haverawcake
01-08-2009, 08:34 PM
I came to raw food for love of my tiny son, who suffered the most terrible nappy rash. It became so bad and was like eczema I did not know what to do. In the end I saw a nutritional therapist and we both felt that his urine was too acidic and was hurting his skin. She suggested we eliminate all foods and turn to vegan, mainly raw food. At first it was quite a shock and I admit to being unsure about whether it would have any effect at all. As I was breastfeeding I would also need to follow the diet and I felt it would only work if we did it as a whole family. But I was willing to try anything and was certainly more committed to a holistic approach to health that treated the cause rather than the symptom and was not willing to use the hydrocortisone cream prescribed by my GP for my little baby.
So our raw vegan journey began. I was hardly a junk foodie - we ate what I had thought was a healthy, organic, wholefood diet. But we did eat dairy and also small amounts of fish and meat, as well as making our own wholemeal bread. I had been vegetarian for years but some meat and fish had crept back in, although we only ate it perhaps twice a week and also ate lots of pulses. I also confess to being a coffee drinker and chocolate (not raw) eater at that time.
So we cut out dairy, wheat, yeast, eggs, meat, sugar and brought in raw greens and more raw food. I have never been 100% raw and with a cynical husband and 2 small children I needed to take it slowly - it was a big enough change as it was. Lots of my recipes ended up in the bin as I re-learned how to cook and prepare raw food for my family. I read and researched a lot and eventually invested in a high powered blender and dehydrator. It soon started to all come together. I managed to create dishes that my family like to eat and more importantly my son's nappy rash cleared up, but the unexpected differences to my health also amazed me.
I had always drunk loads of water, from as far back as I could remember and suddenly I was not continually thirsty. In addition I did not find myself trying not to sleep on the sofa while breastfeeding my baby after lunch and looking after my older child. I was more energised in the mornings and was able to get up out of bed without feeling terrible and desperate for my coffee. I also found my hayfever, which I had suffered from for years completely disappeared. In addition, I did not feel the terrible blood sugar lows that I used to feel when I was hungry - my blood sugar was much more stable. I am not diabetic but I had suffered from insulin dependent diabetes in both pregnancies and felt that my risk of getting diabetes in later life was high.
I am not suggesting that this change happened overnight - but neither did our conversion to raw food. It was a transitional process that I had to go through until I found a greater degree of health and energy. I shared experiences with friends and people started asking for my recipes when they tried my food. I became so interested in raw food that I decided to set up a website with recipes and information about raw food with an online shop for raw food.
So our raw vegan journey began. I was hardly a junk foodie - we ate what I had thought was a healthy, organic, wholefood diet. But we did eat dairy and also small amounts of fish and meat, as well as making our own wholemeal bread. I had been vegetarian for years but some meat and fish had crept back in, although we only ate it perhaps twice a week and also ate lots of pulses. I also confess to being a coffee drinker and chocolate (not raw) eater at that time.
So we cut out dairy, wheat, yeast, eggs, meat, sugar and brought in raw greens and more raw food. I have never been 100% raw and with a cynical husband and 2 small children I needed to take it slowly - it was a big enough change as it was. Lots of my recipes ended up in the bin as I re-learned how to cook and prepare raw food for my family. I read and researched a lot and eventually invested in a high powered blender and dehydrator. It soon started to all come together. I managed to create dishes that my family like to eat and more importantly my son's nappy rash cleared up, but the unexpected differences to my health also amazed me.
I had always drunk loads of water, from as far back as I could remember and suddenly I was not continually thirsty. In addition I did not find myself trying not to sleep on the sofa while breastfeeding my baby after lunch and looking after my older child. I was more energised in the mornings and was able to get up out of bed without feeling terrible and desperate for my coffee. I also found my hayfever, which I had suffered from for years completely disappeared. In addition, I did not feel the terrible blood sugar lows that I used to feel when I was hungry - my blood sugar was much more stable. I am not diabetic but I had suffered from insulin dependent diabetes in both pregnancies and felt that my risk of getting diabetes in later life was high.
I am not suggesting that this change happened overnight - but neither did our conversion to raw food. It was a transitional process that I had to go through until I found a greater degree of health and energy. I shared experiences with friends and people started asking for my recipes when they tried my food. I became so interested in raw food that I decided to set up a website with recipes and information about raw food with an online shop for raw food.