Question for you all

[vgloveforlife]

I don't know why I keep on thinking of this but it's just in the back of mind and I thought I'd ask it here.

I know a lot of you have Alissa's book and come to her website daily and really respect and follow her.

Well what if out of the blue she announced that she wasn't raw anymore and that in fact she thought that raw was not a very healthy diet after all. This will probably never ever happen..I really hope it will never...but there's always a chance.

Where would that leave us...do you think that you would continue eating raw if this happened? What would you feel?

Just curious about this...thanks all who take the time to respond!

[pomegranatebliss]

I would continue eating raw without hesitation because it's obviously right for me (and I've tried just about everything). If someone else decides that another option is their chosen path, that's not going to influence me to follow them if I know it's not the right thing for me.

I'm chuckling a little bit now...as I typed that, I heard my mother's voice from when I was a child saying, "just because so-and-so jumps off a bridge, are you going to?" :D

[vgloveforlife]

Pomegrnate-
Thanks for the response! I'm not sure why this thought keeps popping up in my head but I guess it's just something that I wonder. What would happen to all of us here if Alissa was no longer raw.

Obviously we are not sheep who just blindly follow her but she (and others here) definitly have influenced a lot of us this far to go raw and keep with it so I just wonder what would happen.

I think that's awesome to hear that you would keep with raw! :)

[lil fairy z girl]

i would still try to be raw. i personally believe that raw is far more healthier than cooked as you are getting fruit and veg with the optimum amount of nutrients and goodness. what can be better than that? i believe it is a much healthier way to eat.
i do not follow this because of what other peoples views are, i personally think that is unwise. you should not allow others to take away your responsibility and make decisions for you.

just my opinion,
kind regards
sal
~*~*~*

[Joyful Mary]

I would continue eating raw without hesitation because it's obviously right for me (and I've tried just about everything). If someone else decides that another option is their chosen path, that's not going to influence me to follow them if I know it's not the right thing for me.

I'm chuckling a little bit now...as I typed that, I heard my mother's voice from when I was a child saying, "just because so-and-so jumps off a bridge, are you going to?" :D

My thoughts exactly. I appreciate all that Alissa has done for the community in sharing what she has learned. The information and inspiration she, as well as others on this forem, have given has influenced me for the better. This doesn't mean that I agree with everything Alissa says. But Alissa has given me much to stretch my mind. I don't allow Alissa, or anyone else, to do my thinking for me. I think for myself, processing new information according to what I understand and have experienced in the past. That information is then accepted or rejected, and I continue to act upon my own beliefs. If Alissa was to take a different path, it will not make me veer off course. I will continue to make conscious choices for my health according to my understanding and experience.

[Graciebeliever]

I would NOT skip a beat :)

Because EVERYONE has a right to choose what they eat.

Lots of people (ordinary and those in the limelight) do the right things then go back to old ways or are tempted to change what they do for whatever reason.

I tell you what would upset me more!! If she felt that this site was no longer necessary!! WHew I would be scanning all the raw sites for you guys!!

That makes me shudder I tell ya!

[Dimond]

I tell you what would upset me more!! If she felt that this site was no longer necessary!! WHew I would be scanning all the raw sites for you guys!! That makes me shudder I tell ya! Yeah, that would be terrible. The other raw forums aren't as much fun though.

[Sharon in Colorado]

This is actually a great question!

Prefacing my thoughts, I'd like to mention that my path to raw food started before I even knew about Alissa. I used to journal on www.sadtoraw.com before I knew about this place. I'd read many books and attended several lectures for years before I came here.

If Alissa decided that raw food was not the path for her, I would be surprised but it wouldn't sway my personal decision with my own journey.

I've been here for a while, and I remember when Alissa posted her personal thoughts about cacao and why she would not sell it, and now she is selling it. I am not surprised because we all change, sometimes a little and sometimes a lot.

I've changed my own views over time myself. My own feelings about raw food have really changed, and in some areas even relaxed over the years.

I've seen many raw food authors, lecturers, popular journalists and writers change their raw diets and thinking that seems like one extreme to the other.

