Dear Robin,

Your questions are good ones, and asked frequently.  There is a lot of
misinformation out there, and many people are surprised to learn the answers
to these questions.  I'll answer them below.

In a message dated 3/5/01 11:16:27 AM Eastern Standard Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:

<< First of all, what about protein and fats. I know we don't need a lot of
 these (definitely much less than the NOrth American diet contains) but we
 do need some for muscle building and for the maintenance of equilibrium
 within the body. I'm thinking particularly of women who need a certain
 amount of fat in their bodies to achieve healthy rereproductive capacity.

**You are right, of course, that we do need some protein and fat in our diet.
 What very few people understand is that there is both protein and fat in All
plant foods.  Protein is the building block of cell tissue, so every single
living cell -- plant or animal -- contains protein. Enzymes, the very thing
we talk so much about with raw foods, are specialized proteins.  Though there
is not a lot of protein in fruit, it is all we need.  A human baby gets
between 1 and 2% protein in breast milk at the time in it's life when it is
growing the fastest, and therefore its protein needs are highest.  Fruit
supplies, on average, just as much protein as human breast milk, and is more
than sufficient for any human's needs.

**Plant foods -- including fruit -- also supply ample fat, in the form of
fatty acids.  Fats perform the same roles in plant cells as they do in ours,
and just as they are found in all of our body's cells, they are found
throughout plant cells as well, obviously in differing quantities.  Avocados
have lots of fat, oranges much less.  Leafy greens also are loaded with fatty
acids.

**Though most of our bodies are used to concentrated sources of both fat and
protein, when given the chance, and only fed the most physiologically
appropriate human diet -- fruit and leafy greens -- they become much better
able to efficiently assimilate and use the small amounts of protein and fats
found in plant foods.

**The generally accepted neccessary quantities of these macro nutrients is
way over-stated because it's based on the apparent needs of the average
person.  But the average person is creating heart disease or cancer as we
speak -- not well, and not functioning efficiently.  It hardly makes sense to
try to understand the needs of the human body by looking at a poorly
functioning example of one.

**The same can be said for the micronutrients -- vitamins, minerals, enzymes,
and other phyto-nutrients.  Our needs are much smaller than believed, when
the body is functioning properly and efficiently -- and this Only happens on
the diet that our bodies are designed for -- primarily fruit and leafy
greens.  Like the other primates, we do NOT have the appropriate physiology
to process and break down the toxic by-products of a heavy protein diet.  Our
physiology bears little resemblance to that of the carnivores and omnivores
who are endowed with the ability to quickly and efficiently eliminate these
toxic wastes created by consuming large amounts of protein.

**Of course the average person is also cooking most of their food, and
rendering the majority of the nutrients, both macro and micro, unusable.

 Along these lines, are you going to try to tel us that a foetus can develop
 quite well if the mother eats a diet of mostly fruit and some veggies?

**Absolutely.  Just as in all of the other anthropoid primates, and in fact,
most of the animals on the planet.

 Also, what about the bowel system? Yes, what you say about cleansing the
 body so it can adjust to a light diet makes sense. However, much fruit has
 diarrhetic (spelling?) qualities which can wreak havoc with the bodies. I'm
 thinking both of the high water content and of the high fibre content.
  >>
**Neither high water content nor high fiber content will cause diarrhea in a
healthy body.  In fact, both will often prevent it.  Our digestive tracts are
extremely long relative to other animals, and require fiber in all of our
foods for proper processing.  We are over 70% water, and will become
partially dehydrated if not consuming a diet of mostly high-water content
food.  Eating nothing but fruit and salad, I never have diarrhea -- or any
other sign of sickness or disease.  In fact, I went from being extremely ill
to being perfectly healthy, and have not been sick one day in almost 14
years.

**I hope this helps answer your questions Robin.

Namaste,

Loren