Saturday, January 5, 2013

Raw Food Detox Menu Plan


How to Detox with Raw Food Diet Menu Plan

A raw food diet offers a healthy, natural alternative to the highly processed foods commonly found in supermarkets. The premise behind a raw food diet is to eat only uncooked foods in their natural forms. It has been claimed that a raw food diet boosts energy, improves health and promotes weight loss.

The major guideline to follow when adopting a raw food diet is to only eat foods that are uncooked and as close to their natural state as possible. The Best of Raw Food website considers foods uncooked if they are never heated above 118 degrees Fahrenheit. The commitment to unprocessed foods requires that fruits and vegetables be fresh, unaltered and free of additives. Raw food diets also reject non-organic produce and any food treated with pesticides, irradiated or genetically modified.

Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables provides many vitamins and minerals your body needs. The raw food diet emphasizes eating green leafy vegetables, sugary fruits and unprocessed foods with a high unsaturated fat content. These foods abound in most vitamins and minerals as well as beneficial antioxidants.

Balance your meals by consuming a variety of fruits and vegetables as well as unprocessed whole grains that remain uncooked. Soak grains and seeds until they sprout to provide a raw form of carbohydrates. Because a raw food diet is often low in vitamin B12, an important compound found primarily in animal products, taking a B12 supplement may be necessary.
Typical lunches consist of a leafy green salad with a salad dressing made of a raw plant fat, such as avocado, mixed with a sugary fruit, such as orange or lemon. Include one or two servings of fruit to boost your energy level.

For dinner, eat a large salad with a mixture of leafy green vegetables. Include fat-rich avocado, nuts, seeds or olives to boost the nutritional value of your salad. Supplement your meal with dried fruits, citrus fruits or raw vegetables. Avoid alcohol; drink raw or soy milk for nutrients instead. Proponents of a raw food diet claim that it preserves the natural enzymes found in plants by preventing them from denaturing during cooking. According to The Best of Raw Food website, this type of diet also promotes consumption of beneficial alkaline foods that are higher in pH and boost immune system functioning. Raw food enthusiasts claim that the diet replaces "dead food" with live, energy-boosting food. Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables does boost levels of vitamins and minerals, conferring many health benefits.

Critics of the raw food movement say that a raw diet is highly restrictive and possibly dangerous. Nutritionists worry that people who eat only raw foods limit their intake of protein, vitamin B12 and calcium, compounds vital to proper bodily functioning. Food scientists criticize the idea that the denatured enzymes in cooked foods are unhealthy, noting that humans' acidic stomachs quickly denature enzymes anyway.

A switch to an entirely raw diet is a significant lifestyle change that should be carefully considered. Consult a doctor or nutritionist to determine whether you receive adequate nutrients when adhering to the diet. Dietary supplements may be necessary to add calcium and vitamin B12 to your diet. This is so far the best natural detox diet plan out there.

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

How to detox naturally with raw food diet plan


Raw Food Diet Health Benefits

The proper detox diet diet is one which involves eating big dietary amounts of uncooked and unprocessed vegetables and fruits.

One can also take seeds, grains, nuts and beans.  Raw food is one which is uncooked. Mostly, cooked food tends to lose the important nutrients and vitamins when it is subjected to high levels of heat. Eating foods that are of high nutritional value helps us maintain healthy lives. The best way of taking a healthy diet is by including more fruits and raw vegetables in your meals. It is advisable to try eating around 75% of raw and 25% of foods that have been cooked lightly especially the whole grains.

Cooking food destroys and kills the essential vitamins, minerals and enzymes that are necessary for good health. This leads to development of many problems such as heart diseases and diabetes. Eating raw foods increases your energy levels and reduces the need for sleep. Many people have reported that they feel so youthful and energetic even after waking up in the morning.
There are numerous health benefits that one gets from using this natural detox plan. These benefits include;

·         Improved digestion- the raw food diet does not clog your colon and allows for the digestion process to be done smoothly due to presence of roughage in the diet.

·         Reduction in disease susceptibility- raw food diets doesn’t have the saturated fats that are found in many cooked foods and processed or junk foods. This helps in reducing the diseases that you might be prone to due to bad dietary habits. Heart diseases, obesity and even diabetes are some of the diseases that have reduced greatly due to eating raw foods.

·         Availability of nutrients- raw foods have high levels of nutrients such as magnesium, potassium and plant fiber. Lack of such nutrients leads to development of severe body problems especially to the bones and the blood.

·         Low cholesterol levels- use of the raw food diet lowers the levels of cholesterol which reduces risks of getting high blood pressure and obesity complications.

Raw foods are quite eco-friendly as they are not packaged in plastic bags or cans which may litter the environment and this ensures that we stay healthy as there are chemicals which are emitted in the packaging materials and are harmful to health. Eating raw foods saves on resources as you don’t have to use up energy to cook them. It is advisable for you to start incorporating more fruits and raw vegetable in your diet. You should purchase only locally grown raw foods or those which are organic as the non-organic foods are exposed to toxins like pesticides which are harmful. It is important to avoid consumption of raw meat as it might have parasites and bacteria.

Raw food provides you with the best and healthy nutrition and diet components for your meals. It should be noted that each individual is different and research should be done before deciding on trying out a new diet plan. With the raw food diet, you will know how to detox naturally.