submitted by Luc Majno

Healing with Raw Foods

by Storm Talifero

Even though I feel that Raw Food relates directly to health up until now we
have refrained from putting out an ebook that deals directly with health.
The reason for this being that it is so easy to make false claims either
intentionally or unintentionally. It is also very easy to totally alienate
the medical community, which I feel should rather be a huge ally as we try
and find the best way to live and eat healthier. I think that doctors for
the most part are truly brilliant people who spend many hard years studying
and they take offense when someone who has not achieved an education on the
level that they have starts handing out medical advice. And in many ways I
agree with them and can totally understand their angst. But on the other
hand even though I admire the skill it would take to perform a triple bypass
operation I would prefer not to have to have the operation. And this is the
part where I feel that raw food can play a huge part. And diet is also the
part of medicine that I feel modern doctors have up until now overlooked. So
in my own small way I'm going to try and outline some of the underlying
principles of how raw food not only relates to preventative health but can
also play a major part in helping to restore health without the use of
either drugs or surgery. And even though I totally believe that for many
chronic conditions that modern society now suffers from Raw Food should be
the first front line of defense I believe that until a major group of
doctors comes out and endorses it will not be accepted by the mainstream.

So that having been said I'm going to relate some experiences that we have
experienced after years of putting on raw food retreats. I'm also going to
include a list of emails that we have received from people over the years
and their own personal experiences in the realm of raw food and health.

I will start off with the experiences of our own family. We are a family of
six. My wife Jinjee and I plus our four kids ages 1 though eleven. We have
regular check ups with doctors and as of this writing we are all in perfect
health. None of us wear glasses even though I started out wearing glasses
and could not drive without glasses. Since going raw in the seventies my eye
sight improved to the point of where I could pass the test without glasses.
None of us are on any kind of medication or suffer from any type of mental
problems or disorders such as ADD or hyperactivity. Two of my children have
been raw from birth and the other two have been raw for over 5 years and
vegan all of their lives. So in a society where one out of three of our
children is now obese I think that we are off to a good start as far as just
the numbers are concerned.

I like the Chinese approach of thinking of health as being in balance and
when you become sick then it means that the body is out of balance. I really
believe Chronic Debilitating Diseases are almost totally brought about from
poor dietary choices. When we have a bad diet the direct result is some form
of Debilitating Disease such as cancer, diabetes or a heart condition. In
many ways you have a back up or a stoppage in the system and the system is
unable to cleanse itself so a chronic condition appears. When we eat food
that contains little nutrients which is the case with cooked foods then not
only can the body not find nourishment but it also has a huge problem
eliminating the toxins that occur from everyday processes in the body.

But when we eat raw organic food which was designed for our systems then our
bodies are nourished on a cellular level, or to put it another way they
thrive on a nutrient dense environment with a much lower toxic waste level.
Just this one concept when applied to our day to day living is enough to
keep a lot of chronic conditions from appearing.

The human body is an amazingly complex piece of equipment. And one of the
things that is happening to us is that a lot of chemicals are being
introduced into our food sources so that those said foods will have a longer
shelf life. Some of the chemicals are "flavor enhancers" and some of them
are dyes. Many of these chemicals have not had extensive research done on
them to determine the effect that they have upon brain chemistry. I feel
that this is a huge statement because our brains are the most complicated
instruments in the known universe. And with some of those chemicals the
effects are well known. The lab reports reveal just what happens when those
chemicals pierce the blood brain barrier, but sadly enough the lobbyists of
major food corporations lobby to have the labeling laws changed so that we
don't know exactly what we are eating.

And I think that we will start to see more and more of these type of
manipulations as the battle for the market share of non-organic versus
organic heats up. Right now organic food costs about two to three times as
much as non-organic foods. This is for a product that takes up the same
amount of shelf space and requires the same amount of shipping and warehouse
storage. So what is happening is that the corporations are realizing that
there are huge profits to be made from selling organic foods as our
awareness as consumers increases and we start to demand more quality from
our food sources.

If they are able to manipulate the labeling laws which is the case with MSG
which is hidden in our foods in the form of "natural flavors" "glutamic
acid" and "vegetable protein" just to name a few then I think that what
these corporations must do is find a way to extend the shelf life of organic
foods by adding chemicals to them that they don't have to label as chemicals
and this is going to come about from manipulating the labeling laws. They
have to find a way to grow organic foods and use chemicals without having to
once again label them as chemicals. They also have to find a way to control
bugs without giving up the organic label. What this translates into for you
and I is that we have to be very perceptive when we decide to embark upon a
raw organic lifestyle.

And when we attempt to eat just raw organic foods the labeling becomes even
trickier. I say this because right now corporations don't have to say
whether or not foods have been heated. So there are many foods out there
with a raw label on them that are in effect cooked foods. My understanding
is that any food that has been heated to over 105 degrees is in fact a
cooked food. I say this because a lot of the nutrients have been destroyed.
But the labeling laws say that foods that have been heated to 118 degrees is
in fact still a raw food. And if there is a huge difference between the
price of organic and non-organic foods the price is even greater for raw
organic foods which are in fact the most expensive foods that you can buy on
the market today.

For instance major grocery chains are starting to carry a raw foods section
in a lot of their stores. One slice of Raw Vegan Pie - I'm talking about a
two and one half inch by three inch wedge - costs about $8.99 and it is not
even labeled organic. It contains lecithin which is a soy bean product which
according to my research is a cooked food. It is used as a preservative and
stabilizer. It also contains Agave which is a sap derived form a cactus
which is heated above 118 degrees to thicken in much the same way that maple
syrup is boiled for the same reason. (unless it is the Agave nectar from
Living Tree Community Foods which is only sun-heated).

A lot of the raw pre-prepared food contains Braggs and other forms of soya
sauces which are passed off as raw foods when they actually contain huge
amounts of Glutamic Acid. Glutamic Acid is the active ingredient in MSG.
Glutamic Acid is a neuro transmitter which in a concentrated form wreaks
havoc on the brain chemistry. Glutamic Acid is also an amino acid which they
put on the label sometimes to try to pass it off as if this is a good thing
when in reality it should be avoided at all costs.

