I'm a junk vegan and lately I've been trying very hard to go raw, but...

In a message dated 8/1/01 12:08:13 AM, veganprinzessin@yahoo.de writes:

hello everyone... im not from nyc but i subscribed myself to this mailing list because it was the only one i could find on raw foods.

im a junkvegan and lately ive been trying very hard to go raw, but sometimes i ended up eating some kind of junk food. i was wondering if any of you could help me out.

seems really stupid but i really dont know if something is raw or not. like oatmeal. i dont have any idea if its cooked or not. would any of you wouldnt mind babysitting me for a little awhile? till i get more confortable with the big changes that are to come? thanks a lot for your time,

vegan prinzess

Dear Vegan Prinzess,

Oatmeal is not raw. The oats are steamed first, then rolled (to get them flat). In the process of rolling, the rollers get hot, and so the oats are subjected to heat twice. To have raw oats, you need to buy some oat groats from Sunorganic Farm's mail order catalog in So. California (this is the only source that I know). They have some hulless oat groats that sprout. The oat groats that you buy in a health food store do not sprout, at least I have not been able to get them to sprout.

One time I called Arrowhead Mills and somebody there told me oats won't sprout because they have been subjected to heat. They told me that they have to be heated to inactivate some chemical in them that is detrimental, but I did not believe them because horses eat raw oats and this so called chemical does not harm them.

A suggestion for you to really learn about the raw/live food lifestyle and get all your questions answered is to go to one of the institutes that teach the lifestyle. There you will learn the basics. Then when you finish there, you can read all the different books written about the raw lifestyle and you will become confused because there are many opposing points of view. But the one thing that we all can agree on is that raw/live food is the food that was intended for humans by Nature.

From there the different advocates may diverge in their viewpoints. However, if you learn the system from one of the Institutes, like the Ann Wigmore Institute of Puerto Rico or the Optimum Health Institute of San Diego or the Hippocrates Health Institute - you will gain the basics. And all of these Institutes have helped countless people regain their health -- when the person was serious in following their guidelines.

Another way to learn is to go to lectures by people who are advocating the raw lifestyle. There are many websites also where you can get raw food information. My website is: www.rawfoodinfo.com From my website, if you go to the Links section you can access other raw food websites. If you go to the Events section under Hotline - you can find out what raw food related events are happening in different areas of the country.

I hope I have been able to help you a little and don't hesitate to ask me your raw food questions.

Many blessings in your new, exciting endeavor,

Rhio

Back to Real Letters/Newcomers to Raw

Top of the Page