Why are Greens Good for me?
QUESTION: I don’t understand chemistry, can you please explain to me in a simpler way why greens are good for me?
VICTORIA: The sunshine hits the greens and the process of photosynthesis occurs. The sunshine turns into chlorophyll which is the base molecule for any carbohydrate, that is, sugar. There is no carbohydrate in the world that did not originate from chlorophyll. Then most of the carbohydrates from the chlorophyll are split between the fruits and the roots. We all know how sweet the fruits are, and the purpose of this sweetness is to attract you and me and the rest of the fruit-loving creatures. When we eat the fruit, we help the plant to propagate their species through spreading the seeds. That is why when the seeds are ready to be spread the fruit becomes beautifully colored and delicious.
The other large portion of the sweet carbohydrates is transferred to the roots. One would ask, why to the roots? Even though almost all roots are sweet, such as carrots, yams, potatoes, beets, jicama and others, they are not attractive. They look like hair covered with dirt and they are hidden in the ground. However, the plants go to great lengths to accumulate sugar in their roots, because the health and the mere existence of plants depends on the richness of the soil. Continue Reading
Can we Eat Raw Food in a Cold Climate?
This is one of the most frequently asked questions about eating raw. People commonly believe that without a bowl of cooked food on a chilly winter day they would not be able to stay warm. I know many persons who quit the raw food lifestyle because they were afraid that they would become too cold during the winter.
Let us take a closer look at this situation. Would a quarter pound of rice physically keep a 160 lbs body warm? In order to get warmed by it, one would have to fill a bathtub with warm rice and sit in it for 20 minutes.
So why do we feel warmer after consuming cooked food?
A hot meal, a cup of coffee or an ice-cold shot of vodka warm our body in the same manner. When any impure substances get into our blood through the walls of the intestines, they irritate our adrenals, the endocrine glands located above the kidneys. The adrenals immediately begin to produce epinephrine, norepinephrine and a variety of steroid hormones. These hormones stimulate our sympathetic nervous system, which is why we feel awake at first. They also force our heart to beat faster and to pump larger amounts of blood through our body, which makes us feel warm. This feeling doesn’t last long and we pay a high price for it. After 10-15 minutes our body gets exhausted from performing extra work, the heart requires rest, the nervous system becomes inhibited, and we feel tired, sleepy and even colder than before. However we remember only the feeling of getting warmer after eating cooked food and repeat such stimulation again and again. This harmful practice wears the body out and by the end of the winter many people feel exhausted and depleted.
Green Smoothies and Candida
QUESTION: “Does the large amount of fruit found in green smoothies cause a problem for those fighting Candida?”
VICTORIA: In my experience I’ve noticed that those who are drinking green smoothies are having fewer complaints about Candida. I know several people who have been very sick with Candida. One of them is Elizabeth who I quote in my book ‘Green For Life.’ I have a whole testimony from her. 
She had a very bad case of Candida and she was completely healed from it. Another is my friend Irene from Denver who had a very terrible case of Candida and now she doesn’t have it. She said she can eat any fruits and it doesn’t bother her. What she cannot eat is any fats. She says as soon as she begins to eat any fats like olive oil, nuts or avocados, her Candida comes back.
I understand that Candida results from very low immunity, and what else can improve immunity more than good nutrition? I believe that most of us have nutritional deficiencies. It doesn’t matter where we live. This is the result of our process of civilization. In my book ’12 Steps to Raw Foods’ (and I want to emphasize that it is quite different from the previous book ‘Raw Family’, about 90% different) I describe my anthropological and historical research that humans have been eating lots of greens and predominately raw food all through history. They did occasionally eat meats, but they were eating raw foods predominately, they were not eating a lot, they ate no processed food and they constantly consumed greens. Continue Reading
Greens: A New Food Group
Blessings to everyone for the New Year. May the next century be filled with health, happiness and green smoothies!!! Prioritizing your health by adding more greens to your diet is the perfect New Years resolution. I thought we could start 2010 by contemplating the value of leafy greens and the idea that they should be a separate food group. Please enjoy this article from Victoria Boutenko.
I wonder how greens got classified as vegetables? Why do we call many completely different food groups, vegetables, while they look different and contain different sets of nutrients? A produce manager from a local health food store complained to me that his customers often got confused when looking for a particular ingredient among 150+ pieces of produce all gathered under the single name: vegetables. This man had worked in the produce section for more then ten years. He suggested that the produce section be divided into several different smaller groups of plant foods with specific similarities, like roots (carrots, beets, daikon, etc.) flowers (broccoli, cauliflower, artichoke, etc.) and non-sweet fruit (cucumber, zucchini, squash, tomato, etc.). Combining foods with similar nutritional values would not only help shoppers to find necessary ingredients faster, but also would help them to become familiar with more plant foods and increase their variety of vegetarian food consumption.
