The Raw Foods Evolution

Monday, November 14, 2005

Fats and the Raw Foods Diet

I have updated my article titled Fat and the Raw Vegan Diet

Copyright 2005 by TheRawDiet.com
By Michael Snyder

Every essential nutrient is provided by the raw vegan diet when a good variety of foods are eaten. There are at approximately 50 essential nutrients that our body cannot make and they must be eaten in food. Our bodies will create the non-essential nutrients.

These essential nutrients include minerals, vitamins, enzymes, carbohydrates, fats, proteins, phytonutrients, and anti-oxidants. The proteins are broken down into 20 different amino acids, and 8 are essential.

The two essential fatty acids are classified as omega-3 and omega-6. The term for the omega-3 fats is alpha-linolenic acid, and the term for the omega-6 fats is linoleic acid. For optimal health, we need to eat them in a ratio of about 1:3, which is 1 omega-3 unit to 3 omega-6 units. The ratio should never rise above 1:5. The body cannot make these fats and they must be supplied through food. They are required for normal cell, tissue, gland, and organ function.

Some of the foods that supply the omega-6 fats include sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, brazil nuts, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, tomatoes, beets, carrots, walnuts, almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds, pine nuts, and sprouted grains.

Some of the foods that supply the omega-3 fats include flax seeds, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, broccoli, and cauliflower. The nuts and seeds are the best sources fat.

The vegetables and leafy greens contain such small quantities of fats that you would probably have to eat around 60 pounds per day. Fresh juice and blended foods made with leafy greens and vegetables will help you increase your consumption of veggies.

Flax seeds are the richest source of omega-3. They are about 60% omega-3 to 20% omega-6. Hemp seeds supply the two essential fats in the perfect ratio needed by the body. Hemp seeds contain three units of omega-6 to one unit of omega-3, along with 20 amino acids. The golden colored flax seeds are slightly more nutritious than the brown colored seeds. Generally, between two and four tablespoons of flax and hemp seeds a day should satisfy your omega-3 requirements.

The easiest way to eat flax and hemp seeds is to grind them up into a powder using a coffee grinder or spice mill. The nutrient level of flax seeds significantly rises if they are soaked. They may be soaked anywhere between 20 minutes and 8 hours. The life-force and enzymes in the flax are activated after soaking for 20 minutes.
After soaking, the best way to eat them is by first blending.

The essential omega-3 fats are made up of three different components. The short-chain omega-3’s are found in plant foods and are called alpha-
linolenic acid (ALA). The long-chain omega-3 fats are called EPA, DPA, and DHA. These are extremely important for signal transmission in the eyes and brain. Over 60% of the brain is made up of these two fats.

Most people can make the long-chain fats from the plant-based short chain fats. A study published in the British Journal of Nutrition (BJN) in October 2002, volume 88, Issue 4, measured rates of conversion of ALA into the long-chain fats. The conclusion was that women converted an average of 36% and men converted an average of 16% of the ALA into the long-chain fats. As long as there is enough plant based omega-3’s in the diet, the body should be able to create the long chain fats.

There are some people who will need to supplement or eat the long chain fats, especially those suffering from depression and pregnant women. EPA and DHA are available in a couple different vegan foods.

Purslane contains EPA and is a very nutritious herb. Purslane is not sold in stores but it grows wild in almost every garden. I highly recommend adding purslane to your garden, or just grow it wild in your backyard.

To grow purslane, you will need to purchase seeds. They may be purchased from Seeds of Change.

Purslane Large Leaf Erect
Golden Purslane

Edible weeds are some of the most nutritious leafy greens you can eat. Seeds of Change sells many of these weeds including lambsquarters, chicory, endive, and others.

