Raw Food Diet

Annie, I think our friends genuinely want to help, but they to come up with some unusual ideas sometimes. Seems like I have read several times recently that cooked vegetables actually have more nourishment available for us than raw. Not cooked until they are mush, but rather steamed or al dente. I try to eat mostly organic produce, grown nearby so it doesn't spend days on a truck, and try to eat a large variety. I eat brocco sprouts and slather every thing in turmeric. I avoid alcohol, sugar,meats and dairy that have hormones since my cancer is er pr +. I have been stage 3a since 2002.I feel absolutely fantastic!

Hi Annie and Weesa-

It sounds like both of you are on a vegan diet. Me too! This past March, I went on a holistic cruise where there were numerous workshops and lectures discussing a plant based diet.  The author of "The China Study" (Dr. T. Colin Campbell) was there and I got to speak to him one on one. He said that a raw diet is fine and a macrobiotic diet is fine but all that is necessary is to adhere to a plant based whole food diet while getting a wide variety of foods. He said to avoid meat, dairy and eggs, limit refined carbohydrates and sugar and take vitamin B12.

I have no problem following a vegan diet but I think it would be too hard to go on a raw food diet

baywatcher, I'm in a quandry over what B vitamins to take and how much.  I shared some information from a book I just read in the antixodants/free radicals thread.  For one thing, RDA levels tend to be pitifully low.  As cancer survivors, I have to wonder what are our needs to repair damage caused by stress, chemo and rads?  To protect heart health, we need adequate amounts of folic acid, B6 and B12. 

I started last November with liquid sublingual B complex with what seems to be huge amounts of B12.  It was one thing on a very long list of what I've tried to get rid of fatigue, and I was just so certain the B complex would perk me right up (it didn't). 

So now I'm wondering about the quality of the B complex I was taking.  Then I wonder how much should I take?  What a great opportunity you had to speak with Dr Campbell.  Did he say anything about what dosage to take or how to shop for what we need?  

deni63-Hi, on your raw vegetables that you eat, do you eat all organic? If not are you not concerned about the pesticides? Just curious because we are supposed to eat fruits and veggies, but if you peel off the shell because of the pesticides then you are peeling away all the nutrients.

i don;t think i could handle a totally raw diet  but love raw plants.. i always have sprouts growing.. my current favorite is green pea sprouts.. they're awesome.  you can buy the seeds at coops.. (i never thought to ask if they're organic.. probably not).

I have cut out refined sugar (now use raw honey, stevia and occasionally agave necter as sweetners) and also processed foods. There are alternatives to breads that are really good. In the freezer section of most health food stores, you will find Ezekiel bread made by "Food for Life" (I am pretty sure that is the name of the company). They make breads from sprouted grains without flour. You can get sesame, cinnamon raisin, buns, english muffins, tortillas, etc., etc. As for pasta, brown rice pasta is great and it contains only ground brown rice. It is really delicious and it contains no flour or processed ingredients. When you eat it, you don't feel bloated or full as you do with regular pasta. There are great alternatives that are healthy and taste good. I don't miss processed foods at all. And, as for sugar, once you stop eating it and eat more greens, you actually stop craving it and start craving the healthy foods (believe it or not!)

Deni, Where do you get wheat grass juice?  I've heard of lemon grass tea but not wheat grass juice.  I need to find a naturopath!  Did yours say anything about the controversy of flax?  I have so much info I have researched that says flax is great for retarding breast cancer cells but now I'm finding that some say it is a phytoestrogen (or something like that) that promotes cancer cells.  One study I found said flax actually helps Tamox work better.  Then even some of the people on these threads have docs saying stay away from Flax Seed the same as staying away for soy.  How do I know which is correct?  I just bought a grinder and some flax seed and now I am confused.  It seems that there is agreement that we should eat brocco sprouts so I will try to find them.  Would love to hear more or what the naturopaths are recommending.

The Trader Joe's chain carries brown rice pasta and probably any good sized health food store. It doesn't taste quite the same as wheat but is a reasonable alternative. Be careful not to over cook it - it turns to mush.



An excellent raw foods cookbook is " I Am Grateful: Recipes and Lifestyle of Cafe Gratitude" by Terces Engelhart and Orchid published by North Atlantic Books, Berkeley, California. The book contains 60 of the dishes served in this small chain of raw foods restaurants in Northern California. It includes a good index and resource list in the back. It's recipes are all vegetable and nut based and totally yummy. They do take time to make, though. The chocolate milk shake and lemon pie are especially killer good.



A friend of my daughter did the raw food diet for two years following a mx. She is BRAC+ and didn't want to do any of the standard treatments. She is now dealing with bone mets and was forced to do chemo.



I eat some raw foods, especially the desserts, incorporated into a basically otherwise balanced diet, heavy on fruits and veges. I'm allergic to milk, eggs and wheat so am forced to alternatives.



Hope this helps.

deni,  I have printed out some info on the Budwig plan.  Haven't gotten to it yet.  Than I saw some naysayers about flax and was confused.  Oh and I have been using Ezekiel bread and I like it fine.  Also, almond butter and unsweetened almond milk.  Just discovered that even some of my herbal teas have soy lecithin in them.  Is soy lecithin okay or should I throw them out?  It really is true that it is very difficult to avoid soy.

Yes, I have been on a raw/high raw diet for the past few years.   After my diagnosis of Stage 3 bc in 2003, I spent months researching cancer, diet, etc as my prognosis wasn't very good.   To my dismay, I discovered that eating food in as natural a form as possible (the way nature intended) was the way to go.  To be honest, I wasn't happy as I loved bread, pasta, cheese etc etc and wasn't sure if I *wanted* to live without them LOL. 

