I’ve thought about doing the raw food diet for over 4 years now. We actually tried a couple years ago, but couldn’t hack it and gave up after a few days. That little experiment did lead us to becoming vegetarians, so I guess it wasn’t a total failure. Even though we couldn’t do it the first time, I was still convinced a raw vegan diet was most natural way to eat. So I’ve been reading up on the subject, I’ve learned a few things, and I’m ready to give it another shot.

The raw food diet has gained a lot of credibility lately with various celebrities doing it and trendy books being published. But that’s probably a bad thing, as it will eventually fade away and be written off as just a fad. It’s really much more than just a diet though…to me it’s the only truly natural way to eat.

Humans were never meant to eat the processed and cooked foods we all eat these days. Imagine being stuck on a tropical island with no tools and no fire. What would you eat? The easiest and most logical choice would be the abundant fresh fruits and greens. Or would you chase down a wild boar, tear it to shreds with your razor sharp claws and fangs, and then devour its raw bloody flesh? Of course you wouldn’t, because humans just aren’t naturally equipped to kill and eat wild animals. Nor are we equipped to eat grains without heating them. Nor are we meant to drink the milk of other animals. Where else in nature do you see any other species eat so unnaturally as humans? You don’t.

The only healthy foods we can eat easily, naturally, and unaltered are fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. And that’s exactly what I’m attempting to do. Most raw fooders get the majority of their calories from fatty foods like avocado, nuts, and seeds. But that can lead to powerful cooked food cravings, binge eating, insulin resistance, and other health problems. According to the 80-10-10 Diet, an excellent book by Dr. Douglas Graham, the very best way to eat raw is low fat vegan - with at least 80% of calories from sweet fruit, no more than 10% of calories from protein, and no more than 10% of calories from fat. That translates into a whole bunch of fruit, a decent amount of vegetables & greens, and a tiny bit of nuts, seeds, & avocado.

I actually started the 80-10-10 diet yesterday. It was tough eating enough calories, as the volume of food necessary takes some getting used to. But I’m going to stick with it and see what happens. I’d like to commit to this for at least 30 days, then re-evaluate how I feel, and go from there. Check out The 80-10-10 Diet book if you get a chance - it’s quite good.

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