by theresam » Tue Dec 31, 2013 4:28 pm
I've had a bit of experience with all of this in the last 25 years. I've taken macrobiotic training and even got advanced certification in raw foods. Here is what I have found. Its my own personal experience.
A 100% raw food diet is very difficult to sustain. Its difficult to get enough calories to be satiated, hence, many people, myself included, eat too many plant fats, aka nuts, seeds, nut butters and avocado, to feel satiated. That leads to weight gain and overeating.
The 80/10/10 thing sounds good, and many have a lot of great experience on it. They largely don't live in a northern climate, although some do. To stick to that people have to consume a LOT of fruit. That is neither affordable nor sustainable if you don't live near the equator. A cooked starch, low fat diet is WAY more sustainable, affordable, and IMO, way more satiating if you can't eat cases of fruit daily.
Also on colon cleansing-VITALLY NECESSARY for people who are toxic, overweight or have sluggish lymph, as well as are too acidic. Which is virtually everyone on a SAD diet and many on cooked diets, even plant based. If someone is having a hard time losing weight, I suggest a mostly raw (85%) diet with very low fat, low cooked grain (more beans or starch) and daily enemas for a couple of weeks.
If the liver is sluggish, it will not allow the body to release fat because there are toxins in the fat and a sluggish liver can not handle them. Yes, a healthy diet of course heals the body and helps it detox, but if the colon is backed up the liver will have no where to dump into.
Hospitals used to administer enemas to patients when they were admitted routinely. This enabled many to be sent home. I highly recommend enemas daily (especially at the start of a healing process/diet change) of water only-no need for coffee or anything else-as well as a seasonal raw food cleanse in the fall and spring, when the body is naturally detoxing. For people with leaky gut or other digestive issues this is a must. Don't knock it till you try it and study the science of it. Its actually really easy once you get the hang of it.