5+ Year Vegan Raw Foodist..Question

[vgloveforlife]

Hi,
I'm just curious about raw vegans who have been raw for over 5 years and how your health is? Please be honest. Have you encountered any health problems? Do you take supplements? Do you have lots of energy?

Thanks!

[Livingsunfoods]

Hey I've been vegan for 5yrs, vegan/raw for 2yrs. Definetely have tons of energy now so much that I don't know what to do with myself sometimes (lol). Going raw gave me even more energy amongst many other things. To answer your last question: Yes I take supplements. :D

[vgloveforlife]

I can't believe only one reply! That is so discouraging.

Thanks for replying though Livingsunfoods!
What supplements do you take?

[travelingtoes]

I don't think there is a lot of people who have been raw for 5+ years. Maybe that's why there is not many responses. :)

[pdx kris]

The main problems I've encountered are getting too thin and having dry and brittle hair. The latter didn't start occuring until about a year ago (after a little more than four years raw), at which point I added a food into my diet that we aren't allowed to discuss here. :)

[vgloveforlife]

It really concerns me that there are not any long term raw vegans. It seems like most are raw vegan for awhile but then start adding some sort of raw animal products because they encounter problems.
I was hoping some long term vegans would prove me wrong....

[vgloveforlife]

pdx kris-can you tell me what vitamin/mineral you think you were lacking...

[DavidZaneMason]

I'm 5+ years all raw....past couple on fruit...and I'm the healthiest guy I know! LOL. I just came in 23rd out of 200+ in the last 5K run! Just check out my profile on eat.rawfood.com for some pics - if you are interested:

http://eat.rawfood.com/rawfood/davidzanemason

-David Z. Mason

[JGex]

I can't believe only one reply! That is so discouraging.

Thanks for replying though Livingsunfoods!
What supplements do you take?


There are more out there. It's Saturday night and they just may be doing other things besides sitting in front of a computer!

:D

[vgloveforlife]

David-I was hoping you would reply! Have any problems arised at all during your 5+ years as vegan? Do you supplement? I looked at your pics and you do look VERY healthy!

JGex-I hope you're right :)

[vgloveforlife]

Any teeth problems for long term raw vegans?

[mershwista]

I'm not 5 years raw, but ever since I went raw my teeth have been developing this awful yellowness and staining that the dentists can't get rid of unless I would sign up to have my teeth bleached...and I don't feel comfortable doing that.

[dreamrawalwz]

I'm not 5 years raw, but ever since I went raw my teeth have been developing this awful yellowness and staining that the dentists can't get rid of unless I would sign up to have my teeth bleached...and I don't feel comfortable doing that.

Teeth aren't supposed to be sparkling white :D that's all i know.

[dreamrawalwz]

There are raw vegans out there. One, Gabriel Cousins (maybe?) that's been 30 years raw. Alissa about 10 and David Wolfe for quite a while. I may have the years incorrect, but i know they're over 5 years raw.

[mershwista]

Oh, my teeth never were sparkling white....but they're not supposed to be this yellow and stained brown around the edges, either. It's bad enough that I won't smile with my teeth for pictures at all. Or at all in general.

[indigolady]

I am also very interested in speaking with healthy 5+ year raw vegans. Does any body know what kind of medical research has been done on the long term effects of the diet? I am new to raw food and have already started taking supplements because I am feeling weak and tired. I am eating well including raw super foods. I feel full but tired and very weak. Not this abundent energy I keep hearing about. After taking some supplements I feel much better. I want to stay on the raw diet. I am going to keep taking supplements though. I am very interested in hearing from people who have been successful on this diet with and without supplements. If you supplement what are you taking and why? If you do not supplement what raw foods are very high in B12, iron and cal/mag and easy for the body to assimilate?
Thanks!!!

