PROBLEMS WITH A LOW-FAT RAW FOOD DIET

“I have a question for you. I really like your advice, and it makes a lot of sense, but every time I try to go on a low fat, raw food diet I feel like I'm going to go crazy. I've been on a raw food diet for about a year, and feel great almost all the time, and I'd say that 90% of my caloric intake comes from fat and protein. The last time I tried to go on an all fruit diet, I stuck with it a month, eating massive amounts of fruit (at least way more than I ever have before) and massive amounts of veggies and greens. I started to lose all of my strength and after a month I felt weaker than I ever have in my life (although my bodyweight remained the same), also my teeth got really sensitive. I've considered a few possibilities:

“I did the diet wrong (I'd think that I should feel pretty good after a month)-actually, I think this is the best possibility. I tend to do that.
You're wrong. A low fat raw food diet isn't the best.
People have different metabolic types, and I happen to be one that requires more fat and less fruit.
What actually is happening is I need more protein or something for some reason than some other people, and what my body is screaming at me for is protein, not fat, and maybe I should consider eating something like spirulina instead of hemp seeds (a major staple in my current diet, which, by the way, I feel pretty good on).

“Anyway, I was wondering what you had to say about it, because you know a ton more about this than I do, it seems. Thanks a million!” - Dave Wood

ANSWER:

Dear Dave, thanks for considering my point of view. I must say that I've tried many times myself to eat a raw, low-fat diet, only to find myself in the following situation:

- The diet fell apart after a few weeks following a period of extreme cravings for unhealthy foods.
- Out of fear that I was doing something wrong, I gave up completely and did something else.
- I kept trying other diets, which were unsatisfactory, so eventually I always found myself wanting to try eating a low fat raw diet again.

After these many attempts, I have learned some great lessons. First, now I know that I didn't really know how to do it in the first place! I thought I was doing it the right way, but in fact I wasn't.

I thought I had enough information to follow the right diet just because I had read a book on the subject, but in fact it wasn't enough information at all!

I can't really give you that much information in the context of answering your question in an e-zine, but I can tell you that:

1) Chances are great that you didn't do the diet correctly. Often, just reading a book on the subject isn't enough to get the right kind of knowledge. It usually takes more information as well as actually meeting people who are living this kind of lifestyle who can help to coach you. But since you haven't given me any information on *how* you actually did a low-fat raw diet, I cannot really comment on that.

2) It's not really about me being right or wrong. I didn't invent the concept of a low-fat diet. It's what most successful health programs recommend (see today's article). The concept of eating raw is also one that makes sense, but one thing I know for sure is that the high-fat raw diet is a recipe for disaster. You get to make your choice between a high-fat and a low-fat diet. Personally, I see absolutely no reason to choose the high-fat diet in view of the predictably bad results it brings and the amount of research we have to back up the actual dangers of following such a diet.

3) Metabolic types are a fantasy created by those who wish to tell people exactly what they want to hear: “You don't have to change. Just keep on eating the same foods, as long as they're good for your type.” If you open a physiology book you'll understand that difference in metabolism are very small among people with roughly the same size. Generally, less than 5%.

I'm personally someone who's walked around for many years thinking that because of my particular “metabolic type,” I wasn't able to thrive on a low-fat, raw (or mostly raw) diet. I actually started to believe the metabolic typing books and did all their tests only to find out that I needed a high-fat, high-protein diet! This solution proved to be terrible, and the fact is that once I learned to eat properly, I was able to thrive on a low-fat diet with none of the problems I had experienced in the past.

4) Generally, high-protein foods are also high-fat foods. People who say they crave protein actually crave calories. It's been found that protein-foods have the highest “satiation” factor, followed closely by carbohydrates. Fats are last on the list: they're the worst.

What it means is that if you're deficient in energy intake, you'll start craving all sorts of things: usually proteins or carbohydrates (bread, potatoes, etc.). So it's possible that someone craving proteins is actually not eating enough to meet his/her energy needs. Or more likely not enough of the kinds of foods that will provide enough energy to meet her needs.

I would like to add that, unless one is experiencing serious growth (teenagers, training bodybuilders, etc.) the protein needs remain relatively the same for each individual of the same size. I highly doubt that someone could need “way more protein” than someone else because of their particular metabolism.