Alissa, how important is food combining?

[Melodyellow]

Recently I stumbled upon a nutritionist who states that the only way I am going to not get osteoporosis and maintain my healthy status is to properly food combine. I have looked into this and am completely confounded. I have your book, and on page 85 it states that "selecting foods from all the pricipal groups - fats, greens and fruits - will insure a properly balanced diet." Is there any trick to this I need to know. Do I need to pay attention to exactly what I eat and how I eat it?

I am so confused.

I like to put strawberries, golden raisins and walnuts on my Kale salad. From the list on page 83 it doesn't recommend any fruits with vegetables or proteins. The nutritionist said something about making sure I am putting foods together to get 'complete proteins' and stuff. How am I supposed to know what it complete and what isn't.

Do I need to even worry about this?

[Revvell]

O.k, obviously I'm not Alissa but..

Uhhh, hun? When I first read your name, I read it as MellowYellow. Mellow out gurl! Relax! This is not rocket science.

In the book Alissa states... eat what you want, when you want. Stop listening to these people! That is NOT the only way you're going to not get osteoporosis or anything else. This woman is trained in the SAD and that's what she knows, where she comes from, what she speaks on.

Eat a variety of foods until your body knows what feels good together and what doesn't. For people who currently have food issues, going by the chart may be a good thing.... then again... ;)

There are no tricks!!!

Have you listened to our shows yet? If not, check out: www.RawkinRadio.com. Alissa answers many of your questions there.

You don't "need" to worry about anything. Give yourself a break,'k?

o.k., that's my bottom line speech. I'm sure, when Alissa peaks in, she may respond herself/differently.

One thing I would check though. You said "golden raisins". I may be wrong here yet, from what I know, the only way companies keep raisins yellow is to add sulfites. Might want to check that ... but don't WORRY about it!

R.


Recently I stumbled upon a nutritionist who states that the only way I am going to not get osteoporosis and maintain my healthy status is to properly food combine. I have looked into this and am completely confounded. I have your book, and on page 85 it states that "selecting foods from all the pricipal groups - fats, greens and fruits - will insure a properly balanced diet." Is there any trick to this I need to know. Do I need to pay attention to exactly what I eat and how I eat it?

I am so confused.

I like to put strawberries, golden raisins and walnuts on my Kale salad. From the list on page 83 it doesn't recommend any fruits with vegetables or proteins. The nutritionist said something about making sure I am putting foods together to get 'complete proteins' and stuff. How am I supposed to know what it complete and what isn't.

Do I need to even worry about this?

[Liserpiece]

When I first started I was totally overwhelmed by the whole food combining thing too. I found myself thinking, well I can't eat this with that, or that with this... and oh, not that either. I quickly became frustrated and I thought "I won't be able to maintain this level of monitoring forever!". So I stepped back and REALLY thought about what this way of eating promotes. Live, raw food! I tossed the whole food combining thing and just paid attention to eating raw. After the initial food cravings subsided (about a week for me), I could actually feel what my body wanted. Now, when I begin to feel hungry I take a minute and listen to what my body is asking for, then I eat it, what ever it is and how ever much it takes to fill me up. I kind of make a mental note of what I'm eating, so if I do see a trend, either a lot of something (today it's nuts!) or not much of something else, I can try to include those things that are lacking. I only do this IF it's something vital, like greens or fats. Other than that I don't worry. We have been brainwashed into believing so many myths about our diets and health. If you can, let all that go and start fresh. In time, after the detoxing and cravings end, you can trust your body, it's an incredible thing and it won't let you down!
Elissa

[rawbeliever]

I tend to agree with Elissa; I did the food combining thing as a teen and in my early twenties, but after I went raw I started to feel like it was really only useful if you're still consuming meat, dairy and cooked grains, starches, veggies, etc. Once you go raw, you have to make real effort to mis-combine foods. If you're really concerned about it, though, Ann Wigmore gives a fairly simple explanation of combining raw food in her book "The Hippocrates Diet".

Best wishes,
Robbie

[Melodyellow]

Thanks for the boost of confidence. I have been raw for over a year and just recently met this "expert" nutritionist and immediately began to doubt myself. And since I am the only raw foodist I know, well, you can see by what I wrote that I was rather panicked. The internet doesn't help much with that perticular question either because it is inundated with SAD informationalists.
Right after I posted this thread I began poking around the forum and found a thread entitled "incomplete proteins" with almost the exact same question. Snowdrop provided a great deal of good information on this subject. (A must read if you want to learn how this myth started). I will learn to let the scrutiny fly over my head in time. We all have our learning curves, I am just thankful there are forums like this that helps support my decision to go raw.
Have a wonderful day.

