Raw foods diet
The Raw Foods Diet is a dietary approach that emphasizes the consumption of unprocessed, uncooked foods, often ranging from 50% to 100% of an individual's total intake. Its origins trace back to the mid-1800s with health reformers like Sylvester Graham, and it gained further attention in the 1940s through claims made by physician Max Gerson regarding its potential to cure serious illnesses, including cancer. Advocates of this diet believe that it preserves health-promoting enzymes found in raw foods, although some medical experts argue that these enzymes are destroyed by stomach acids. The diet is often viewed as a lifestyle choice aimed at enhancing overall health and energy, rather than solely a weight loss method.
While many proponents cite benefits like alleviating chronic conditions and promoting wellbeing, healthcare professionals generally recommend that a raw foods diet should not constitute the entirety of one’s nutrition. There are potential risks involved with the diet, including a lack of certain nutrients and increased vulnerability to food-borne illnesses. Additionally, caution is advised for specific populations, such as infants and those with compromised immune systems. Despite these concerns, the raw foods diet has seen a rise in popularity, prompting an increase in restaurants catering to this dietary preference in urban areas.
Raw Foods Diet
Definition: Vegan diet consisting of uncooked vegetables and fruits, nuts, seeds, and sprouted grains and beans.
Principal proposed uses: Cancer, fatigue, fibromyalgia, general health, illness prevention, rheumatoid arthritis
Other proposed uses: Digestion, weight loss
Overview
The raw foods diet began in the mid-nineteenth century, when health reformer Sylvester Graham claimed that illness could be avoided by consuming only uncooked foods. In the 1940s, German physician Max Gerson claimed that his particular raw foods regimen could cure advanced forms of cancer. The popularity of the diet grew over the years, perhaps because of its use among celebrities.
Raw food consumption can vary, according to the specific diet, from 50 to 100 percent of a person’s food consumption. Experts recommend that the diet’s foods be unprocessed. Many elements of the diet can be prepared in unique ways, such as presoaking nuts and grains. Food may be “cooked” using a food dehydrator, but the temperature of the food should not exceed 118° Fahrenheit. Because beverages including coffee, tea, alcohol, soda, and bottled juice are processed, raw food dieters generally drink only water and freshly made juices.
Mechanism of Action
Proponents of the raw foods diet note that a key benefit of the diet is the preservation of health-promoting enzymes in uncooked foods; these enzymes are deactivated by cooking. However, sources in the medical community note that enzymes in food are destroyed by stomach acids. Raw food diet proponents have often countered that the enzymes are later reactivated in the small intestine. Debate also continued about the amount of nutrients available in a raw foods diet. While some medical professionals agreed that the levels of certain types of nutrients did decrease with cooking, they also pointed out that heat increased the levels of other important nutrients and phytochemicals during the breakdown of plants' cellular walls.
Uses and Applications
Proponents of the raw foods diet view it as a lifestyle rather than as a time-limited diet or one chiefly intended for weight loss. The diet is often credited by proponents with promoting general health and improved energy and with helping to alleviate chronic illnesses, including cancer and fibromyalgia. By the first decades of the twenty-first century, many health professionals and nutritionists recognized the benefits of a diet encouraging people to eat fruits and vegetables but advised that it should not make up 100 percent of anyone's diet and could better serve as a short-term, transitional option. While some proponents continued to cite the difficulty of finding restaurants that included raw food items on their menu as a hurdle to adhering to the diet, by that point, the diet's increased popularity overall had resulted in the openings of dining establishments catering more specifically to raw and vegan foods in larger cities throughout the world, including New York City.
Scientific Evidence
A limited body of published scientific research exists on the rationale for the raw foods diet or associated outcomes. Research findings suggest that a raw foods, vegan diet may help to reduce symptoms of fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis and to promote weight loss. In one study of Americans who had been on the raw foods diet a long time, respondents reported improved health and quality of life. The study found that the average nutrient intake while on the diet was higher for some components (such as vitamins A and C) and lower for others (such as protein and vitamin B12).
Safety Issues
Extremely restrictive diets such as the raw foods diet can impair growth and are not recommended for infants and children. Fresh produce can be a source of food-borne illness, and a raw foods diet can increase the risk of infection in persons whose immune systems are compromised, such as persons undergoing bone marrow or stem cell transplantation.
Bibliography
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Cunningham, C. “What Is a Raw Foods Diet and Are There Any Risks or Benefits Associated with it?” Journal of the American Dietetic Association 104 (2004): 1623.
Dina, Karin, and Rick Dina. The Raw Food Nutrition Handbook: An Essential Guide to Understanding Raw Food Diets. Summertown: Healthy Living, 2015. Print.
Fleming, Amy. "Could Choosing Raw Foods Rather than Cooked be the Key to a Health Diet?" Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 13 Jan. 2015. Web. 27 Jan. 2016.
Havala Hobbs, S. “Raw Foods Diets: A Review of the Literature.” Vegetarian Times, issue 4 (2002): 30-31.
“Living and Raw Foods: Frequently Asked Questions.” http://www.living-foods.com/faq.html.
Robinson, Kara Mayer. "Raw Foods Diet." WebMD, 19 Mar. 2021, www.webmd.com/diet/a-z/raw-foods-diet. Accessed 20 Dec. 2022.