Master Cleanse Forum - Master Cleanser Lemonade Diet

I am a vegetarian, practice yoga and bike around a lot and lead a pretty healthy lifestyle compared to most people. I never if rarely eat fast food. I am reading a book on raw food that is a more than adament about being 100% raw to get all the benefits. The book claims that cooked food is an addiction and that our bodies treat cooked food as if the cooked food were toxins.

It also claims that cooked food attracts bacteria and tons more mucus than necessary. It is also against any kinds of pills like aspirin, saying that the aspirin only weakens the body's energy of detoxing. It is only after the aspirin weakens the body that the body is able to gain super energy to not only get rid of the aspirin but also the toxins/sickness.

To say the least, it claims that even 1% of a cooked food diet doens't receive the amazing benefit of a 100% raw food diet.

Any thoughts? Personally, on my day 9 on the MC I am thinking about my eating habits afterwards. I don't think I'll go raw all the way, but I would love to incorporate more. Also, I have not had many toxin symptoms on the MC---no weird eliminations...no headaches... just normal. I think it's because I am generally healthy. I would like to lose 20 pounds, however. I am 5"4' and weighed 150...but would like to weigh 130. I am thinking about going for 21-30 days.

Hi there. When did my yoga teacher training about a year ago, one of my teachers was a raw food fundamentalist so to say so i went raw for about a month and besides losing a bit of weight, I feel just healthy eating habbits( organic veggies , grains ect.) is a great way to eat. Once you have knowledge of the body and how it works, i dont feel its necessary to lean one way or the other. I do feel it is important to eat lotsof raw fruits and veggies but it helps to be immuned to the fact that we dont always have raw food available. The teacher of mine was raw for almost 10 years and just recently he started eating cooked food again. He says he feels great and that its more fun to eat cooked food. hope that helps. -j

to each his/her own....but it is my opinion that raw veganism is just another case of dietary dogma, just like most other restrictive forms of eating....

there is no science to back up such claims as "cooked food is an addiction and that our bodies treat cooked food as if the cooked food were toxins", or "cooked food attracts bacteria and tons more mucus than necessary" ...these are just opinions; "pseudofacts" if you will, to back up a hypothesis that has no foundation in scientific fact.

in fact....some foods' nutritional content is not even biologically available or are less so, without cooking....examples would be, lycopene and beta carotene in tomatoes and carrots, and much of the energy content of foods such as potatoes and corn.

some very nutritional foods (and staples in my kitchen) are actually toxic when RAW...examples would be, kidney beans, buckwheat and parts of a potato (when peels turn green)...

and speaking of bacteria and toxins, raw foods can contain bacteria and may contain parasites, which can cause foodborne illnesses... heating to high temperatures destroys most bacteria and parasites.

evidence shows that humans have been cooking food for over 300,000 years....and in this time, we have thrived and evolved as omnivores....I think that history has shown that the more restrictive a diet the more likely that you will suffer from nutritional deficiency....raw veganism, in particular, lacks the recommended amounts of several important vitamins and nutrients, including vitamin B-12 and protein.

there is NO evidence that shows that vegans or raw vegans are healthier or that they live longer, btw....

I eat meat...not as much as some people...not for health so much as "waste of life".....there ARE other foods to eat....I don't know who decided that meat was the main course in a meal and that vegetables should be relegated to a little pile of grayish green matter in the corner of the plate....

I personally believe in a wide and varied diet, including fruits, vegetables, fish and meats......I am NOT giving up meatloaf...I may not eat it EVERYDAY....but I feel pretty sure that I will not suffer death by meatloaf if I have it once a month or so...I eat fish 2 or 3 times a week, chicken maybe once a week...vegetables and fruits every day...and I like to make homemade bread....

some things I cook, some I cook lightly, some I don't cook.....

and I can go for a burger or a pizza now and then....

I just want to be healthy....and I just don't want to obsess about what I eat anymore...