in the freezer section of your local health food store. While not technically raw, these small loaves of sprouted grain bread are cooked at very low temperatures. Always try to substitute any junk food craving with the healthiest alternative possible. The one time I had no cooked food cravings at ALL was when I lived in Hawaii for 3 months. I was 100% the whole time and it was so easy! Probably because of all the fresh available organic produce and the general excitement and beauty of living there.
5) Where Do I Get My Protein on the Raw Food Diet?
Good question! You'll have to eat a lot of raw nuts and seeds everyday to satisfy the RDA for protein, or make sure you blend up a smoothie with a couple scoops of raw hempseed protein powder. My favorite brand is Nature's Way EFA Gold hempseed protein powder, and I try to have a couple scoops everyday. Many raw foodists seem to do fine without another source of protein, but some don't. Listen to your body. Your hair is one of the first things to suffer from lack of protein, so keep an eye on it! If it starts to fall out at all, start tossing back protein shakes unless you like the bald look. If you want to stay totally raw vegan, be sure to get enough raw protein everyday. Otherwise, try soy or whatever works best for you.
6) Help! I Binged on (Pizza, Chocolate, Chips) and I Feel SO Guilty!
Be gentle with yourself. Eating junk food is not the end of the world. Remember you used to eat in often without fear? Write down how eating that food made you feel physically. Do you feel tired or cranky? Your taste buds will rule your life if you let them! The rest of your body doesn't even like junk food. Just your tongue, and it can be a spoiled brat. If you have binged on junk food, take some digestive enzymes and maybe refrain from eating for several hours. You'll feel better again soon and remember, you always have a choice! Only you can decide what to put in your mouth. But life is long, and your body is a highly efficient machine; a little junk food here and there won't impair your health forever or get you arrested by the Raw Food Police. Remember, if you don't buy it, you can't eat it!
7) How Do I Stay Raw While Traveling?
When I lived in Hawaii I ate a Lot of cucumbers and apples, and always took them with me as snacks. They're very portable, even if they are heavy and bulky. Bananas are a good travel food too, along with oranges and bell peppers. Nuts and dried fruit are excellent also. There are a lot of super raw vegan snack bars available now, like Lara Bars and Nutiva bars. Be sure to take bottled water and drink all throughout the day! It's really easy to forget to drink water while traveling, because everything is so hectic and exciting! When in a different city or country, scout out the local health food store, or do the best you can with the available produce in the regular grocery store.
8) How Do I Stay Raw During the Holidays?
This is the most difficult time of the year to be raw! All the social and family gatherings, and treats everywhere! First, be prepared before Halloween with a plan of action. Do something fun on Halloween that will keep you far away from candy, or hand out "healthy" snacks to trick or treaters so you don't end up binging on candy yourself. This won't make you popular with the neighborhood kids, but your body will thank you! For Thanksgiving, bring or prepare your own food, and maybe make an extra pretty raw recipe that even your non-raw friends and family will enjoy. Snack on raw treats before the big event and you'll be less likely to scarf down a few pounds of mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie! For Christmas, or any other big winter holiday, load up on raw treats and have plenty of salad and fruit available, and share your favorites with family and friends.
Gently explain to your relatives that it's important to you to stay on your diet, and you don't mean to hurt their feelings by not eating all the yummy holiday food they've spent hours preparing! No one even blinks when people are on the Atkins diet and refuse to eat any carbs. The raw vegan diet should get the same respect! Taking walks, playing music, window shopping, taking pictures, watching movies, and reading by the fire are all fun activities that you can enjoy with friends and family that don't involve food. Buying seasonal raw food, like persimmons, pomegranites, raw nuts, satsuma oranges and crisp apples are yummy ways to enjoy the winter months.
9) Do I Need Vitamins and/or Superfood Supplements on the Raw Food Vegan Diet?
