Raw foodism

Articleissues|cleanup=September 2008|refimprove=March 2008| self-published = September 2008

Raw foodism (or rawism) is a lifestyle promoting the consumption of un-cooked, un-processed, and often organic foods as a large percentage of the diet. If 60-100% of a person's total food consumption is raw food, he/she is considered a raw foodist or living foodist. [http://www.rawguru.com/i3.html] [Dietary Lifesyles, Crane, L(2004)http://www.medhunters.com/articles/dietaryLifestylesPartFourNaturalHygiene.html] Raw foodists typically believe that the greater the percentage of raw food in the diet, the greater the health benefits. Raw foodism or a raw food diet is usually equated with raw veganism in which only raw plant foods are eaten, [http://altmedicine.about.com/od/popularhealthdiets/a/Raw_Food.htm] but other raw foodists emphasize raw meat and other raw animal products. [Raw Paleolithic Diets. http://www.rawpaleodiet.org/] Depending on the type of lifestyle and results desired, raw food diets may include a selectıon of raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds (including sprouted whole grains such as gaba rice), eggs, fish (such as sashimi), meat (such as carpaccio), and non-pasteurized/non-homogenized dairy products (such as raw milk, raw cheese and raw yogurt). Raw foodists can be divided between those that advocate raw vegetarianism or raw veganism, those that advocate a raw omnivorous diet, and those that advocate a diet of only raw animal foods (carnivorous).

Adherents of raw foodism believe that consumption of uncooked foods encourages weight loss and prevents and/or heals many forms of sickness and chronic diseases.cite journal |author=Hobbs SH |title=Attitudes, practices, and beliefs of individuals consuming a raw foods diet |journal=Explore (NY) |volume=1 |issue=4 |pages=272–7 |year=2005 |month=Jul |pmid=16781548 |doi=10.1016/j.explore.2005.04.015 |url=] Some medical studies have indicated that different forms of raw food diets may lead to various health problems, while other studies have shown positive health outcomes with such diets.

Diets

Raw foodism can include any diet that eats primarily unheated food, or food warmed to a temperature less than convert|104|°F|°C|lk=on to convert|115|°F|°C|lk=on. The most popular raw food diet is a raw vegan diet, but other forms include animal products and/or meat.

Raw veganism

A Raw veganism diet consists of unprocessed, raw plant foods that have not been heated above convert|115|°F|°C|lk=on. “Raw foodists” believe that foods cooked above this temperature have lost much of their nutritional value and are harmful to the body. Typical foods include fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and sprouted grains and legumes.

Some raw vegans can be subdivided into fruitarians, juicearians, or sproutarians. [http://www.naturalhealthbuzz.com/fruitarian-juicearian-sproutarian.html] Fruitarians eat primarily or exclusively fruits. Juicearians process their raw plant foods into juice. Sproutarians eat primarily or exclusively sprouted food, such as bean sprouts.

Personal claims are that there are many benefits from following a raw vegan diet, including weight loss, more energy, clear skin and improved overall health. [http://vegetarian.about.com/od/glossary/g/RawVegan.htm] David Wolfe and Tonya Kay are notable adherents of raw veganism.

Raw vegetarianism

Vegetarianism is a diet that excludes meat, (including game and slaughter by-products), fish (including shellfish and other sea animals) and poultry, but allows dairy and eggs. Common foods include fruit, vegetables, sprouts, nuts, seeds, grains, legumes, dairy, eggs and honey. There are several variants of this diet. [http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/vegetarian?view=uk] This diet is less common than raw veganism. [http://vegetarian.about.com/od/glossary/g/RawVegan.htm]

Raw animal food diets

Foods included in raw animal food diets include any food that can be eaten raw, so including raw, unprocessed meats/organ-meats/raw eggs, raw dairy, and aged, raw animal foods such as century eggs, rotting (fermenting) meat/fish/shellfish/kefir, as well as, to a much lesser extent, nuts/sprouts/plants/fruits, but generally not raw grains, raw beans, raw soy etc., because of digestibility and toxicity issues and also because paleolists tend to reject neolithic or domesticated foods. Raw foods on such diets have not been heated at temperatures above convert|104|°F|°C. “Raw Animal Foodists” believe that foods cooked above this temperature have lost much of their nutritional value and are harmful to the body [http://www.life-enthusiast.com/index/Articles/Vonderplanitz/Recipe_for_Living_Without_Disease] Smoked meats are frowned upon by many Raw-Omnivores. [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0NAH/is_2_38/ai_n24220152] Some make a distinction between hot-smoked and cold-smoked.

Those who eat a raw omnivorous diet usually choose to obtain their meats from free-range and grass-fed sources. This greatly diminishes the risk of harmful bacteria. A study by Cornell Universitycite journal |author=Russell JB, Diez-Gonzalez F, Jarvis GN |title=Potential effect of cattle diets on the transmission of pathogenic Escherichia coli to humans |journal=Microbes Infect. |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=45–53 |year=2000 |month=Jan |pmid=10717540 |doi= |url=http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1286-4579(00)00286-0] has determined that grass-fed animals have far fewer E. coli (approx. 300 times less) than their grain fed counterparts. Also in the same study, the amount of E. coli they do have is much less likely to survive our first line defense against infection, gastric acid.Grass-fed meat also has more nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, and Omega-3 fatty acids, than grain-finished meat [http://www.csuchico.edu/agr/grassfedbeef/health-benefits/index.html] [ http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/els/01681605/2001/00000066/00000001/art00492 ] [ref> Tony Scott Klopfenstein, T., "et al". " 2000 Nebraska Beef Report",:39-41 PFD at eatwild.com] Other studies show that E. coli O157:H7, Campylobacter, Salmonella, and other dangerous pathogens have been repeatedly isolated from both grass and grain fed livestock and there are conflicting results regarding whether the levels of pathogens are higher, lower, or the same when animals are fed grass- or grain-based diets. [http://www.marlerblog.com/2008/08/articles/lawyer-oped/grassfed-vs-grainfed-beef-and-the-holy-grail-a-literature-review/]

Examples of raw animal food diets include the Primal Diet [ [http://meatalovestory.com/excerpt.html Meat: A Love Story] ] [http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=7032] , Anopsology (otherwise known as "Instinctive Eating" or "Instincto"), and the Raw, Palaeolithic diet [http://www.rawpaleo.com] cite web |url=http://www.rawpaleodiet.org/rvaf-overview.html |title=Raw Paleo Diet -- RVAF Systems Overview |format= |work= |accessdate=] ("otherwise known as the "Raw Meat Diet". [http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/the-raw-meat-diet-do-you-have-the-stomach-for-the-latest-celebrity-food-fad-493908.html]

The Primal Diet [ [http://meatalovestory.com/excerpt.html Meat: A Love Story] ] [http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=7032] , is a diet consisting of fatty meats, organ meats, dairy, honey, minimal fruit and vegetable juices and coconut cream, all raw. The founder of the Primal Diet is Aajonus Vonderplanitz, a resident of Malibu, California.It's been estimated by Aajonus Vonderplanitz that there are 20,000 followers of his raw-meat-heavy Primal Diet in North America, alone. [http://meatalovestory.com/excerpt.html ] .Books by Aajonus Vonderplanitz [http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=7032] , the Primal Diet author, include Aajonus Vonderplanitz "The Recipe for Living Without Disease". Carnelian Bay Castle Press, LLC. ISBN 1-889356-84-0, and his book "We Want To Live - 2005." [editionhttp://eng.anarchopedia.org/Aajonus_Vonderplanitz] Carnelian Bay Castle Press, LLC. ISBN 978-1889356105.