The point that I'm trying to make is that when you embark upon using raw
vegan organic foods as a means of preventative health then you must do a
great deal of research in order to seek out the food sources that will allow
you to avoid the snares and pitfalls of labeling trickery.

I'm dwelling on this one aspect of the raw food diet because I think that
the source of your food will play a huge part in whether you are able to
achieve a level of preventative health on the raw vegan diet. Just as there
is a lot of junk food being sold in health food stores I call it health junk
food, so we are starting to see a lot of raw vegan junk food starting to
make its appearance on the scene.

I get most of my food from the farmers markets. Many of the farmers that I
deal with I have known since 1975 and the quality of my food sources is very
good. One of the first things that I noticed was that when we started doing
Raw Food Retreats in Southern California many people who had had a lot of
trouble with the raw diet started doing really well. And when I questioned
them about their food sources I came to find that many of them had before
been eating what we call borderline raw foods. And once we were able to
improve the quality of their foods then their overall health improved also.

Some of the most common chronic conditions that now seem to plague our
society in almost endemic proportions all seem to be helped by a green juice
diet.

We have seen this help restore a balance and thereupon bring about positive
conditions over a long period of time.

I have seen people with cancer get amazing results drinking green juices.
Green juice and vegetables help the body to create an alkaline balance in
the body. Cancer seems to thrive on a Acid balance with a lot of sugar
present in the environment. There are a number of chronic conditions that
are also cured by this same regimen of green juices. They are the following

Diabetes, Colitis, Chrons Disease, Obesity, Heart Conditions, Asthma,
Candida, Fibromyalgia and Arthritis.

When using the raw vegan diet as a means of preventing diseases then I also
add a lot of fruit juices (fresh squeezed) because you don't have to avoid
the sugar environment and I find that my family and I relate much better to
a fruit diet than a green one. I think that children by nature are fruit
bats.

I think that everyone is different and that everyone has to find his or her
own balance between the raw vegan food groups. Here are the main foods that
we eat all of them in an organic format.

1. Fruits
2. Vegetables
3. Nuts and seeds when we can find them in a shell
and they haven't been dried in a dryer. Almonds, filberts (hazelnuts),
sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds are the exceptions. They can be bought
shelled.
4. Sprouts
5. Raw cold packed raw honey
6. Celtic sea salt in moderation.
7. Cold pressed olive oil

Here are the borderline foods that we stay away from even though a lot of
raw fooders eat them.

1. All dehydrated foods
2. Soya sauce and all other forms of amino acids and
miso type of fermented soya products
3. maple syrup

Of course the debates are endless and there are many experts who totally
disagree with me, but I'm listing the foods that have worked for me over the
last 30 years and have worked for my family in a day and time when modern
science has taken the stand that you can't be healthy on the raw vegan diet
for a long period of time.

There are a number of ways that fresh vegetable juices work in the body but
I think that the main thing is that the body is being supplied with all of
the nutrients that it needs to repair itself and a balance is brought about
and health is restored. I realize that this is a simplistic approach, but
below you will see some of the results from people who have found huge
results from a simple diet change.

It is so easy to bash doctors. A lot of the time we only see them when
either we personally or someone we love has a major health problem. We are
scared and we expect them to work miracles. Sometimes doctors lose people
and that has got to be hard on everyone concerned. And then to have someone
come along who has had no medical training and say I have a cure for cancer,
or I have a cure for diabetes must create an unbelievable amount of anger.

What I would really like to see is the health industry take a closer look at
some of the principles involved in the concept of preventative health and
healing chronic conditions with the concept of the high nutrient density of
raw foods. Below I'm going to list some of the theories for certain chronic
ailments and how raw foods work in our bodies to help restore our bodies
from these toxic conditions. And then I'm going to list some of the emails
that I have gotten from people who have obtained some measure of relief
through the concept of using Raw Vegan Foods to restore their health. I want
to stress the fact that I'm not giving medical advice, because I really
don't have a clue why some of these conditions are helped by raw food. My
whole theory is that if we eat better and if we eat foods that seem to be
designed for our bodies then we will feel better. And if in fact it is true
that some of the foods we eat cause these very conditions then would it not
make sense that if we stopped eating these foods that we would in fact feel
better.

I know that I'm painting a picture with a very broad brush. But the first
concept that I would like to relate is the theory of Nutrient Dense Therapy.
Sometimes many different types of diseases have their start in the same
place. A clogged colon. Which is one of the main things that happen to us
when we eat cooked foods. Since the nutrients are destroyed in the cooking
process we overeat. This process is brought about because our bodies are
trying to find nourishment in foods that are dead. This leads to a toxic
back-up which can start at birth and last for 50 or sixty years at which
time we see a lot of chronic conditions start to develop. When we start to
eat raw organic foods the first thing that happens is that we are no longer
feeding the source of these toxic conditions. The second thing that happens
is that we are now providing our bodies with all of the nutrients that it
needs to totally repair, rejuvenate and regenerate our bodies on a cellular
level. What I'm hoping is that even doctors will see that this should be the
first line of defense against chronic debilitating diseases. It is the least
invasive least traumatic way to start the healing process. Then further down
the line we can maybe resort to surgery and drugs if all else fails.

Sometimes the chronic condition has proceeded too far and too much damage
has been done and then just like in the world of modern medicine the person
dies. When this happens in a hospital then most of us accept the fact that
everything possible was done to save the patient. But when it happens to a
Raw Vegan then it is blamed on the diet. So treating chronic conditions with
the concept of the Raw Vegan Diet is a lot like swimming up stream with the
odds being against you. If you are the parent of a raw vegan child and your
child dies of a disease then there is a very good chance that your other
children will be taken away by the state. If you are the parent of an obese
child and your child dies of a chronic condition brought about by the
obesity then chances are that your other children will not be taken away.