Obviously, people have never considered plants to be important enough to be classified properly. Even at the regular supermarket one can see that other food departments have more detailed classifications. For example, the meat department is divided into poultry, fish, and meat, which in turn is subdivided into smaller sections, like veal, ground meats, bones, sub-products. Every item is carefully categorized, specifying which part of the carcass it is from. Cheeses have their own specification. Nobody would ever classify cheese and meat together in one group like “sandwich food”, because it would be inconvenient and unclear. Yet this kind of confusion and error continually occurs in the produce section at the present time. Some errors are quite serious, to such a degree that it could cause health problems. As an example of this, placing starchy roots in the same category with tomatoes and cucumbers could prompt customers to make improper food combining choices.
Ginger in Green Smoothies
In this cold weather, I wanted to introduce you to ginger root. Fresh ginger root tastes great in most green smoothies; namely kale, collards, spinach and dandelion, and is especially nice with apple. It adds warmth to your smoothie and strengthens the immune system. Feels good on a sore throat too. Cut off anywhere from half an inch to an inch of the fresh root, slice off the dry peel and chop into bits small enough for your blender to handle. Blend with the other ingredients of your smoothie.
Enjoy!
Look after your Colon these Holidays
The holidays are always linked directly to the guts simply because we eat more during the holiday season. Hence there couldn’t be a better topic for December, than our beloved colons.
It is clearly evident that what occurs in our guts is directly correlated to what we eat with our mouths, since what we put in our mouths ends up in our intestines. We place a great deal of effort into preparing and decorating the things we put in our mouths, but we barely remember that this food has to be digested. My husband Igor likes to say, “How intriguing it is, that such an unattractive part of the human body plays the most significant role in our overall well-being. The unpleasant smell makes it hard for us to recognize how precious our colon truly is.”
I understood the importance of keeping this organ healthy when I listened to my friend, a doctor and surgeon. He has told me many stories about a few of his patients who had part of their colons removed due to serious colon problems. These patients often reported that other illnesses which they had had for years, seemingly not related to the colon, instantly disappeared after the surgery. Some of these illnesses were: psoriasis, asthma, allergy, PMS, fatigue, depression, irritability, stomach pain, weight gain, headaches, wrinkles, insomnia, varicose veins, frequent infections, and many others. I was especially impressed with one particular story of his:
A woman was suffering from a chronic depression for many years. She felt so lonely and rejected that when she heard she had polyps in her colon, she insisted on having part of her colon removed because she was hoping this dramatic surgery would draw the attention of her relatives and friends. However, her depression disappeared completely with the removal of her colon. Despite the intense pain she was in, she woke up the morning after the surgery with a big smile on her face. Since that time she no longer suffered from depression. I find this story truly remarkable. However, I believe that in many instances, in order to get rid of their illness, people can avoid the surgical removing of their colon by just keeping their colon healthy. So what does it mean to take good care of our intestines?
I have come to the conclusion that one of the most effective ways to maintain colon health is the regular consumption of the green smoothies. An improvement in intestinal functions was observed by most of the participants of the Roseburg study. In this study, 27 participants drank one quart of green smoothie for one month in addition to their regular diets (for more details, please read Green For Life.) Out of 27 participants, 24 reported improvements in their elimination and regular bowel movements 2-3 times a day, gentle elimination without discomfort, fast and complete elimination. 9 out of 27 reported that their elimination doubled in size.
Helping Children Become Healthier
Today’s post is a wonderful heartfelt article written by Valya Boutenko. Valya has been on raw food for most of her childhood and into her twenties, which as she shares was not always easy, but it meant she developed some unique views early in life. Valya has worked closely with inspiring many young people to be healthy and has developed a deep understanding of why children often rebel against nutritious food options.
Parents often ask me how they can make their children eat healthier. I tell them that they can’t make their children eat healthier, but they can inspire them to want to become healthier. It is not true that children don’t want to be healthy. Everyone wants to be strong, smart, and full of energy. What children are protecting themselves from when they say they don’t like healthy food, is the pressure to do what they don’t want to. If your children are revolting to the idea of health food, it means they have a will of their own. It is a sign that they want to choose for themselves, and this is a blessing.
Problems occur when we want a child to want something he or she does not want. In this case, it is important to consider what we would like the reason for the child’s action to be. Do we want our children to mindlessly obey our command and the commands of others? Do we want them to do what we tell them to out of fear of punishment? Or do we want our children to make decisions that are motivated by their own personal values?
In the words of Alfie Kohn, “Punishments and force produce only anger, defiance and a desire for revenge. They encourage power over reason, and crush delicate relationships between children and parents.” Punishments can make a child temporarily comply, but it’s unlikely that these kinds of tactics will teach children to make better decisions. When children know they will be punished for their actions, they deal with the situation in the most logical way, and begin to lie.
As Marshall B. Rosenberg writes in his book Nonviolent Communication, “I wonder whether people who proclaim the successes of punishment are aware of the countless instances of children who turn against what might be good for them simply because they choose to fight, rather than succumb, to coercion.”
So what is there to do? How can we help our children become healthy? I have noticed that children are highly susceptible to inspiration. When kids are around my brother and I, they start eating healthy things without our even mentioning raw foods. They can see for themselves how easy it is to eat good things, and how much fun it is to be healthy. As Krishnamurti once said, “To teach by example is not the best way to teach, it is the only way.” As parents, grandparents, and friends, you are one of children’s greatest influences. You can inspire them to make good choices.
