Health Benefits of the Raw Food Diet

What is the raw food diet?

These days, most food is processed. They contain toxins and artificial ingredients that are harmful to our overall health. In the last couple of years, the raw food diet has become a trend, With this, the food is not cooked, and the raw food is not processed by any heat. It includes foods that are not frozen and not heated to temperatures above 115 degrees.

Mostly, the diet is composed of plant-based foods that consist of fruits and vegetables. They can also include nuts, seeds, legumes, and grains. However, eating this diet requires effort and motivation.

The raw food diet has a variety of health benefits. It is better to have organic food because many raw foods contain toxins. Raw food helps clean the body and provides more physical energy. With processed foods, there are no healthy fats and dietary fiber, but these can be obtained from the raw food diet. Through raw foods, our body gets more nutrients, minerals, and vitamins. The majority of them are gluten-free. Also, it helps in weight loss and maintaining a healthy weight. It cleanses and detoxes our body, and also keeps the skin healthy and reduces inflammation.

26 Health Benefits of the Raw Food Diet

• Increases consumption of fruits: Majority of raw food diets include sweet and fresh fruits that are rich in vitamins and mild in calories. They make the person feel satisfied and full of energy. The fiber in fruits aids in healthy digestion and helps to control the appetite to make you feel replenished. Fruits can be eaten whole or can be juiced so that there is some variety in the diet.

• Increases consumption of vegetables: Vegetables are also a part of the raw diet. They provide minerals and proteins, even though the content is low. However, some green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, are rich in proteins. Proteins are necessary for body building, muscle repair and growth. Vegetables can be included in smoothies and salads.

• Biophotons: Sprouts and fresh vegetables or fruits that contain biophotons. Biophontons typically live a short lifespan. 

• Balanced nutrition: A raw food diet provides proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. This is required for a diet that is healthy and balanced. If processed foods and animal products are eaten in excess, then it may lead to excess nutrients or lack of some nutrients that cause an improper diet. The raw food diet cleans the body, keeps it light and does not make the body feel bogged or sluggish.

• Consumption of simple carbohydrates: The raw food diet consists of plant-based food that can be easily digested by the body. They have simple carbohydrate content that can be easily digested with little effort.

• Prevents deficiency of vitamins: Vitamins are not lost since raw foods are not cooked or heated. So, there is no need to rely on supplements to get the required amount of vitamins since you can get it through your diet.

• Clears up skin: A breakout on the skin could have been caused by an unhealthy diet. Greasy food and fatty foods can cause clogged pores. Fruits and vegetables contain water, vitamins A, B, C, E and K, and water.

• Gluten-free: It is highly recommended to have a diet that is gluten-free or low in gluten for those who are health conscious. Gluten in grains cannot be easily digested by the body, and grains cannot be a part of the raw food diet since they need to be cooked in order to be digested.

• Phytonutrients: Phytonutrients provide support to vitamins. These phytonutrients can be obtained from raw food along with minerals and vitamins. Phytonutrients act as a catalyst, which provides strength to the immune system, slows down the process of aging, and helps cell function. These trace elements are required for maintaining good health. 

• Increased energy: They make us feel alive and energetic, especially because these foods are in their natural state. High levels of energy can be obtained from living foods. When food is processed or cooked, the energy becomes less or is destroyed. So, those who eat raw food benefit from the energy obtained, vitality levels and mental clarity. This energy then influences our mental, emotional and spiritual health.

• Low fat: The body can function when the fat intake is as low as 10 percent. The raw diet is low in fat since it consists more carbohydrates and proteins. This is useful for those who are trying to lose weight.  The raw food diet consists of nuts, seeds and avocados, which contain unsaturated fat. These are healthier, and there is less of a chance of gaining weight from these fats.

• Cooling and hydrating - The high water content in the raw food diet based foods keeps the body hydrated and cools the body down. Fresh fruits and vegetables, such as cucumbers, watermelons, leafy greens and pears, keep the body hydrated and energized.

• Unaltered vitamins: When foods are cooked or frozen, they lose their nutritional value, whereas if the food is eaten raw, such as plant-based foods, then the entire nutrient is unlocked. This diet is packed with vitamins and nutrients, and it is not only lean but also healthier when compared to other diets.

• High fiber content - Foods rich in high fiber are associated with health benefits, such as weight control, digestive health, cardiovascular health, and photochemicals that fight against diseases. Fibers help to keep our intestine clean and also provide bulk. They help to collect and eliminate waste regularly. This detoxification mechanism is very important.

