By Molly Peppo
I'll never forget one day, about five years ago, when for lack of anything else to do, I went with a friend to an organic farm over in Driggs, Idaho, for the day and helped picked vegetables. This farm distributed vegetables during the summer to local Teton Valley residents. I remember so vividly the brilliance of the sun, the purity of the air and the almost electrical energy of the land. I expected to drudge through the day tired, hot and dehydrated, but it was not so.
There was a very real energy and intensity in the environment. Mid-morning I plucked a carrot out of the ground, rinsed it off, and took a few bites. After a few bites I felt this incredible energy and radiance from the carrot. It tasted like the sun and the earth and was amazingly delicious, really unlike any carrot I've ever tasted before. In fact, a few bites seemed to fill me up. The fact that one carrot eaten within a few seconds of being uprooted was so potent that it could fill me up and totally energize me began, for me, a process of changing how I thought about food.
Live food is pretty incredible. Live, or raw, food is food that has not been cooked, processed, treated with pesticides, microwaved, irradiated or genetically engineered. It is food in an unadulterated and whole form.
Research by Russian scientist Dr. Israel Brekhman revealed the power of live foods. When he gave whole, live food to animals, their endurance was two to three times greater than if he gave them the same caloric value of food after it had been cooked. Research shows that cooking food makes 50 percent of the protein unavailable, destroys 60 to 70 percent of the vitamins, up to 96 percent of the B12, and 100 percent of the phytonutrients, which boost immunity. Because live food has a much greater availability of nutrients, we can eat less and feel more energized.
A survey Beckman performed of more than 325 people on a predominantly live food diet showed many benefits. The desire to overeat was diminished, while 82 percent of people came to their ideal weight. As well, their quality of sleep and sense functions improved. Sickness decreased by 93 percent, cardiovascular health and flexibility improved, there were less addictive tendencies, and depression and anxiety decreased. Eighty-five percent of those tested felt emotionally and spiritually better, and there was an improvement in mental clarity, optimism and sense of well-being.
Start simple. A good way to begin adding live food to meals is for every cooked food, add a live food. This can be as easy as slicing a banana on top of cereal or oatmeal, beginning a meal with a green salad, adding fresh organic tomato slices and avocado to a sandwich, or slicing up carrots, tomatoes, fresh herbs and stirring them in to pasta or rice with unheated olive oil. Emphasize energizing, whole foods and adding these to your meals, rather than obsessing about what you shouldn't eat. By staying focused on foods that make you feel well and energized, cravings for sugary, deficient and processed foods will naturally fall away.
Why do we eat? For me, the goal of eating well is to be optimally functional at every level. By eating well we can support a clear mind and maintain a balanced energy level while going through the day feeling strong, vital, energetic and happy. Nourishing our bodies mindfully, with pure, vibrant, organic, living foods is a natural and first step towards taking responsibility for our individual health, respecting the earth and environment, and maintaining peaceful, positive relationships to our family, friends and acquaintances.
