Here are some good and many bad reasons for eating raw:

1.   "Cooked food is poison"

Although the term "poison" is extremely devaluated here, there is some
truth in it (nicotine is a "poison" too). It is however simplistic
to put 100% heavily cooked diets and diets with 10% steamed vegetables+
90% raw on one side, and 100% raw diets on the other side.

2.   "Nutrients are destroyed by cooking;
      hence, eating raw prevents deficiencies"

Half-true. Cooking vegetables allows you to eat more, hence increase
your minerals intake. High fruit raw diets can be deficient.

3.   "As all nutrients are preserved, you can
      eat less when on a raw diet"

It would be more accurate to say that IF you are able to have a varied
and low-calorie diet, THEN you won't suffer from malnutrition.

4.    "Raw eaters generally consume less animal food.
       Since animals eat considerable amounts of grains
       and plant foods, it would be less damaging for
       the environment if we ate those plant foods directly"

Would be true if all raw food eaters had a diet rich in cereals
and mung beans... instead of avocados, fruits or wild fish.

5.     "If everyone had a raw diet, the economy would be
        considerably boosted: indeed, health care is becoming
        increasingly burdensome for taxpayers and companies"

Not obvious at all. If pharmaceutical companies, etc... had to reduce
their activity, many people would become unemployed. Increased longevity
has undesirable effects (aging population, more retired people).
Thriving companies won't necessary pay higher salaries (they will
maybe invest more, etc...)

6.      "Less food processing implies less polluting industries,
         less waste released in the environment"

If all (cooked) food-related industries had to shut down, other industries
are likely to appear, and other "needs" are likely to be created. Our
society encourages consumerism, waste. How many Americans or Europeans
refrain from using cars when public transportation would be more
convenient, buy clothes only when necessary, buy books instead of
going to the library?

7.      "If everyone ate raw, we could feed the entire planet"

Apart from the avocado-fruit-wild fish argument above, maybe we
COULD, but we WOULDN'T. Only a ridiculous part of the budget of
wealthy countries is devoted to developing countries aid, while
we could afford much more. Eating raw wouldn't (alone) solve the
problem of malnutrition. Moreover, "feeding" Third World countries
is probably not the best thing to do: transfer of technology,
aid to development of industry and agriculture would be more useful.

Best wishes,

Jean-Louis
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