[keylime]

I was entirely eating raw foods for 3-4 years when I decided that my low weight, low energy and general feeling of being "unbalanced" could not be simply chalked up as detox. I began adding small amounts of whole, unprocessed cooked foods and even smaller amounts (maybe once every 2 weeks) of the "unmentionables." I instantly felt better. I have been a practitioner in the natural health field for some time now, and although some people do really well on a completely raw food diet, many that I have talked with end up feeling more balanced after including small amts. of more concentrated whole cooked foods to a meal or 2 a day. I have thought alot about why this is and my intuition leads me to believe it, in part, has to do with ayurvedic doshas as several of the people who feel more comfortable after adding warm/oily foods back are "vata" dominant....just a thought.

[pdx kris]

I really don't know what nutrients I was missing.

I did all kinds of tweaking with my diet at that point to try and solve the problems in a vegan way, and nothing worked for me. So I decided that - FOR ME, I'm not telling anyone else what to do, or saying their experiences will be the same - it was worth experimenting with adding a certain raw, free-range, completely organic product from a small local farmer. I immediately started feeling better, put on about ten pounds, and stopped having problems with my skin.

There are a lot of lifelong vegans out there, and I am certainly not knocking the lifestyle, it just came to a point where it wasn't working for me anymore, even though I really, really wanted it to.

[Nectarine]

Organic wheatgrass powder/juice will cover you on what you may be missing in your raw vegan diet :cool:

[Rawmommie]

Just b/c there aren't a lot of 5+ raw foodist on THIS SITE doesn't mean they don't exist. I can tell you from exeperience, I have over 2 years as a raw foodist and I don't post very often or come to the site. It becomes a part of your life and you don't have to talk about it or think about it all the time. I wouldn't expect that most 5+ raw vegans would need a support board, but they ARE out there. Some of them have been named, there are others still...many have written books. Storm & Jinjee come to mind also.

After 2 years I can attest to the fact that I only feel good when eating raw. I have no side effects at all...unless I eat cooked and then my face breaks out, I feel puffy & weak, and I usually get a headache.

[Bobbie]

The Boutenkos www.rawfamily.com have been raw vegan for over 10 years. They use honey so they're not strictly vegan but they are strictly raw. They had minor health niggles until they started drinking green smoothies every day.

The raw vegans who are healthiest in the longterm seem to be those who eat 50% fruit 40% leafy greens and some good raw fat every day.
If the standard raw vegan diet isn't working for you, try that.
I've been 100% raw vegan for 18 months (trying to be for years before that - don't know how many) and still feel weak exhausted and ill.
But just before Christmas I unintentionally ate just fruit, greens and fat for a week and I felt great! Then it was Christmas and I went back to fancy food. We've only just used up all the christmas food, and now its my mothers birthday then mine, so it will have to wait until after that, but I intend to switch to that diet.
Trouble is greens are expensive. I love them, I could eat 3lbs a day but I can't afford to.

[Nectarine]

Interesting. I'd never considered that honey was a non-vegan food, but of course. It's animal derived. Well, I won't be giving it up...it tastes too good, is good for you, and one can purchase it raw :cool:

[trinity082482]

My neighbor and great friend of mine was Vegan for 11 years and then she noticed her spine and posture looked abnormal. The doctor told her she has osteoporosis. She just turned 27 :eek:
This scare turned her form Vegan to vegetarian so she now has dairy in her daily diet. I told her about the raw diet because I think she would be so much healthier and maybe help seize the effects of her osteoporosis. She doesn't know that there are many other things she can eat that contain calcium and other nutrients that our bodies need. I am slowly trying to teach her things as I learn them my self. I think my friend's story is a bit extreme. Many people are vegan and don't have bone loss but for some reason she did and it's unfortunate.
I have never been vegan or vegetarian and it's kind of funny because although I don't eat meat, if someone asked me if I am vegan or vegetarian I would probably say "No". I don't know why but I don't think of my self as one :p

[Pailani]

Just b/c there aren't a lot of 5+ raw foodist on THIS SITE doesn't mean they don't exist. I can tell you from exeperience, I have over 2 years as a raw foodist and I don't post very often or come to the site. It becomes a part of your life and you don't have to talk about it or think about it all the time. I wouldn't expect that most 5+ raw vegans would need a support board, but they ARE out there. Some of them have been named, there are others still...many have written books. Storm & Jinjee come to mind also.


