Eating raw while traveling in third world countries

[divegoddess]

Hi,

I'm new to the raw food lifestyle although I've been a vegan for many years. It's only been 2 months, and I'm still learning and adjusting. I'm going to India next month, and every guidebook I have read says that in order to not get extremely sick, avoid all raw foods. What do I do? Do I risk it and just allow myself to get sick? I got sick while in Peru once, and I could not leave my room for 3 weeks once. It wasn't fun. Is there any way I can wash the fruit and vegetables? Does anyone know of any herbal or natural remedies to take with me in case I do get sick? I travel alot in Southeast asia. I had no problems in Bali but India is a different story. I was also in Chuuk two years ago and the island ran out of vegetables completely because the shipment was late. (They don't grow anything). I wasn't raw then but if something like that happens, what do I do?

[moonstone523]

divegoddess.

i've been living in a rural village in thailand for two years now and have never gotten ill from raw foods. now this isn't india, but i thought i would offer up my opinion.

when i came to thailand and all my friends were concerned about getting bottled drinking water, i drank what the locals drink - rain water. i never got diarrahea or sick from it. i slowly let my body get accustomed to all the things I've been sterlized from in America so it would never go into shock from foreign things.

i wash vegetables with tap water and a tooth brush well.

happy trails.

[trinity082482]

wow india! You guys are so lucky to live in such exotic places!!!!!! :p

[RowanC]

There's a thread on this somewhere on the forum I think.
You might take a small bottle of food grade peroxide or clorox with you.
I know that clorox upsets some folks, but it's not going to kill you to use it for a few weeks, and is better than getting the "revenge" imo!

[divegoddess]

I've been to Thailand several times and I never had a problem there. I've met many travelers who traveled through Southeast asia and they all said India was the worst.I will also be traveling so I'll be eating in restaurants as well as buying food at markets. I was wondering if I should soak and wash in bottled water, or only eat fruits that can be peeled.

Any other suggestions?

[lodestar]

when i traveled to south africa i took lots of almonds...ate fruit with a thick skin that had to be peeled and drank bottled water. it was easy and fun.

[fairygirl]

heres an example of how that theory of eating the cooked rather than raw in a foreign country can be wrong.

My boyfriend and i went to the Dominican Republic and while he was eating all the cooked meat, fish, veggies, etc, i was only eating the fresh fruit and greens. Hmm.... guess who got sick?! Yeah, my bf - and he was stuck on the toilet for 3 days as a result.

[MarciRoundtheWorld]

Will you be staying in places that cater to foreigners? Generally, I find those places to be safe.

I have eaten raw in Indonesia for almost 4 months now and have had no problems. The Embassy medical unit tells us to soak in bleach water for 20 minutes. I kinda rinse in vinegar water. Some things I wash in tap water and then dry. Horrors!!! (the locals don't even drink the tap water here).

At the least I would take lots of snacks from home and eat peeled fruit. I must say I would have a REALLY hard time passing up Indian food.

[Shmoopie]

Is part of the reason they advise against raw foods over there because of parasites? If so, I'd avoid it. Not trying to be the one to bring negativity to the subject or whatever, but some things just aren't worth it.

Good luck either way.

[luckitri]

hmmmm....curezone might have natural remedies for what you might could catch. The health food stores in my area sell a concentrated grapefruit seed extract for cleansing produce but I would just as happily go with bleach if I were traveling. Years ago when I went to Mexico I did eat produce from there with no ill effect. However I do live in Arizona and that Montezuma's revenge? Well I have always been convinced that those little buggers don't recognize international boundaries and it has come up into the Phoenix area many times in my more than a quarter century of living here. . . .so maybe I was already immunized?

[divegoddess]

I think it's not so much as parasites but bacteria. The locals have the bacteria in their immune system and we don't. I never had problems in Mexico, most of latin America Thailand or Indonesia. I got sick after coming back to the states after spending 6 months in Central America though.

Marci, I started going raw in Bali, it was tough resisting vegetarain nasi campur. I will have difficulty resisting Indian food, but it would be more dificult being impolite turning down cooked food from local people since I'm going to be staying with local people for awhile in Mumbai.

