New to raw foods need answers and support

[raw gamer]

My name is tom and I am 18 years old. I am intersted in going to a raw food diet because it makes a lot of sense to me and I want to obtain the benefits of the diet. I was extreamly healthy before attempting this diet. I rarely ever got sick and was in peak physical condition. I read that a person should go through detoxifing their body before they go on this diet. I fasted for thirty six hours and then broke it becasue of school. I then started eating only fruit ( some organic). I then started eating less and less and then went on two one day fasts only eating watermelon. I just broke the second fast today because I could feel my hip and rip bones because they bulged out and I was worried I could be starving myself. I am 123 pounds and extreamly skinny. I ate only fruit today and I really need some advice. I want to know what signs to look for when your body is fealing true hunger. I also want to know when has the fasting gone too far as I am very skinny already and do not want to create any complications. I also want to know if drinking filtered water from my fridge, bottled spring water or distilled water are good sources of water to drink when on a fast and which one is the best. I also have been mainly eating fruits for about a month when I do eat and want to know if I need to change it. I would greatly appreaciate any answers or advice and would really appreaciate advice from anyone who has went on this diet and was in or sort of in the same situation as I am now. I am really interested in doing this and could really use help. Thank you

[Tryin.Raw]

If you're eating less than 1200 calories I would say you're starving yourself in a sense. Our body requires calories to function.

I'm on Day 2 right now. I feel bloated and I have no appetite. I'm forcing myself to eat even though I am not hungry.

[Shels]

Wow, you need some greens my friend. I'd advise you to cut down on the fasting as well, until you transition fully. :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

why would he have to cut down on fasting until he transitions? that makes no sense. lots of people fast in the beginning of their raw food journey (myself included) and it assists them.

if you are feeling like you need more weight on you, then why not follow a more realistic raw food diet like the one Alissa recommends in her book (and the reason this forum is here... to support people following her philosophy).

eat as much as you desire... as long as it's raw, live food. enjoy your food!

but if you want to fast... then do so. although you are (in my opinion) a little young to be fasting. i don't recommend anyone under the age of 20 fasts.

eating raw foods IS detoxifying... so you'll get there... if you eat. you don't have to fast your way there!

[SevenKindsOfCookie]

Most 18 year olds won't even have much to detoxify in the first place. A simple raw foods diet is more than enough unless perhaps if you suffer from a serious illness.

[raw gamer]

I would like to first say thank you to everyone who has replied to my post. I really appreaciate the support and absolutly need it right now. The one question I have is that of appitite versus true hunger. True hunger from what I read is when the body signals that it is really hungry. There is supposed to be a mouth and throat action that invovles them both salvating when fealing this or your stomach starts to rumble. I only feel my mouth start to water sometimes and I read that that is just your appitite and not your ture hunger. I wnet on this information and thats were the fasting came in. I wouldn't eat because I wouldn't be fealing the true hunger that I read about. I would wait a while sometimes days and I think I have only felt this true hunger three time and all in the form of my stomach grumbling. I have never felt the throat and mouth fealing and I am wondering if anyone who has been on the raw food diet has ever felt this. I could really use an answer perferably from someone who has been on the raw food diet for a long time. Thank you everyone again for your responses and hope you continue to aid me.

[Aleesha Sattva]

i don't know if i qualify for your question but here goes.

true hunger is supposed to be felt when you've fasted for a length of time. it signals to you that it's time to end your fast. i've fasted extensively over the past three years and i've yet to feel it.

i thought i might have been experiencing it at the end of my 84 day fast... but i don't think it was true hunger.

a friend who was fasting for 152 days never felt it either.

so i can't really imagine that you are going to feel it when you are consuming foods and digesting etc.

from what i understand... it's something you experience fasting, not eating.

but heck... what do i know... i'm not really into 'terms'... i'm more into "ah that mango is beautiful... i'll eat it now!"

[Dimond]

To add to what Aleesha said, most of the time when we think we're hungry, we're really just thirsty and need more water. Other times it's your body adjusting to less food and no toxins.

