Author: Crys

This time I am going to challenge the ones who decided to change their diet from one day to another by adopting a raw vegan diet.

Before I go any further, I would like to ask you:

1. Did you consult a nutritionist or any doctor before adhering to this myth?

2. If you decided to go on your own on this, regardless of your reasons, then my question to you is how much accurate information did you gather before getting yourself into it?

3. Have you considered for a second that this diet might not be right or best for you, even if your favorite celebrity has recently adopted it, claiming (with no real evidence) that it is the best way to prevent or reverse diseases and to stay young and vital?

As you may already know, the raw vegan diet (also called “raw foods”, “living foods”, “plant-based diet”, etc.) consists of unprocessed raw vegan foods, which have not been heated above 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius).

A raw vegan diet includes raw vegetables and fruits, nuts and nut pastes, grain and legume sprouts, seeds, plant oils, sea vegetables, herbs and fresh juices.

As I tried to understand the concept of such an extreme diet (being adept of a balanced diet), which shuns all animal products including eggs and dairy, I came across a famous, controversial book called The China Study written by the biochemist and nutrition researcher T. Colin Campbell.

The core idea of this book is that animal foods, especially the animal protein, are the main drivers of chronic illnesses such as coronary heart disease, diabetes and cancer of the breast, prostate and bowel.

Unfortunately, by the time I got to the half of the book, I have realized that his arguments for avoiding the consumption of animal products are loosely supported with data from a large observational study conducted throughout the 1980s in 65 rural Chinese counties, along with some other observations and studies on rats. Statistically speaking, the sample used for this study is highly localized, as are their respective conditions, customs, diet and other factors, limiting the applicability of the findings to the worldwide population.

Having said that, my conclusion is that we might be different in many ways, but not when it comes to the basics of keeping your body functioning properly.

Considering all the contradictory data out there regarding this topic (it seems to me that scientists can’t agree on any theory any longer), and it’s also a very complex topic that requires extensive research and consultation with specialists, I am planning to write more about it in the following weeks and share my findings with you.

In the meantime, I would like to leave you with the followings thoughts:

1. Don’t take my word or any other website’s word for it! Take your time, go see a doctor, and sieve thoroughly through all the data you might come across before playing with your health!
2. Be sincere with yourself when you try to determine what diet is best for you, and most importantly, try to listen to your body. If your current diet allows you to function at the highest level of energy and you rarely feel hungry or crave sweets, then you might want to reconsider changing your diet.
3. Go for a gradual change and see how you feel after some time!

Have you tried it? Is it working for you? If yes, what changes – positive or negative – have you experienced?

Stay healthy and tune in!

Read more about this: Is raw vegan diet such a healthy choice? (Part II)

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Tags: health, raw vegan diet, raw vegan food