Living and Raw Foods F.A.Q.
Resource: www.Living-Foods.com

Why would someone want to eat a raw and living foods diet?
There are many reasons why people eat a raw and living foods diet.

Health:
Persons embracing this type of diet invariably experience improvements in their general physical and mental status, including more energy, better health, weight loss, detoxification, and a sturdier immune system that better resists and recovers from just about any kind of disease.

Energy Efficiency:
Since you no longer have to cook, you don’t waste electricity, and save the environment.

Since you eat organic, you help save the planet. Most become more in-tune with their body; many report definite spiritual improvements.

No animal products are used, so the animals appreciate it.

What do raw/living foodists eat?
Raw and Living Foodist eat all fruits, vegetables, sprouts, nuts, seeds, grains, sea vegetables, and other organic/natural foods that have not been processed. In some instances, there are special ways to prepare the foods (example: most raw and living foodists soak/sprout nuts, seeds and grains before consuming them).

How can you tell if something is a raw/living food?
Most foods that have not been processed are raw and living foods (until cooked). Processed foods (canned, bottled or prepackaged) are most often adulterated, (changed from original state) by heating, additives, preservatives, colorings, salt, and sugar.

What do raw and living foodists drink?
Water (purified water…never tap water), Freshly made juices (made with your own juicer and consumed immediately), coconut milk (from a young coconut), are some of the liquids living and raw foodists drink. Most drinks purchased at the store have been processed (Including: soda, bottled juices, coffee, alcohol, and most others) and are not included in a living / raw foodist diet.

Do raw and living foodists drink tea?
Some living and raw foodists will drink sun tea, which is brewed by the power of the Sun. Teas that contain boiling water are not considered raw. Many teas that are purchased in the store may have been processed at temperatures above 118 degrees. The best way is to grow your own herbs and dry them at a low temperature, and use them for sun teas.

Are certain raw foods better than others?
Yes. I believe one should focus on eating the majority of fresh fruits and vegetables. All other raw foods (such as nuts, seeds, etc.) should be minimized. Fresher foods are always best. Ones that you grow yourself, or purchased at a farmers market, are much fresher than foods purchased in the grocery or health food store.

Where do raw and living foodists get their protein?
The WHO (World Health Organization) says humans need about 5% of their daily calories to come from protein to be healthy. The USDA puts this figure at 6.5%. On average, fruits have about 5% of their calories from protein. Vegetables have from 20-50% of their calories from protein. Sprouted seeds, beans, and grains contain from 10-25% of their calories from protein. So if you are eating any variety of living plant foods, you are getting more than adequate protein.

Numerous scientific studies have shown the daily need for protein to be about 25-35 grams per day. So if you ate 2,000 calories per day, and ate raw plant foods that had an average of 10% of their calories from protein, you would get 200 calories worth of protein, or 50 grams. This is more than adequate to support optimal well-being.

Other studies have shown that heat treating a protein (such as with cooking) makes about half of it unusable to the human body. So raw plant food protein is even a better source than cooked plant foods or animal foods. There is still a huge, misguided idea that plant protein is not “complete”. This is based on studies done on rats in the 1940’s. This false conclusion was drawn before we discovered the bodies protein recycling mechanism and its ability to “complete” any amino acid mix from our bodies amino acid pool, no matter what the amino acid composition of a meal consumed.

    This article spans multiple of pages