[raw gamer]

I really need to know some information regarding weight and this type of diet. I am 5 feet 11 inches and am about 120 now. I need to know if my weight will increase or if I am underweight or if this is just a result of detoxification. I also would like to note that untill I read about this diet my diet had a good ammount of cooked foods in it. The cooked foods weren't really unhealthy foods like fast food, but they were foods like oatmeal and lental soups that were homemade. I ate nothing with articifcal perservatives or sugar in my old diet just a good ammount of "healthy cooked foods". I really need some advice on this subject. Thanks

[nadien alexandra]

i am not a professional in any sense of the word when it comes to fasting or raw food.
I however have done over 10 fasts and am currently living solely off raw foods.
My longest fast on water was two weeks. I did not feel real hunger. I felt a lot of cravings, but even they dissipated in time.

what I know, and since you are not doing an extended fast, this might be interesting for you to know...

the stomach produces hunger hormones call ghrelin, which is sent to the lower brain. ghrelin levels rise just before a meal and then go down when you eat.
ghrelin along with leptin (which tells the body how much fat it has, and whether it needs more or less, signaling your body to eat more or less) are important because they keep you from starving or from over eating.

appetite as you've already mentioned, is different from hunger. They can intertwine, but they are very different. Appetite is desire.

Also, your body and brain (mostly your brain) crave glucose everyday, a particular amount of glucose. when it doesn't get that glucose, it sends signals that it wants food. this is not true hunger either, as the body functions fine without its daily glucose fill from the outside.

when you stop eating, you start using your stored calories. about 85% of those calories are in fat, the rest in protein, and a little tiny bit in carbs which are circulating as glucose through the blood system or stashed in the liver and muscles as glycogen.
Most of the energy your body needs to function can come from fatty acids. but your brain, your eyes and your gonads still need glucose, which you have very little of.

in the first 24-hours of fasting, glucose levels in your bloodstream drop slightly, causing a decline in circulating insulin. that low level of insulin stimulates fat tissues to release free fatty acids that travel in the bloodstream to the liver where the process of fat metabolism starts. The decrease in insulin also stimulates the secretion of a hormone that raises blood sugar levels by promoting glucose production. your liver starts converting its supply of glycogen until it is gone, usually in a day.

by 36 hours, day 2 of your fast, your production of glucose relies heavily on protein (amino acids released by muscle tissue and sent to the liver and kidneys to be converted into glucose). Your body is very efficient. It uses bits of what it can find to convert to glucose so it can feed the brain, and it feeds the body with stored fatty acids.

by the 3rd day of fasting, in the absence of incoming glucose, the liver begins to convert some fatty acids into compounds called ketone bodies. these can be used by cells that normally only use glucose. The body conserves protein (and thus muscle mass) with this new fuel, ketone bodies.

by the forth day of a fast, at least one 3rd of the brain is running on ketones, the product of fatty acids. In fact, the brain and heart might actually run more efficiently on ketones than on glucose, because ketones actually provide more energy than glucose.
Ketones effectively mimic the work of insulin in the heart and brain, increase metabolic efficiency, and decreae production of free radicals (unstable oxygen molecules that damage other molecules).

What is happening here, is mild ketosis (extreme ketosis is bad. that's what happens in the absolute absence of insulin, like in those who are diabetic) but with mild ketosis, insulin levels are low but still present, keeping fatty acids under control...

The body will increase it's use of ketones until they account for two-thirds of it's energy use. The liver and kidneys are not needed to produce large amounts of glucose from amino acids anymore, so they can now rest and heal.
After a week of fasting, the surface areas of the intestinal walls are greatly reduced. A shrinking gut frees energy normally required for the maintenance of the stomach and small intestine. Other systems get less attention, maybe the skin and hair.
The body starts consuming its abnormal cells first; its arterial plaque, and the odd tumor. Anything that can be spared is converted into something useful. When there is nothing left to spare, the body will go for muscle. This is when one should stop fasting. This is when true hunger kicks in. The less you weigh, the shorter your fast will be, as there is less fat and abnormal tissue for your body to live on.

All the ketones running your brain make you see and feel things differently. a lot of people talk about a "fasting high". It is thought to be due to the brain running on ketones (which as mentioned, allows the brain to run more efficiently).
ketosis only takes place when the body is not receiving any food (this includes juice).

fasting allows the digestive system and immune system to rest so it can work on getting rid of toxins and healing other parts of the body.

Eating a raw diet will also allow your body to rid itself of toxins and heal. This will just happen at a much slower rate. but as long as you're not putting any more toxins in, they will start to make their way out.

fasting is a way of speeding up the process. Juice fasting will speed up the process as well.

