As a newcomer to the raw community, I would like to introduce myself.

I was born in 1972 near Paris (my parents are Vietnamese). Until 1996,
my diet was mostly cooked, including meat and a lot of rice. As I am a
martial arts practitioner (about 12 hours a week), I didn't have too
many health problems, except that I was a rather nervous person, and
had some acne, and hair problems too. Maybe I was a too thin (1m79
= 5ft.10, 62kg=136 lbs), but nothing serious.

Then, I began to read a few books about health and nutrition: among
them, one of the most fascinating was H. Shelton's about fasting. I
was then convinced that fasting could help me reach a superior health
and free myself from (cooked) meat-addiction.

So, I went on a 10 day-(water) fast, beginning on Oct, 28th
1996. During that period, I found it hard to continue martial arts
training (even Tai Chi was difficult, because I felt extremely
cold). I wondered why I couldn't perform as well as Dr. Tanner or a
few others.

Then, I began eating mostly raw. Two weeks later, as I discovered
Burger's book ("Instinctotherapie : le manger vrai"), I was so
impressed that I gave up cooked food and dairy products. However, as I
don't think that instinctotherapy is the ultimate truth, I eat all
sorts of sprouted grains (including cereals). I sometimes (2 or 3
times a week) eat raw fish (my favorite one is salmon, but mackerel
tastes good too). I tried raw meat too (chicken, pork, beef, sheep),
but I found it hard to chew and I didn't like it much anyway. Besides,
I am still afraid of parasites, so I think I will do without meat, at
least for a while.

During the first two months, the major problems were:
1) I was too thin : although I ate a lot, I was unable to regain
weight (57kg=125 lbs).
2)Family pressure was hard to resist too ("see how skinny you are, you
should eat cheese, bread, etc..."). Moreover, I was unable to train in
martial arts for more than 1 hour, because I felt a lack of energy.
Although my health improved with regard to some aspects, especially
nervosity, I was less and less confident I could one day regain an
acceptable level of energy.

At the beginning of January, I began to feel better, and (miracle?
detox finished? adaptation of the digestive system to raw food?), my
weight increased rapidly (Feb, 8th : 68 kg=149 lbs; now stable). Of
course, I needed a lot of raw fish, so I am now convinced RAF is
useful.

Now, my RAF weekly intake is about 1 lb of fish. I am now globally
satisfied of my health state, but a few problems remain :

1) Overeating : for a while (~3 weeks), I was dates-addict (I could
eat almost 2 lbs a day). I also had problems with almonds, hazelnuts,
walnuts, avocadoes. The only solution I have found so far is not to
buy too much of those, because the most difficult part when I start
eating is to STOP! Fortunately, coconuts seem to be a good alternative
to avos.

2) Too much fruit, especially in winter when few vegetables are
available. But now I am trying to eat more salad, endives (and
sprouted grains, of course). My stools are still a bit too soft (but
maybe this results from overeating).

3) My acne is coming back (although it is less abundant), and my
body's secretions and excretions smell worse than 3 months ago : am I
still detoxing from 24 years of cooked diet, or intoxing from
overeating (or non organically grown fruits)?

4) And... I waste too much time reading about nutrition and surfing on
the Web (but I can't help it).

I hope my posting will be of interest to others from the raw
community. Actually, raw-food and all the information I have gathered
so far have been of great help for me to make my mind clearer about
lots of questions.

Best, JLT.