Fwd: Getting to Know a Raw Vegan Family

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Greetings: Getting to Know a Raw Vegan Family By Tracy B. McGinnis http://www.vegetarianbaby.com/interviews/gardendiet.shtml With several e-books to their credit, ranging in topics from Raising Raw-Vegan Children, to The Raw-Vegans Holiday Survival Guide, Storm and Jinjee Talifero of The Ekaya Institute have made it their life's passion to educate, and motivate both young and old on the benefits of raw vegan

diets and how to live a healthier life. Storm and Jinjee head up Wilderness Adventure, a summer program where extreme challenges and outdoor adventures are enjoyed by young adults. Their Fine Art & Technology program focuses its efforts on teaching bookbinding, print making, website development, computer animation, and digital video production. An important cause, which they incorporate into their own family, is their nutrition program encouraging kids to choose healthy foods. The "Take a Fruit Break" campaign, at www.takeafruitbreak.com, has been running for five years promoting fruit as a healthy alternative to junk food. They have written a book on the topic and also spearhead an advertising campaign which continues to receive attention from sponsors such as Radio Disney. I recently had the opportunity to speak with Storm and Jinjee about their books, their programs, and what they see for

the future of future of raw-vegan diets. Storm, you have been eating a raw diet for 27 years now, can you tell us what the raw movement is all about? I think it's about taking your health into your own hands, thinking for yourself, and trusting your own experiences. If you listen to society then you aren't going to accept the raw diet. If you trust your own body and mind, then you are going to thrive on a raw vegan diet. I think the raw movement is going to help a lot of people to get healthy and ultimately change the world. We're a very sick society, and people are being poisoned through food so that they are not able to think or act clearly from that place of divine guidance that we need to act on in order for this planet to have continuation, I think. What are the three most important reasons to eat only raw food? First, heating food changes its molecular structure so that it contains a

high level of toxicity. There are three components in foods at the most basic level: proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. When you heat proteins they become cancer-causing free radicals. When you heat fats they become trans-fats which are lethal to cells. When you heat carbohydrates they develop toxins such as acrylamide and other carcinogens and mutagens that cause cancer and damage our DNA. This is why we have degenerated into a sick society. If it weren't for our planet's addiction to heated foods, we would have developed into healthier, stronger, and more disease-resistant strains of peoples. Second, cooked food lacks the enzymes needed for digestion. Science is trying to write off this theory by saying that food enzymes are killed by stomach juices. However, the scientific testing uses cooked foods so the enzymes are destroyed in heating before the stomach juices ever have a chance to kill the enzymes. Enzymes

in raw foods definitely help break down the foods in the stomach, saving the body an immense amount of energy. When you eat cooked foods the body has to manufacture larger quantities of digestive enzymes, which leads to sluggishness after eating, chronic fatigue, and premature aging in the long-term. Third, cooked foods lack vitamins and minerals, as they are destroyed in heat. So you are not getting nourished when you eat cooked foods. This makes you overeat in an attempt to nourish your body. But overeating doesn't help at all; it only hurts you further. So the body starts to decay and go back to the earth. You can fight it with vigorous exercising and maintaining a strong spirit, which many people do quite valiantly. But when you add a raw-vegan diet to the equation, then your body can really live, really sing, really enjoy life! Your cells are nourished, your brain is nourished, your nerves are nourished,

your tissues are more elastic so they resist gravity better, and your organs are healthy which has a very direct relationship to your emotional life. You have traveled and studied all over the world. What do you feel was the most important influence in your life on deciding to keep a raw diet? The Essene Gospel of Peace which is available free online. It was originally supposed to be part of the Bible, but it got locked up in a safe in the Vatican where it was discovered in the 1930's and translated from Aramaic. It is about Jesus talking to some terminally ill people about how fasting would cure them and how eating a diet of raw foods would prevent them from becoming ill again. In the Extreme Essene Diet Mini E-book you write about living a longer, healthier life and enjoying peak performance and inner peace. What are the three most important things people can do to achieve those goals?

First, eat a diet of only raw-vegan foods. Second, eat only when hungry, and never overeat. Third, exercise daily. What are the most common misconceptions about the Essene diet? There is a question about goat's milk which Jesus recommends to someone in the text. I personally don't consume any animal products. Some people believe it is necessary. I think it's a personal choice. You have to figure out what variation of the raw diet works for your body and lifestyle. The Essene gospel is a basic guide, but the specifics you have to work out for yourself. You wrote an e-book entitled, Raising Raw-Vegan Children. What are the most important factors a raw diet plays in a child's lifelong development? Are there any other factors to consider? Raw food provides the raw fats essential to brain development in utero and in early life. Processed junk food which contains glutamates and sugar interferes with the

child's nervous system and overall health, which is why we are seeing all these new conditions such as ADD, ADHD, hyperactivity, etc. So a raw diet helps keep your kids free of these types of problems. But you have to make sure your child eats whenever hungry. Three meals a day might not always be enough on the raw diet. We buy crates of fresh organic fruits, so whenever they are hungry our kids can always reach for an apple or an orange. Variety is very important. Some raw families became stuck on just a few different foods, and their children's health was really damaged. Raw children tend to be a little thinner than normal. Our children are two lbs. underweight each, according to the national charts. This can be difficult to accept since we are conditioned to like seeing plump children. But if the child is healthy, energetic, smart, and happy, then there is nothing to worry about. Our kids are extremely athletic,