EPA and DHA are also found in algae. One type is a Golden Algae supplement called “O-Mega-Zen” which contains 300 mg. of DHA per serving.
http://www.rawfood.com/cgi-bin/order/index.cgi?
af=1560&display=single&item_id=0694


There is another form of algae grown in Klamath Lake, Oregon. It is one of the most nutrient dense foods on earth and it contains both EPA and DHA. It is called AFA (Aphanizomenon flos-aquae) blue-green algae, and is harvested by a few companies. The three most popular AFA companies are Cell Tech, E3 Live, and Crystal Manna from Ancient Sun Nutrition Inc.

On www.therawdiet.com/e3live.html, Dr. Gabriel Cousens writes:

“E3Live and AFA Cyanophyta are the only source of vegetarian food that has the long chain omega 3's. Long chain omega 3's are extremely critical for the health of our bodies... and particularly for depression and anti-inflammatory.”

In "Achieving Great Health" by Bob McCauley, Dr. Gabriel Cousens writes on page 2:

"I personally use the E3 Live in addition to the other algae, spirulina and chlorella. The E3 Live has the much needed long chain omega 3 DHA and EPA which is not available in the vegetarian world except for golden algae for DHA and purslane for EPA.

It also stimulates stem cell production, and has an intensity of neorotransmitter precursors, which makes it particularly powerful for enhancing brain function."

McCauley goes on to write "Stem-cells are primitive, unprogramed cells that can continue dividing forever and can be formed into any other cell needed by the body." (Page 18)

Brian Clement, director of the worlds leading raw foods health retreat Hippocrates Health Institute in Florida, also writes about the benefits on the E3 Live website:

"Our DNA is the most fundamental part of a human being. So what was happening is that this Klamath blue-green algae (literally A) was affecting "A", the DNA in the body, filling up the cracks and crevices and giving us superior health.

If anyone out there listening today after this show doesn't consume E3 Live, which is a whole another story, we can get on to, literally you have to be out of your mind. ...

...E3 Live has the exact same fat in it that your brain is made mostly of: DHA. And that's why it works so effectively. It's over 50 percent by weight protein, the most protein-rich food on the planet earth.

...I just am very happy that you're speaking about E3 Live, because it's the most important supplement that's hit the 21st century."
- Brian Clement

Live foods expert Viktoras Kulvinskas also writes about the Klamath blue-green algae on his website. He writes

"The chlorophyll factor in Klamath Blue Green Algae is ten times that found in grasses. The blue-green algae found in the Upper Klamath Lake is the highest source of chlorophyll you can find; it’s content is 2 to 3 times that found in chlorella or spirulina. This high concentration of chlorophyll leads to overcoming anemia."
- Viktoras Kulvinskas

Why is it significant that E3 Live has 10 times more chlorophyll than wheatgrass juice?

Dr. Ann Wigmore writes the following on the Hippocrates Health Institute
website, "Excerpt from The Wheatgrass Book":

"Wheatgrass juice is 70% chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is the first product of light and contain more light energy than any other element.

Chlorophyll is the basis of all plant life. Wheatgrass is high in oxygen like all green plants that contain chlorophyll. The brain and all body tissues function at an optimal level in a highly oxygenated environment.

Chlorophyll is anti-bacterial and can be used inside and outside the body as a healer. Science has proven that chlorophyll arrests growth and development of harmful bacteria.

Chlorophyll (wheatgrass) rebuilds the bloodstream. Studies of various animals have shown chlorophyll to be free of any toxic reaction. The red cell count was returned to normal with four to five days of the administration of chlorophyll, even in those animals which were known to be extremely anemic or low in red cell count.

Chlorophyll neutralizes toxins in the body, washes drug deposits from the body, helps purify the liver, improves blood sugar problems.

Dr. Max Bircher, a research scientist, inventor of muesli, and founder of the famed Bircher-Benner Clinic in Zurich, Switzerland, called chlorophyll "concentrated sun power." He said, "Chlorophyll increases the function of the heart, affects the vascular system, the intestines, the uterus, and the lungs.... It is therefore a tonic which, considering its stimulating properties, cannot be compared with any other."

According to Dr. Bircher, nature uses chlorophyll (wheatgrass) as a body cleanser, rebuilder, and neutralizer of toxins.

