Below please find a great article by Casey Thomas, a Raw Lifestyle Coach and Detox Counselor living in Australia. Just goes to show, raw food is not an "American" thing or a "fad diet" but a way for all of us, no matter where we live, to get more nutrition in our bodies. Enjoy it. (and be sure to check out her link at the bottom for some great freebies)
We all know we should eat more fresh fruits and
vegetables - this is common knowledge the world over. Why? Well because
they contain essential phytonutrients, chlorophyll, vitamins, minerals,
proteins, natural sugars and organic hydration. They prevent disease,
help us to stay slim or get slimmer, have better skin, eyes, hair,
nails, more energy, more concentration, greater mental clarity, more
variety, tastes and pleasures. The list just keeps going!
However,
you might not know that raw fruits and vegetables (and nuts and seeds
too) contain incredible little power-houses called enzymes. Enzymes are
the catalysts for every function of the human body and therefore
essential for optimal health. Increasingly, research suggests that
eating raw foods full of enzymes helps digestion, and as the body's
biggest time consumer is the digestive process, it makes sense that
helping our body to work more efficiently is a smart idea. The less
effort and time the body spends on digestion, the more time it can
spend on deeply healing and rejuvenating the body from the inside out.
This is one of the big reasons why your energy goes through the roof,
your skin becomes clearer, diseases improve or heal and you generally
look more radiant on a diet high in raw fruits and vegetables.
Still,
the best reason to eat raw foods is yet too come. Raw foods are living
foods meaning that like ever other living thing, they literally contain
life in the form of Life Force Energy. By consuming foods rich in Life
Force Energy, we are flooding our bodies with the highest possible form
of nutrition - pure light energy. It's no wonder we feel more alive,
energetic and mentally and physically lighter when eating a cleaner
diet with plenty of raw fruits and vegetables!
As soon as you
cook your food, the life of the food and some or many of the enzymes,
vitamins and minerals are destroyed and your body has to work much
harder and for longer on digesting the cooked foods. Now by no means do
I recommend you jump into an all-raw diet immediately to save yourself
the lost enzymes and nutrients. Fresh, raw fruits and vegetables are,
in fact, such powerful cleansers within the body that it is very
important to always slowly increase your intake and monitor how you
feel as you add more raw food into your diet. Moving straight into a
very high raw diet, no matter how tempting, may see you feeling worse
than before as your body struggles to deal with the cleansing process.
So remember, the key is small and simple yet powerful steps forward and
you will truly feel and see the amazing results inside and out!
On
a final note, many people, myself included, just feel there is
something intuitively 'right' about eating foods in the way that Mother
Nature provides them to us - in their fresh, raw, unprocessed,
untouched state. Put the media's messages aside for one moment and just
let yourself see what makes sense to you at a deeper level. I know for
me, this sense of 'rigthness' is unquestionable.
I challenge you
to start including more fresh, raw fruits and vegetables (and their
juices) in your diet and start feeling and seeing the difference in
yourself.
Casey Thomas, Raw Lifestyle Coach and Detox Counselor, publishes "Bloom
Time" - a free monthly eZine for health and energy-seekers and raw food
lovers around the globe. If you're ready to look and feel amazing and
awaken your Va-Va-VOOM, get your FREE report, tips and guidance now at http://www.CaseyLorraine.com
