While many people thrive on 100% raw diets, others may find 100% raw to
be too difficult for them. Some of the problems one can experience on 100%
raw are: body weight too low, lack of groundedness (i.e., inability to
concentrate, apathy), and occasional weakness.

Before discussing cooked food, it should be noted that there are some raw
solutions to the above problems:
* body weight too low - add or increase amount of, dates and nuts in your diet.
Advocates of fermented foods report that raw seed cheeses and (fermented)
almond cream help maintain weight.
* lack of groundedness - often a sign that the diet has too much fruit in it.
Reduce fruit, increase vegetables, especially leafy green and root vegetables.
Eating (short) sprouts in place of fruit can help also.
* weakness - usually a sign that the body is in a cleansing stage. You can
usually reduce cleansing by eating more (raw) food. Deep breathing exercises
are very helpful here.

A number of raw food authors suggest a diet that is 70-90% raw, with the
remainder lightly cooked foods, as a suggested target/compromise diet.
However, as raw foods promote cleansing, one must be careful in choosing
cooked foods to avoid causing undesirable cleansing reactions (cravings,
stomach pains, cramps, etc.)

If you have a mixed diet, the cooked part should be:

1) lightly cooked, no deep frying or microwaving; also avoid baked food
2) relatively simple foods - not complex
3) unseasoned or very lightly seasoned. Avoid or minimize use of strong
spices like nutmeg, cloves, garlic, onions, hot peppers, as these have
side effects.
4) No salt or sugar added as these chemicals are well know for causing
cravings (in fact, they are addictive drugs).
5) unprocessed or minimally processed. Instead of ordinary bread, eat
sprout bread (Essene bread). Instead of junky cookies, make cookie
substitutes - dehydrated sprout "cookies". Avoid manufactured junk
foods such as potato chips, soda drinks, candy, etc.
6) no stimulants, depressants, or other poisons - coffee, alcohol, drugs.
Needless to say, alcohol/drug use (including use of marijuana) is harmful
and will neutralize the benefits of a raw food diet.

Examples of bad cooked foods - anything fried, heavily seasoned or salted,
or complex, elaborate recipes with dozens of ingredients. Examples
of cooked food that is "good" in the sense that it probably won't cause
as many problems, include steamed vegetables on rice, boiled potatoes,
steamed sweet corn (corn is delicious raw, no cooking needed). Of course,
raw is best!

Others are invited to comment on the above. Eating the wrong cooked
foods can neutralize some or all of the benefits one can receive
from raw foods, so discretion in consuming cooked foods is a
good idea.

Tom Billings
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