Dukan Diet

The title says it all – Becoming Raw: The Essential Guide to Raw Vegan Diets. This is most certainly not a book you read through once, put up on the shelf and forget about. I know Ill be referring to this exhaustive guide repeatedly.

Although over 45 recipes are included, this is not your typical raw food recipe book.  In fact, this isnt your "typical" book about the raw food diet, and Ive read oodles of them in the past two years.

Authors Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina are both registered dietitians. They offer scientifically sound answers to tough questions about raw foods, furnish nutrition guidelines and practical information, and show how to design a raw vegan diet that meets recommended nutrient intakes. Theres no biased information in this book; its just full of facts and you can draw your own conclusions.

Despite having healed myself from morbid obesity and a host of chronic health conditions by adopting a raw foods lifestyle, Ive met my share of both skeptics and critics along the way, as has, Im sure, most anyone whos been raw for any length of time. From friends to family members to medical professionals, weve all undoubtedly heard the questions and concerns:

Trust me when I say, this is the definitive guide in addressing each of these questions and many more — and not from opinion or even personal experience, but from scientific scrutiny that is referenced throughout the book.

The authors also look at specific health problems – cancer, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, etc. – and how the nutrients in raw plant sources address those ailments.

Rynn Berry, historical advisor to the North American Vegetarian Society, contributes a chapter on the history of the raw food movement, which I found fascinating. In addition to being introduced to the early pioneers of the lifestyle, I gained a better understanding of where the various "sects" originated — fruitarianism, sproutarianism, gourmet raw cuisine, and the Christian and Essene raw food lifestyles.

Its well known that raw vegan diets tend to be low in calories and high in fiber, a perfect  choice for folks who want to lose a few or many pounds. Ive managed to shed all of my excess weight without counting a calorie, carb or fat gram; however, having done so, I now want to ensure that my cells are fueled with an optimal amount of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Ive also moved from a sedentary lifestyle to a very active (dare I say, athletic) one, so I know both my caloric and protein requirements have changed dramatically.

That said, if youre someone who likes to see data broken down into charts, tables and graphs, youll have plenty of eye candy here. My new best friend is Table 5.3: Calories, protein, fat, carbohydrate, and water content in raw food. My BFF spans six pages and comprises just about every food imaginable – fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, grains, and more!

The authors then went on to educate me in determining how much caloric intake (energy) Ill need to maintain a healthy body weight and adequate nutrient intakes (protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamins, minerals) for the long term. These are all broken down by individual foods into easy-to-reference tables as well.

Whether raw vegan or not, Becoming Raw is an excellent resource for anyone interested in understanding the relationship between food and health. I definitely recommend adding a copy to your home library today.