There are also those who follow the "Raw Meat Diet", otherwise known as the "Raw, Paleolithic Diet [ http://www.rawpaleo.com/] ", which is a raw version of the (cooked)Paleolithic Diet, incorporating large amounts of raw animal foods such as raw meats/organ-meats, raw seafood, raw eggs, and some raw plant-foods, but usually avoiding non-Paleo foods such as raw dairy, grains and legumes . [Bloomfield, Steve (June 12, 2005). " [http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/the-raw-meat-diet-do-you-have-the-stomach-for-the-latest-celebrity-food-fad-493908.html The raw meat diet: do you have the stomach for the latest celebrity food fad?] ". "The Independent".]

The Nenet tribe of Siberia eat a traditional diet consisting of mostly raw meats/organ-meats and raw berries. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/13/AR2008051300583.html?sid=ST2008051302252]

Those Inuit people that still follow their traditional diet eat a partially raw diet, including large amounts of raw meats/organ-meats and aged raw foods in the form of caribou and fish, among other foods. [http://journals.cambridge.org/download.php?file=%2FPNS%2FPNS12_01%2FS0029665153000188a.pdf&code=5de869c321f69f431e3a1a9fe14560df ]

Pemmican is the traditional North American travel food, prepared from dried meat, fat, and berries.

Gravlax (not smoked salmon) is a traditional (without sugar) Scandinavian way of preserving salmon.

Food preparation

Many foods in raw food diets are simple to prepare, such as fruits, salads, meat, and dairy. Other foods can require considerable advanced planning to prepare for eating. Rice and some other grains, for example, require sprouting or overnight soaking to become digestible. Many raw foodists believe it is best to soak nuts before eating them, in order to activate their enzymes, and deactivate enzyme inhibitors.

Preparation of "gourmet" raw food recipes usually call for a blender, food processor, juicer, and dehydrator. [http://www.allmyrecipes.com/diets/raw_food.php] Depending on the recipe, some food (such as crackers, breads and cookies) may need to be dehydrated. These processes, which produce foods with the taste and texture of cooked food, are lengthy. Some raw foodists dispense with these foods, feeling that there is no need to emulate the other non-raw diets.

Freezing food is acceptable, even though freezing lowers enzyme activity. This view is only held by some raw-foodists, with many raw-foodists actually viewing freezing as harmful, [ http://www.rawfoodexplained.com/selection-and-storage-of-foods-part-i/does-freezing-harm-foods.html ] [http://www.rawfoodstips.com/rawfoodeating.php] though not as unhealthy as cooking.

Avoiding poisoning

As the consumption of raw foods gains popularity, some unsafe foods have re-entered the diets of humans. The following should be consumed with caution:

* Buckwheat greens are toxic when raw, particularly if juiced or eaten in large quantities by fair skinned individuals. The chemical component fagopyrin is known to cause severe photosensitivity and other dermatological complaints. [cite web| title=Are Buckwheat Greens Toxic?| author=Gilles Arbour| url=http://www.gillesarbour.com/buckwheat_assets/Buckwheat%20Greens.pdf| month=December | year=2004| work=Townsend Letter for Doctors & Patients| accessdate = 2004-06-15|format=PDF]
* Kidney beans, including sprouts, are toxic when raw, due to the chemical phytohaemagglutinin. [cite journal |author=Noah ND, Bender AE, Reaidi GB, Gilbert RJ |title=Food poisoning from raw red kidney beans |journal=Br Med J |volume=281 |issue=6234 |pages=236–7 |year=1980 |month=Jul |pmid=7407532 |doi= |url=]
* Potatoes: a member of the nightshade family, can produce the toxic alkaloid solanine. The flesh of the potato just beneath the skins is usually green if solanine is present, but one may be present without the other. Solanine can be removed by peeling the potatoes. [ [http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/ntpweb/index.cfm?objectid=6F5E933B-F1F6-975E-7B1D19DE73F21505 "Executive Summary of Chaconine & Solanine"] , National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences]
* Alfalfa sprouts contain the toxin Canavanine.
* Some types of raw Cassava or Cassava flour can be toxic.
* Raw eggs contain Avidin, a Vitamin B6 inhibitor, which can cause “egg white injury”. [Gyorgy, P. (1941). Egg-white injury as the result of non-absorption or inactivation of biotin. Science, 93, 447-478]
* Raw seeds of the genus Lathyrus (peas), can cause Lathyrism.
* Raw Brassica species can contain Glucosinolate.
* Apricot kernels contain Amygdalin, which contains the toxin cyanide.
* Raw parsnips contain Furanocoumarin.
* Raw foods may contain harmful bacteria, fungi or parasites, which may cause foodborne illnesses.

Background

History

Raw foods gained prominence in the West throughout the 1900s, as proponents such as Ann Wigmore and Herbert Shelton stated that a diet of raw fruits and vegetables is the ideal diet for humans. [http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4WZPA_enUS204US205&q=wigmore+and+shelton+ideal+diet+for+humans]
Artturi Virtanen (1895-1973), showed that enzymes in uncooked foods are released in the mouth when vegetables are chewed. [http://caldining.berkeley.edu/rawfood/rawfood_faq.html] Raw foodists extrapolate from such research the supposition that these enzymes interact with other substances, notably the enzymes produced by the body itself, to aid in the digestion process. Research does not support the idea that enzymes in foods somehow survive the stomach - (pepsin in the stomach quickly breaks down nearly all proteins, including enzymes). [http://www.beyondveg.com/tu-j-l/raw-cooked/raw-cooked-2d.shtml] However, promoters of raw foods, such as the Weston-Price Foundation, support the idea that, since no digestive juices are secreted in the upper stomach, the enzymes in the raw foods last for about 30 minutes in the upper-stomach before being destroyed in the lower stomach, thus giving them enough time to break down the raw foods, to some extent. [http://www.realmilk.com/enzyme.html]

Leslie Kenton's book, "Raw Energy-Eat Your Way to Radiant Health," in 1984 popularized food such as sprouts, seeds, and fresh vegetable juices. [http://www.nigelberman.co.uk/feature3_jan2002.htm] The book brought together research into raw foodism and its support of health, citing examples such as the sprouted seed enriched diets of the long lived Hunza people, as well as Max Gerson's claim of a raw juice-based cancer cure. The book advocates a diet of 75% raw food in order to prevent Degenerative diseases, slow the effects of aging, provide enhanced energy, and boost emotional balance.