I think there is no difference between children and adults. Grown-ups may have more life experience, we are all living this moment for the first time. There is nothing children love more, than to be spoken to as equals. They are so intelligent, that it is often unnecessary to simplify things for them. I am frequently amazed at the depth of understanding children possess. Sometimes children have been told to sit still and be quiet so regularly, that they are not sure how to communicate their true thoughts and feelings. In these situations questions like, “How was school?” are not enough to open their hearts and let them say what they feel. It is sad for me to see how often kids are hurtled into different diets without any clue of why it is so important.
When I speak to young humans about health, I try to make it very clear why I think it is so essential to be healthy. For me, health is truly the greatest gift there could be. To be healthy means to live a life without disease. It means being youthful throughout all of my life, recovering quickly from accidents, and having plenty of energy with which to manifest my dreams. Live foods have made me more alive! Continue Reading
Washing Fruits, Vegetables & Greens
‘How do you wash your fruits and vegetables to make sure that there are no harmful parasites or bacteria on them? Do you use hydrogen peroxide or apple cider vinegar?’”
I don’t usually wash my produce at all. Sometimes I use a little water. I have a garden in the back of my yard and I buy only organic food. Buying organic food is important and I buy my produce from a farmer’s market five months of the year, where I know the growers personally. I don’t even rinse them in tap water first because I understand that chlorine often destroys bacteria and other things that are good for us. For example, I believe that little bits of soil contain microorganisms and that these contribute to our B12 levels. I did research and found that some who follow a raw food diet are B12 deficient and some aren’t. By questioning those people, I found that those who thoroughly wash their produce usually have a B12 deficiency. They are not getting the microorganisms that stay on those greens. My answer is that I’m not afraid of parasites as much as I am afraid of chemicals. Parasites and humans have lived together for thousands of years, but chemicals are killing us now. I want less chemicals and a strong immune system. I rarely get sick anymore now.
‘I Chose to Live’ says Clent Manich
Clent Manich is an inspiration to all those that hear his story. After coming close to death, Clent was able to lose 226 pounds and beat diabetes by predominately drinking green smoothies and switching to a raw diet.
Clent’s green smoothie and weight loss experience is documented in Victoria’s latest book, Green Smoothie Revolution. Valya has also created a touching interview with Clent, who as you will see, is a very heart-felt and genuine person. We hope that many people will be inspired by his simple and stunning example.
Green Smoothie Retreat Helps Diabetic Reduce Insulin
I would like to share with you a unique true story from a diabetic who was able to reduce his insulin by drinking green smoothies with fruit for one week. Victoria sent this story and video out in her Raw Family news letters just after our latest Joy for Life Retreat.
We have two confirmed Joy For Life Retreats in 2010. In February there will be one at Pacific Palisades, Southern California and in August we will hold a retreat on Vancouver island. For more information please click here
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Robert has been working on our websites for more than four years. During this time he developed type 2 diabetes and was placed on insulin. Of course he has read tons of information about green smoothies since he has been creating multiple pages devoted to this topic. Robert was open to drinking green smoothies whenever he visited our office, however he was afraid to drink a lot of them because of their fruit content. At home Robert was trying to make smoothies with minimal amount of fruit, on other occasions often he would blend himself savory green smoothies.
Robert was able to make arrangements at his main job so that he could participate at our recent Joy for Life Retreat. He arrived Stewart Mineral Springs completely equipped with his blood sugar monitor and plenty of insulin on hand.
On October 11th all of us who participated in this program began consuming green smoothies every 3-4 hours. Robert noticed that after drinking a green smoothie his blood sugar rise, then it would come back down to normal within an hour after consuming the smoothie with fruit.
Here is Robert’ morning blood sugar levels during the retreat:
- First day – 190
- Second day – 150
- Third day – 129
- Fourth day – 78
- Fifth day – 70 in the morning and stable for the remainder of the retreat
Before sending this news letter I called Robert and asked what his blood sugar was. Robert was happy to report that his blood sugar has been staying within a normal frame and was 120 at the moment. Robert has not been taking insulin since October 11th, the first day of the retreat.. My web designer is so inspired about his health improvement that he continues to improve his diet. He stopped eating meat, caffeine and processed foods. He has also reduced the amount of oils and other fats in his diet. Robert is now drinking green smoothies twice a day.
He finds it remarkable that he is consuming sweet fruits like grapes, mangos, and bananas and that it doesn’t affect his diabetes.
Robert checks his blood sugar frequently and while the reading are sometimes slightly higher than normal his blood sugar is significantly lower than before the retreat.
- Seven Common Mistakes that Occur on Raw Foods
- Preview to Sergei and Valya’s latest films
- Do I have to Wear Glasses
- Hypothesis about Diabetes and Candida
- Our mission in life
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Victoria’s Green Smoothie Song
- Why you should add Wild Edibles to your Green Smoothie
- 15 Green Smoothies in 3 Minutes
- Deficiencies Cause Arthritis & Disease
- Your Body Never Makes Mistakes
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