I was thinking the same thing - most people, once they get the hang of it, don't need support groups and research to keep them going, and I'm sure it gets old answering the same questions after a couple of years (except for certain personality types?), so I wouldn't expect most long-time successes to be posting or reading here. The ones who've successfully made it a part of their life probably aren't posting about it, they're just living it.

[rawstrawberry]

Hi,

Really interesting thread. I have been raw for almost 3 years with some bumps in the road. I think it everybody is so different and how and what they eat such a big factor. I think if you are (and I know people that do) living off of foods like the Just Cheescake which I call Fat Pie and brownies which are great for treats but not overly healthy again in my opinion, pretty much nuts and sugars your health is at risk, Yes the fats are healthy but our bodies do not need that much fat but that is just my opinion coming from my body LOL. I think it is having a balance, the long term raw foodiists I know eat more veggies than anything else. It is hard to gauge the success of "raw food diet" when everyone is eating something different. It would be interesting to get a group of people together all eating the same thing put together by Raw Food Nutritionist and see how they are coping in 2 years.

Raw Strawberry

[star_fruit]

I'm not 5 years raw, but ever since I went raw my teeth have been developing this awful yellowness and staining that the dentists can't get rid of unless I would sign up to have my teeth bleached...and I don't feel comfortable doing that.

mershwista, what are you brushing your teeth with? When I first started raw, my teeth did the same thing and it was so frustrating because here i was trying to do something healthy for my body and my teeth started to get ugly because of it. I did some research and started brushing my teeth with plain baking soda and I saw postive results immediately. I switched to baking soda 2 years ago and am still using just that and i'm happy with my results. I even got my SAD roomate to switch to brushing with baking soda and she's happy with her results from using it too.

[Nectarine]

I'm sure it gets old answering the same questions after a couple of years (except for certain personality types?)

I'm one of those personality types (I hope that's not a bad thing) :D I don't personally know anyone that eats this kind of diet, so it's good to fellowship with those that do online. There's so much to learn, and people are always coming up with their own takes on dishes or what-have-you, that I think if you stop making regular visits to places like this, you're bound to miss out on a thing or two. But as was mentioned, raw veterans have probably been through it all (the ups and downs etc) so they don't feel the need to post and bounce ideas off other people, or answer the same ol' questions. They just quietly lurk for anything of interest to them :cool:

[RawFoodieMom]

I'm 5+ years all raw....past couple on fruit...and I'm the healthiest guy I know! LOL. I just came in 23rd out of 200+ in the last 5K run! Just check out my profile on eat.rawfood.com for some pics - if you are interested:

http://eat.rawfood.com/rawfood/davidzanemason

-David Z. Mason

That's awesome David, I didn't know you'd been raw that long.

You RAWK! :)

[RawFoodieMom]

There are raw vegans out there. One, Gabriel Cousins (maybe?) that's been 30 years raw. Alissa about 10 and David Wolfe for quite a while. I may have the years incorrect, but i know they're over 5 years raw.
Alissa has been raw for 18 years. :) Also we can add Storm & Jinjee (thegardendiet.com), they've been raw 30 years and 13 years respectively. :)

Debra

[Pailani]

I'm one of those personality types (I hope that's not a bad thing)


Thank goodness for those personality types! What good would a message board be without a few experienced people to answer questions and put things in perspective?

[waveann]

Hi,
I have been eating only raw for three weeks and have noticed my nails are breaking/cracking- Is this usual?