Beliefs

Common beliefs held by raw foodists:
* Raw foods contain digestive enzymes (such as amylases, proteases, and lipases) which aid digestion, meaning that the body's own enzymes may work unimpeded in regulating the body's metabolic processes, and heating food above 104-120 degrees Fahrenheit degrades or destroys these enzymes in food. [ [http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag99/apr99-cover.html Life Extension Magazine, April 99, "Digestive Enzymes: The Missing Link"] ] Eating food without enzymes makes digestion more difficult, which could lead to toxicity in the body and cause excess consumption of food, obesity and chronic disease, such as Metabolic syndrome, which some studies suggest affects up to 25% of the U.S. population. [Ford ES, Giles WH, Dietz WH (2002). Prevalence of metabolic syndrome among US adults: findings from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. "JAMA" 287(3):356-359. PMID 11790215] Digestive enzymes are a limited resource in the body and eating cooked foods will deplete these enzymes. [http://www.beyondveg.com/tu-j-l/raw-cooked/raw-cooked-2b.shtml]
* Raw foods contain bacteria and other micro-organisms that affect the immune system and digestion by populating the digestive tract with gut flora. Many Raw-Foodists, particularly Primal-Dieters, are believers in the hygiene hypothesis, a concept which focuses on the health-benefits of exposure to parasites and bacteria which builds natural resistance.
* Raw foods have higher nutrient values than foods which have been cooked. In addition, Processed food and Convenience food often contain "excitotoxins" (flavor enhancers) which can cause Excitotoxicity. Foods with added chemicals, preservatives, additives, colouring agents/dyes of any kind are frowned upon by raw-foodists.
* "Wild foods" (or "natural foods") are more nutritious than domesticated foods or industrially produced foods.
*Cooked foods contain harmful toxins which cause chronic disease and other problems, [http://www.living-foods.com/articles/rawfreshproduce.html] see also Carcinogens in prepared food and Potential harmful health effects of cooking. Heating oils and fats can produce trace amounts of Trans fats. [ [http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A2483-2003Aug29&notFound=true Washington Post, August 30, 2003, "The Skinny on Trans Fats"] : "For example, a recent study conducted to determine the levels of trans fat isomers formed by heat found that in canola oil heated to 500 degrees for 30 minutes, trans fat levels were increased by only 1 percent."] Heating sugars with proteins or fats can produce Advanced glycation end products ("glycotoxins", see also Maillard reaction).Cite journal| author = Koschinsky T, He CJ, Mitsuhashi T, Bucala R, Liu C, Buenting C, Heitmann K, Vlassara H | title = Orally absorbed reactive glycation products (glycotoxins): an environmental risk factor in diabetic nephropathy | journal = Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (USA)| volume = 94 | issue=12 | year=1997 | pages=6474–6479 | url=http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/94/12/6474 | pmid=9177242 | doi = 10.1073/pnas.94.12.6474]
* Eating cooked foods can lead to acidosis. [ [http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2007/nov2007_report_carolalt_01.htm Life Extension Magazine, Nov 2007, "Carol Alt, The Raw Revolution"] : "“Now here comes the biggie,” Alt continues. “pH.” A chemical term for measuring the amounts of acid or alkali, the pH balance in our bodies has a direct effect on our health. “The body is either acidic or alkaline,” says Alt, “but the point is that we’ve got to keep a perfect balance of both.” How? Alt explains that the body is acidic by nature, since our bodies make a lot of acid. “We make lactic acid when we work out,” she says, “and hydrochloric acid to digest our food. “Our organs like to sit in a neutral pH,” she continues. “We’re an acid system, so how are we going to get the alkali to neutralize our bodies? Raw food! Raw food is alkaline, cooked food is acid."]
* Raw Foodists believe that opioid peptides, present in cooked-foods, are not only harmful but highly addictive. [http://www.youngerthanyourage.com/13/constipation.htm]

Raw food movement

Early proponents include Johnny Love-Wisdom, Ann Wigmore and Viktoras Kulvinskas (co-founders of the Hippocrates Health Institute), Arnold Ehret (author and advocate of fasting), A Hovannessian and Norman W. Walker (who advocated the consumption of juices, living up to the age of 99 years).

Notable contemporary proponents include several published authors and lecturers such as Aajonus Vonderplanitz [http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=7032] , David Wolfe, Shazzie, Kate Magic Wood, Joseph Mercola,Kim Cohen, and Carol Alt.

Celebrities following Raw-Animal-Food diets include Mel Gibson (who follows the "Tiger Diet"), and Uma Thurman. [.http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/the-rawfood-diet-497662.html] Other raw-foodist celebrities include Kathy Lenon, Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson James Brolin, Frankie Laine and Laura Dern.

The principles of Natural hygiene promote a mainly raw vegan diet. Famous natural hygienists have included Herbert Shelton and Anthony Robbins.

Currently, there exist many proponents of the Raw Foods lifestyle, that have resources available on proper nutrition and transitional lifestyle diet changes, including Carol Alt, Doug Graham [http://www.living-foods.com/articles/nutritionbook.html] , Joseph Mercola, Aajonus Vonderplanitz [http://www.vueweekly.com/article.php?id=7032] ,Shazzie, Kate Magic Wood, Norman W. Walker, Kim Cohen [http://hollaradio.com/article.cfm/id/181004] and David Wolfe. Vast resources, including forums, recipes, personal testimony, nutritional guides, medical information, and products, exist online as well and are available for anyone interested in researching Raw Foods.

Interest in the "Raw Foods Movement" continues to grow today [http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/health/2008/08/17/2008-08-17_raw_food_diet_may_lead_to_nutrition_shor-2.html] and is especially prevalent in the UK [http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/health-news/the-raw-meat-diet-do-you-have-the-stomach-for-the-latest-celebrity-food-fad-493908.html] , Germany [http://diepresse.com/home/leben/ausgehen/404583/index.do] , Australia and the western United States, [http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/02/19/travel/20immune.php?page=2?pass=true] like California [http://www.livescience.com/health/060704_bad_raw_food.html] where many resources are available for interested people to learn more about and practice a raw foods lifestyle.Fact|date=August 2008Restaurants catering to a raw food diet have opened in large cities, [ [http://www.live-food.com/resources/locations.html Live-Food.com: Locations] ] and numerous all-raw cookbooks have been published. [ [http://www.vegetarian-restaurants.net/Amazon/VegRawFoods.htm Raw and Live Food Vegetarian Books] ]

Supercharge Me is a feature length documentary film about the raw foods diet, made by Jenna Norwood, an independent filmmaker. In the film, inspired by Morgan Spurlock's Super Size Me, Jenna ate only raw foods - i.e. uncooked fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds - for thirty days, to document the effect it would have on her health.