This is a personal choice, but I am a big believer in vitamins, antioxidants, and superfoods. It's just too hard to get all your vitamins from food unless you're eating as much as a whale. Depleted minerals in the soil, pesticides, toxins in the air all wreak havoc on your body in small ways that add up everyday. I consider vitamins and superfoods as insurance. I personally take spirulina, chlorella, bee pollen, goji berries, cold pressed flaxseed or hempseed oil, and a host of vitamins and antioxidants (Ester C, B complex, Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Selenium, Garlic, alpha lipoic acid, CoQ10, chromium) and herbs (turmeric, green tea to name a few) almost everyday. I try to juice several ounces of wheatgrass and drink a pint or more of fresh vegetable juice (carrot, beet, apple, parsley, cucumber, celery, cilantro, ginger, garlic) everyday also. I think Vitamineral Green is a very good green superfood if you're looking for a powder. Green foods are very cleansing and alkaline. You want your body to be alkaline all the time to keep it disease free!
the above is not intended as medical advice, please consult your doctor before beginning a diet or nutrition program
1) What is "Raw Food"?
Raw Food is fresh food that has not been heated over 108F. It includes fresh, unpastuerized juices, sprouts, fresh raw (ideally organic) vegetables and fruits, and raw nuts and seeds. If you are a Vegan Raw Foodist, it doesn't include any animal derived products, (except for maybe honey and bee products, but that's a personal choice.) It does NOT include canned fruits, vegetables or nuts, bread, chips, pasta, steamed veggies, baked potatoes or any type of processed food. You can make your own raw bread and chips in a dehydrator, with the heat set below 108F. See the Raw Food Recipes section for ideas or peruse your health food store for raw food recipe books. Here's all the raw food I usually have in my Kitchen.
2) Do I Really Need To Buy Everything Organic? It's expensive!
Eating organic is the very best, otherwise you're consuming chemicals and pesticides. But it is expensive, so why not grow your own sprouts, sunflower and buckwheat greens and that way most of your greens will be organic! Limit your organic purchases to produce that is most heavily sprayed, like strawberries, bell peppers, cucumbers, and spinach, and save money by buying non-organic fruits with skins, like bananas, avos, and oranges. A good produce washing spray is also a great idea! Try not to worry, and remember, Any organic fruits & veggies that you incorporate into your diet is a terrific start!
3) My Roommate/Husband/Wife/Family Isn't Raw, and Prepares Food All the Time!
In my opinion, this is the biggest challenge on the raw diet. What should you do when your roommate is constantly cooking and crunching your favorite cooked food treats right in front of you? There is no easy solution to this dilema, and your willpower has to be Really strong! Have all your favorite raw treats handy so you can have your own snack whenever your roommate is eating. Maybe brush your teeth right before they prepare something, swish with peppermint oil breath freshener or take a walk. Have raw treats and snacks available that mimic the meals you crave the most, so when they eat their's, you can eat your own healthy raw version! Even though what they're cooking will smell really good, think to yourself: How will I feel if I eat that pizza? Tired? Sluggish? How will I feel if I eat a salad or smoothie? Energized and turbo charged!
4) How Do I Overcome My Cooked Food Cravings?
All cooked food is not "bad" or toxic or poison in my opinion, as many raw food books claim. But I know it makes me feel sluggish and less "alive", so I try to avoid it at all times. Bread cravings are very common on the raw food diet, along with chocolate cravings. Eating more fruit is a great way to diminish these cravings! The next time you want some sugary high fat dessert, blend up some frozen strawberries or mangos and bananas! Yum! It's amazing how satisfying this is. Make sure you don't have a vitamin deficiency, which might be causing you to crave a certain food.
For salt cravings, celery juice is an excellent source of sodium. Snacking on dried dulse (a variety of seaweed) is a super way to satisfy salt cravings and get superior nutrition at the same time! Avoid social gatherings where you know you're going to eat things you'll regret, or bring your own snacks with you. Exercise, brush your teeth, drink wheatgrass juice, all these will suppress your appetite for a little while, and keep your mind off food.
Try new raw recipes to mimic your favorite cooked food favorites, and keep the ingredients on hand for when a serious craving strikes! If you don't buy cooked food, you can't eat it! Not watching TV is a terrific way to miss all those mouth-watering pizza ads. Bring your own food with you whenever you leave the house. If you are having a Huge bread craving, try Manna bread, (hopefully) available in the freezer section of your local health food store. While not technically raw, these small loaves of sprouted grain bread are cooked at very low temperatures. Always try to substitute any junk food craving with the healthiest alternative possible. The one time I had no cooked food cravings at ALL was when I lived in Hawaii for 3 months. I was 100% the whole time and it was so easy! Probably because of all the fresh available organic produce and the general excitement and beauty of living there.
5) Where Do I Get My Protein on the Raw Food Diet?
