Raw foodism
Raw foodism, also known as rawism or a raw food diet, is the
The British Dietetic Association has described raw foodism as a fad diet.[1][2] Raw food diets, specifically raw veganism, may diminish intake of essential minerals and nutrients, such as vitamin B12.[1][3][4] Claims made by raw food proponents are pseudoscientific.[5]: 44
Varieties
Raw food diets are diets composed entirely or mostly of food that is uncooked or that is cooked at low temperatures.[3][4][6]
Raw animal food diets
Raw animal food diets include any animal that can be eaten raw, such as uncooked, unprocessed raw muscle-meats/organ-meats/eggs, raw dairy, and aged, raw animal foods such as
Diet examples
- The "People's Primal Potluck",[9][10] anopsology (otherwise known as "instinctive eating"), and the "Raw Paleolithic Diet"[11][12] (otherwise known as the "raw meat diet").[13]
- The "primal diet" consists of fatty meats, organ meats, dairy, honey, minimal fruit and vegetable juices, and coconut products, all raw.[14][15]
- The "raw Paleolithic diet",
The founder of the Primal Diet is Aajonus Vonderplanitz, a resident of Malibu, California. It has been estimated by Aajonus Vonderplanitz that there are 20,000 followers of his raw-meat-heavy Primal Diet in North America, alone.[14]
- Pemmican is the traditional North American travel food, prepared from dried meat, fat, and berries.[21]
-
Kefir preparation
-
A sashimi dinner set
-
Raw horse meat set
Raw veganism
Raw veganism has rarely been practised in history,[22] but it became a fad in the 21st century.[23] A raw vegan diet consists of unprocessed, raw plant foods that have not been heated above 40–49 °C (104–120 °F). Typical foods included in raw food diets are fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and sprouted grains and legumes.
Among raw vegans are subgroups, such as "fruitarians", "juicearians", or "sproutarians". Fruitarians eat primarily or exclusively fruits, berries, seeds, and nuts. Juicearians process their raw plant foods into juice.[24]
The British Dietetic Association named the raw vegan diet one of the "top 5 worst celeb diets to avoid in 2018", raising a concern that it could compromise long-term health.[2]
History
Early documentation of raw food dieting has been associated with hermits and monks practising asceticism. For example, John of Egypt, a hermit from the Nitrian Desert, lived on a diet of dried fruit and vegetables for fifty years; he never ate anything cooked.[25] Documented evidence of a commitment to raw food was by the Ethiopian monk Qozmos, who in the late 1300s CE committed to the ascetic discipline of eating only uncooked food.[26][27] This posed a problem for his Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church monastery because he refused to eat the bread of the Eucharist, which is cooked. As a result, he fled the church and went to live with the Jewish community of the Beta Israel.[26][27]
Contemporary raw food diets were first developed in Switzerland by
One of the earliest books to advocate raw foodism was
Shelton was arrested, jailed, and fined numerous times for practising medicine without a license during his career as an advocate of rawism and other alternative health and diet philosophies. Shelton's legacy, as popularized by books like Fit for Life by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond, has been deemed "pseudonutrition" by the National Council Against Health Fraud.[29]
In the 1970s,
In the 21st century, raw food diets (particularly those focused on
Claims
Claims held by raw food proponents include:
- That heating food above 104–118 °F (40–48 °C) degrades enzymes in raw food that aid digestion, when in fact enzymes in food play no significant role in the digestive process, prior to being digested themselves.[4]
- That raw foods have higher
- That foods cooked at high temperatures, especially meat, may contain harmful toxins, including advanced glycation end products (AGEs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.[37] Not all cooked food contains harmful chemicals, and a diet containing a mix of cooked and raw food is normal.[37][38] According to the American Cancer Society, it is not clear as of 2019[update] whether acrylamide consumption affects the risk of cancer.[39] Public health authorities recommend reducing consumption of overly cooked starchy foods or meats.[37][39][40]
Health effects
A raw food diet is likely to impair the development of children and infants.[41] Care is required in planning a raw vegan diet, especially for children,[42] as there may not be enough vitamin B12, vitamin D, and calories for a growing child on a totally raw vegan diet.[43]
One review stated that "Many raw foods are toxic and only become safe after they have been cooked. Some raw foods contain substances that destroy vitamins, interfere with digestive enzymes or damage the walls of the intestine. Raw meat can be contaminated with bacteria which would be destroyed by cooking; raw fish can contain substances that interfere with vitamin B1 (anti-thiaminases)"[54]
See also
- Amílcar de Sousa, 20th century raw foodist
- Béla Bicsérdy
- Bernando LaPallo
- Cooking
- Fruitarianism
- Green smoothie
- List of diets
- Orthopathy
- Category:Raw foodists
- Rejuvelac
- Sattvic diet
- Taboo food and drink
- Xerophagy, a form of fasting
- Liver King, an internet influencer known for eating raw meat and organs
- Raw water
References
- ^ a b "Fad diets". British Dietetic Association. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
- ^ a b "Top 5 worst celeb diets to avoid in 2018". British Dietetic Association. 7 December 2017. Archived from the original on 31 July 2020.
