Raw food diet

[Guest guest]

I am on raw foods for a whole 7 days and am experiencing such positive changes in my overall well being. I also feel closer to Sri Krishna since the foods i now consume are fresh and raw and living as Lord Krishna created them. anyone here is a raw foodist?

 

After being in Iskcon since the last 26 years i have thoroughly enjoyed deep fried diet, creamy subjis and buttery halavas etc. However i noticed that until i have a spiritual body this body can't cope with my likes. So until i get a spiritual body that will alow me to share Lord Krishna's lunch box!!! i have to stay on raw foods.

 

Raw diet helps my mental clarity, weight reduction, sadhana and energy levels. I strongly recomend it to anyone who is feeling that the body is in need of a change in energy levels.

[suchandra]

Thanks anonymous for bringing up this question.

Spiritual advancement surely changes the eating habit.

As stated in Sri Sri Sad-gosvamy-astaka:

 

sankhya-purvaka-nama-gana-natibhih kalavasani-krtau

nidrahara-viharakadi-vijitau catyanta-dinau ca yau

radha-krsna-guna-smrter madhurimanandena sammohitau

vande rupa-sanatanau raghu-yugau sri-jiva-gopalakau

 

I offer my respectful obeisances unto the six Gosvamis, namely Sri Rupa Gosvami, Sri Sanatana Gosvami, Sri Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami, Sri Raghunatha dasa Gosvami, Sri Jiva Gosvami, and Sri Gopala Bhatta Gosvami, who were engaged in chanting the holy names of the Lord and bowing down in a scheduled measurement. In this way they utilized their valuable lives and in executing these devotional activities they conquered over eating and sleeping and were always meek and humble enchanted by remembering the transcendental qualities of the Lord.

 

Probably all vegetarians also tried eating only raw food diet, for me it even was the only way to remain healthy in the country of origin of diarrhea, salmonella and hepatitis, India. However, to remain on that raw food diet for a longer periode of time causes in many cases liver disease. It is proven fact that raw food takes longer to digest and meanwhile when passing through the bowel ferments and produces hidden alcohol. Therefore you find such people having red cheeks or noses in the morning. And of course can cause addiction and gradually liver problems.

Highly spiritual people wont have that problem since they eat so less, people who still have ravenous appetite to eat a lot should be rather careful not to only eat raw foods.

Hope that doesnt look like a wisenheimer speach - just my own experience.

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

i will continue the liver cleanses, due for my 4th cleanse soon.i don't feel hungry on this raw diet, so i don't eat alot. I appreciate the advice though, will take care of my liver also.

[Guest guest]

Raw Foods

 

by June Butlin

 

“Feeling good”, “energising”, “vitality”, “longevity”, “aliveness”, “dynamic state of mind”, “anti ageing” and “calmness of spirit” are all descriptive words and expressions used by those

recommending a raw food diet. The benefits advocated from eating such a diet seem endless: lowering cholesterol and triglyceride levels, eliminating cravings, preventing overeating, purging the body of accumulated toxins, balancing hormones, maintaining blood glucose levels and reversing degenerative diseases.

There is much evidence to back up these claims from observations of primitive cultures, doctors and nutritionists curing degenerative diseases, and health researchers. Examples can be seen in the way the Hunzas, Ecuadorians, Georgians and Yucatan Indians ate low calorie diets of fresh, uncooked foods such as dairy, vegetables, fruits and sprouted seeds, and lived very long, healthy and energetic lives. Dr. Bircher Benner, a pioneer of nutrition, cured himself of jaundice by eating raw apples, and then established his famous clinic in Zurich in 1897 based on a diet of uncooked foods and regular exercise. Dr. Max Gerson, a contemporary of Bircher Benner, cured his severe migraine headaches by avoiding pickled and smoked foods, salt and fats, and by eating fresh fruits and vegetables. In 1929 this same diet was published as a cure for skin tuberculosis, and later for lung tuberculosis, cancer, heart and kidney problems. In 1920 a French researcher, Edmond Szekely, discovered the writings of the Essenes, a monastic sect at the time of Christ, which gave instructions about fasting and raw foods to achieve mental, physical and spiritual health. More recent examples are Dr. Norman Walker’s raw juice fasting for numerous health problems, the Linus Pauling Institute’s work on cancer with wheat grass and raw foods and Leslie Kenton’s Biogenic diet for health and longevity that emphasises 70% raw foods.

