Choose to be Raw Foodist or Vegetarian

A vegetarian is someone who is committed to not eat meat, fish, poultry or any animal products, but only consumes vegetables, pasta, and rice. On the other hand, a raw foodist is a vegetarian, but one who eats unprocessed, uncooked, organic, whole foods, like fruits, vegetables, nuts seeds, legumes, dried fruits, seaweeds, etc. It denotes a diet that is at least 75% uncooked! Raw foodist cooks very little and definitely doesn’t cook or process fruits and vegetables. Raw foodist simply eats them raw.

Raw foodist is a category of vegetarianism as mentioned earlier. However, to be a raw food purist, you should eat raw vegetables like raw broccoli, not steamed. To a vegetarian, who doesn’t eat meat or fish or any animal products, steamed vegetables are just as good, though every person would concur that steaming can take out nutrients from foods and turn them into less nutritious. A vegetarian might consume dairy or egg products but a vegan will not consume any animal products at all.

When you are considering the raw food diet, you have to be aware of whether it is healthy or not. There have been many studies done and they have found that using the raw food diet can help to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels. However, it also shows a deficiency in vitamin B12 because this is only found naturally in animal products. This can lead to anemia and neurological impairment.

Through all the studies done, it has been found that the long-term effects of a raw food diet can be dangerous with some vitamin deficiencies and even a lower than average level of lycopene and even a lower bone mass. Maybe the raw food diet is not the right one for you because of these things, but others have found ways to supplement the deficiencies on one way or another.

Below are some health benefits cited by the raw diet followers:

• Improved digestion
• Increased energy levels
• Reduced risk of heart diseased
• Improved appearance of skin
• Weight loss