Good question! You'll have to eat a lot of raw nuts and seeds everyday to satisfy the RDA for protein, or make sure you blend up a smoothie with a couple scoops of raw hempseed protein powder. My favorite brand is Nature's Way EFA Gold hempseed protein powder, and I try to have a couple scoops everyday. Many raw foodists seem to do fine without another source of protein, but some don't. Listen to your body. Your hair is one of the first things to suffer from lack of protein, so keep an eye on it! If it starts to fall out at all, start tossing back protein shakes unless you like the bald look. If you want to stay totally raw vegan, be sure to get enough raw protein everyday. Otherwise, try soy or whatever works best for you.
6) Help! I Binged on (Pizza, Chocolate, Chips) and I Feel SO Guilty!
Be gentle with yourself. Eating junk food is not the end of the world. Remember you used to eat in often without fear? Write down how eating that food made you feel physically. Do you feel tired or cranky? Your taste buds will rule your life if you let them! The rest of your body doesn't even like junk food. Just your tongue, and it can be a spoiled brat. If you have binged on junk food, take some digestive enzymes and maybe refrain from eating for several hours. You'll feel better again soon and remember, you always have a choice! Only you can decide what to put in your mouth. But life is long, and your body is a highly efficient machine; a little junk food here and there won't impair your health forever or get you arrested by the Raw Food Police. Remember, if you don't buy it, you can't eat it!
7) How Do I Stay Raw While Traveling?
When I lived in Hawaii I ate a Lot of cucumbers and apples, and always took them with me as snacks. They're very portable, even if they are heavy and bulky. Bananas are a good travel food too, along with oranges and bell peppers. Nuts and dried fruit are excellent also. There are a lot of super raw vegan snack bars available now, like Lara Bars and Nutiva bars. Be sure to take bottled water and drink all throughout the day! It's really easy to forget to drink water while traveling, because everything is so hectic and exciting! When in a different city or country, scout out the local health food store, or do the best you can with the available produce in the regular grocery store.
8) How Do I Stay Raw During the Holidays?
This is the most difficult time of the year to be raw! All the social and family gatherings, and treats everywhere! First, be prepared before Halloween with a plan of action. Do something fun on Halloween that will keep you far away from candy, or hand out "healthy" snacks to trick or treaters so you don't end up binging on candy yourself. This won't make you popular with the neighborhood kids, but your body will thank you! For Thanksgiving, bring or prepare your own food, and maybe make an extra pretty raw recipe that even your non-raw friends and family will enjoy. Snack on raw treats before the big event and you'll be less likely to scarf down a few pounds of mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie! For Christmas, or any other big winter holiday, load up on raw treats and have plenty of salad and fruit available, and share your favorites with family and friends.
Gently explain to your relatives that it's important to you to stay on your diet, and you don't mean to hurt their feelings by not eating all the yummy holiday food they've spent hours preparing! No one even blinks when people are on the Atkins diet and refuse to eat any carbs. The raw vegan diet should get the same respect! Taking walks, playing music, window shopping, taking pictures, watching movies, and reading by the fire are all fun activities that you can enjoy with friends and family that don't involve food. Buying seasonal raw food, like persimmons, pomegranites, raw nuts, satsuma oranges and crisp apples are yummy ways to enjoy the winter months.
9) Do I Need Vitamins and/or Superfood Supplements on the Raw Food Vegan Diet?
This is a personal choice, but I am a big believer in vitamins, antioxidants, and superfoods. It's just too hard to get all your vitamins from food unless you're eating as much as a whale. Depleted minerals in the soil, pesticides, toxins in the air all wreak havoc on your body in small ways that add up everyday. I consider vitamins and superfoods as insurance. I personally take spirulina, chlorella, bee pollen, goji berries, cold pressed flaxseed or hempseed oil, and a host of vitamins and antioxidants (Ester C, B complex, Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Selenium, Garlic, alpha lipoic acid, CoQ10, chromium) and herbs (turmeric, green tea to name a few) almost everyday. I try to juice several ounces of wheatgrass and drink a pint or more of fresh vegetable juice (carrot, beet, apple, parsley, cucumber, celery, cilantro, ginger, garlic) everyday also. I think Vitamineral Green is a very good green superfood if you're looking for a powder. Green foods are very cleansing and alkaline. You want your body to be alkaline all the time to keep it disease free!