What Are Raw Food Detox Diets?
The raw food detox diet is a very popular way of eating. Its basis and rules fall into several different categories and are dependant upon your lifestyle. There are stricter variations and categories that are more lenient.
Origination Of Raw Food Detox Diets
Eating a raw food diet may seem like a new trend, but technically began before humans had the ability to cook they existed on raw food alone. Many variations of the raw food detox diet exist, but this article will cover the common plan.
During 1920-1940 several books were released concerning the topic of raw food consumption. The diet didn’t catch on until somewhere around the 1990’s to 2000’s. It’s been steadily gaining popularity over the last decade, and many people raved about this way of eating.
Raw Food Diet Mistakes Part 1
What Do I Eat?
Depending on who you ask, you’re likely to get a range of answers, but the basis of the raw food diet remains the same. The main foods include vegetables, fruit, nuts, grains, and seeds. The plan doesn’t allow anything on the menu to be heated or cooked above a temperature of 100.4F. The idea behind this aspect of the diet is to keep food temperatures below our body temperature. Raw food enthusiasts claim that foods lose their nutritional value when heated above that temperature.
Most raw foodists abstain from any meat, while on a raw food diet, although some foodists eat raw meat. If you prefer to continue consuming animal products, your diet will incorporate raw eggs, meats, fish, and dairy that hasn’t been homogenized.
Sample Shopping List
This is a just a basic shopping list, but it will give you a general idea of the items you will be eating on a raw food detox diet.
Vegetables
| Fruits
| Nuts & Seeds
|
|---|---|---|
Lettuce
| Bananas
| Chia
|
Onions
| Grapes
| Flax
|
Corn
| Strawberries
| Cashews
|
Green beans
| Mango
| Sunflower
|
Cucumber
| Lemons
| Sesame
|
Cauliflower
| Blackberries
| Pumpkin
|
Broccoli
| Blueberries
| Pine nuts
|
Kale
| Coconut
| Pecans
|
Eggplant
| Grapefruits
| Hazelnuts
|
Squash
| Apples
| Brazil nuts
|
Sweet potatoes
| Pears
| Hemp seeds
|
Garlic
| Papayas
| Walnuts
|
Peppers
| Oranges
| Almonds
|
Peas
| Peaches
| |
Spinach
|
Whole Grains
| Beans
| |
|---|---|---|
Barley
| White
| |
Wheat
| Kidney
| |
Rice
| Black
| |
Quinoa
| Navy
| |
Buckwheat
| Lentil
| |
Oats
| ||
Rye
|
While you’re on a raw food diet detox it’s important to remember to avoid all processed foods, anything heated or cooked, and anything treated with pesticides. In some cases in order to avoid pesticides and chemicals you will have to buy organically grown produce.
This can prove to be a little expensive, depending on how many people you are feeding and availability in your local area. It’s important to remember this is a significant lifestyle change and spending a little extra money on your health is worth it in the long wrong.
Health Benefits Raw Food
The most alluring benefit of a raw food detox diet is weight loss. Most foodists find that they lose weight easily, even without exercise, when they start a raw food diet. The reasoning behind this is simple; you are avoiding processed foods and eating large amounts of fruits and vegetables. This diet would benefit anyone who decided to eat this way.
When you eat regular food, it goes to your stomach and a process called leukocytosis starts, this a process where your body starts to produce white blood cells. As you may already know, white blood cells show up when you’re body recognizes an infection, or an irritation.
Your body sees food as an outside invader and responds by multiplying your white blood cells and preparing for attack. When you eat food that has been cooked or heated your white blood cells respond to it by leukocytosis. This is a huge benefit of the raw food detox diet and is a legitimate reason to eat this way.
Disadvantages?
Although there are many benefits to eating a raw food detox diet, there are some disadvantages. The biggest problem that raw foodists encounter is becoming deficient in certain minerals and vitamins. If you don’t eat a diet that is nutritionally complete it’s easy to become low in vitamin B-12, calcium, and iron. These vitamins and minerals are of high importance to the human body, and becoming deficient can seriously affect your health. If you find that you are low in B-12, this can be easily remedied by taking a supplement or adding a B-12 powder to your food.
If you become low in calcium you should increase your intake of sesame seeds. Sesame seed milk is a great product and it is very high in calcium, higher than cow’s milk. If your iron is low the best way to ensure you receive more in your diet is by increasing your leafy green vegetables such as spinach and kale. As long as you are eating a well-rounded, nutritionally complete diet you’re not going to encounter any problems.
The raw food detox diet is said to be great way to drastically improve your health and overall wellness.