[lissomllama]

I belive that we really need to stop focusing on negativity. Look at our questions, things like: 'have your teeth been weak', 'have you been deficient', "this is discouraging". Why? Why don't we trust this and just know that we are doing the best we can for our bodies? I'm not blind to the fact that people have had/are having problems but not everyone is eating a balance of the right raw foods, each body has different needs and sometimes it takes a long time to find what works well.

Maybe the thing to blame here is our not-so-optimistic way of thinking. Most of us here/there/everywhere have been conditioned to look at the negative side of things first, that's just how the majority of people are these days. But when we do that we are telling our minds and our bodies all sorts of negative things, so of course our bodies are going to manifest nasty things in our bodies, because we're spewing negative thoughts.

How about just taking the leap and being totally positive and realizing that our bodies take a long time to heal? Yes even years and most of us were not raw to start out with. Most of us were cooked for longer than 5 years so why should 5 years of raw always reverse everything 100%

"to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction".

[mershwista]

mershwista, what are you brushing your teeth with? When I first started raw, my teeth did the same thing and it was so frustrating because here i was trying to do something healthy for my body and my teeth started to get ugly because of it. I did some research and started brushing my teeth with plain baking soda and I saw postive results immediately. I switched to baking soda 2 years ago and am still using just that and i'm happy with my results. I even got my SAD roomate to switch to brushing with baking soda and she's happy with her results from using it too.

The same natural, sls-free toothpaste I have always used. I tried baking soda once for a few weeks. The stains got significantly worse.

[rawwannabe]

Check out shazzie.com. She has a raw food journal spanning seven years which she just concluded at the end of '06. She's still raw (with a passion), but decided seven years of journaling was enough.

ETA: As to the comment of cleansing taking years, David Wolfe posits that it takes one month (@ 100% raw) for each year you've lived to totally detox. While certainly not scientific, it makes complete sense to me.

[Daddeln]

I belive that we really need to stop focusing on negativity. Look at our questions, things like: 'have your teeth been weak', 'have you been deficient', "this is discouraging". Why? Why don't we trust this and just know that we are doing the best we can for our bodies? I'm not blind to the fact that people have had/are having problems but not everyone is eating a balance of the right raw foods, each body has different needs and sometimes it takes a long time to find what works well.

Maybe the thing to blame here is our not-so-optimistic way of thinking. Most of us here/there/everywhere have been conditioned to look at the negative side of things first, that's just how the majority of people are these days. But when we do that we are telling our minds and our bodies all sorts of negative things, so of course our bodies are going to manifest nasty things in our bodies, because we're spewing negative thoughts.

How about just taking the leap and being totally positive and realizing that our bodies take a long time to heal? Yes even years and most of us were not raw to start out with. Most of us were cooked for longer than 5 years so why should 5 years of raw always reverse everything 100%

"to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction".


I totally agree!

[Sharon in Colorado]

My neighbor and great friend of mine was Vegan for 11 years and then she noticed her spine and posture looked abnormal. The doctor told her she has osteoporosis. She just turned 27 :eek:
This scare turned her form Vegan to vegetarian so she now has dairy in her daily diet.

Please take no offense, but it isn't right when folks say "my friend", "my neighbor", "my sister", "someone I knew", or "someone I heard about" failed on the raw or vegan diet and became sick and had to go back to eating meat and milk and then got healthier.

There's always a story about someone that somebody knew, or heard of, who got very sick, nutirionally deficient, or died on a particular diet, without giving the particulars.

We do not know what your neighbor was or wasn't eating.

We do not know how active your neighbor was.

We do not know the psychological make-up of your neighbor.

Your neighbor could have been a junk food vegan and didn't get out in the sun for vitamin D for all we know.

Please, read The China Study. It is a very affordable book and your library is sure to carry it as well.

Osteoporises is VERY rare in countries where no dairy is consumed. There is a direct link to more osteoporises cases in countries with higher dairy consumption.