In my case I put on raw food retreats. Sometimes someone comes to one of my
retreats who is really sick. I have had a lot of people come to our retreats
with a lot of different types of chronic conditions. Some of these
conditions I in fact had never heard of. There are so many things that can
go wrong with the human body that it is a miracle that it works as well as
it does. I think I heard it once described that there are only two to three
thousand diseases known to modern medicine. And that there may be twice that
many in the different rain-forests around the world just waiting to be
discovered. So in light of these facts it makes it all the more important
that we deal with our bodies in the most logical fashion possible to prevent
any type of sickness from gaining even a toehold. And that is the whole
concept behind eating Raw Vegan Organic Foods.

 

CANCER

The first theory that I want to deal with is the one surrounding cancer.
Once again my whole approach is that of a layman who is just trying to apply
common sense to a disease that is so complicated that even the experts don't
agree on each single issue surrounding it. One of the aspects that I studied
reveled that we all have cancer cells within our systems and that our immune
systems keep it in check. But when our immune systems become weakened then
the cancer cells get the upper hand and they start to grow or spread
throughout our bodies. I think that one of the contributing factors to the
growth of cancer cells is the fact that when we eat inorganic foods or toxic
cooked foods our bodies aren't able to deal with them so we end up with a
lot of un-eliminated waste materials in our bodies. Over time this affects
the ability of the cells to regenerate. The cells are unable to take on
nutrients and they are also unable to eliminate waste material. This chronic
state of toxic waste saturation is a breeding ground for the cancer cells
which are already present to get the upper hand. When we eat raw organic
foods the level of toxic waste is reduced by a huge percentage. The cells
receive nutrients in a format that is easy for them to assimilate and the
immune system is able to maintain a much healthier system.

When we do get cancer the treatment prescribed is radiation. The theory
being that the cancer cells are weaker and the radiation will kill them
while the healthier cells will survive the radiation and the body will heal
from the cancer over time. But some of the time what happens is that the
healthier cells become sick and take the place of the cancer cells that are
dying off. But I think that the main thing that happens with this type of
treatment is that once the cancer has been cured the person goes back to
eating poorly and creating the very same condition that caused it in the
first place.

The theory behind the Raw Vegan Diet approach to cancer is water fasting.
When we fast the body thinks that it is starving so it sets up a layered
pecking order of which cells will be sacrificed first. The first cells to go
are the fat cells because they are the body's energy surplus store. The next
cells to go are the muscle because even though they are needed they are not
needed as much as the vital organs. And the last to go are the vital organs
which then results in the death of the organism. But before this happens the
cancer cells are sacrificed much the same way that they are in radiation
treatment. Only when the weaker cancer cells die the healthier surrounding
cells are not affected. Then when organic green juice is taken to break the
fast all of the remaining cells are now receiving nourishment on a level
that allows them to totally gain the upper hand as far as regenerating new
healthy cells.

This is a treatment that is being used in clinics around the world with
amazing results. I know that the concept that I have just written is a
simple version and of course it won't work with all types of cancers nor
will it work if too much damage has already been done. The one point that I
want to keep stressing over and over again is that there is only one
disease. And that is the disease of deficient drainage. It comes from eating
huge amounts of de-mineralized, devitalized, dead foods which are daily
dumped into the stomach. The body eliminates what it can and the remainder
settles in the weakest cells, those which are not strong enough to
"clean-house".

In this accumulating deposit of dead matter germs breed, cancer cells breed,
and this is where the rotting takes place; where pus, mucous and other toxic
substances form. By eating highly refined processed foods or cooked dead
foods our bodies start to die so what is happening is that we are starving
to death with full stomachs. Anything that the body cannot use is in the way
so when we attempt to heal the body through a nutrient dense diet of raw
organic foods what we are in fact doing is removing the main source of the
imbalance and restoring harmony and balance.

ARTHRITIS

Arthritis is a horrible crippler. It is perhaps one of the most dreaded
diseases known. Arthritis seldom kills. It cripples and tortures its victims
and finally renders many of them completely helpless yet leaving them alive
in this painful state for years.

The modern food diet of cooked, de-mineralized, devitaminized food
accompanied by poor elimination, produces a great deal of acid poisons which
bathe the cells of the body causing pain, swelling, and inflammation. When
accompanied by a lack of organic sodium, calcium tends to settle in the
various parts of the system, for sodium is the mineral which helps to keep
calcium in proper solution so the body can utilize it. When this calcium
settles in the joints, we have the condition known as arthritis. When it
settles in the gall bladder or the kidneys, then we have gall stones or
kidney stones. And when it settles in the walls of the arteries, then we
have high blood pressure or hardening of the arteries. So in light of these
facts you can see how important it is for us to consume green leafy
vegetables which are abundant in organic sodium.

 

When we drink the juice of sodium rich vegetables such as celery it is like
a strong solution racing through the blood stream and it can do wonders in
taking the calcium back into solution. When this is accomplished the
arthritis disappears. Vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, is also necessary,
for without this vitamin we cannot utilize the calcium in the body. Vitamin
E is also necessary, for this vitamin is a muscle lubricator. This is really
helpful in muscular rheumatism.

Raw Organic Fresh Vegetable Juices are very alkaline and so raise the
alkalinity of the body. This relieves inflammation and swelling and so
simple rheumatism or neuritis often respond very quickly. It takes longer to
clear up the calcium deposits, but they too should quickly respond and
recovery can be expected if the proper minerals are taken into the system
from a raw organic diet.

I have seen a lot of people come to our retreats who had arthritis. They
were in a lot of pain during the beginning of the retreat but towards the
end they were able to hike with the group without pain. Even though I
totally believe that the theory above was partly responsible I also believe
that there may be a lot more complicated factors that went to make up the
whole equation.