[mongomango]

You can bring a couple bottles of grapefruit seed extract with you and soak the fruits/veggies in a mixture of a few drops of that and water for 15 minutes or so. More healthful than a bleach solution and very effective. Wash all foods thoroughly. One thing, it is very bitter so you must make sure you rinse the food and not just eat it from the soak. Well, I've not ever done that, but I'm sure it wouldn't taste too good. I also take it when I'm starting to get sick..5 drops in a glass of water 3 or 4 times a day. VERY hard to get down, but for me it's more effective I think, than Oil of Oregano. For those on medications, check with your doctor if you will consider using this (**EDIT- using internally, not as a wash..you are safe using as a wash) as grapefruit in general interacts with many medications and will make them useless. So anyhow, just soak the food in a solution of gse, wait 10 - 15 minutes, rinse, and you're good to go. I will do this sometimes even with fruit here...if a pint of strawberries or blueberries has some rotten one in it, or any moldy berries...as otherwise I'd throw the whole thing out because mold gives off spores and the whole container would be contaminated.


This is the brand that I use and that I believe is the best on the market.
http://www.notdoctors.com/products.php?product_code=EE-CITLQ

Here is an article about it's efficacy.
http://www.landofvos.com/articles/kitchen7.html

[MarciRoundtheWorld]

Marci, I started going raw in Bali, it was tough resisting vegetarain nasi campur. I will have difficulty resisting Indian food, but it would be more dificult being impolite turning down cooked food from local people since I'm going to be staying with local people for awhile in Mumbai.

If you're staying with locals then you must eat what is served. Otherwise, you are just being rude and that isn't a reputation you want or want raw foodists to have. Plus, Asians totally do not get raw food diets. Eat all your fruits and vegies when you aren't being hosted.

Can you share what takes you to all these interesting places?

[divegoddess]

Marci,

I agree with you, I need to eat what is served. I am Asian, I grew up in Japan, most Asians don't get vegetarian diets either, unless they are strict Buddist. I even ate fish whenever I visited my family in Japan. My mother, even after 20 years, still tells me it's unhealthy not to eat meat. Yet she's actually starting to get organic produce and brown rice now, she used to tell me it was a complete waste of money to buy organic, so somehow I am influencing her.

As far as going to these countries, I'm just a world traveler. I do it for fun and spiritual growth. I'm going to start writing but I've been backpacking around the world since I was 20. I got hooked and I never stopped.

[Pailani]

I think it's not so much as parasites but bacteria.

Make sure it's not parasites because they can't be killed with bleach or gse soaks and peeling wouldn't make any difference since they live way inside the food itself. And even restaurants that cater to Americans wouldn't be safe from that if they serve raw produce unless they're importing produce, which seems doubtful.

If it's bacteria, would a bout of sickness render a person immune? In your case, being raw and healthy, maybe your body could handle it.

[divegoddess]

I was thinking that "being too clean" makes us sick in other environments. I just had a series of colonics done and it cleaned out a lot of mucous from my colon. I heard that the mucous builds up to protect us from the toxins.
So now I have no protection.
I won't be eating in any restaurants catering to Americans or Europeans because I travel very low budget. I usually eat in local places and markets. The guidebooks do mention parasites, and to eat only cooked food to avoid parasites and dysentery. I still don't know what to do.

[MarciRoundtheWorld]

Well, for me, as much as I love the raw diet, it wouldn't be worth risking a few weeks of sick as a dog. I'd rather just detox when I got home.

Maybe you can have some raw, naturally fermented sauerkraut or kim-chi, and/or water from soaking wheat berries (I understand have tons of probiotics) before you go. At least get those guys back in your system.

Does "divegoddess" come from you being a scuba diver?

[mershwista]

Raw food isn't a religion...If your alternative to cooked food is getting sick, bring enzymes to help you digest the food and cleanse later if you feel you need to. Just be wise with your cooked food choices...stay away from the meat, at least. Indian vegetable curries shouldn't upset your system as bad as some of the other stuff might.

Oh I miss Indian food....there really is nothing like it.

[divegoddess]

Thank you everyone for all your comments and suggestions. I will play it by ear. I do love cooked Indian food, so I may just detox when I get back. I was just concerned because I've been 100% raw for 2 months now, and feeling pretty good despite my bloated tummy and weight gain. It's my first trip to India.
Marci, yes divegoddess is because I'm a scuba instructor. I do that for a living between my exotic travels...

