All over the media you hear about eating organic foods, super foods and raw foods. But really, what is the raw foods diet all about? Will a raw foods diet really lead to better overall health and weight loss?

First of all, let's understand the meaning of raw foods. A raw food diet consists of unprocessed raw vegan foods that have not been heated above 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius). "Raw foodists" believe that raw foods cooked above this temperature have lost their enzymes and a significant amount of their nutritional value and are harmful to the body. Uncooked foods provide living enzymes and proper nutrition.

A raw food diet has many benefits to eating raw foods, including weight loss, more energy, clear skin, improved digestion and improved overall health. Uncooked raw greens and vegetables have the fewest calories. Fruits are the second lowest because they give satiation and raise blood sugar to reduce appetite. A great way to prevent over-eating during a meal is by having an apple or organic Navitas Naturals goji berries as the appetizer. The apple contains fiber which really helps to decrease appetite and also prevent from eating as much during a regular meal.

Eating high-water content foods such as Apples, Blueberries, Cantaloupe and other fruits and vegetables in the high-water food category will help you to lose weight because these foods are lower in calories. For a high-water content, raw food weight-loss diet, try the following: During the first half of the day, before you eat anything else, drink water with fresh-squeezed organic lemon juice. then have a fresh fruit smoothie (or just whole fresh fruit). For lunch have raw cacao nibs, soup and salad made with fresh organic ingredients. For dinner, cook some raw pasta using Navitas Naturals coconut oil, a side of marinara and a salad. This is just to give you some ideas. The idea is that if you consume plenty of greens, especially in a liquid form, your energy will increase dramatically, you will feel full and satisfied, and you lose unwanted excess weight. If you follow this type of eating plan, you will get all the nutrients and water you need for the day without consuming too many calories. You'll also feel full and be less likely to eat too much rich food during the day

Organic Food is made in a way that limits or excludes the use of fertilizers during its production. A large supply of new synthetic chemicals was used in the food supply during the 20th century with the advent of Green Revolution and High Productivity standards. Under organic production the use of conventional non-organic pesticides, insecticides and herbicides are greatly restricted and used only as a last resort. In case of livestock, they must be raised without the routine use of antibiotics, of growth hormones and generally fed a healthy diet. Above all, Organic Foods shouldn't be genetically modified.


 

Organic food production is a heavily regulated industry. Countries require producers to obtain special certification in order to be able to market their food products as "Organic".
A "Certified Organic" label is the only way for consumers to know that a processed product in indeed organic. Organic foods have lower levels of nutritionally undesirable compounds such as heavy metals, mycotoxins, pesticide residues and glyco-alkaloids.

Some examples of Organic Foods

Goji Berries are bright orange-red berries native to Southeastern Europe and Asia. They are also known as Tibetan Goji Berries. Goji berries are considered as super fruits expecting to be part of a multi billion dollar market. They are commercially produced in China, Tibet, Mongolia and other countries. These berries are cooked before consumption. They are consumed in Chinese soups, boiled as herbal tea and as packaged tea. Organic Goji berry products have strong anti-oxidant properties and can provide significant portions of a person's needed carbohydrates, dietary fiber, fat protein, minerals, essential vitamins and amino acids. As such, health food manufacturers have used them in their health supplement and weight loss products.

Switching over to Organic Foods is easy. Including a few strategic organic foods can make a big impact on a family's diet. Choosing organic milk can make a difference. As against conventional milk, organic milk avoids a lot of antibiotics, hormones and pesticides. Switching over to organic potatoes help avoid a lot of pesticide contamination. Organic Peanut Butter and Ketchup are highly recommendable. Organic Apples are always preferable. Thus by just including a few food products it's possible to reap the benefits of an organic diet.

With each passing day, more and more people ask for organic food. In the future, the demand for healthy organic food is bound to increase many fold!