DIABETES

Diabetes is one chronic diseases that I have seen respond the quickest to
Raw Organic Fresh vegetable juices. I think that the reason for this is two
fold. Almost all of the processed foods that we eat are laced with MSG. The
active ingredient in MSG is Glutamic Acid which is an Amino Acid or protein.
It is also a neuro transmitter which means that it can pass right through
the blood brain barrier and enter into and affect brain chemistry. It is in
fact what is known as an excito-toxin because it causes the nerve cells that
it comes in contact with to overreact and in effect become excited to the
point of cellular burnout. So when it is in concentrated form it leaves a
path of scar tissue in it wake. There are a huge number of Glutamate
receptors in the pancreas. So when we eat processed foods that contain MSG
then the pancreas becomes over-excited and produces huge amounts of insulin.
This insulin in turn goes all through the blood stream and turns all of the
blood sugar into fat, which is the body's way of dealing with too much blood
sugar. So we become obese without actually overeating. The next stage is
that the pancreas actually starts to wear out from the over stimulation
caused by the concentrated levels of MSG. When this happens then it is no
longer able to produce insulin at all and the chronic condition known as
diabetes sets in. When we become Raw Vegans then we are no longer eating the
concentrated amounts of Glutamic Acid and with the added boost of rich
nutrients we are now able to restore the balance in the pancreas and begin
the regeneration process. Another factor that plays into the development of
Diabetes is the fact that when we eat a lot of dead cooked food it puts a
tremendous load on our liver. When the liver then becomes congested because
it is not able to keep up with the work load it in turn throws the pancreas
out of balance. When we drink green vegetable juice we are eating a food
that puts a very light load on the liver. This gives the liver a chance to
recover its balance which in turn is passed along to the restoring of the
balance of the pancreas. This is one of the reason I think that we see such
a high rate of success in The Raw Vegan Diet in relationship to Diabetes.

A very amazing thing happened not too long ago. I very seldom use actual
case histories when talking about the effects of raw food on chronic
conditions because I have the responsibility to maintain the privacy of
people who come to the retreats. But this case did not happen at a retreat
and I'm just going to use the person's email that they sent us without their
name. I will ask them at a later date if I can make a video interview of
their story because I think that it might help a lot of people.

When I was twenty five and my wife was pregnant with my first son we were
very poor. We were living in Ojai CA which is one of the best places for
growing oranges. We were given a grove of organic oranges. These oranges had
not been picked for a season so they had ripened on the tree. Since we were
very poor there were many times when all we had was orange juice to drink
for days on end. I thought that I would lose a lot of weight and that my
wife would suffer from malnutrition but just the opposite occurred. We
flourished on just pure sun ripened orange juice. So thirty years later when
I started doing raw food retreats I researched oranges and found them to be
one of the most nutrient dense foods on the planet. So I started telling
people about the orange juice fast. Whenever people were able to get tree
ripened oranges then they were able to reverse a lot of chronic conditions.
But when they got oranges that were picked green then they did not do as
well. A lot of people questioned me about the level of sugar that I was
taking in from the OJ. and for many of them I didn't have a answer. Sugar is
a very complicated food in that the sugar that is contained in oranges does
not have the negative effect that does the sugar contained in processed
foods.

Even so I would never tell someone who had diabetes to drink only orange
juice. But this one girl had logged onto our site and read about the orange
juice fast and decided to do it even though she had type 1 diabetes. After a
few days of just orange juice she did not need to take her insulin any more.
But once she finished the fast and started eating raw vegan food then she
had to take four units of insulin. This is still down from the thirty units
that she was taking before beginning the OJ fast. Now she is going on a
green juice fast which should give her really good results. When she went
back to her doctor they tested her and told her that they had made a mistake
and that she was not really Type 1 that she was actually a Type 2 Diabetic.
The reason being that it is not possible to cure Type 1 Diabetes so if she
was now a Type 2 it had to be because they had diagnosed her wrong. I have
had other people who had type 2 diabetes also recover not only from the need
to have to take insulin but also lower their blood pressure which seems to
go hand in hand with diabetes. And then after they had restored balance to
their system they were able to eat fruits with no problem. But this is the
first case that I know of where a person got results by starting off with
fruit.

These are just a few conditions that I have seen respond to the effects of
Raw Organic Vegan Food. We now live in the age where science is the new
religion and to speak against it is to be labeled a heretic, and you run the
possibility of being burned at the stake (which is another name for the
results of practicing medicine without a license). I hope that in trying to
open up some new lines of thinking that I have not run against what I feel
science should actually stand for which is the exploration and celebration
of our human potential. I truly believe that it is just a matter of time
before science and modern medicine pick up the threads of truths contained
in the nutrient-dense toxin-free diet of raw organic vegan food.

 

Here are some of the stories of healing that people have shared with us via
email.....
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Last summer we purchased your e-books, gradually began pursuing raw foods,
and have been eating 100% raw since October. In late January we embarked on
an a 2 week OJ fast. Since then we've seen progress in my wife's diabetes
that she's had since age 13 (she's now 27), and have witnessed her condition
move from the hereditary "type 1" diagnosis of 31 insulin units per day,
down to her current amount of 4.5 daily units.

Presently, two weeks after we ended the OJ fast, she is still eating
lightly, but we're gradually decreasing insulin and increasing food back
into her diet. We are finding reason to believe that she was misdiagnosed
and actually has type 2 diabetes, which is steadily retreating through raw
foods. During the next 3 months leave-of-absence from her work -- we
anticipate that she will be able to move away from injections completely and
that her body will regulate it's own insulin levels. What an unbelievable
turn of events for us and this "incurable" disease.
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I will take this opportunity to tell you how much your website has meant to
me, and why I ordered your books. I have been receiving your newsletter for
quite some time now, but have just really gotten serious about going totally
raw. I am in poor/fair health. Have high blood pressure controlled by drugs,
and just now this past month went over on glucose testing so doctors now
consider me diabetic. I have a lot of arthritis - severe stiffness getting
out of chairs and cars, etc. I also have 3 herniated discs on the right and
an ankle in need of surgery on the left (arthritic and ruptured tibia
tendon) which makes walking difficult. I want the surgery done, but not
before I lose weight, and I am 58 yrs old. I follow your example of no
dehydrated foods, no soy (it thickens my blood, anyway) nothing but fresh
squeezed juices diluted with water, fresh squeezed green juices, fresh
fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, and 1st cold press olive oil. It is very
hard to find Organic foods here in my neck of the woods, but I believe I
have found an Organic farm in Lancaster, PA about 2 hrs away that may sell
direct to me. My new motto is: "It must come out of the ground or off a
tree, direct non-stop to my plate" I must tell you how great I feel! I
went totally raw on 3/17/06 and have lost 15 lbs in 14 days!! The
stiffness is still here but I believe it is not as much. But I feel Happy
Happy Happy!!! No more tiredness, sluggishness, headaches, sour moods,
etc. and I do not miss any of the old food (except bread). I am hoping my
next blood work will show glucose back in range. I really appreciate all you
share in your newsletters and on the website. I wish I lived on the West
Coast in order to enjoy more of what you experience and be more in touch
with raw foodists. They are a rarity out here. I will write again later with
my progress. Blessings to you and your beautiful family,