If you're pretty thin, do not extend your fast beyond what your body is capable of. It only has so much in reserves.

um... sorry that was so long. I have been reading much about fasting lately, and this is what I have gathered. I do hope it has helped you understand a bit more.

OH...that grumbling in your stomach is not your body screaming HUNGER! it is your intestines pressing and squishing every remaining bit of food that is still in your stomach and pushing it towards your bowels. It means that there is still food in your stomach that your body is processing. It means that you're not quite empty. it also means, your stomach WILL be empty soon and will be asking for a refill.

lastly, You do sound very thin. my suggestion: eat lots of raw food. don't worry about eating too much. eat bananas, avocados and dates. these might help bring your weight up in a healthy way. I was very thin right before I transitioned to all raw. I wasn't eating enough. raw made me put on weight. but it is the weight I needed.

[raw gamer]

I am still considering water fasting. I would like to know what your supposed to feel when your bodies done fasting. I also would like to know any warning signs that mean you should break the fast and start eating. I also have cold hands with dry skin on the tops of them, I have red blensihes on and around my nose and I have dark marks below my eyes. These marks are not circles but just marks. Could anyone tell me what these could be from and what I can do to get rid of them. I would also appreaciate if anyone could tell me if these are something I should be concerned with and if I need to do something as quick as possible. I also went to the doctor a few weeks ago and I was healthy but my blood pressure dropped and was sort of low. I would again appreaciate any answers and thank everyone again who has helped me so far thank you.

[harbour]

Thanks for the extremely interesting info, nadien! A lot of it was news to me.
Good of you to share that here.

As for water fasting, I am certainly not an expert--go to Aleesha's blog for the best info & advice on that-- but have done two shorter water fasts and do recommend that you start out small (24 hours) when trying it for the first time. You also need to take it easy physically.

I felt great through the entire first day of my 2nd water fast, until around 10 at night, when all my energy suddenly left me and it took an enormous amount of effort and will power to drag myself over to the bed. The next morning I was as dizzy, weak and shaky as a frail little 90-year-old woman, and even nearly passed out once. Still, I attribute that to having combined the water fast with a juice fast. These things are to be expected and part of the bargain. Every fast is unique, I find.

Do read up on how to fast properly, as well as how to break the fast. Water fasting is amazing and beneficial when done correctly.

Best of luck to you!

[holistica]

Thanks for the report! I really enjoyed reading that, and it sounds like you're learning a lot about fasting! Sources, please? I might do some extra reading myself...

[Aleesha Sattva]

I would like to know what your supposed to feel when your bodies done fasting.

I also would like to know any warning signs that mean you should break the fast and start eating.

We aren't doctors and can't really comment on your question but I can comment on these.

Warning signs... if you are feeling really not right... super dizzy, heart beat irregular - stuff like that. What you need to realize is water fasting is tough. It's not a walk in the park for most people. You can end up on your couch or in bed and not able to do much else... so you need to be prepared for that if you are going to water fast.

How do you know when your body is done? You just do. I know that sounds lame but it's kinda like asking "How do you know when you are in love?"

[raw gamer]

I would first like to thank Aleesha for the comment on fasting. I had a fealing you were going to say something along the lines of that and thank you for reassuring what I thought. I really need this next request though. I need someone who went from a SAD or sort of health diet to a raw food diet and they were around my age and they were around my weight and the changes they went through. I am really intrested in going to this diet and would like to know if there is anyone who is 18 and went through the weight loss just like I am. I am asking for an experiance story but one that really matches my poistion. Also does everyone on the raw food diet eat only organic fruits, vegetables and nuts or are there some people on this diet who eat conventional fruits, vegetables and nuts but eats organic when they can. I am asking this because I have limited acces to cheap organic foods. If there is any place were I can get organic foods cheap I would really like to know. Thanks again to anyone who gave me advice so far.

[snoops]

Frankly I would be extremely worried about you. I think you are far too thin for your size and the other symptoms you are having suggest to me that you are malnourished. This does not preclude a raw food diet but you need to eat man. Eat lots of raw food, fruits,nuts, bananas, avocados, greens. Once you are not experiencing the symptoms and feel GOOD you can think about fasting.