Due to the high amount protein in dairy, calcium is leached from the dairy consumer's bones in order to make a more alkaline environment, thus the bones suffer more when a high, consistent amount of dairy is consumed.

As per the original request, I've been on and off raw for over 6 years, so I don't feel my case would accurately represent your question.

I DO know for a fact that my very high cholesterol has gone down over 100 points on this diet without the use of statins, and raw gives me tons of energy.

I also DO know that eating a gourmet recipe heavy raw diet is counter-productive to promoting health, based on my particular experience.

As for deficiencies, as far as I know I personally have not experienced any, however I have not had any tests to confirm one way or the other.

[RawFoodieMom]

lissomllama, you are sooooo right. I totally agree. I would rather focus on the following: I don't want to eat a cooked food diet because hundreds of thousands of people on SAD diets die every year from heart disease, cancer, diabetes.... ETC!!!!! I choose a raw food diet so I can cleanse my body of 36 years of food full of toxins, and have tons of energy, lose weight and heal my body of ailments that were CAUSED by cooked food. :)

:D

[Jmachine]

Hi,
I have been eating only raw for three weeks and have noticed my nails are breaking/cracking- Is this usual?

Hi,

Breaking/cracking nails is caused by not having enough fat in the diet? I had the same problem until I added good oils to my diet.

[Rawkinlocs]

I belive that we really need to stop focusing on negativity. Look at our questions, things like: 'have your teeth been weak', 'have you been deficient', "this is discouraging". Why? Why don't we trust this and just know that we are doing the best we can for our bodies? I'm not blind to the fact that people have had/are having problems but not everyone is eating a balance of the right raw foods, each body has different needs and sometimes it takes a long time to find what works well.

Maybe the thing to blame here is our not-so-optimistic way of thinking. Most of us here/there/everywhere have been conditioned to look at the negative side of things first, that's just how the majority of people are these days. But when we do that we are telling our minds and our bodies all sorts of negative things, so of course our bodies are going to manifest nasty things in our bodies, because we're spewing negative thoughts.

How about just taking the leap and being totally positive and realizing that our bodies take a long time to heal? Yes even years and most of us were not raw to start out with. Most of us were cooked for longer than 5 years so why should 5 years of raw always reverse everything 100%

"to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction".

You betta PREACH it girl!! - **applauding**

[Nectarine]

mershwista, what are you brushing your teeth with?

This question wasn't directed at me I know, but I use a 'super tooth whitener' toothpaste made to Ayurdevic principles, with neem and peelu herbal extract. Everything else in it is all-natural. My teeth have never been this white. It is an expensive toothpaste (AUD $9.50/USD $7.50 approx for 4.16 oz), but I'm seeing real results quickly, plus I can't be a scrooge with everything :cool: The full list of ingredients are as follows (in the correct order that they appear on the packaging):

Fine Chalk (a gentle cleanser), Glycerine (from vegetable oil), Purified Water, Herbal extract blend: Peelu (Salvadora persica), Neem (Azadirachta), Indian Licorice Root, Pomegranate rind, Common Jujube, Rose Apple, Clove, Persian Walnut, Barleria prinoitis bark (Vajiradanti), Indian Almond, Bedda Nut, Asian Holly Oak, Prickly Ash, Zanthoxylum alatum (Tejbal), Sappan wood, Catechu, Bengal Madder, Acacia arabia bark (Babul), Sarsaparilla, Cinnamon, Medlar bark, Mayweed, Bishop's weed (flower extract), Silica, Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (from Indian coconut oil), Carageenan (from seaweed), Cellulose gum (from plants), Clove oil, Peppermint oil, Spearmint oil, Eucalyptus oil, Menthol, Thymol, Anethol, Geranium extract.

[PandaBear]

Has anyone read Dr Doug Graham's new book - The 80/10/10 Diet?

Well, I can assure you this, it will answer all of your problems and prayers.