 

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Just to want to let you know that I suffered for 7 years with very bad
candida. It came after having 5 courses of antibiotics when I had 5 gum
operations, one operation every time one month apart. My doctor put me on a
meat diet and that is what I ate for about two years. I got sicker and
sicker. Left my doctor and started a raw food diet. Three months later my
Candida disappeared never to come back except when I eat meat again. Even
three days of high meat diet and the candida is back. Sure like a clock.
Just wanted to share this story with you.

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Thank you for the words of inspiration and encouragement. They are such a
help to me. I was interested to read that you suffered from candida at one
point. I discovered about 9 months ago that candida was ruining my health
and in turn my life. I gave up the typical American diet to one of mainly
raw vegan (no fruits except tomatoes and limes and lemons). I lost 40 pounds
in about 4 months! I couldn't believe how good I felt and how much lighter
my body is.

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I watched your documentary and the story of your family is amazing. It puts
a lot of hope in my heart.

My doctor, Dr. Robert Morse, N.D, at Godsherbs.com has healed many diabetics
with fruit and juices. I went through a 12 week detox with his herbs
and raw foods when I came to the conclusion that raw is the only way for me
forever. My BP went from 90's/60's to 120's / 70's and my body basal temp
from 95 to 98 with no drugs. I lost 25 lbs in 7 months. I have never felt so
well, even as a child. My vision has slowly been improving. I experience
vibrations of light in my vision. I no longer have to go to the dentist
because there is no more plaque on my teeth. The changes I've been
experiencing have been amazing to me. I have a book called The Complete Book
Of Raw Food that has been a great help to me. I know I'm going to love all
your recipes.

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I have been mostly raw(between 80-100%) for 4.25 years now. I was eating
mostly fruit for 4 years, and doing pretty well. In December 05 I read green
for life by Victoria Boutenko. I immediately started doing green smoothies.
( I still eat alot of fruit, more than 50% (at least 10 pieces per day)).
The results from the green smoothies has been fantastic. I find it much
easier to stay 95% + raw, I am not as cold as I used to be in the winter
(Phila Pa.), and my gums no longer bleed if I do not floss them for a few
days. ( I think that if one is eating the right diet flossing should be
unneccesary). And I feel fantastic, but I felt pretty amazing on all fruit
too.

I have an employee who has become mostly raw and he has been able to
eliminate all of his diabetes medication, and now he is slowly coming off of
his blood pressure medication. I am not sure how raw he is or for how long,
but I know he loves it and is happy for the newfound health. He is doing the
smoothies and eating lots of fruit. His doctor told him fruit was no good,
but he listened to me and is happy for it.

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I found that going raw was much easier when I just ate whatever I wanted to,
as long as it was raw. In the winter, I eat much more dried fruit and nuts,
because they are just more palatable. Nuts really fill your stomach when its
cold (almond milk with banana and vanilla). However, when it is warm, richer
foods seem almost repulsive. My blood sugar used to be sensitive and I had
such an addiction to chocolate desserts that I would eat 2-3 a day and think
of them the rest of the time. I would also simply think about eating all of
the time. I eat at least 6 small meals a day now. I am never hungry, my
cravings are almost nonexistent, my addictions are more just weaknesses that
are very often repulsive to me. In one year, with weightlifting, I have lost
thirty pounds while taking my body fat from 45% to 27%. I have become so
intuitive that I thought that I was hearing voices and needed to go on
antipsychotics! I am thankful. I am also thankful I found you on the net.
Many raw foodists are so stringent that a beginner has no chance. There is
no way I could have gone from constant starch and sugary fat to green salads
only (so many limit fruit and nuts--which I depended upon during the
transition!) Your relaxed, intuitive approach saved me. Now I eat a lot of
fruit (pears!), green juice with a green food additive from Higher Octave
Foods, prepackaged baby carrots (so convenient) and almonds (winter--I just
cannot seem to get a salad down), and some homemade raw food bars that have
dried fruit. I feel good, I am happy and relaxed, tuned in, and I have hope
in my health. I have the optimism of youth. I was just thinking about how
nice it is to have the wisdom of getting older without the side effects. To
be young when you are old--that's better than anything I can think of.

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I have suffered from blood sugar issues since I was a child and am now 35.
During my last 2 pregnancies I had diabetes, but opted not to do anything
about it. The last pregnancy was raw and cooked vegan at the end. I recently
started blending greens into my smoothies and have been able to increase my
consumption of fruit as well as greens in a most pleasing manner as well as
for my 5 children and very not health conscious husband. I had been doing
this 2 and 1/2 years ago to get the greens into my youngest child as he was not
ready to eat salads yet like my other children. I went through a very rough
and unhealthy pregnancy following this time and then a very serious knee
injury while pregnant and recovering for about 6 months after the birth. I
was recently reinspired to start adding greens into our smoothies after
reading Victoria Boutenkos new book. My blood sugar issues have gone away!
No more highs and lows, grouchy periods or irritability. No more feeling
like I was going to pass out or toxic feelings when skipping a meal! This is
a miracle in my opinion. I can now have honey, fruit, and orange juice with
no detrimental effects and in much larger amounts than I have ever been able
to tolerate. Also for the first time in my life my pH is alkaline! I have
never had an alkaline pH even on the raw diet or vegan diet. My digestion
has improved dramatically, I have increased my hydrochloric acid and am
seeing many other healing benefits. I have also suffered from food and
chemical sensitivities from the time I was born and all the side effects
that go with it. I almost never have a reaction now! That is another
miracle! The couple of reactions I had were to apple cider vinegar and nama
shoyu and miso. All fermented and not as healthy choices anyway. I have
discontinued using them. As a side note we LOVE greens and eat a lot of
them, but I was not able to assimilate my food well. Blending them into the
smoothies and soups made a HUGE difference for me. I was juicing my greens
and drinking quite large amounts at a time and was actually getting sicker
and more mineral deficient. I was also very acidic. This all turned around
when I started drinking the green smoothies and the effects were immediate!
I am so happy I can have my fruit and juice and my greens too with no ill
effects any longer. Because of this I have been able to eliminate dehydrated
foods, large amounts of nuts and seeds, too much oils and fat, dried fruits,
large amounts of salt and other imbalanced foods on my raw diet. They were
extremely addicting and I seemed unable to give them up and until recently.
I no longer experience cravings and am able to do more on much less food
indeed. The really great thing is my kids are loving the newer way of eating
this way and have chosen not to eat cooked foods in the last couple of
weeks! Yeah!

