Has anyone tried it? What did you think? I am about 80-90% raw right now, but it is the height of Farmer's Market season. I feel GREAT and would like to continue. I can't see how people up here in the frozen north manage this during the winter. Just wondering if people have done it from the north where NOTHING grows starting in about 2 weeks and for the next - oh - seven or so months!!!

Hey, Minnesoda......Uffda!

I do know someone.....and she was a No Dakker, no less (!) lol.....who lost a ton on the raw idea..........but just want to pose something else for you to consider....I have been into the "eat local" and carbon foot print thing about food...about how we ship stuff thousands of miles and use energy and carbon to do it.....what about we Minnesodans do what our parents did? Go to a fall diet of sweet potatoes and onions, and apples...and cabbage....and carrots...we can still have our salads....but fall soups sound good, yah? You betcha!

If you want some fascinating reading, pick up The Omnivore's Dilemma by Micheal Pollan; I just got it yesterday, but I have heard him twice on MPR.....fascinating.....nothing is as simple as it seems!

I've always been confused about raw diets...

How does it work? What is the nutritional benefit of eating totally raw foods?

Altari- the theory is that once you heat a food above 118-120 degrees, you begin to break down the nutrients.

I've been at around 80% raw the past few weeks and have been feeling fabulous (haven't lost any weight, though ). I actually lost most of my weight eating a fairly raw diet. I say that my plan was "inspired" by the raw diet

The standard raw diet is a vegan one and consists of sprouted grains and beans and vegetables as well as raw fruits and vegetables. For every SAD recipe, there's a raw one to go with it (spaghetti, burritos, soups, pizza, etc...) I'm a smoothie junky myself, green and otherwise.

I can't imagine being that far north and pulling it off. I know people do it, but I would imagine a lot of sprouting would be done to maintain it, which can be a lot of work.

Oh. That's kind of weird. I don't know if I believe the heating thing, but I'll take your word for it.

As far as the sprouts, Burpee's sells an in kitchen sprout planter thing...

That's the central belief of the diet... that heating it destroys nutrients and that eating it in raw form is the best way to consume food.

I understand. I just don't know if I believe that heating actually causes a serious amount of nutrient loss. Is freezing supposed to yield similar results?

Altari - it is kind of a weird theory. It interests me to know how people do it. There are some things that I think just need to be cooked - beets and squash for example!

Maryblue - Uffda right back at ya. My DH is a NoDakker. We do eat as locally grown as possible right down to the pasture raised eggs and chicken my carnivores eat. I don't even eat bananas anymore. Anyway, the raw food thing is a curiosity of mine and I always wonder how people do it if they don't live in the tropics.

At first, I think trying to figure out what to eat is a bit of a creative science. I think it does tend to bring you a lot closer to your food source and you become so "involved" in the process even though you don't cook. You juice, soak, grow, sprout, dehydrate, chop, dice and do everything but turn on the stove or push a button on a microwave. I encourage people to check out rawfoodtalk dot com because it's a great view into the the happenings of being a raw foodist. The biggest obstacle during the winter isn't availabilty, but not consuming "hot" food- especially when you start out.

Interesting about the beets. I can't say I've ever had a cooked beet. I dice them and use them in salads, marinate in dressing and juice them. The juice is almost like a fruit juice because it's so sweet.

There's so much to be said on both sides. Most folks view it as completely unnecessary and the reasons people do it (especially to a strict degree) vary. I can't ignore how fabulous I feel when I'm on track with it- in body and soul Of course, to each his own.

Junebug -

I run into availability issues because I am really committed to eating locally grown, sustainable agriculture as much as possible. Our freezer is full of locally grown food I've set aside for winter eating. I have a hard time calling organic bananas organic (as an example) that have flown 3000 miles to be here. I always tell my kids we don't live in the tropics - bananas don't grow here. They just go buy their own I have eaten mostly raw this summer and do like it. But we all have to eat what we think is best for us. Food is probably as touchy a subject as religion!!!!

I made raw borscht and I just couldn't get into the raw beets at all. I LOVE beets, too.

There is the cold thing, too. I am already cold and it hasn't even hit 20 below yet!!! So pretty soon - I'll be back to having soup for lunch rather than raw food. I am a baby, I admit it.