[barose]

I guess I am a bit different because there are certain food combinations I cant live with: Fruit and veggies (or other food for that matter) is one of them. I always have to eat fruit on an empty stomach. Melon alone. I get horrible gas pains, burping, and so on if I don’t.

I can mix fruit and leafy greens. That’s different.

[lissomllama]

Food combining is very helpful and makes alot of sense. It is basically the idea that our bodies need a different internal "environment" to properly digest, metabolize/utilize/absorb our food and the nutrients it gives us and that to do it most efficiently, we should be eating one or only a few things at a time. BUT, we live in a society where certain factors can make that difficult. so I say live and eat with joy and just do what feels right to you. you have your entire life ahead of you in which to decide on this issue. so right now, just be raw and love it. Eat whatever is raw and vegan that looks scrumptious and healthy to you. Now taking a view of the whol thing is good and It is important to eat intelligently and learn all about what your body needs and what the foods you are eating with do for you, but it is nothing to worry about. Our bodies are intelligent all on their own deep down you know what you need. So I say, explore your options, keep an open mind and you'll find what works for you. Personally, I do a little of both. alot of the time I eat only 1 thing at a time in succession and other times I mix fruits and fats for example because it seems right at the time. I usually feel better when I food combine though and I think that as I am raw for more years I will progress to more of eating 1 thing at a time in succession but remember that variety and balance are so very important. we need to really explore all the raw fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds we can to get the most for our bodies.

[SchoolOfRAWk]

I humbly disagree.

When I eat whatever whenever all raw vegan, I don't really lose weight, I can bloat still, etc.

We're all different and have different levels of digestive impairment. I think food combining is very useful and makes sense, but it should be a rule that obviously makes exceptions.

You definitely feel different.

Marilu Henner talks about people who eat the SAD diet, cooked, animals, grease, and simply food combine and achieve benefits. Very interesting. I just wouldn't rule it out is all.

I think that when people are FIRST GOING RAW, obviously, eating all raw vegan is PLENTY - That is 100% so true (if major dis-ease isn't involved) - but to say we should ignore it totally and it's not real and just raw vegan is always "enough" is just not true in my opinion. Natural Hygiene is where it stems from, and honestly, they are not really trained in the SAD diet, nor are they promoting it. I don't understand that statement.

[barose]

I humbly disagree.

When I eat whatever whenever all raw vegan, I don't really lose weight, I can bloat still, etc.

We're all different and have different levels of digestive impairment. I think food combining is very useful and makes sense, but it should be a rule that obviously makes exceptions.

You definitely feel different.

Marilu Henner talks about people who eat the SAD diet, cooked, animals, grease, and simply food combine and achieve benefits. Very interesting. I just wouldn't rule it out is all.

I think that when people are FIRST GOING RAW, obviously, eating all raw vegan is PLENTY - but to say we should ignore it and it's not real and just raw vegan is always "enough" is just not true.

ITA

I think its a bit premature to tell someone "dont worry, just eat".

[zenpawn]

In the book Alissa states... eat what you want, when you want. Stop listening to these people! That is NOT the only way you're going to not get osteoporosis or anything else. This woman is trained in the SAD and that's what she knows, where she comes from, what she speaks on. R.

I agree with the snipped parts of your quote where you advocate variety. However, I find the above intriguing as I did not encounter food combining until I started looking into the raw diet (save for the old myth, slowly being corrected, regarding complete protein). Seems to me most non-raw nutritionists and doctors would scoff at food combining (for example, Dr. Fuhrman of Eat To Live fame). So, I wonder why you attribute this notion of proper food combining to those "trained in the SAD."

[SchoolOfRAWk]

I agree with the snipped parts of your quote where you advocate variety. However, I find the above intriguing as I did not encounter food combining until I started looking into the raw diet (save for the old myth, slowly being corrected, regarding complete protein). Seems to me most non-raw nutritionists and doctors would scoff at food combining (for example, Dr. Fuhrman of Eat To Live fame). So, I wonder why you attribute this notion of proper food combining to those "trained in the SAD."

Exactly what confused me, too...