Research

Early 20th century

A 1933 paper by E. B. Forbes says, "Cooking renders food pasty, so that it sticks to the teeth, and undergoes acid fermentation. Furthermore, the cooking of food greatly diminishes the need for use of the teeth; and thus tends to diminish the circulation of blood to the jaws and teeth, and to produce under-development of the maxillary and contiguous bones—thus leading to contracted dental arches, and to malocclusion and impaction of the teeth, with complications of great seriousness." [The Ohio Journal of Science. Vol. 33, No.5 (September, 1933), 389-406]

In a 1936 work entitled "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration", dentist Weston A. Price, noted that the healthiest native-tribes he saw all incorporated some form of raw animal food in their diet, [ http://www.geocities.com/nourishingnights/westonprice.html ] Being a dentist, Weston-Price focused to some extent on the excellent dental health of the native-tribes he cited. Because of the consumption of fermented and raw foods (including raw animal products), Price also noted that these native diets were rich in enzymes. [ http://www.soilandhealth.org/02/0203CAT/020305ppnf/price.html] As a direct result, he became an enthusiastic promoter of raw dairy, which forms a significant part of the Weston-Price Diet.

Dr. Edward Howell [http://www.westonaprice.org/nutritiongreats/howell.html] , an Illinois physician, wrote "Food Enzymes for Health & Longevity" in 1941. Forty years later he published "Enzyme Nutrition" And "Eat Me Raw", Two books in which he argued that the pancreas is forced to work harder on a diet of cooked foods, and that food enzymes are just as essential to digestion as the body's self-generated enzymes, statements which have not been verified. The book was based largely on ideas from his previous book, and ideas derived from flawed enzyme research from the 1930s before it was established that enzymes were proteins. Although this book presents his theory of diet, Howell does not provide any original scientific research to support his conjectures.

Recent research

To date, scientific literature describing health and nutrition aspects of raw foods or living foods diets is limited and most studies focus on vegetarian diets, most of which excluded all animal products and derived the majority of calories from uncooked plant matter. [http://www.living-foods.com/articles/scientificliterature.html] Certain studies have indicated detrimental health effects stemming from raw vegetarian and raw omnivorous diets.cite journal |author=Cunningham E |title=What is a raw foods diet and are there any risks or benefits associated with it? |journal=J Am Diet Assoc |volume=104 |issue=10 |pages=1623 |year=2004 |month=Oct |pmid=15389429 |doi=10.1016/j.jada.2004.08.016 |url=] cite journal |author=Cundiff DK, Harris W |title=Case report of 5 siblings: malnutrition? Rickets? DiGeorge syndrome? Developmental delay? |journal=Nutr J |volume=5 |issue= |pages=1 |year=2006 |pmid=16412249 |pmc=1363354 |doi=10.1186/1475-2891-5-1 |url=] [cite journal |author=Donaldson MS |title=Metabolic vitamin B12 status on a mostly raw vegan diet with follow-up using tablets, nutritional yeast, or probiotic supplements |journal=Ann. Nutr. Metab. |volume=44 |issue=5-6 |pages=229–34 |year=2000 |pmid=11146329 |doi=10.1159/000046689 |url=http://content.karger.com/produktedb/produkte.asp?typ=fulltext&file=anm44229] A 2005 study has shown that a raw vegetarian diet is associated with a lower bone density.cite journal |author=Fontana L, Shew JL, Holloszy JO, Villareal DT |title=Low bone mass in subjects on a long-term raw vegetarian diet |journal=Arch. Intern. Med. |volume=165 |issue=6 |pages=684–9 |year=2005 |month=Mar |pmid=15795346 |doi=10.1001/archinte.165.6.684 |url=] One study of raw omnivorous diets shows amenorrhea and underweightness in women.cite journal |author=Koebnick C, Strassner C, Hoffmann I, Leitzmann C |title=Consequences of a long-term raw food diet on body weight and menstruation: results of a questionnaire survey |journal=Ann. Nutr. Metab. |volume=43 |issue=2 |pages=69–79 |year=1999 |pmid=10436305 |doi= |url=http://content.karger.com/produktedb/produkte.asp?typ=fulltext&file=anm43069] Another one indicates an increased risk of dental erosion with a raw food diet.cite journal |author=Ganss C, Schlechtriemen M, Klimek J |title=Dental erosions in subjects living on a raw food diet |journal=Caries Res. |volume=33 |issue=1 |pages=74–80 |year=1999 |pmid=9831783 |doi= |url=http://content.karger.com/produktedb/produkte.asp?typ=fulltext&file=cre33074]

Other medical studies on raw food diets have shown some positive and negative health outcomes.cite journal |author=Cunningham E |title=What is a raw foods diet and are there any risks or benefits associated with it? |journal=J Am Diet Assoc |volume=104 |issue=10 |pages=1623 |year=2004 |month=Oct |pmid=15389429 |doi=10.1016/j.jada.2004.08.016 |url=] According to one medical trial, "long-term consumption of a 70% raw-plant-food diet is associated with favorable serum LDL cholesterol and triglycerides but also with elevated plasma homocysteine and low serum HDL cholesterol" as well as vitamin B-12 deficiency.cite journal |author=Koebnick C, Garcia AL, Dagnelie PC, "et al" |title=Long-term consumption of a raw food diet is associated with favorable serum LDL cholesterol and triglycerides but also with elevated plasma homocysteine and low serum HDL cholesterol in humans |journal=J. Nutr. |volume=135 |issue=10 |pages=2372–8 |year=2005 |month=Oct |pmid=16177198 |doi= |url=http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=16177198] Another study from Germany found that a "long-term strict raw food diet is associated with favourable plasma beta-carotene and low plasma lycopene concentrations."cite journal |author=Garcia AL, Koebnick C, Dagnelie PC, "et al" |title=Long-term strict raw food diet is associated with favourable plasma beta-carotene and low plasma lycopene concentrations in Germans |journal=Br. J. Nutr. |volume=99 |issue=6 |pages=1293–300 |year=2008 |month=Jun |pmid=18028575 |doi=10.1017/S0007114507868486 |url=] A study mentioned benefits of a Raw Vegan diet for lowering obesity and hypertension cite journal |author=Douglass JM, Rasgon IM, Fleiss PM, Schmidt RD, Peters SN, Abelmann EA |title=Effects of a raw food diet on hypertension and obesity |journal=South. Med. J. |volume=78 |issue=7 |pages=841–4 |year=1985 |month=Jul |pmid=4012382 |doi= |url=http://meta.wkhealth.com/pt/pt-core/template-journal/lwwgateway/media/landingpage.htm?issn=0038-4348&volume=78&issue=7&spage=841] A study has also shown reduced fibromyalgia symptoms for those on a Raw Vegan Dietcite journal |author=Kaartinen K, Lammi K, Hypen M, Nenonen M, Hanninen O, Rauma AL |title=Vegan diet alleviates fibromyalgia symptoms |journal=Scand. J. Rheumatol. |volume=29 |issue=5 |pages=308–13 |year=2000 |pmid=11093597 |doi= |url=] as well as reduced symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, according to another studycite journal |author=Nenonen MT, Helve TA, Rauma AL, Hänninen OO |title=Uncooked, lactobacilli-rich, vegan food and rheumatoid arthritis |journal=Br. J. Rheumatol. |volume=37 |issue=3 |pages=274–81 |year=1998 |month=Mar |pmid=9566667 |doi= |url=http://rheumatology.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=9566667]