Let’s explore the reasons why a raw food diet is so effective. Firstly, foods grown on healthy soil and eaten raw and fresh contain the finest complement of essential nutrients. These nutrients can be used to enhance the biological functioning of the body, both to achieve optimum health, and to regenerate healthy cells to overcome degenerative diseases.

Secondly, Dr. Edward Howell’s research proves that raw foods supply their own digestive enzymes that help to partially digest the foods in the mouth and the stomach. This reduces the quantity of digestive enzymes produced within the body and minimises any strain on the digestive processes. Dr. Howell also established that the body has a limited capacity to produce enzymes for all the metabolic functions in the body. So, sparing the productivity of the body’s digestive enzymes by eating raw foods will also allow the body a greater capacity to produce enzymes for metabolic processes such as the elimination of toxins, energy production and nerve and hormone functioning.

Thirdly, nutrients, which occur in optimal proportions and quantities in fresh, uncooked vegetables, boost lymphocyte pro-

duction. Lymphocytes are white blood cells, which are rich in enzymes and have the ability to aid digestion. They also have a role to play in the immune system increasing the body’s resistance to illness.

Fourthly, organic raw foods contain a high potassium to sodium ratio, which helps correct cellular functioning. This increases the ability of the cells to absorb nutrients, excrete toxins, produce energy, convert glucose into glycogen and regulate muscle actions and nerve transmission. It also helps to maintain the correct acid-alkali environment in the body aiding all metabolic functions.

Fifthly, raw foods are abundant in plant fibres such as bran, lignins, pectins, gums, and mucilages. These have a number of functions in the body. They increase the peristaltic action of the gut increasing the efficiency of the digestive tract and preventing foods from putrefying and poisoning the body. They allow a steady rate of nutrient absorption, maintain a steady blood glucose level, and reduce the amount of fat absorbed into the systemic system. They also chelate heavy metals such as lead and cadmium, and help to balance the gut flora and aid its ability to synthesise vitamins B and K.

Sixthly, raw foods also contain other important substances, some of which are: essential oils, natural antimicrobials, plant hormones, bioflavonoids, and chlorophyll. These have beneficial effects in the body and an example and usage of each can be seen below:

Essential oils – Ginger from the rhizomes of the plant – Stimulates gastric juices and facilitates digestion.

Natural Antibiotics – The seeds extracted from Grapefruit – Inactivates viruses, yeasts, fungi, parasites, worms and bacteria.

Plant hormones – Diosgenin from Wild Yam – Lowers cholesterol, reduces pain, inflammation and menopausal hot flushes.

Bioflavonoids – Rutin from Buckwheat – Lifts depression, heals bruises and broken blood vessels in the skin.

Chlorophyll – Young cereal plants such as Barley and Wheat – Contains blood building properties and stimulates cell growth.

Undoubtedly there are many advantages to eating a raw food diet full of the vital nutrients for health. But, the question is “Will raw foods benefit you?” There is no definitive answer as raw food is not a magic bullet for health for everyone; we all have our own biochemical individuality. Certainly, there are other schools of thought, Zen, Macrobiotic and Ayurvedic nutrition allow cooked foods and achieve health successes. The best way to decide if this way of eating will enhance your health is to try it for at least ten days and judge for yourself. For those totally dedicated, a 100% balanced, raw food diet should be followed, and for the less adventurous a 70% raw food to 30% cooked food should provide health gains.

 

[Guest guest]

Hare Krsna.

I am also a devotee trying to follow a raw diet. I had a dehydrator for my birthday so I can make raw crackers, etc. to go with all the salads. A good salad dressing recipe is this: 1 oz extra virgin cold pressed olive oil

2 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/2 oz maple syrup

1/2 liquid aminos (Braggs)

1/4 of a tomato

1/4 - 1/2 avocado

4 oz purified water

1/4 tsp hing; 1/2 tsp dried basil

a few twists of black pepper

2 tablespoons tahini

2 tablespoons of sesame seeds

Blend it all up until thick and creamy.

On Ekadasi of course you have to forego hing and Braggs aminos.