[meinleben]

i am a firm believer in proper food combining.....it helps with digestion....bloating....gas....easier on our internal organs and many other things......

at the beginning of raw i just wanted to be raw....that worked for a while...now i want to eat for optimal health....which definately includes proper food combining....which is really not that hard.....and makes total sense....i actually love it....

[Davylp25]

If my farts blow the roof of my apartment, I know I need to combine better.
If my stomach bloats like I'm 8 months pregnant, I know I need to combine better.
Which usually means just don't eat that thing you usually don't eat that you added. Or the simple fruit after fatty foods.

In the beginning everything seems harder, but I swear -IT GETS EASIER! haha I was gonna say Gassier, but that's just my weird sense of humor. But also, if you are gassy in the beginning, it doesn't always mean bad food combining, cleansing cleansing cleansing. Oy, what has my life become, Im talking about FARTS....!


Now back to your regularly schedule programs.

[SchoolOfRAWk]

You're just prepping yourself, D - I'm about to start that Embarrassing Moments Thread tomorrow. ;)

[RawSweetie]

I started my transition to raw a few weeks ago and decided NOT to burden myself with the whole food combining thing, unless and until my body signalled that I needed to tweak what I was doing. This week, I've been experimenting with some raw desserts and have realaized that they ALL combine nuts and fruits and I. Am. Bloated. It's abundantly clear to me now that my body cannot properly digest these foods in combo. I'm a little constipated, and my skin is breaking out a bit. Not much, but I can feel food just sitting there in my body. Interesting, interesting...

[EZ rider]

Before I was all raw I was very careful about applying food combining to everything I ate and it made the cooked food I was eating digest with fewer problems. However since going all raw I am not as careful about food combining. The reason I don't seem to need to be so restrictive any more seems to be in the raw foods themselves and that reason I think is due to the live enzymes in the raw foods. The enzymes help digest the raw foods better. Cooked foods have no enzymes left to help with digestion whereas raw foods still have their enzymes and that makes the difference when it comes to food combining and raw food digestion. I still do some food combining but not nearly as much as I did when I ate cooked food.

[apower2me408]

I never bothered to learn about food combining. I dont want more rules!
I dont get any gas with the combinations of foods that I eat. I did have gas for a few weeks, but now I have hardly any. The only problem I get once in a while is if I eat too many dried fruits at once... then I cant go to the bathroom as well.

[chilove]

Some raw foodists feel better when they properly combine and many people never notice any ill effects from not combining so it is up completely up to you.

In the grand scheme of things, especially compared to eating cooked food, eating a raw diet that is not well combined is really not a big deal to worry about for the vast majority of people.

Some people experience gas, bloating and stomach problems if they don't combine their foods properly, and those people usually benefit from making a few simple changes like not mixing melons with anything else and avoiding mixing fruits and fats.

Blessings,

Audrey
www.rawhealing.com

[RawSweetie]

Some raw foodists feel better when they properly combine and many people never notice any ill effects from not combining so it is up completely up to you.

In the grand scheme of things, especially compared to eating cooked food, eating a raw diet that is not well combined is really not a big deal to worry about for the vast majority of people.

Some people experience gas, bloating and stomach problems if they don't combine their foods properly, and those people usually benefit from making a few simple changes like not mixing melons with anything else and avoiding mixing fruits and fats.

Blessings,

Audrey


www.rawhealing.com

Hi Audrey,
I love your website! Just checked it out.

Yes, I'm excited to realize that, as far as being raw and food combining issues go, the decision simply not to combine nuts with say, dried fruits, seems so easy to adhere to. It's not complicated and I don't feel in any way that it makes being raw more difficult. It feels like a little tweak amidst alot of delicious food consumption. :) I'm grateful for that. Even coming to the awareness of it for me was very anti-climactic and straightforward.

[virginia]

I eat pretty simply and am a long time rawfooder. I notice I usually eat fruits or vegetables, not both, at one time. Also separating high protein from high starch foods is helpful. That's the basics of food combining and is pretty simple. And for melons "eat them alone or leave them alone". Virginia

[missvitreous]

I really agree about the fruits and fats thing. Except, like Alissa says in her book, avocado can be combined with fruit. It works for me anyways. I guess it works because avos are technically fruit. I will take the melon rule into consideration now being reminded of it again.

[cayenne]

We have been raw ever since we read Alissa's book 3 1/2 years ago. After these years we still have to pay attention to food combining, there is no way out. Must say I am quite jealous of those who don't need to, that would make life so much easier!