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And thank you for your work. Just a quick note about what happened to me in
January. My son and I went to Optimum Health Institute a raw food retreat …
My blood sugar was running about 225 to 325 for years. I have been a
vegetarian for 35+ years but this last year I made an effort to eat organic
and cut out dairy so my blood sugar was lower than previously. After 4 days
at OHI my sugar was normal. They serve a raw vegan menu and you have 2
choices…either a regular or a hypoglycemic plate. They feed over 100 people
at each meal and they don't own a stove!!!!

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I had severely damaged my immune system with constant stress. I had reached
the point where I was catching one illnesses after the other and having a
terrible time beating them. The last I had was pneumonia. I was in bed
getting sicker and weaker. I was afraid I was really going to die this time.
I got a really strong craving for fruit. My wonderful husband went to the
store and returned with two paper bags filled with fresh fruit. Some of the
fruits I'd never seen before. I ate only fruit until the bag was gone. I
began to feel better by about one and a half days and was out of bed in two
days. I took longer to get completely well but since adding huge amounts of
raw food and vegetables through juicing I have only had one flue and I got
over it quickly even though people around me had gotten sick at different
times and exposed me to different illnesses.
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Well, it's been just over 3 weeks since I've come down off that mountain.
I've been through 4 menu tastings (cooked), ridicule from my colleagues,
constant trips to the market and guess what? I'm still raw! (I spit out the
food from the tastings-whatever it takes, right?). Not just sustaining on a
raw diet, but LOVING it! My reservations about the raw lifestyle have been
surely dissolving away. I can only see this way of eating as my way of life.

I wanted to take a moment to stop and thank you for my experience at the
retreat house. It opened the door to show me the many possibilities of raw
food preparation, the explosion of wonderful flavors, and the profound
effects it is to have on me and my life. My retreat was the catalyst that
launched my raw lifestyle and my life has been so enriched by it, not to
mention all the countless nutrients my body now receives. My foot pain no
longer bothers me and I've decided not to have the surgery to fuse that
joint. Again, thank you for all that you've done for me.

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Nearly two years ago my son was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. After
coming home from hospital we searched on the internet for a cure for
Diabetes as we believed, like other medical conditions, you can cure Type 1
Diabetes too. We discovered the Boutenko family and bought their books as
Sergei, being a previous sufferer of Type 1 Diabetes, cured himself
switching to a raw diet. We switched to a raw diet and then to a high raw
diet after two months and enjoyed improved health. My son didn't need any
insulin in this time. However after being on raw for over 4 months and
becoming very complacent the nagging of the cooked food became too
unbearable and we dabbled with cooked food. Six weeks later, my son was back
in hospital and back on insulin. Obviously the guilt has stayed with me for
a long time but I am trying to put this behind me. However we have now
struggled for over a year to become fully raw for any length of time. I have
managed the most to stay raw in bouts of up to 3 1/2 months. However, the
most important one being my son, really struggles and becomes very depressed
on raw food. The cooked food diet and the raw food diet have two different
effects on his body. His body weight indicates that he should have no more
than 9 units of insulin but to keep his blood glucose readings in the
acceptable range he has to have 15 - 18 units when he is eating a cooked
diet. However, on a short term raw diet his insulin requirements shoot down
to 3 or 4 units after a couple of days eating raw food. Coupled with
exercise he has reduced his insulin requirements down even further.

However, I appreciate that the medical profession believe that the first few
months my son was diabetic and not needing insulin was due to the "honey
moon period". But I disagree. Also I believe that all organs, cells and the
like rejuvenate and replace over a six month period so this should include
the pancreas. I don't believe rejuvenating the pancreas is any different to
curing oneself of cancer - it is all just cells malfunctioning due to over
stress of cooked food. All I have to do is encourage my son to stay on a raw
vegan diet, and for him to be happy, for at least six months to prove my
theory. He does overeat on fruit though and I just cannot encourage him to
stay on a green juice diet for a short term to help his condition. Just
getting him to stay on raw is a monumental task so I let him eat what he
wants in the high raw area. This, I believe, is far better than the cooked
route.

Your Breakthrough DVD does help us very much and thank you for that. Seeing
yourselves and your children enjoying their lives whilst eating a raw vegan
diet helps us all very much but especially my 6 year old son. I look forward
to e-mailing you a positive result to my theory in the months to come and
prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that raw vegan food puts less stress on the
body and allows anything which is distressed or diseased to recover and
rejuvenate

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I have type 1 diabetes.. I have dabbled in raw off and on for about 7 years,
and in the last two, have been more serious about it. I definitely notice a
difference in the amount of insulin I take when I am raw, although I still
am sensitive to fruit, sun dried tomatoes, and the like. I use stevia most of
the time for sweetening things.

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By going all organic raw and all vegan, My food bill has dropped, I eat
less, I am full, I am happy, I am alert and I am losing not only weight, but
my skin is firmer and I have so much more energy.

The difference between doing 75% raw and all raw in terms of strength and
energy was shocking to me. But even if its just a little bit, it can make
all the difference in the world.