One study on raw human milk showed that human infants absorbed human raw milk much better than heated(pasteurised) human milk. [cite journal |author=Björkstén B, Burman LG, De Château P, Fredrikzon B, Gothefors L, Hernell O |title=Collecting and banking human milk: to heat or not to heat? |journal=Br Med J |volume=281 |issue=6243 |pages=765–9 |year=1980 |month=Sep |pmid=7427442 |pmc=1714023 |doi= |url=] Another study showed a link between consumption of unpasteurised milk and a lowered prevalence of allergies. [cite journal |author=Perkin MR, Strachan DP |title=Which aspects of the farming lifestyle explain the inverse association with childhood allergy? |journal=J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. |volume=117 |issue=6 |pages=1374–81 |year=2006 |month=Jun |pmid=16751000 |doi=10.1016/j.jaci.2006.03.008 |url=http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16751000]

Increasing numbers of long-term raw vegans believe that to sustain the diet daily inclusion of superfoods and/or supplements are necessary, particularly for children and mothers. [http://www.vegansociety.com/food/nutrition/b12/]

Potential harmful effects of cooked foods

Raw food dieters claim that cooking food produces harmful chemical toxins. Some of these concerns are accepted by science but some are speculative. Registered dietician, Karen Schroeder says, "Neither the American Cancer Society (ACS) nor the National Cancer Institute (NCI) goes so far as to recommend a raw food diet to reduce the risk of cancer from these chemicals. Instead, they stress that following a healthful diet—one rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, both raw and cooked—is still the best known way to reduce cancer risk." [http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2002issue4/rawfoodsdiet.htm]

Several studies published since 1990 indicate that cooking muscle meat creates heterocyclic amines (HCAs), which are thought to increase cancer risk in humans. Researchers at the National Cancer Institute found that human subjects who ate beef rare or medium-rare had less than one third the risk of stomach cancer than those who ate beef medium-well or well-done. [http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/heterocyclic-amines National Cancer Institute - Heterocyclic Amines in Cooked Meats] While eating muscle meat raw may be the only way to avoid HCAs fully, the National Cancer Institute states that cooking meat below convert|212|F|lk=on creates "negligible amounts" of HCAs. Also, microwaving meat before cooking may reduce HCAs by 90%. [http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/heterocyclic-amines]

Microwaving at high temperatures have been shown to significantly reduce the anti-infective factors in human milk.. [cite journal |author=Quan R, Yang C, Rubinstein S, "et al" |title=Effects of microwave radiation on anti-infective factors in human milk |journal=Pediatrics |volume=89 |issue=4 Pt 1 |pages=667–9 |year=1992 |month=Apr |pmid=1557249 |doi= |url=] [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1200/is_n17_v141/ai_12100730] Microwaving has also been shown to be the worst type of cooking for cooking vegetables, as it virtually eliminates the antioxidants present in vegetables. [cite journal |author=López-Berenguer C, Carvajal M, Moreno DA, García-Viguera C |title=Effects of microwave cooking conditions on bioactive compounds present in broccoli inflorescences |journal=J. Agric. Food Chem. |volume=55 |issue=24 |pages=10001–7 |year=2007 |month=Nov |pmid=17979232 |doi=10.1021/jf071680t |url=] [http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg18024182.000-microwave-cooking-zaps-nutrients.html] Microwaving has also been shown to reduce vitamin B12 levels in foods to a much greater extent than any other form of cooking. [cite journal |author=Watanabe F, Abe K, Fujita T, Goto M, Hiemori M, Nakano Y |title=Effects of Microwave Heating on the Loss of Vitamin B(12) in Foods |journal=J. Agric. Food Chem. |volume=46 |issue=1 |pages=206–210 |year=1998 |month=Jan |pmid=10554220|doi=10.1021/jf970670x]

Nitrosamines, present in processed and cooked foods, have been noted as being carcinogenic, being linked to colon cancer and stomach-cancer. [cite journal |author=Larsson SC, Bergkvist L, Wolk A |title=Processed meat consumption, dietary nitrosamines and stomach cancer risk in a cohort of Swedish women |journal=Int. J. Cancer |volume=119 |issue=4 |pages=915–9 |year=2006 |month=Aug |pmid=16550597 |doi=10.1002/ijc.21925 |url=] [cite journal |author=Jakszyn P, Gonzalez CA |title=Nitrosamine and related food intake and gastric and oesophageal cancer risk: a systematic review of the epidemiological evidence |journal=World J. Gastroenterol. |volume=12 |issue=27 |pages=4296–303 |year=2006 |month=Jul |pmid=16865769 |doi= |url=http://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/12/4296.asp]