I think if anything, things like this cause me to not "act" extreme on the outside no matter how I think on the inside because in this public arena, people tend to hold you accountable to what you said not only 5 hours ago, but 5 months and even 5 years ago.

[Fuzzball]

For that to happen, a lot of negative things would have to happen in her life and the lives of a lot of people that have had great changes in their lives.

I really don't see anything erasing the changes that Alissa has had in her life since going raw, so I don't see any chance that she would do this.

Ultimately it boils down to, are you in this for you or for what Alissa says? God Bless Her, she wants the same thing I want...health and happiness. If Raw gives me that, then why should a change in her mind affect me if I am getting that?

[Fuzzball]

Obviously we are not sheep who just blindly follow her but she (and others here) definitly have influenced a lot of us this far to go raw and keep with it so I just wonder what would happen.


The important point here is that they have influenced us, but we have made our own decisions and formed our own opinions.

Let me ask you, if you stop being raw tomorrow, do you think it will have any impact on Alissa's choices? After all, she has the proof that this works....so to speak, she has the fruit on the tree (yeah, bad pun, but necessary :) )...I have no concerns that Alissa will ever leave the raw lifestyle, but I also have no illusions that her decision will make my decisions for me. My being raw or not, is all my decision. Alissa will not be responsible for my success nor my failure, but she will clearly be the spark that leads to the fire that changes my entire life....as soon as I make a quality decision and back it up with action...

[Tirza]

Yeah, that would be terrible. The other raw forums aren't as much fun though.

Well, we would no doubt MAKE another forum just as fun, just by being there.

The original question is very revealing. It asks whether we are only raw because of Alissa's influence. Alissa has never set herself up as a guru as far as I am aware, and we are not a blind flock of sheep. All of us are no doubt taking information and encouragement from many of the other sites run by other raw food teachers. While we are all influenced in many ways by many people, the ultimate decision as to the path we follow is our own. Anyone who would give up on this diet just because someone they looked up to gave it up, would reveal themselves as being pretty spineless, as well as not really interested in their own well-being. We are not doing this for Alissa. We are doing it for ourselves.

We are not valiantly resisting the cravings for foods that are good for us. We have not been conditioned to food that is good for us. If we were, we would crave them if they were taken away. I remember seeing Oriental immigrants trying out our SAD food. They could hardly get it down. They were used to much different diets. What's really sad is that they eventually adapted largely to our diet and now they are as fat and as sick as we are.


I will add that if Alissa's reasons were based on incontrovertible evidence that raw was not as good as we previously believed and that cooked, or dairy, or meat, or any combination thereof was PROVEN to be better, then we would be silly not to be flexible enough to change too. (But it ain't gonna happen, baby!)

I guess it's good to check our priorities now and then. Like anything else that affects our lives and well-being, even our eternity, we are obligated to take responsibility for ourselves.

[srlygrl]

As a financial journalist, it was my job to pour through a vast array of information and expert opinions on many different topics, and to try to cull the truth from the garbage. I was no less vigilant about my own health, and read through hundreds (and I mean HUNDREDS) of books on nutrition over the years to arrive at where I am. My diet has evolved over the years as I learn new information, and I'm sure it will continue to evolve. Alissa's book was one of many that I read on the subject of raw food, and she certainly has a way of relating to people and making the diet seem plausible to regular folks just looking to live their lives everyday (unlike some other raw food books that have more of a spirituality/ecology slant that I think turns some people off). But she is by no means the sole authority on raw food.

Anyone who is blindly following one person, no matter how well informed and charasmatic that person may be, isn't doing him/herself any favors in life. If you choose this way of life, you owe it to yourself to learn as much about nutrition and health as you can, and make your own judgments. Alissa's judgment is not a substitute for your own.

Just my humble opinion. :D

[lissomllama]

Well, I was raw before I came here and no one was ever my crutch so it wouldn't deter me one bit. I'd be concerned and weirded out but it wouldn't change my rawness at all.

[rawpriestess]

I made the decision to eat raw because the concept 'felt right' to me, not because "someone" said to do it.

