What Is Raw Food?

Raw food (living food) is unaltered food that has not been heated above 105-115 degrees.

Bulgaria Food gives an example of raw foods in this list:-

Vegetables:
Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Celery
Fruits:
Lemons, Apples, Bananas, Pears
Nuts:
Almonds, Hazelnuts, Cashews
Seeds:
Sunflower Seeds, Pumpkin Seeds
Sprouts:
Lentils, Mung bean sprouts, Barley, Buckwheat
Super foods:
Acai Berries, Goji Berries, Wheat Grass, Maca

Raw food is thought of as a living food due to all the enzymes and nutrients remain intact. Enzymes are sensitive to heat and will die once they are cooked at temperatures of 105-115°C. Nutrients are a little more resilient to heat than enzymes and although some nutrients will remain after cooking, their numbers will be greatly reduced.

Reasons to Eat Raw Food

In the modern world of today we have a large selection of processed, canned, nutritionally dense foods and sugared foods. There are more quick meal options and food foods available due to the world being based more on convenience. Our busy working lifestyles mean we have no time to cook raw foods and a quick call to the local food delivery restaurant is quicker and easier.

What the quick meal options and fast food lacks, is flavour and nutrients. Raw foods are completely natural products and do not require heating to be consumed. Eating raw foods means that your body receives 100% of the enzymes and nutrients available from the food. The enzymes that we receive from the food helps to break down the foods we eat enabling us to acquire all of the nutrients from within the foods. Our body’s need to make its own enzymes to break down cooked foods which means that our body needs to use more of its resources to do so. In the long run this can potentially lead to disease and premature aging.

Eating raw foods provides us with huge benefits. As previously mentioned our bodies receive all of the enzymes and nutrients from the food. When we give our body what it needs we build an environment that will assist the body to heal itself. Our body is also given the energy it requires and enables us to build a strong immune system. Many people whose diets consist of a good amount of raw foods tend to suffer from colds and flu less than what we have come to know as normal.

Enzyme Deficiency

Enzyme deficiency can be detected by noticing the signs. Some of the signs are:-

Indigestion
Bloating
Gas
Upset stomach

If you are experiencing these symptoms then it is possible that your body is lacking the enzymes it requires to break down the foods that are being eaten. Changing your diet may be something that serious consideration should be given to.

Eating more fruit and vegetables would be a good first step to changing your diet and taking time in the kitchen to experience and try the delights of raw foods would be a great second step.