There are also concerns regards advanced glycation end products , otherwise known as AGEs, toxins which are present in cooked-foods in sizeable amounts and which contribute to age- and diabetes-related [cite journal |author=Schram MT, Schalkwijk CG, Bootsma AH, Fuller JH, Chaturvedi N, Stehouwer CD |title=Advanced glycation end products are associated with pulse pressure in type 1 diabetes: the EURODIAB Prospective Complications Study |journal=Hypertension |volume=46 |issue=1 |pages=232–7 |year=2005 |month=Jul |pmid=15851628 |doi=10.1161/01.HYP.0000164574.60279.ba |url=] chronic inflammatory diseases such as atherosclerosis, [cite journal |author=Sakata N, Imanaga Y, Meng J, "et al" |title=Increased advanced glycation end products in atherosclerotic lesions of patients with end-stage renal disease |journal=Atherosclerosis |volume=142 |issue=1 |pages=67–77 |year=1999 |month=Jan|pmid=9920507 |doi= |url=] asthma, [cite journal |author=Yang Z, Yan WX, Cai H, "et al" |title=S100A12 provokes mast cell activation: a potential amplification pathway in asthma and innate immunity |journal=J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. |volume=119 |issue=1 |pages=106–14 |year=2007 |month=Jan |pmid=17208591 |doi=10.1016/j.jaci.2006.08.021 |url=] arthritis, [cite journal |author=Verzijl N, DeGroot J, Ben ZC, "et al" |title=Crosslinking by advanced glycation end products increases the stiffness of the collagen network in human articular cartilage: a possible mechanism through which age is a risk factor for osteoarthritis |journal=Arthritis Rheum. |volume=46 |issue=1 |pages=114–23 |year=2002 |month=Jan |pmid=11822407 |doi=10.1002/1529-0131(200201)46:1<114::AID-ART10025>3.0.CO;2-P |url=] myocardial infarction, [cite journal |author=Taki K, Tsuruta Y, Niwa T |title=Cardiac troponin T and advanced glycation end-products in hemodialysis patients |journal=Am. J. Nephrol. |volume=28 |issue=5 |pages=701–6 |year=2008 |pmid=18431051 |doi=10.1159/000127431 |url=] macular degeneration, [cite journal |author=Yamada Y, Ishibashi K, Ishibashi K, "et al" |title=The expression of advanced glycation endproduct receptors in rpe cells associated with basal deposits in human maculas |journal=Exp. Eye Res. |volume=82 |issue=5 |pages=840–8 |year=2006 |month=May |pmid=16364296 |doi=10.1016/j.exer.2005.10.005 |url= ] nephropathy, [cite journal |author=Sugiyama S, Miyata T, Horie K, "et al" |title=Advanced glycation end-products in diabetic nephropathy |journal=Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. |volume=11 Suppl 5 |issue= |pages=91–4 |year=1996 |pmid=9044316 |doi= |url=] retinopathy [cite journal |author=Chibber R, Molinatti PA, Rosatto N, Lambourne B, Kohner EM |title=Toxic action of advanced glycation end products on cultured retinal capillary pericytes and endothelial cells: relevance to diabetic retinopathy |journal=Diabetologia |volume=40 |issue=2 |pages=156–64 |year=1997 |month=Feb |pmid=9049475 |doi= |url=http://link.springer-ny.com/link/service/journals/00125/bibs/7040002/70400156.htm] or neuropathy. [cite journal |author=Sugimoto K, Yasujima M, Yagihashi S |title=Role of advanced glycation end products in diabetic neuropathy |journal=Curr. Pharm. Des. |volume=14 |issue=10 |pages=953–61 |year=2008 |pmid=18473845 |doi= |url=http://www.bentham-direct.org/pages/content.php?CPD/2008/00000014/00000010/0004B.SGM] [Advanced glycation endproduct]

Acrylamide , a toxin found in baked/fried/grilled starchy foods, but not in boiled or raw foods, has been linked to endometrial, ovarian but not breast cancers. [cite journal |author=Hogervorst JG, Schouten LJ, Konings EJ, Goldbohm RA, van den Brandt PA |title=A prospective study of dietary acrylamide intake and the risk of endometrial, ovarian, and breast cancer |journal=Cancer Epidemiol. Biomarkers Prev. |volume=16 |issue=11 |pages=2304–13 |year=2007 |month=Nov |pmid=18006919 |doi=10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-07-0581 |url=] Ingested acrylamide is metabolised to a chemically reactive epoxide, glycidamide . [Joint FAO/WHO expert committee on food additives, Sixty-fourth meeting, Rome, 8-17 February 2005, Summary and conclusions. [http://www.who.int/ipcs/food/jecfa/summaries/summary_report_64_final.pdf] Retrieved on 2008-01-01] The HEATOX(Heat Generated Food Toxins) project published a report identifying toxins in cooked-foods, such as acrylamide, and identifying ways to reduce the levels of these toxins. The report can be found [http://www.slv.se/upload/heatox/documents/Heatox_Final%20_report.pdf here] .

Also, toxic compounds called PAHs, [http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts69.html#bookmark02] or Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, present in cooked and processed foods as well as being a byproduct of fuel-burning, [cite journal |author=Martí-Cid R, Llobet JM, Castell V, Domingo JL |title=Evolution of the dietary exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Catalonia, Spain |journal=Food Chem. Toxicol. |volume=46 |issue=9 |pages=3163–71 |year=2008 |month=Sep |pmid=18675309 |doi=10.1016/j.fct.2008.07.002 |url=] are known to be carcinogenic. [cite journal |author=Gammon MD, Santella RM |title=PAH, genetic susceptibility and breast cancer risk: an update from the Long Island Breast Cancer Study Project |journal=Eur. J. Cancer |volume=44 |issue=5 |pages=636–40 |year=2008 |month=Mar |pmid=18314326 |doi=10.1016/j.ejca.2008.01.026 |url=] [ http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/sc/scf/out154_en.pdf]

German research in 2003 showed significant benefits in reducing breast cancer risk when large amounts of raw vegetable matter are included in the diet. The authors attribute some of this effect to heat-labile phytonutrients. [cite journal |author=Adzersen KH, Jess P, Freivogel KW, Gerhard I, Bastert G |title=Raw and cooked vegetables, fruits, selected micronutrients, and breast cancer risk: a case-control study in Germany |journal=Nutr Cancer |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=131–7 |year=2003 |pmid=14690788 |doi= |url=]

One study, comparing the effects of consuming either pasteurized, or homogenized/pasteurized, or unpasteurized milk, showed that pasteurized and homogenized/pasteurized milk might have an increased ability to evoke allergic reactions in patients allergic to milk. [cite journal |author=Høst A, Samuelsson EG |title=Allergic reactions to raw, pasteurized, and homogenized/pasteurized cow milk: a comparison. A double-blind placebo-controlled study in milk allergic children |journal=Allergy |volume=43 |issue=2 |pages=113–8 |year=1988 |month=Feb |pmid=3284399 |doi= |url=http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3284399]

A study has indicated that cooking heating (above 100°C, or 212°F) decreases meat protein digestibility. Frying chickpeas, oven-heating winged beans, or roasting cereals at 200-280°C (392-536°F) reduces protein digestibility. [cite journal |author=Oste RE |title=Digestibility of processed food protein |journal=Adv. Exp. Med. Biol. |volume=289 |issue= |pages=371–88 |year=1991 |pmid=1897402 |doi= |url=] [http://www.beyondveg.com/tu-j-l/raw-cooked/raw-cooked-2a.shtml]

Another study has shown that fish meat heated for 10 minutes at 130°C (266°F), showed a 1.5% decrease in protein digestibility. Similar heating of hake meat in the presence of potato starch, soy oil, and salt caused a 6% decrease in amino acid content. [cite journal |author=Seidler T, Krupska B |title=Studies on thermal treatment of hake. Part 2. Effects of thermal treatment and frozen storage on volatile ammonium bases content |journal=Nahrung |volume=30 |issue=5 |pages=481–5 |year=1986 |pmid=3748129 |doi= |url=]

A scientific [http://journals.cambridge.org/download.php?file=%2FPNS%2FPNS4_02%2FS0029665146000321a.pdf&code=44a8dfdde48fb6037fc0936b8a4b398c report] by the Nutrition Society describes in detail the loss of nutrients caused by cooking. [http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-cookinglossofnutrients.html] [http://www.nutritiondata.com/topics/processing Here] is a table showing typical losses of nutrients as a result of cooking.