Chlorophyll can be extracted from many plants, but wheatgrass is superior because it has been found to have over 100 elements needed by man. If grown in organic soil, it absorbs 92 of the known 102 minerals from the soil.

Farmers in the American midwest who have sterile cows and bulls put them on wheatgrass to restore fertility. (The high magnesium content in chlorophyll builds enzymes that restore the sex hormones.)

...Wheatgrass juice remarkable similarity to our own blood. The second important nutritional aspect of chlorophyll is its remarkable similarity to hemoglobin, the compound that carries oxygen in the blood. Dr. Yoshihide Hagiwara, president of the Hagiwara Institute of Health in Japan, is a leading advocate for the use of grass as food and medicine.

He reasons that since chlorophyll is soluble in fat particles, and since fat particles are absorbed directly into the blood via the lymphatic system, that chlorophyll can also be absorbed in this way. In other words, when the "blood" of plants is absorbed in humans it is transformed into human blood, which transports nutrients to every cell of the body....

...Renowned nutritionist Dr. Bernard Jensen found that no other blood builders are superior to green juices and wheatgrass. In his book Health Magic Through Chlorophyll from Living Plant Life he mentions several cases where he was able to double the red blood cell count in a matter of days merely by having patients soak in a chlorophyll-water bath. Blood building results occur even more rapidly when patients drink green juices and wheatgrass regularly."

- Dr. Ann Wigmore

E3Live sells it both in a powdered and liquid form.

Helpful Tip about Fats

Track your dietary percentages of the three macronutrients, protein, fat,
and carbohydrates, with the free software on http://www.fitday.com or
http://nat.crgq.com

Generally, your daily percentage of fat should be around 10% to 25%. Dr. Doug Graham recommends a diet around 10% fat.

In “Rainbow Green Live Food Cuisine”. Dr. Gabriel Cousens recommends a diet between 15% and 25% fat.

Do not let your percentage of fat rise above 25%. A diet over 25% fat causes insulin and blood sugar imbalances, cardiovascular disease, and the blood will thicken and clump together which reduces it’s ability to deliver oxygen to the cells. You may be surprised at how easy it is to eat a diet dangerously high in fat. A little oil, an extra spoonful of nut butter, and an extra avocado will bring your daily percentage of fat above 60%.

Resources

E3Live

Purslane

Vegan DHA Golden Algae

Organic Hemp Seed Oil

Blue Manna (Wild Klamath Blue Green Algae)

Nirvana Manna with Klamath Blue-green algae and raw chocolate!

David Wolfe and the Bird Flu

Todays raw food blog from The Raw Diet discusses new discoveries about the coming bird flu pandemic.

Raw food author David Wolfe discusses the bird flu in this new audio file from www.TheBestDayEver.com

Click Here to listen to the audio.

This is an intro to the audio:

"Bird Flu Virus - Who Can We Trust? Listen to this important (FREE) interview with David Wolfe and please pass it around to everyone you know - this information is that important!

Take Steps Now to Protect Your Family - When panic strikes, it will be too late!

Dave will be discussing the TRUTH behind all the media hype... he'll be offering an historical perspective on pandemics that will shock and surprise you... and a few secret remedies that will strengthen your immune system immediately. You DO NOT want to miss this important, cutting-edge information!

Here are some of the things you'll learn:

- The #1 Anti-Viral food everyone needs to have (and grow) in case a pandemic should strike.

- Cheap, easy to find herbs you need to stock pile IMMEDIATELY!

- The danger of making your immune system work too hard - and how to achieve a comfortable balance that will protect you from the flu.

- How to "deoderize" garlic so you get the benefit of its super-immune building properties without the smell!

- The secret Native American herb that has been used successfullyu in past pandemics...."

If you like what you hear, you can listen to more audio on raw foods at my website, www.TheRawDiet.com/audio.html

Don't forget to sign up for my newsletter by clicking here!

Best Regards,

Mike Snyder