  Fiber also acts as a prebiotic. They help the probiotics to flourish in our intestine. Other benefits include optimizing sugar level and cholesterol level and regulating the blood pressure, reducing the risk of colon cancer, reducing the risk of heart diseases, and increasing longevity. They also help in weight loss and maintaining a healthy weight.

• Enzymes: Plant-based foods that are a part of the raw diet consist of their own enzymes that aid in the process of digestion. Our body does not need to use its own enzymes because they can be used to carry out other functions. Enzymes release the nutrients from the foods. These nutrients are then available for a chemical reaction that enables the body to carry out the process of digestion and the metabolization in order to regulate the production of hormones. Cooking degrades enzymes and kills them so enzymes can only be obtained from raw foods.

  High levels of enzymes are also present in the raw food diet, which can support the digestive system. The enzymes in the raw food diet are nutritious, which increases the strength of nutrient uptake. One such is sprouted food which is rich in nutrients and enzymes.

• Healthy heart: The raw food diet excludes animal products and salt, which lowers the risk of heart diseases and enables the heart to pump blood efficiently. This allows the blood flow to increase.

• Alkaline diet: The raw food diet facilitates uptake and utilization of nutrients from the blood, enables the release of waste products from the cells and also facilitates many other processes on the cellular level. This helps to create a balance within our body, so the raw food diet is also known as an alkaline diet. It also helps the body to maintain the correct pH. The raw food diet consists of foods that have high water content, which are also high in fiber.

• Digestive tract - Toxins and normal metabolic processes create free radicals that can damage healthy cells. These cells then eventually die or mutate, which can lead to cancer. If too many cells die without any replacement, then it causes aging. The raw food diet consists of foods that are packed with antioxidants. These protect our cells from the damaging effects of free radicals.

• Weight loss: The raw food diet helps in weight loss since they are low in calories. They also help to detoxify our body. However, it is important to consume nuts, seeds and avocado to maintain a healthy weight and not just fruits and vegetables.

• Reduces carbon dioxide emission: Very low levels of carbon dioxide are emitted in the food that is directly obtained from the source and not cooked. This makes them more friendly to the human body.

• Regulates digestion: Plant-based food is easily processed and digested by the body. This quickens the process of digestion. So, the digestion may take 72 hours, but it also may take only 24 hours instead. So, the time taken for the quantity of food that is sitting and rotting in the digestive system is reduced, which aids in the health of the digestive system.

• Reduces toxin exposure: High temperatures and cooking cause the loss of minerals and vitamins. They also produce a toxin called carcinogen. According to studies, this causes acne and can affect your risk for cancer. 

• No hunger pangs: Plant-based food can be eaten as much as you want because there is no restriction on calories. So, compared to other diets, this is better since the stomach does not feel empty and this diet does not make you feel deprived. Instead, it makes you feel full for a longer period time.

• Longevity: If we eat food that is difficult to digest or takes more effort to digest, the more problems we are likely to encounter. The raw food diet includes food in their natural state and our body is designed to handle food in its raw and natural form. But, we have conditioned our body to have only processed food. Those who are used to cooked food have a hard time digesting raw food. Processed food can cause unhealthy flora in the gut, sluggishness, stressed organs, chronic dehydration, chronic acidity, chronic infections and an unclean intestine. All these interfere with digestion, which directly affects longevity.

• Less sugar carvings: In people who consume raw vegetables and fruits, sugar cravings are less and almost disappear. The cravings decrease because your body gets nutrients from the raw food.

• Highest nutrient density: Studies have shown that the healing and protective effects can be obtained from plant-based foods. It also has the highest nutrient density.

Other Benefits

The raw food diet reduces acidity, and the chances of fermentation in the gut and inflammation are lowered. People with various health concerns, such as cancer, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, Parkinson’s disease, gallstones, high cholesterol, heart disease, auto immune reactions, fatigue, joint pain, food allergies, headaches, muscle pain, hormonal imbalance, weight gain, and obesity, can benefit from this diet.

According to some studies, the raw food diet has shown to benefit:

• Lowers inflammation
• Eases the process of digestion
• Improves the heart conditions
• High in dietary fiber
• Prevents cancer
• Treats and prevents constipation
• Makes the person feel energetic
• Clears skin and makes it clean
• Reduces the amount of antinutrients and carcinogens
• Helps in weight loss
• Helps to maintain weight of the body
• Helps with liver function at the optimal level