Some experts would say that eating raw foods can certainly be healthful by promoting "health and healing", for example, raw foods have enzymes that help aid in our digestion. The cooking of foods at really high temperatures actually kills most enzymes found in these foods when raw, which can lead to less consumption of important nutrients. Also, eating a raw food diet has been shown to normalize weight and increase energy. Because these raw foods can be easily digested than cooked foods, less bile and acid is produced which leads to the ease of digestion and less discomfort (Mater, 2005).
Although it seems that the raw food diet can reap a lot of benefits, there are many downfalls to consider. There have been brought up many questions of long-term effectiveness, possible vitamin deficiencies, and even food safety because there is a higher risk for contracting viral and bacterial infections from not cooking fish. Deficiencies that can occur include vitamin B12 (found in meat) and is a necessary vitamin to consume. Without consuming it in your diet, a supplement is absolutely needed. Protein is another example because without the consumption of meat, you are also not consuming much protein or vitamin B12. Protein can be found in nuts, seeds, and sprouts, but without eating a sufficient amount, there could be an issue at hand.
Overall, I was drawn to this article because I am always looking for fad diets that are either beneficial or can be harmful. It's always good to do research and know what is out there so you know what to look for or what the actual diet is when someone says they are doing it. I was also really interested in this article because I've heard about the raw food diet through others before, and wanted to learn more about it.
So here is my question: what do you think of the raw food diet? Does it sound like something that most people would be able to maintain?
Let me know your thoughts!
Here is the link to the article that I used:
I read a lot about nutrition but when I saw this title I was actually very surprised. I haven't ever heard of "raw food diets." Because of this, I found the article extremely interesting and was very drawn into it while reading.
ReplyDeleteI personally think that it doesn't sound like a very good diet. Whether it can be healthy or not is solely up to the person partaking in the diet and whether they eat the rights amounts of food and a wide variety of food too. But, the problem I have with it is if you don't like the food you are eating (as I am sure many people do not actually LIKE eating raw food) you are not going to be happy and you probably won't last a very long time without cheating. There have also been studies that relate increased stress to fat gain, and I don't know about you but if I wasn't aloud to cook my breakfast steaks or cook my evening fish, I would be MISERABLE. My adrenal glands would be producing cortisol like never before and I would in return be very unhappy. As for how healthy it is, I'm sure it is fine as long as you have proper variety. I occasionally eat a raw egg even when advised not to, and I'm perfectly fine. I think people grow up assuming raw=gross or bad and than create a bias without ever really looking into it.
So, I would say if you actually ENJOY eating raw food than go for it and see if it works, but otherwise I would recommend staying away from it because I doubt you'll last long.