I am now off all 16 meds, I have no more allergies, asthma is gone, my
arthritis is leaving (the two places your liver will leave the toxins it
can't handle is in fat cells it builds as holding pens, and in the joints.)
My blood pressure is excellent (and they hospitalized me cause it was so
high they thought I was going to blow an artery) and my diabetes is not only
under control, it is gone.

My cancer is gone and my tumors shrank right before my eyes.... I am not
only not in a wheelchair now, but I don't even use my cane unless I am going
on a walk where there are hills or steps.

I look much younger, I get complimented all the time and last week I had a
guy in his thirties try to pick me up. I am 48, feel in my thirties and look
it too.

Even when my weight is off, I will still be eating raw... It is the fountain
of youth.

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Montel Williams: I have MS (Multiple Sclerosis) and I've been dealing with
this for about seven years. It is an everyday struggle. Every single day I
am aware of the fact that I have this illness. But, I've said this since day
one, and now it seems to become the new battle cry, "I have MS. MS does not
have me." And it's not going to. I exercise every day, I stay on top of my
diet. I'm in the process of 'guinea-pigging' myself now for a new book I 'm
about to write, about food. You truly are what you eat. I've now been on a
six month eating regimen with two different chefs, that has been whole food
and raw food chefs, who have been preparing food for me every single day.
I'm going to make it simple so that anybody else can do the same thing. It's
amazing how good I have been feeling. I've been able to mitigate a few of
the symptoms that I have or at least lessen their severity. I think the more
I stay with this and the cleaner I get, the better and better I'll be.

 

“The Healing Garden Diet”

My belief is that for anyone to achieve perfect health right now all they
have to do is eat what I’m going to call “The Healing Garden Diet” for six
months. “The Healing Garden Diet” is a diet that consists only of:

Fresh Organic Unheated Unprocessed Foods:

1. Raw Fruits
2. Raw Vegetables
3. Soaked Almonds for almond milk
4. Vegetable Juice

Almond Milk: A cup of almonds should be soaked for four to twelve hours and
be strained and then blended in a blender full of water. The resulting milk
should be strained through a cheese cloth. This makes a wonderful milk
providing all the fat and protein needed for the human body in a day. He can
drink it one to three times a day as desired. You can also snack on the
soaked almonds which are delicious, juicy, and much easier to chew than dry
almonds.

A vegetable juice every day is important for healing. The juice should
contain any or all of the following:

Kale Chard Spinach Lettuces Broccoli Parsley Celery Beet Cucumber

If you really can’t stand the strong bitter flavor it can be much improved by
adding any of these:

Garlic Onion Ginger Lemon

The best breakfast is fruit. A glass of orange juice is ideal. A fruit
smoothie (orange juice, banana and berries blended up) is great too. A fruit
salad or just plain whole fruits throughout the morning is equally
wonderful. Whatever is preferred.

For lunch either the almond milk or a vegetable juice or just plain whole
vegetables, such as kale leaves, cucumbers, celery, or whatever vegetables
he prefers. A big salad is another option with one of the dressings below.

For dinner either have the almond milk, vegetable juice, vegetables,
a big salad with one of the dressings below, fruit, or orange juice.

Dressings: 1. Mashed avocado with orange juice 2. Mashed avocado with lemon
juice 3. Lemon juice 4. Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Olive oil and lemon juice

Avoid salt, spices, condiments, honey, vinegar, or other salad dressings.

For snacks apples and celery can be eaten as much as desired between meals.
Orange juice is also an allowed snack.

This program above should be followed for six months. After this program
“The Healing Garden Diet”, your can start eating “The Garden Diet”
which is the same with the addition of raw unfiltered honey, Celtic Sea
Salt, dry nuts (not soaked) that can be ground up into flour and made into
many different delicious cakes, breads, and other things, and tahini which
is good for a variety of dressings, dips and shakes.

Both “The Healing Garden Diet” and “The Garden Diet” are 100% raw vegan
diets. As long as you don’t eat anything cooked but you only eat 100% raw
vegan then your body will be able to heal 100%.

No supplements, powders, superfoods, vitamins or other products are used in
“The Healing Garden Diet” or “The Garden Diet”. We rely completely on the
healing life force in the foods to allow our bodies to return to perfect
health.

My belief is that on a 100% raw vegan diet you can eat as much fruit as you
want. But if you have any cooked food at all in your system, even 1%, then
your internal environment is compromised so that even the fruit sugars cause
negative reactions. This is what I found from experimenting on myself. And
by a 100% raw vegan diet I mean "The Garden Diet", which is a diet without
dehydrated or fermented raw vegan foods. The nuts should be soaked if the
person is not in perfect digestive health. "The Garden Diet" is 90% fresh
organic fruits and vegetables. We also include Celtic Sea Salt, Raw
unfiltered honey, and cold pressed organic extra virgin olive oil. These
condiments are not recommended while in the healing state. If a person is in
poor health or is not in terrific digestive health then it is best to eat
just whole fruits and vegetables and a milk made of soaked almonds blended
with just water and strained through a cheese cloth. If the person has a
sugar-related condition it may be better to leave out the fruits for the
first one to six months depending on how long it takes their internal
environment to become healthy. That is just my opinion based on the
case histories I have seen and heard and read about over the last 13
years as well as my own personal experience in overcoming candida.

 

Jinjee’s Candida Story
by Jinjee Talifero

I have probably told this story a hundred times already, but here goes. I've
been on and off the 100% raw vegan diet for 12 years now. Before I went raw
I had really bad Candida with that lovely symptom we women often have - the
chronic yeast infection! When I went 100% raw it became worse at first but
then went away entirely. Then I went about 75% cooked vegan and 25% raw
vegan and my Candida symptoms returned. When I went 100% raw again, the
symptoms again got worse at first but after a few weeks went away completely
again. Then I slowly fell off the wagon back to about 50% raw. AGAIN the
Candida returned until after two years I was able to go 100% raw again. This
time the Candida worsened for about six weeks and then did their complete
disappearing act once again.

