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A Vivacious Voice for Veganism: Reasons to go Raw?

Posted May 6, 2008 at 10:00 AM by Katie Drummond

Section: Her Fitness, Athletics, Her Health, Her Nutrition, Diet Myths, Healthy Eating, Workout Fuel

In this ongoing vegan column, senior staff writer, Katie Drummond, looks at the raw food diet, since many people think it is similar to veganism. Although, just how similar and how practical is something that Katie debates for herself and our HAL readers. Do you think this lifestyle would work for you? Read on to discover Katie’s thoughts on the topic!

As a vocal young vegan lady, I spend a lot of time addressing rumors, misconceptions, and concerns about the merits, rationale, and drawbacks entailed by a vegan lifestyle. For most questions about nutrition and fitness that relate to veganism, I’ve got a clear answer. One topic, though, whose implications still elude me is the raw food diet. Some I’ve spoken to in the past immediately associate veganism with raw foodism, causing them to shy away from even considering a vegan lifestyle - for others, the raw food regime is what they credit as the saving grace for their wellbeing.

So what is a raw food diet? The Vegan Society defines raw foodism as a lifestyle composed of at least 80% uncooked, unprocessed foods, in three food groups: sweet fruit, high-fat plants, and green leafy vegetables. While nutritional advice differs between raw food communities, the diet is generally very low in fat, high in fiber and often involves a lot of fresh juicing to obtain sufficient calories. Those who follow a raw food lifestyle often claim to have unparalleled energy levels and impressive overall health and longevity. However, there are so few who have followed a raw food diet in the longterm that studies are still sketchy on the potential concrete medical benefits. Still, it seems that a raw foods vegan can be a high-intensity athlete: Brendan Brazier and Dr. Ruth Heidrich are two stellar stars who both advocate going raw.

Sure, it sounds great to me - a diet that is totally natural, plant-based, and offers a ton of nutrients and none of the junk that can be found in some packaged and processed vegan foods. But what about the drawbacks or worries that might exist? I’ve got a few, and up until now, they’ve prevented me from seriously contemplating a raw vegan routine.

Time. I know, I know - I often complain that people use this excuse when it comes to their inability to adopt a vegan diet. However, the difference for me is that veganism comes down to ethical reasoning, so no matter how inconvenient it is for you (and it probably isn’t), you’ve just gotta do it. Raw foodism, however, seems more like a nutrition or health decision, and so less of an imperative, no-excuses situation. As such, I feel okay saying that right now, with everything I’ve got on the go, I simply don’t have time to research how to eat raw and do it responsibly and with all my nutritional bases covered. One cannot live on broccoli alone, and I worry that this might be what would end up happening if I were to launch into a raw foods diet without enough time to do it right.

Money. Another seemingly superficial reason, I agree. However, money is important when thinking about going raw, because the lifestyle, when done to the fullest extent, requires some kitchen tools and food investments that can be pricey. A juicer, a dehydrator and a lot of produce or packaged raw foods (convenience factor) add up quickly, probably to over $500 for the full set of raw foods kitchen necessities. I could sell my bread maker and my pots and pans, I guess, but only if I made a 100% commitment - and I haven’t. Plus, while produce can be found cheaply, it depends where you live - for some, bulk apples and bananas might be nearly impossible to come by, making grocery bills tough to swallow.

Health. If I were convinced that a raw foods diet was the healthiest way to live, with benefits to my wellbeing and athletics that couldn’t be compared to clean vegan eating, I might be inclined to make the time and invest the dollars. The fact is, while I think that a properly done raw food diet can be very healthy, I’m not sold on it as the be-all-and-end-all of eating. I also have a few specific concerns:

-Fiber: Many studies show that eating more than 50 grams of fiber a day can actually be detrimental, by flushing out vitamins and minerals before your body can digest them, and even causing unwanted weight loss. As someone who struggles to keep the pounds on, and already eats a ton of good green stuff, I’d worry about overdoing it if I went raw.

-Calories: A sample 2,000 calorie meal plan created by the Vegan Society involves nearly 2,000 grams of fresh fruit. That’s a lot of fruit. I eat nearly twice that caloric tally each day, which makes my food requirements on a raw food diet very intense, expensive, and seemingly impractical - I can’t be stuffing my face every waking moment!

-B12: There is a lot of debate about the need for B12 and how a raw food diet can accommodate this nutritional requirement. While some raw food movements deny that B12 is actually necessary, most research says it is, and I’m inclined to buy it. Right now, I get B12 from fortified soy milk and tofu, nutritional yeast and algae - nori and spirulina are two major sources of B12 that are raw - but most studies show that their uptake is insufficient, which worries me.

In sum, I have no doubt that a raw vegan diet can be a healthy one that fuels an active lifestyle. I’ve seen it myself. That being said, it is a commitment of time, money and energy, and comes with its own health concerns and implications that do need to be addressed before you take the plunge. For now, I’ll stick to playing around with my live foods cookbook and enjoying a vegan diet that is, all things considered, largely raw by its constitutive elements anyways (hello, fruits and veggies!). And no matter what you choose to put in your body, whether vegan or raw, do your research and keep your health in mind - that is something you always need to make time for. 

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Tags: b12, brendan brazier, fiber, health advice, price of healthy eating, raw diet, raw foods, raw vegan, ruth heidrich, vegan nutrition, veganism

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