All Glories to Srila Prabhupada. JS dd

 

[Guest guest]

leave out the tahini on ekadasi as well as it has sesame seeds. Ekadasi is a lot easier when on raw. This is like the real yogi diet, fruit roots and leaves!!! Mdd

[inahd]

one ayurvedic physician told me a few things that were interesting when i told him i was on a raw food diet. first he said that it is recommended in ayurveda for people with heavy diseases like cancer, for regeneration, but that everywhere else it recommends chapatis and dal and rice and stuff. the second thing he said was that one should cleanse first their liver, then kidney, then gallbladder, THEN intestines, which is one of the major things that happens on a raw diet. most of the sluggishness of the raw diet comes from the eliminatory organs being unable to process the massive amounts of toxins that get released from the intestines on a raw diet.

[Trixie_Napoleon]

How do you get calcium?

[Guest guest]

 

How do you get calcium?

green leafy vegetables, and raw milk products. sesame seeds are good too.

[riih.qarojamahoamaan]

The point is to eat saattwik food. Raw fresh food is saattwik and detoxifying; that wonderful feeling which others try to get using drugs and such things, is achieved just by one or a few days of raw diet. but it is also good to cook food in order to get rid of dangerous germs etc, also mild cooking is good in order to make the food energy warmer. Raw food can be dangerous when it has a cold energy, once i ate raw green soy beans and suffered the worst diarrhea of my life. A little simmering and few grains of salt would make green soy beans fine and safe. Simmered bean sprouts are great too. Most beans are revolting when raw. The most important is to avoid all fried food because it is taamasik, especially fried onions and the like, all taamasik people are addicted to fried onion, if there is no fried onion and no fried oil, they say "this is no food". Oil, like honey, is nectar when raw, but a poison when cooked. Sometimes a little dirty food is good, for if you r too clean you may find trouble coping with this world. Still fried food is an extreme of tamas! to hell with fried food! cooking should be basically simmering, or moderately baking without oil. Grilling (with no added oil) on charcoal makes juices leak and get burnt before you eat the food, so it really has the effect of agnihotra (fire sacrifice), and even meat cooked this way on proper days cannot do harm, because is has been sacrificed before eating it.

[Vrindavan]

>> Sometimes a little dirty food is good, for if you r too clean you may find trouble coping with this world

 

 

sorry, i do not agree with this theory

[riih.qarojamahoamaan]

 

>> Sometimes a little dirty food is good, for if you r too clean you may find trouble coping with this world

sorry, i do not agree with this theory

You may be right; i would like to know your own theory. When we are offered impure food, should we accept it as Buddha did, or what should we do? When i eat together with people who eat meat and taamasik food, it does not help me if i avoid their impure food; i pay for their bad karma when i choose to eat different things than what they eat.

[Bhakta Don Muntean]

 

...even meat cooked this way on proper days cannot do harm, because is has been sacrificed before eating it.

 

You had me taking you serious - then that.

[riih.qarojamahoamaan]

You had me taking you serious - then that.

I hurt your feelings. So you say i m not serious because i talked about meat sacrifice. The vast majority of people in the modern world are irreligious meat eaters. Actually i do not know even 1 pure vegetarian in my country. If you can persuade all those people to go vegetarian, please do so. It would be much more practicable to persuade them sacrifice meat before eating it; this presupposes believing in God. Do you think Krsna was vegetarian? he was a ksatriya, so he hunted on his own and with his friend Arjuna, to bring animals for sacrifice. It was a different time then, plenty of animals, less people... Yet Krsna caused countless people to die, and even brought the destruction of his own dynasty, to relieve earth from human overpopulation. If you still think i m not serious, o.k., have a good cheer. I do not need to change your mind, i love vegetarians, still we must live in the real world! Buddha died because he ate pork, while Mithridatees the king could not be killed by poison because he made himself gradually tolerant to poisons. Raw diet is wonderfully good, i have tried it, it works wonders (it has side effects though: you get easily angry with people because they are different, and others curse you because of envy). I do not advocate any extremes, because every extreme leads normally to the opposite side. As old horse-shoe makers did, i hammer alternatingly both on the nail and on the horse-shoe. This is the only way to nail a horse-shoe. If i m still not serious, o.k., have a good cheer.