I would stay raw, and wish her happiness in her choices, as I do all people.

I am my own guru.

[Sunshine9]

I'd be weirded out, but I was raw before I found Alissa. This site helped me push through in the beginning. It was definitely the science of some of the other people in the field that inspired me to start raw, and if one of those doctor's were to say raw was detrimental to health I would listen and re-evaluate.. but ultimately it's just my experience, and right now, I'm loving it. But I also can't say I'll be 100% raw forever. Not because of cravings or desires for cooked food, but if I were to show a deficiency, or health problem, I wouldn't rule it out.. I'm seeking ultimate health. If it's raw, great. If not, I'm still listening.

[light food]

I would continue to be (or want to be) raw. I was just thinking the other day that I've finally arrived at the ultimate diet. I can go no further down the road of improving my diet. I can do fasts and cleanses but I've arrived at the diet destination I've been wanting to be at for years. :) Alissa doesn't influence my raw choice at all.

[Sharon in Colorado]

I was just thinking the other day that I've finally arrived at the ultimate diet.

I'll bet that is what some people say until they've 'evolved' to drinking their urine and living off the air. :p

[Amberly]

I'd stay raw, because the reason I am raw is not because someone says it is best, but because I FEEL it is best. There are plenty of people out there who ALREADY try to debunk the diet.

[rawfigure]

I will always be Raw regardless of another decision. The proof is in how I feel eating cooked vs raw :D

[light food]

I'll bet that is what some people say until they've 'evolved' to drinking their urine and living off the air. :p

Yes, I bet that is what some people do but for me,
!!!!!!!!! NEVER !!!!!!!!
I never had the desire to do that, but I've always wanted to be raw so here I stop.
I was trying to do a kidney cleanse the other day (I only did it for 1/2 day instead of four days) and they recommended straining your pee to see if you are passing kidney stones and I hum-hawed about straining until I was actually doing the cleanse and then I did it, but I didn't like it. I tend to treat body waste as though it would kill me.

[alex]

I've arrived at raw along the same path as srlygrl - thousands of hours studying human health.

Most of nature consumes their food raw and we come from nature. We have evolved over millions of years - we share 70% of our genetic material with a flat worm. Agriculture was unknown as little as 10,000 years ago - a mere blink of an eye.

Raw is most definitely the way to eat. The better question perhaps is what to eat. Dairy is definitely out once we are no longer an infant, but the question of whether or not to eat meat is harder to resolve, because we, as evolving humans definitely did eat meat - hunter gatherers!

I do hope that we are able to evolve beyond the killing of other creatures - most of them scentient, which is why I am predominantly vegan although I do consume fish once in a while.


alex

[Sharon in Colorado]

Yes, I bet that is what some people do but for me,
!!!!!!!!! NEVER !!!!!!!!
I never had the desire to do that, but I've always wanted to be raw so here I stop.
I was trying to do a kidney cleanse the other day (I only did it for 1/2 day instead of three days) and they recommended straining your pee to see if you are passing kidney stones and I hum-hawed about straining until I was actually doing the cleanse and then I did it, but I didn't like it. I tend to treat body waste as though it would kill me.


Oooh - now what did you do with that strainer afterward, ha? I'm sorry but I'll have to decline your dinner invitation. :o

Did you find any stones?

[Lay-Lay]

I was raw before finding Alissa's site and book. Reading her book helped me to simplify raw. I will be raw no matter how she or anyone else feels about being raw as long as I feel raw is right for me. I don't believe raw is right for everyone. It sure would be nice, but simply, if it was right for everyone, everyone would be doing it. Some people have not taken this journey and they are fine on the one they are in. Leaving raw is not wrong either. I would say more power to Alissa if she decided to take another road. But this is just real "imagine this" talk, LOL!

[JEN]

Cool thread!
Im not speaking for Alissa but Im pretty sure she will always be raw. If Im not mistaken, I think she said she has been raw for 18 yrs. or something like that. For those of you who have not met her, if you ever get the chance to, you will see why she will always be raw. Alissa is a MAGICAL being who found the gift of raw, realized its worth and shared her gift with all of us. Alissa's famous quote is "Its all about the food, and its not about the food" when you understand what this truly means, you too will never go back. I will never go back.