I think the MAIN (very serious) two problems with most raw vegans are 1) too much fat in the diet and 2) not enough greens.

Follow this - 7-10% of your calories from fat (AT MOST)
3-7% of your calories from GREEN LEAFY VEGGIES (AT LEAST)

What exactly does that mean? Let's just say you eat 2000 calories a day. One gram of fat = 9 calories. 8% of 2000 calories is 160 calories. 160 divided by 9 cal/gram = about 18 grams of fat per day. Try measuring your avocados, nuts and flax crackers up to that. We are eating WAY too much fat!! Start eating mounds more juicy fresh fruit and you will see. With all the fat and sugar, we are also not getting enough minerals (from leafy greens). Leafy greens contain calcium, sodium (the good kind), B Vitamins, K, magnesium, iron, etc. etc. 6% of 2000 calories is 120 calories. How many greens = 120 calories...? A lot!! About three hearts of romaine. A whole bag of spinach.


Plug your daily food into FitDay.com or Nutridiary.com - you'll be shocked.



Try it for 2 weeks. You will not be sorry. :)

[Xanadu]

Oh, my teeth never were sparkling white....but they're not supposed to be this yellow and stained brown around the edges, either. It's bad enough that I won't smile with my teeth for pictures at all. Or at all in general.


That's weird Mershwista. My teeth having been pretty badly stained are gettting whiter progressively since going raw. Maybe it's something else you are doing?

[Rawkinlocs]

Has anyone read Dr Doug Graham's new book - The 80/10/10 Diet?

Well, I can assure you this, it will answer all of your problems and prayers.

I think the MAIN (very serious) two problems with most raw vegans are 1) too much fat in the diet and 2) not enough greens.

Follow this - 7-10% of your calories from fat (AT MOST)
3-7% of your calories from GREEN LEAFY VEGGIES (AT LEAST)

What exactly does that mean? Let's just say you eat 2000 calories a day. One gram of fat = 9 calories. 8% of 2000 calories is 160 calories. 160 divided by 9 cal/gram = about 18 grams of fat per day. Try measuring your avocados, nuts and flax crackers up to that. We are eating WAY too much fat!! Start eating mounds more juicy fresh fruit and you will see. With all the fat and sugar, we are also not getting enough minerals (from leafy greens). Leafy greens contain calcium, sodium (the good kind), B Vitamins, K, magnesium, iron, etc. etc. 6% of 2000 calories is 120 calories. How many greens = 120 calories...? A lot!! About three hearts of romaine. A whole bag of spinach.


Plug your daily food into FitDay.com or Nutridiary.com - you'll be shocked.



Try it for 2 weeks. You will not be sorry. :)


Perhaps, I'm not too sure that a lot of longterm raw vegans still even desire the same amounts of nuts/fats and nut/fat-heavy foods as they did when they first started out. A lot of nuts seems to be very common when a person is a beginner to maybe a year or two (if THAT long) raw and then the natural progression takes place.

Also, please keep in mind that there are a lot of healthy long term raw fooders who don't follow Doug's approach to raw - at least not to the letter on a daily basis. Alissa's approach is so dead on IMHO because it simply means that when first starting out, you eat what is necessary to keep you raw and then as time goes on, your body will naturally "ask" for what it requires. Even her own diet is mainly fruit and greens but she still will (and CAN) eat a recipe when she wants/needs some variety. Same with me and many others. This is why she does not want such approaches as what you suggested promoted on RFT (as indicated here: http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22492) because when newbies come on the scene they will feel that they HAVE to eat that way (and potentially become bored with eating raw) just starting out and they don't have to get that "strict" when they first start out. I'm sure Doug didn't start out eating the way he does now.

So, you can't generalize it like that...there is no one way of eating raw that is "better" than the next. Some people fair better with little-to-no fruit and plenty of greens and fat while others fair better with little-to-no fat and plenty of fruit. It's all about listening to bodily signals and acting accordingly and in order to get to that point, one must start somewhere and then allow themselves to get to that point.