[shakti17]

i travelled for 2 mos in india and mixed it up - some raw days and some cooked....the raw days were way more fun and amazing!

there are so many fruits you can peel - cucumbers are everywhere - and coconuts are like 1 cent!!!! i lived on coconut there.... they have mango, papaya...

i would definately follow the not eating raw stuff you dont peel..actually, i peeled my tomatoes there.

if you want to stay raw stick to fruits you can peel and bring green powder for greens....i missed salad so much when i got home! i'd use probiotics too.

have a great trip! where are you going?

actually, i brought an enema bag w me too which i think also helped me to not get sick....i got a little diahrea but i think everyone does - nothing major. the second time i went to india i was way more cooked and i did have some health issues there. staying raw will help your immune system.

also, they have bottled water everywhere there.

ps as for being "rude", one thing you can say if you do choose to stay all raw is that you only eat food as it comes from god - if you make it a religious thing people will understand

actually, it is the villages where i d be more cautious in a way, bc tourist places have food geared for westerners, more sanitary etc

good luck

shakti

[5mks]

There will be a lot of open markets, full of wonderful raw foods. If you cannot properly clean your produce, peel it.

And take some charcoal tablets for when you start to feel the "revenge".

Drink bottled water every time possible!

[DharmaGirl]

I was thinking that "being too clean" makes us sick in other environments. I just had a series of colonics done and it cleaned out a lot of mucous from my colon. I heard that the mucous builds up to protect us from the toxins.
So now I have no protection.


divegoddess, this is not true.... cleaning out the mucus from your bowel is an excellent thing as it does tend to "build" up, however, mucus is our colon's first line of defense and whenever it feels threatened, it will secrete more mucus, so YES, you do have protection! and i'm certain with a raw foods diet, the colon is functioning quite well, and will continue to do it's job of protecting itself from foreign invaders!!

Many blessings in your travels!

[divegoddess]

Thanks for so many replies! I feel much better about staying raw now. Shakti-thanks for telling me about India. it's my first time so I didn't know what fruits etc was available. Coconut sounds great. I'm just going to Mumbai and Goa this time. I'll just eat mostly fruits and wash and peel everything. I do that with most food here anyway because we rarely get anything organic.

namaste,
divegoddess

[lissomllama]

If you're staying with locals then you must eat what is served. Otherwise, you are just being rude and that isn't a reputation you want or want raw foodists to have. Plus, Asians totally do not get raw food diets. Eat all your fruits and vegies when you aren't being hosted.

Can you share what takes you to all these interesting places?


I totally understand that whole "when in rome, do as the romans do" philosophy and respect is a very important thing, especially when going to someone else's 'turf' but at the same time, when I travel, NO ONE is going to make me eat what I don't want to.

For me, raw veganism is the way I LIVE, not just something fun I like to do, therefore it isn't something I can just quit, for anyone. In my case, I suppose I would just be thought of as being rude (so be it then) but I'd get terribly ill if I ate cooked food and my health and happiness is far more important than cultural misunderstandings. Just because people don't understand our way of life is no reason to give up on it. Maybe these people could use a little knowlege. You're not treading on anyone for keeping your customs. In America people can come here and live and eat the way they want and we embrace it and frequently make it mainstream, why should Americans visiting another country be any different? The world may be divided into little chunks we call countries and states but this is all one world and raw fruits and vegetables are natural and beautiful. That's the only understanding I need.

Divegoddess: My advice is- If you can, bring some of your own foods like nuts, dried fruits or some lara bars and bottled water that would be great and try to find good produce there with thick skins and wash it well and most of all, enjoy the bounty of the land, don't stress and don't believe you'll become ill because then you might. If you focus only on the positive and simply not allow anything else in your consciousness or your body, you'll be fine and you won't have the stress.

I've heard that India is such a lovely place, so fertile.The East is traditionally associated with new life, new ideas, beginnings/birth and inspiration. India is a place full of natural wonders and a profound understanding of healing. Your raw ways may just be blessed and embraced there. Good time to find out, eh? :)

Fair travels, dear one, go and be raw/true to yourself, love life.