- ^ PMID 16177198.
- ^ a b c d e Wanjek, Christopher (16 January 2013). "Reality Check: 5 Risks of a Raw Vegan Diet". Scientific American.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-60598-560-2.
- ISBN 978-0-19-973496-2.
- ^ "Primal Dieting: Eat Your Raw food With A Roar!". Foodenquirer.com. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
- ^ "Model of health: as a supermodel, Carol Alt says she was often run-down. Then she switched to a raw diet and regained her energy". Natural Health. 2008.
- ^ Green, Emily (31 January 2001). "Meat but No Heat – Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. Archived from the original on 27 August 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
- ^ "Vue Weekly: Edmonton's 100% Independent Weekly: Well met, raw meat: hoorah for raw!". Vueweekly.com. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
- ^ "Raw Paleo Diet – The Raw Paleolithic Diet & Lifestyle!". Rawpaleodiet.com. Archived from the original on 30 October 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2008.
- ^ a b c "Raw Paleo Diet – RVAF Systems Overview". Archived from the original on 17 July 2012.
- ^ a b More for less (12 June 2005). "The raw meat diet: do you have the stomach for the latest celebrity food fad? – Health News, Health & Wellbeing – The Independent". London: Independent.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2008.
- ^ a b Meat: A Love Story Archived 14 September 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Vue Weekly : Edmonton's 100% Independent Weekly : Well met, raw meat: Hoorah for raw!". Archived from the original on 13 September 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2008.
- ^ "Raw Paleo Diet – The Raw Paleolithic Diet & Lifestyle!". Rawpaleodiet.com. Archived from the original on 30 October 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2008.
- ^ Viestad, Andreas (14 May 2008). "Where Home Cooking Gets the Cold Shoulder". The Washington Post. Retrieved 22 May 2010.
- ^ Viestad, Andreas (14 May 2008). "Where Home Cooking Gets the Cold Shoulder". Washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2008.
- ^ "In pictures: Cooking in the Danger Zone, Rotten walrus meat". BBC News. Archived from the original on 12 January 2009. Retrieved 7 November 2008.
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- ^ "Gardening: Serviceberry is staple of springtime" The Spokesman Review. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
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- ^ NTP, Ayla Freitas. "Raw Foodism and Vegan Subgroups". www.afpafitness.com. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
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- ^ ISBN 9781786720375.
- ^ a b Kaplan, Steven. "Qozmos." Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: O-X: Vol. 4, edited by Siegbert Uhlig, Harrassowitz, 2010, p. 303.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-530796-2
- ^ Jarvis, PhD, William T. "Fasting". National Council Against Health Fraud. Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ISBN 978-0-19-045465-4
- ^ "Raw energy". New Insight. Archived from the original on 25 October 2003. Retrieved 7 November 2008.
- ^ a b "Gerson Therapy". American Cancer Society. Archived from the original on 20 April 2009. Retrieved 22 April 2009.
- ^ UK, Cancer Research (1 December 2015). "Gerson therapy". Archived from the original on 7 January 2016.
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- ^ a b c "Chemicals in meat cooked at high temperatures and cancer risk". US National Cancer Institute. 11 July 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
- ^ Scientific Committee on Food – Task Force on PAH (4 December 2002). "PAH – Occurrence in foods, dietary exposure and health effects" (PDF). European Commission. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 March 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
- ^ a b "Acrylamide". American Cancer Society. 11 January 2019. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
- ^ "Food Controversies—Acrylamide". Cancer Research UK. 2016. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
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- ^ Rachel Breitman. "The raw food diet: a half-baked idea for kids? — JSCMS". Jscms.jrn.columbia.edu. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2008.
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