[Xanadu]

I am also very interested in speaking with healthy 5+ year raw vegans. Does any body know what kind of medical research has been done on the long term effects of the diet? I am new to raw food and have already started taking supplements because I am feeling weak and tired. I am eating well including raw super foods. I feel full but tired and very weak. Not this abundent energy I keep hearing about. After taking some supplements I feel much better. I want to stay on the raw diet. I am going to keep taking supplements though. I am very interested in hearing from people who have been successful on this diet with and without supplements. If you supplement what are you taking and why? If you do not supplement what raw foods are very high in B12, iron and cal/mag and easy for the body to assimilate?
Thanks!!!

I had the same problem. I had to eat more fatty raw things than perhaps some here and then when I also added green smoothies it really helped. For B12 many raw fooders, as it is difficult to get enuf otherwise, take a supplement but the Incan berries Alissa sells has some, for iron and magnesium - dark green leafy veggies, for calcium - sesame seeds. Some raw books tell what foods have what nutrients. I can't remember if Alissa's does and it is downstairs right now sooo... others will probably give you more info on this. The tiredness can also be a detox symptom. Email me if you want some more info on where to find medical studies.

[rawwannabe]

Nectarine: who's the manufacturer of that toothpaste?

[Nectarine]

Here's their website:

http://www.auromere.com

[mershwista]

This question wasn't directed at me I know, but I use a 'super tooth whitener' toothpaste made to Ayurdevic principles, with neem and peelu herbal extract. Everything else in it is all-natural. My teeth have never been this white. It is an expensive toothpaste (AUD $9.50/USD $7.50 approx for 4.16 oz), but I'm seeing real results quickly, plus I can't be a scrooge with everything :cool: The full list of ingredients are as follows (in the correct order that they appear on the packaging):

Fine Chalk (a gentle cleanser), Glycerine (from vegetable oil), Purified Water, Herbal extract blend: Peelu (Salvadora persica), Neem (Azadirachta), Indian Licorice Root, Pomegranate rind, Common Jujube, Rose Apple, Clove, Persian Walnut, Barleria prinoitis bark (Vajiradanti), Indian Almond, Bedda Nut, Asian Holly Oak, Prickly Ash, Zanthoxylum alatum (Tejbal), Sappan wood, Catechu, Bengal Madder, Acacia arabia bark (Babul), Sarsaparilla, Cinnamon, Medlar bark, Mayweed, Bishop's weed (flower extract), Silica, Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (from Indian coconut oil), Carageenan (from seaweed), Cellulose gum (from plants), Clove oil, Peppermint oil, Spearmint oil, Eucalyptus oil, Menthol, Thymol, Anethol, Geranium extract.

I'll have to try that. Where do you buy it?

[Nectarine]

I have ordered it online from their website, and I have seen and purchased it locally (Australia), although it seems very popular, and my local healthstore keeps running out. It lasts a while though.

[LeanAndHungry]

The Boutenkos www.rawfamily.com have been raw vegan for over 10 years. They use honey so they're not strictly vegan but they are strictly raw. They had minor health niggles until they started drinking green smoothies every day.

The raw vegans who are healthiest in the longterm seem to be those who eat 50% fruit 40% leafy greens and some good raw fat every day.
If the standard raw vegan diet isn't working for you, try that.
I've been 100% raw vegan for 18 months (trying to be for years before that - don't know how many) and still feel weak exhausted and ill.
But just before Christmas I unintentionally ate just fruit, greens and fat for a week and I felt great! Then it was Christmas and I went back to fancy food. We've only just used up all the christmas food, and now its my mothers birthday then mine, so it will have to wait until after that, but I intend to switch to that diet.
Trouble is greens are expensive. I love them, I could eat 3lbs a day but I can't afford to.