[light food]

Oooh - now what did you do with that strainer afterward, ha? I'm sorry but I'll have to decline your dinner invitation. :o

Did you find any stones?

No, I didn't find any but I didn't do very long either. I didn't have the right apple juice, I couldn't find any not-from-concentrate juice and I didn't want to drink what I had for four days. I would have loved to have found stones! And they say to use a goldfish fishnet to strain it, nothing culinary :eek:
Here was that cleanse, they don't mention the straining on the site but they do in the book:
http://www.cleansingorsurgery.com/cleansingorsurgeryinfo.htm

[rawbeliever]

I actually moved into raw BEFORE I knew that there was a whole community of people out there doing it. It just seemed the natural extension, the next level of health after veganism. People like Alissa, Ann Wigmore, David Wolfe, etc. didn't turn me on to raw, but, boy, they sure helped me to educate myself and refine my diet, and gave me direction and support. I would be raw anyway if Alissa stopped being raw. But I wouldn't be as good at it if she had never started.

[monkeyboy]

Hi Everyone,

Alissa is an educator.

She asked me a few years ago to join her new website.

Wow, a founding member....RAW FOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I read about raw foods in Gourmet Magazine of all places.

My friend Charlie Trotter and Alice Waters really got me thinking.(Google them)

Raw foods changed my life.

More fruits and veggies are a good thing.

Peace,

M.B.

[Tirza]

I actually first heard about "raw" about 18 or 19 years ago. Here I was, in the boondocks of British Columbia (Canada) - I was a book fanatic who was always coming across something new and interesting. I found a book by Susanna and Lesie Kenton, a mother and daughter team in England who advocated raw. I read through the book and was very impressed with the research and the logic. But somehow it just didn't really "take".

I was vegan at the time and tried to do raw by using a lot of dried fruits, nuts, salads etc. I somehow never got up the courage to try any of their loaves or other main dishes. If I had done that, maybe I would have been saved a lot of trouble with my health. Maybe I would even have become one of the North American raw food leaders. Who knows? I was teaching vegetarian cooking classes at the time and had a radio show on the topic. Sigh! I wish.....

Interesting how something can almost slip right by you depending on where you are in your life at the time and what you are ready to accept.

[vgloveforlife]

Wow lots of replies!
I understand that most are not raw only because of Alissa's influence but many do come to her site daily and buy her book. Most will recommend Alissa's book and what she has to say if someone has a question. So apparantly we really listen to her and follow her advice.
I would be shocked if Alissa wasn't raw anymore. I would want to know all the details of why. I think I would probably doubt the raw lifestyle a little. I think it would also be that way if any of the well known raw leaders decided not to be raw. I would be curious about their reasons.

I started on the raw path before I even knew who Alissa Cohen was but now she (meaning her forum and her recipies) are such a huge part of my raw life, it's almost like I can't have one without the other now. I look/use her cookbook many times a day. I come here daily to read the threads. I love this community so much! If anything ever happened to it I don't know were I would go for my raw support..this really is the best forum out there.

Anyway-good to hear that most of you are so confident in your raw path!

[VSL]

While I knew about and was interested in going raw before I managed to get my hands on Alissa's book and DVD, it was really her who inspired me and made me believe that it was totally possible (although I'm not yet 100% raw... I've been dabbling this past week).

So, I'd be kind of sad, I think, and shocked, and interested to hear why she had changed, but from what I've experienced this week I would still think that a raw (or at least mostly raw) diet is the way to optimal health.

[Pailani]

Wow lots of replies!
I would be shocked if Alissa wasn't raw anymore. I would want to know all the details of why. I think I would probably doubt the raw lifestyle a little. I think it would also be that way if any of the well known raw leaders decided not to be raw. I would be curious about their reasons.

Same here. And then I would have to decide whether their reasons justified my own re-thinking about diet. It might, or it might not.