Hi Fiona,

I and my clients/patients have had similar experiences from time to time
over the years.  Try my nut butter recipe (see archives).  They can be
made from nearly any raw nuts/seeds you like plus raw honey and that's
all, and are rich in natural uncooked carbs (honey and nuts both have
carbs) and fats (raw vegetarian oils).  In my last batch I used organic
sunflower seeds, almonds, peacans and honey.

> I'm new to the list, and was wondering if anyone could give me some advice
> from their own experience.  A few years ago I ate mostly raw food, and
> never felt better.  Since then, after travelling etc, I've slipped back
> into mainstream eating, except that I don't feel good at all, I feel tired,
> drained and moody.  I'm trying to get back into the raw thing again, but
> it's not so easy this time - there's a part of me which is almost afraid of
> giving up the junk, and of feeling energetic and clear-headed again.  Why
> is this?  The hardest thing is doing without carbohydrates, which I read
> somewhere is something your body craves when it needs a seratonin hit.  Can
> anyone recommend ways of avoiding carbo cravings, or suggest a raw food
> which placates them?  I've tried essene bread, anything else?

IMO after returning to all raw, if you desire cooked carbs, avoid
anything made with flour or processed grain.  Whole grain or not flour
seems to be the cooked food item that "hooks" people back into eating
excessive cooked foods again.  If you really desire cooked carbs, avoid
milled grains.  Oatmeal is made from milled oats; and all wheat is
milled.  Whole oat groats, millet and brown rice are hulled but not
milled, and may be cooked in soups.

I believe that when grain is milled, many of the essential nutrients are
lost.  I used to believe using whole grain flours would solve the
problem.  Whlie they are superior to refined grains, now after a few
years of more experience, reading and observation, I now think that even
whole grain has nutrients lost when milled, especially from wheat germ
or rice polish - the part that has oils and vitamins.  So when we eat
them (bread, pasta, white rice) our bodies look for those nutrients to
best digest and utilize the food, and since they are missing, we become
less well.  The nutrients that are missing include minute amounts of
fats (oils, fatty acids), which, it turns out, are critical
(biochemically necessary) for cellular energy production.

So then we get into this nasty cycle of wanting more carbs because our
bodies need the energy, and in their whole form, those carbs would
indeed have everything you need for more energy production, but in their
process form, they make the problem worse.

The nut butter recipe is high in raw vegetarian fat.  It is an excerpt
from my cookbook, which I am still madly working on.  Typically the nut
butter treats recipe is something people "go nuts" over.  I made some to
take to work  recently and my staff gobbled them up like they were
starving.  I think their bodies were starving - starved for those raw
vegetarian fats.  Also if you are  returning to all raw for the first
time in a while, make sure you have enough protein foods to help your
energy level.


regards

roberta