One complaint/question. I have read the Green for life book, but it leaves out a most important detail. What is meant by 50% fruit 40% greens as you say? Is it by weight or by calories? Without knowing that the percentages are meaningless. And the recipes in the book are look like they are nowhere near 40% greens by weight or calories. Does anyone know the answer? Or it may be that going by either weight or calories results in approximately the same amount of greens.

[RawFoodieMom]

I don't have the Green For Life book, but I'm thinking instead of by weight or calories, it's probably by volume? So if a smoothie is 60% greens and 40% fruit, it would work out to like for instance, 1 cup greens, 2/3 cup fruit, for example.

But I could be wrong... and you're right it should specify!

[LeanAndHungry]

But then you get into what is a cup of fruit and what is a cup of greens. How mushed up do they need to be when in the cup? A cup of whole grapes is lots of air and if you just jam kale leaves in a cup you will only fit one or two in there but if it was finely ground up you could fit many more. Meh. I just like specifics and am frustrated when obvious questions are left unanswered.

[theresaann]

raw strawberry, great point~

we have to eat predominantly greens to really make it on raw. that and fruit. low fat is important in the long term.

there are so many other factors too. digestive strength (fire), emotional balance (stress), environmental factors, and something almost never talked about, healthy microflora balance in the gut-which is very susteptible to stress.

qi gong or somekind of energy balancing, meditation, forgiveness-these are all really important aspects of an "energy diet".

not absorbing nutrients from the raw food? blending, juicing, rebalancing microflora, energy exercise (qi gong, 5 tibetans, visualization/meditation, bodywork), lower fat intake-especially with fruits (desserts), etc.

no energy, fatigued, candida overload? let go of "raw desserts" and fruit/nut combos for awhile to stop feeding the yeast and rebalance gut flora.

just some ideas from experience......

Love, T.

[rawnora]

I'll be posting a very lengthy and detailed update on my "raw evolution" on my website in the next few weeks.

Best wishes,
Nora
www.RawSchool.com

[Ariannah]

I'll be posting a very lengthy and detailed update on my "raw evolution" on my website in the next few weeks.

Best wishes,
Nora
www.RawSchool.com
I cannot wait to read that!
I'll keep it bookmarked.

[RawVee]

I think the most important aspect of this way of living, and I believe Rawkinlocks said this too, is that your body will tell you what it needs if it is in a healthy state. In an inbalanced state (ie overly acidic, etc), you'll crave things that aren't good for you. When you're body is healthy and happy, you can actually tune in and listen to what it is craving (greens, fruit, eat lighter today).

The think I love most about eating raw is that I don't have to obsess about counting calories or fat grams or whatever. That's always bored me, and I can't stand being around people who are calorie police. I've found that just after 17 days of being raw, I can do fats with one meal and be content with greens and fruits for the rest of the day. Overeating fats makes me feel full and uncomfortable. So it's just a matter of listening to your body.

As for how healthy you are on this eating plan, what you put in is what you get out. There are plenty of unhealthy vegetarians who eat tons of pizza and pasta. I think we need to take more responsibility and accountability for how we treat our bods and ourselves. Once that happens, eating the way our body wants us to comes naturally. :)

[startootsie]

Thank you for posting this thread! I was wondering about the same thing! I have been researching too.

Create a day of love and light!

Christianna

[DavidZaneMason]

Great comments everyone! To answer the earlier posts: I stopped supplementing about 4 years back. They made me ill! Ha! ha!

-I'm certainly standing by to share any of my own experiences. :) Power and success.

-David Z. Mason

[jendy]

There are raw vegans out there. One, Gabriel Cousins (maybe?) that's been 30 years raw. Alissa about 10 and David Wolfe for quite a while. I may have the years incorrect, but i know they're over 5 years raw.

Yes, Gabriel Cousens has been raw that long.
Also, I read that a "raw foodist" is defined as at least 80%raw. That is a lot different than 100%.

Jen