Criticism and controversies

Food poisoning

Food poisoning is a health risk for all people eating raw foods, and increased demand for raw foods is associated with greater incidence of foodborne illness,cite journal |author=Lee CC, Lam MS |title=Foodborne diseases |journal=Singapore Med J |volume=37 |issue=2 |pages=197–204 |year=1996 |month=Apr |pmid=8942264 |doi=
url=] especially for raw meat, fish, and shellfish.cite journal |author=Macpherson CN |title=Human behaviour and the epidemiology of parasitic zoonoses |journal=Int. J. Parasitol. |volume=35 |issue=11-12 |pages=1319–31 |year=2005 |month=Oct |pmid=16102769 |doi=10.1016/j.ijpara.2005.06.004
url=] cite journal |author=Lun ZR, Gasser RB, Lai DH, "et al" |title=Clonorchiasis: a key foodborne zoonosis in China |journal=Lancet Infect Dis |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=31–41 |year=2005 |month=Jan |pmid=15620559 |doi=10.1016/S1473-3099(04)01252-6
url=] Outbreaks of gastroenteritis among consumers of raw and undercooked animal products (including smoked, pickled or dried animal products) are well-documented, and include raw meat,cite journal |author=Yoshida H, Matsuo M, Miyoshi T, "et al" |title=An outbreak of cryptosporidiosis suspected to be related to contaminated food, October 2006, Sakai City, Japan |journal=Jpn. J. Infect. Dis. |volume=60 |issue=6 |pages=405–7 |year=2007 |month=Nov |pmid=18032847 |url=http://www.nih.go.jp/JJID/60/405.html] cite journal |author=Pozio E |title=Foodborne and waterborne parasites |journal=Acta Microbiol. Pol. |volume=52 Suppl |issue= |pages=83–96 |year=2003 |pmid=15058817 |doi=
url=] raw organ meat, raw fish (whether ocean-going or freshwater), shellfish,cite journal |author=Su YC, Liu C |title=Vibrio parahaemolyticus: a concern of seafood safety |journal=Food Microbiol. |volume=24 |issue=6 |pages=549–58 |year=2007 |month=Sep |pmid=17418305 |doi=10.1016/j.fm.2007.01.005
url=] raw milk and products made from raw milk,cite journal |author= |title=Escherichia coli 0157:H7 infections in children associated with raw milk and raw colostrum from cows--California, 2006 |journal=MMWR Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. |volume=57 |issue=23 |pages=625–8 |year=2008 |month=Jun |pmid=18551097 |url=http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5723a2.htm
doi= ] cite journal |author=Donnelly CW |title=Concerns of microbial pathogens in association with dairy foods |journal=J. Dairy Sci. |volume=73 |issue=6 |pages=1656–61 |year=1990 |month=Jun |pmid=2200814 |url=http://jds.fass.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=2200814
doi=] cite journal |author=Doyle MP |title=Escherichia coli O157:H7 and its significance in foods |journal=Int. J. Food Microbiol. |volume=12 |issue=4 |pages=289–301 |year=1991 |month=Apr |pmid=1854598 |doi=
url=] and raw eggs.cite journal |author=Cox JM |title=Salmonella enteritidis: the egg and I |journal=Aust. Vet. J. |volume=72 |issue=3 |pages=108–15 |year=1995 |month=Mar |pmid=7611983 |doi=
url=]

Food poisoning attributed to contaminated raw produce has risen ten-fold since the 1970s.cite journal |author=Sivapalasingam S, Friedman CR, Cohen L, Tauxe RV |title=Fresh produce: a growing cause of outbreaks of foodborne illness in the United States, 1973 through 1997 |journal=J. Food Prot. |volume=67 |issue=10 |pages=2342–53 |year=2004 |month=Oct |pmid=15508656 |doi=
url=] Salad, lettuce, juice, melon, sprouts, and berries were most frequently implicated in outbreaks.

Many raw plant foods have been contaminated by dangerous and even deadly microorganisms,cite journal |author= |title=Outbreak of salmonella serotype Saintpaul infections associated with multiple raw produce items--United States, 2008 |journal=MMWR Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. |volume=57 |issue=34 |pages=929–34 |year=2008 |month=Aug |pmid=18756191 |url=http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5734a1.htm
doi= ] including jalapeño and serrano peppers, alfalfa sprouts and other sprouted seeds,cite journal |author=Mahon BE, Pönkä A, Hall WN, "et al" |title=An international outbreak of Salmonella infections caused by alfalfa sprouts grown from contaminated seeds |journal=J. Infect. Dis. |volume=175 |issue=4 |pages=876–82 |year=1997 |month=Apr |pmid=9086144 |doi=
url=] cite journal |author= |title=Microbiological safety evaluations and recommendations on sprouted seeds. National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods |journal=Int. J. Food Microbiol. |volume=52 |issue=3 |pages=123–53 |year=1999 |month=Nov |pmid=10733245 |url=http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S016816059900135X
doi= ] green onions,cite journal |author=Dentinger CM, Bower WA, Nainan OV, "et al" |title=An outbreak of hepatitis A associated with green onions |journal=J. Infect. Dis. |volume=183 |issue=8 |pages=1273–6 |year=2001 |month=Apr |pmid=11262211 |url=http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/resolve?JID001332
doi= ] spinach,cite journal |author=Heaton JC, Jones K |title=Microbial contamination of fruit and vegetables and the behaviour of enteropathogens in the phyllosphere: a review |journal=J. Appl. Microbiol. |volume=104 |issue=3 |pages=613–26 |year=2008 |month=Mar |pmid=17927745 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2672.2007.03587.x
url=] lettuce, orange juice, [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9900E3D8123DF93BA25750C0A9679C8B63 Contaminated Food Makes Millions Ill Despite Advances] ] apple juice and other unpasteurized fruit juices.cite journal |author=Parish ME |title=Public health and nonpasteurized fruit juices |journal=Crit. Rev. Microbiol. |volume=23 |issue=2 |pages=109–19 |year=1997 |pmid=9226110 |doi=
url=]

Demand for unpasteurized, or raw, milk is growing among consumers concerned about chemicals, hormones and drugs. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24049180/] Some believe that pasteurization "kills" enzymes, proteins and beneficial bacteria. [http://www.1800naturalhealing.com/pasteurization.html] According to the FDA, health benefits claimed by raw milk advocates do not exist. [ [http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/504_milk.html "Got Milk?"] by Linda Bren. "FDA Consumer". Sept-Oct 2004.] "The small quantities of antibodies in milk are not absorbed in the human intestinal tract," says Barbara Ingham, Ph.D., associate professor and extension food scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "There is no scientific evidence that raw milk contains an anti-arthritis factor or that it enhances resistance to other diseases."