What to make of all this? Well, first of all I noticed that the longer I had
been off the 100% raw diet the longer it took to get well once I went 100%
raw again. So I developed a few ideas about what was happening. I think that
the increased fruit sugar is part of what made my Candida worse when I
started (back) onto a raw vegan diet. My first theory was that the fruit
sugar must be somehow combining with the processed refined sugar that must
still have been in my system. Then I read the first chapter of Dr. Gabriel
Cousens' "Rainbow Green Live Food Cuisine" all about how the French
scientists determined that it was our inner terrain rather than microbes
that caused disease. And I realized that my inner terrain must be so
different on a raw-vegan diet than a cooked-vegan diet that it caused me to
have COMPLETELY DIFFERENT REACTIONS TO FRUIT SUGAR.

In other words what seems to be true for me is that when I am cooked I can
not tolerate fruit sugar. But when I am 100% raw vegan after a short time
(three to six weeks) I can tolerate any amount of fruit sugars and even
honey! I mean, it is as extreme as this: when I'm cooked I can eat a few
extra pieces of fruit a day and have an enormous Candida reaction. When I'm
100% raw for over two months I can literally live on orange juice and eat
spoonfuls of honey on their own and feel fabulous with no sign of any
Candida.

I have been 100% raw (with only very occasional cheating) for 5 years now
and haven't had a single yeast infection in that time. I eat about 60%
fruit, 20% nuts and 20% vegetables, although this can vary somewhat; some
days I might eat 70%, 80% or even 100% fruit. I do use a few condiments:
Celtic unrefined unheated sea salt, cold pressed extra virgin organic olive
oil, raw unheated unfiltered honey (the best honey I've ever tasted! -
Imagine butterscotch but yummier), and raw tahini. I almost never have
dehydrated foods, focusing instead on eating foods as fresh as possible,
including a few simple recipes and a lot of whole foods.

So, although I think we are all different and what works for one of us might
not work for everyone, I still feel that sharing our stories is very
important as we are all doing our own research in this field after all.

To Health and Harmony!

---- recap: I have a theory about sugar. I had candida (a sugar related
condition) when I ate cooked food. When I started eating 100% raw the
candida got worse because of all the fruit sugar I was consuming. But then
after about two months it cleared up completely, even though I was still
consuming just as much fruit. I have been on and off the 100% raw vegan diet
four times and each time I have the same experience. My conclusion is that
when you eat 100% raw your internal environment (perhaps in the intestines)
changes so completely that it responds to fruit sugar differently. With a
"cooked" internal environment any and all sugars are harmful. With a "raw"
internal environment fruit sugars are welcome and healthy.

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This article that Jinjee wrote about a 2 week healing menu plan may be
helpful.....

"14 Day Healing Raw-Vegan Diet Plan"

by Jinjee Talifero

If you are transitioning to a raw vegan diet and have a sugar-related
condition such as Candida then this diet below is ideal for your first week
to three months. It is low-glycemic which means that it is very low in any
sugars including fruit sugars. After following this diet until you feel
great then you can start adding all the recipes found in The Garden Diet
eBook for greater variety.

Everything below should be RAW and ORGANIC!

Breakfast:

Berries (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, etc...)

You can eat the berries plain, or as a fruit salad, or blend them up
together into a pudding. Berries are much lower in sugar than other fruits.
They are also incredibly healing.

Lunch:

Salad (use dark leafy greens such as kale, chard, and spinach or mixed
greens, and add veggies of any kind, grated or diced).

Dressings: 1.) juice of half lemon and/or olive oil with fresh herbs such as
rosemary, thyme, sage, oregano and basil. 2.) mashed avocado with juice of
half a lemon. 3.) mashed avocado with the juice of half an orange. 4.) Try
eating at least one salad a week with no dressing and be amazed as the
subtle flavors of the delicious organic vegetables come alive!

Dinner:

choose your dinners from any of these fiber-rich low-sugar "healing" recipes
below:

1.) green juice (juice up any combination of these: kale, chard, spinach,
celery, cucumber, and broccoli and flavor with either apples, lemon, ginger,
onion, and/or garlic)

2.) Spaghetti: grate up one zucchini as the pasta. For the sauce blend up 2
tomatoes with the juice of half a lemon. You can also add finely chopped
fresh herbs if desired.

3.) Veggie wraps: cut up thin slices of any veggies (and/or grate them) such
as cucumbers, bell peppers, carrots, celery, zucchini, jicama, tomatoes,
avocados etc...and wrap up in lettuce (or kale) leaves.

4.) Almond Milk: Soak a cup of raw almonds for four hours. Blend up in
blender with 4 cups water. If you don't like the gritty (fiber!) you can
strain it through a cheese-cloth. Peeling the almonds after soaking helps
makes the milk even smoother and healthier (if time allows).

5.) Bok Choy Dipped in Avocado and Lemon. Reminds me of eating artichoke
leaves in butter.

6.) "Wandaful Slaw": Cabbage, Pineapple, Carrots. Grate up all of the above.
It makes its own dressing!

7.) Raw Tabouli! * one bunch cilantro * one bunch parsley * one bunch green
onions * two tomatoes * one avocado * half a lemon

Chop up cilantro, parsley, green onions, avocados and tomatoes in a bowl.
Add the juice of half a lemon. Change this recipe up each time by adding a
different vegetable/herb like broccoli, fresh basil, or a different spice
mix like Italian or Mexican seasonings. (Make sure that these are herbs only
and contain no "natural flavorings" or other mysterious ingredients).

8.) Gazpacho: blend up any vegetables you have with juice of a lemon and you
can have a new soup every day. Add an avocado for a creamy soup. Celery
makes a good watery/salty base. Or try a base of tomatos for a tomato
bisque. Chop up additional veggies into the soup for a "chunky" soup. Fiber
& Fun!!! :)

-----

Note: You can switch up and make lunch the main meal and have your salad for
dinner if you prefer.

The bottom line of this ebook is that almost all disease can be greatly improved with a diet of 100% raw vegan foods, and almost always eliminated with an extended green vegetable juice fast.

"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared." ~ Buddha

"You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true." ~ Richard Bach

If you would like to share your healing stories for future editions of this ebook please email us at healingstories@thegardendiet.com