 At the start, my body craved carbs all the time.   Whenever that happened, I would just have a few medjool dates which really helped.   I also ate a lot of avocados in that first few months.   After a couple of months, however, of struggling along I suddenly stopped feeling deprived and realised I no longer had the cravings for bread and pasta.   No one was more surprised that I was.  

 Apart from losing cellulite, (a pleasant and unexpected side effect), my skin is great, I look younger and have a heap more energy.   The most obvious thing I have noticed with a high raw diet (again, unexpected) is the change to my mental health.  Now, if I have a day where I don't eat too well (i.e., include too many cooked foods, even healthy ones), I wake up in the morning feeling tired and anxious.   After a day of raw/high raw, I wake feeling energised and optimistic.  It is very marked, the difference.   I have actually tested this a few times, to rule out coincidence, as I didn't understand why this should be so.   It really is so, and I can't say I understand it still, but I have a few theories.

 I am not a *raw vegan*.   I occasionally have some smoked salmon, or mix a raw (organic of course) egg yolk into a fruit smoothie.   Once every three or so months, I allow myself some beautiful brie or blue cheese as a treat.   And organic dark chocolate.

I also dropped dairy (except as above as a treat) about a year after my diagnosis after reading "Your Life in Your Hands" by Jane Plant.    I used to have a stuffy nose all the time, and as soon as I dropped the dairy it went away.

 So far so good.   I'm not entirely convinced that anything we do will prevent a recurrence of breast cancer, as such.   I wish I had known three decades ago what I know now as I believe how you live and what you put into your body (or don't put into your body) affects whether cancer initiates or not.   My aim is to stave off/postpone any bc return, and keep my body and soul in the best health possible to prevent new cancers forming and to give myself the best chance of battling mets should I ever develop any.  

Regards to all

MelG

deni63- to answer your question, she is struggling. In addition to raw foods I believe she took mega doses of vitamins but am unsure which ones, various body therapies and cleansing colonics, some coffee, some not. She worked really hard at the regime she established in consultation with her naturalpath. It is hard to see her forced to take the drugs she worked so hard to avoid. She believes she is being poisoned and of course, she's right except the poison is directed at the cancer.



I agree with many posting here that what we eat, and don't eat, makes a huge difference in the quality of life. So many of the foods we were raised on, culturally important foods, simply are not well tolerated. Most of us never realize that impact until forced to reevaluate our dietary habits.



Annie4- my DD copes with her extended family and in laws by preparing and bringing enough raw for everyone. They usually drive so can bring a large cooler. It wouldn't work for flying. Everyone loves the cakes and cheesecakes but are iffy about almost everything else. In the end, she can pick and choose between what's available there and what she brought so gets the foods she prefers. It isn't realistic for everyone.

MelG, I'm new to the raw food scene and I'm struggling with the cravings you mentioned.  It's good to know that they will pass.  I've already noticed I feel better on the high raw days and really sluggish and gross when I eat bread.  I loved bread. 

I'm interested in the views posted on dairy.  I suppose that is the next step.

Great thread.

Jude

Althea-  According to Dr. Neal Barnard, the body needs only about 1 mcg of b12 per day.I take a b12 pill every morning and I just noticed that the amount is 500mcg per tablet. The directions say to take 1 tablet daily. I guess I am getting more than I need.??? I didn't ask Dr. Campbell the amount that he suggests but if I see him again next year I will ask him.

Jpernot-  I used to love dairy, mainly cheese...on everything. Since my second mx and after reading the book, The China Study, I no longer eat dairy. I had breast cancer twice so I figure I must have cancer cells in my body. According to Dr. Campbell, dairy is a cancer promoter. If you read the book you will understand. Anyway, no dairy for me. I paid a high price losing my breasts and I don't want cancer to be a continuing part of my life. I try and be very careful because if I can make cancer dormant, it is a good thing!!!

Oh I'm so glad to see this thread and to learn of others who are doing raw. I've been transitioning to a mostly raw diet over the last year. It started out very simply by me just doing green smoothies every morning. They made me feel so good that without even really thinking I found myself doing mostly raw until dinner most days.  I'd say I do about 75% raw with occasional days of 100% raw. I certainly eat a billion times more fruits and vegetables than I did before cancer. I always used to think that I ate quite well, but I compare my diet now to then, and it is no comparison.  I used to have to really work to get my 5+ a day of fruits and veggies. Now I eat 5 servings just in my morning smoothie! I just did the math of what I ate today and I think I got 15!

I'm not vegan as I do fish about once a week and chicken about once a month.  (all local, organically, pasture-raised). I also will do raw goat milk cheese about once a week. No more cows milk for me after reading Jane Plant.

I definitely found that wheat was really making me congested as was dairy. I've had no sinus issues since mostly giving them up.  Even Ezekiel bread is a little big congestion causing. But I can do the sprouted corn tortillas with no problem. And I do some legumes. So that's sort of my cheat. I will eat regular corn tortillas too as my hubby makes killer traditional Mexican food. Hence the reason I am not 100% raw.  

I too found that dates and nuts were very necessary at the beginning, but over time, your body craves them less and less and now I start drooling over mangos and spinach rather than cookies.  In fact, cookies kind of taste pretty crappy to me now! They don't quite taste natural to me anymore. Funny. I never would have thought I would ever say that I'd rather have a nice ripe mango than a chocolate chip cookie!

DeAnn