It has been claimed by many pro-raw-dairy advocates that government agencies are heavily biased against raw dairy, providing incomplete facts or erroneous statistics [http://www.realmilk.com/press-release-12mar07.html] [http://www.realmilk.com/ResponsetoMarlerListofStudies_.pdf] . There are also several scientific studies on the benefits of raw dairy [http://www.realmilk.com/abstractsmilk.html] .

Nutritional deficiencies

A raw vegan diet may be deficient in calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, iron, zinc and protein. These nutrients are much easier to get in foods from animal sources. [http://www.nydailynews.com/lifestyle/health/2008/08/17/2008-08-17_raw_food_diet_may_lead_to_nutrition_shor-2.html]

Some nutrients in cooked foods, are more available to the body than in raw foods. Heating foods normally makes their nutrients more easily digestible by breaking down the husks and skin in the food, bursting open the cells so that the contents are more available, modifying the molecules, breaking down large indigestible molecules into smaller digestible molecules, and finally, breaking down toxins or chemicals in the food. [http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2008/04/29/2230592.htm?site=science/greatmomentsinscience]

Care may be required in planning a raw food diet, especially for children. [cite journal |author=Messina V, Mangels AR |title=Considerations in planning vegan diets: children |journal=J Am Diet Assoc |volume=101 |issue=6 |pages=661–9 |year=2001 |month=Jun |pmid=11424545 |doi=10.1016/S0002-8223(01)00167-5 |url=http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0002822301001675] There is little research on how to plan a nutritionally adequate raw food. Raw foodists believe that with sufficient food energy, essential fatty acids, essential amino acids, vitamins and minerals, variety and density, people of all ages can be successful at eating raw foods. Dr. Joel Fuhrman, author of "Disease-Proof your Child", says there may not be enough vitamin B12, enough vitamin D and enough calories for a growing child on a totally raw vegan diet. Fuhrman fed his own four children raw and cooked vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, beans and occasionally eggs. [http://jscms.jrn.columbia.edu/cns/2006-03-14/breitman-rawfoodkids]

A study surveying people practicing raw food diets of varying intensities found that 30% of the women under age 45 had partial to complete amenorrhoea and that "subjects eating high amounts of raw food (> 90%) were affected more frequently than moderate raw food dieters." The study concluded that since many raw food dieters were underweight and exhibited amenorrhoea "a very strict raw food diet cannot be recommended on a long-term basis." [http://content.karger.com/ProdukteDB/produkte.asp?Aktion=ShowAbstract&ArtikelNr=12770&Ausgabe=224613&ProduktNr=223977]

Human evolution

Richard Wrangham, a primate researcher and professor of anthropology has argued that cooking is obligatory for humans as a result of biological adaptations to cooked foods.cite journal |author=Wrangham R, Conklin-Brittain N. |title=Cooking as a biological trait |journal=Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol |volume=136 |issue=1 |pages=35&ndash;46 |year=2003 Sep |pmid=14527628 |doi=10.1016/S1095-6433(03)00020-5 |url=http://anthropology.tamu.edu/faculty/alvard/anth630/reading/Week%208%20Diet%20tubers/Wrangham%20and%20Conklin-Brittain%202003.pdf] cite book |last=Wrangham |first=Richard |editor=Ungar, Peter S. |title=Evolution of the Human Diet: The Known, the Unknown, and the Unknowable |format= |year=2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford, USA |isbn=0195183460 |pages=308&ndash;23 |chapter=The Cooking Enigma |chapterurl=] Wrangham believes that cooking explains the increase in hominid brain sizes, smaller teeth and jaws and decrease in sexual dimorphism that occurred roughly 1.8 million years ago.cite journal |author=Wrangham R, Conklin-Brittain N. |title=Cooking as a biological trait |journal=Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol |volume=136 |issue=1 |pages=35&ndash;46 |year=2003 Sep |pmid=14527628 |doi=10.1016/S1095-6433(03)00020-5 |url=http://anthropology.tamu.edu/faculty/alvard/anth630/reading/Week%208%20Diet%20tubers/Wrangham%20and%20Conklin-Brittain%202003.pdf] cite book |last=Wrangham |first=Richard |editor=Ungar, Peter S. |title=Evolution of the Human Diet: The Known, the Unknown, and the Unknowable |format= |year=2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford, USA |isbn=0195183460 |pages=308&ndash;23 |chapter=The Cooking Enigma |chapterurl=] Wrangham further states that "no human foragers have been recorded as living without cooking [...] The possibility that cooking is obligatory is supported by calculations suggesting that a diet of raw food could not supply sufficient calories for a normal hunter–gatherer lifestyle. In particular, many plant foods are too fiber-rich when raw, while most raw meat appears too tough to allow easy chewing." Most other anthropologists oppose Wrangham, contending that archeological evidence suggests that cooking fires began in earnest only 250,000 years ago, when ancient hearths, earth ovens, burnt animal bones, and flint appear across Europe and the middle East. [http://cogweb.ucla.edu/Abstracts/Pennisi_99.html Pennisi: Did Cooked Tubers Spur the Evolution of Big Brains?] ] The particular stance of Wrangham's, re cooking leading to bigger human brains and adaptability to cooked-foods, has been contrasted with several studies showing that average human brain-size has actually decreased in the last 35,000 years by 11%. [ http://www.mhhe.com/socscience/anthropology/news/afall97.htm ] [ http://chemport.cas.org/cgi-bin/sdcgi?APP=ftslink&action=reflink&origin=npg&version=1.0&coi=1:STN:280:BieB2s3isFI%3D&pissn=0028-0836&pyear=1997&md5=19d628374243f4787b3aa8634259731f ] [ http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/110503823/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0 ]

Gallery

ee also

* Cooking
* Food safety
* Healthy diet
* Taboo foods

References

Further reading

*

External links

* [http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2007/nov2007_report_carolalt_01.htm Life Extension Magazine, Nov 2007, "Carol Alt, The Raw Revolution"]