intelligent, and emotionally poised. People notice that there is something different about them. Is there an ideal age to introduce an all-live diet to children? Is it ever too late? Ideally, a child will be all-live from conception. However, it is never too late. Do you or your children ever fall stray from your raw diets, and if so, how do you deal with that? We went from a raw-vegan diet to a cooked-vegan diet for a couple of years. The youngest wasn't born yet, so she is the only one of the kids that has been 100% raw all of her life. It makes a big difference. When we are at parties, the older kids get tempted by the non-raw treats. But the youngest will often just look at the food like "What is this?" She doesn't seem to consider non-raw food edible. It's amazing. Once you have tasted the cooked foods, the addiction stays with you for life. It is going to be a battle keeping the kids

raw once they get out into the world socially on their own. They will probably explore other ways of eating. But I think they have a good chance of returning to the raw-vegan diet because of their solid start at home. You provide an extensive list of how to get children to eat a raw diet, including things like exploring wildlife, making foods together, and making friends with organic farmers. What are some of the best ways to overcome the peer pressure that children get from friends about food choices? Homeschooling. Educating your child. Talking to your child about the benefits of raw foods and the harm of cooked food. Sending extra fruit to school for your child to share with other kids. What are your suggestions for parents concerned their children aren't getting enough nutrients on a raw diet? You need to get foods as fresh as possible. Grow a garden together. Nothing can beat that! Kids

love to eat right out of the garden. Even an indoor kitchen garden. Experiment and find a vegetable juice concoction that appeals to them. Adding apples, tomatoes, or lemons to vegetable juice can make it yummy. Find some vegetables that the kids will eat. Mine love celery and carrots. Make a salad dressing that they like. Tahini dressing is a favorite of my kids. Let the kids help make the food. It makes them much more open to eating it! What do you feel are the contributing factors to the health crisis children are facing today? Junk food and TV. They go hand-in-hand. And they are convenient for parents. We can farm kids out to junk food and TV, and they become very easy to manage, leaving us free to do whatever we want. It's a tempting thing; almost nobody can resist it. But we have to be aware that the price is very high. We are basically robbing our kids of their childhood, their health, and their

future. We have to face that. And then just say no. Not my family you don't! You take that junk food and that TV down the road, because we don't want none of that around here! You kind of have to be fanatical about it, because it is insidious. I think of it as the Devil. Not really, but just as a metaphor, to help me avoid it like the plague. You touch upon exercise for children as an important part of healthy living. How do you keep children interested in exercise with factors such as television and video dominating many children's lives? By getting rid of the TV. And the VCR too. And making exercise into play through things like stick fighting and quality time together through hiking and adventuring. Are there any drawbacks to a raw diet? Risks? The risk is deficiency. If you stick with the raw diet, eventually you child will be hungry enough to eat the good foods. And they will taste good

because of hunger. But if you go back and forth because you are afraid the child isn't getting nourished on raw food, then it gets much trickier. Walk up the center. Hold fast to the path and you will see the rewards. What are the common misconceptions about raw diets? That you don't get to eat food that tastes good. Nothing is further from the truth. When you eat a raw diet you become sensitive to taste, and the real taste of the real foods of this planet are divine! Most people have never actually tasted a carrot. First, their taste buds have been too over-stimulated by chemical flavorings to be able to really taste a subtle flavor. Second, most people haven't had a fresh organic carrot picked right from the earth and eaten immediately. You can't compare that with a chemically grown carrot that has been sitting in a diesel truck and on the shelf for a month. Also, variety. There are thousands of varieties

of fruits and vegetables. And when you start mixing two or three together, there are millions of combinations. What are the key components to include in a child's raw diet? You have to include fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and oils. Flax oil, olive oil, and hempseed oil are the best. They must be cold-pressed and organic. And as fresh as possible. We have numerous recipes in our e-book that include all of these foods. With the popularity of organic food and prices in this industry soaring, how can you make a raw diet affordable? We offer many suggestions in our e-book, such as buying only those items under a dollar a pound, buying directly from farmers, buying in bulk, and obtaining the grocery store's left-over organic produce at the end of the day. What is the best way for a person to start on a raw-vegan diet? Many people find it helpful to jump-start with a water fast,

fruit fast or vegetable juice fast. Others like to go to a retreat. Many people who attend our retreats do so to go raw and end up staying raw. What do you see for the future of raw vegan diets? I'm convinced that the raw-vegan diet is fast becoming a major trend. I think someone has to write a best-seller along the lines of The Atkins Diet or The Zone, in conjunction with an M.D. and then it will sweep the nation. To learn more about The Ekaya Institute programs or to get a copy of Storm & Jinjee's e-books that cover all of the topics in this interview in depth, please visit their website. Storm and Jinjee can be contacted directly by e-mailing them at info (AT) thegardendiet (DOT) com CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTOS OF THE FAMILY http://www.vegetarianbaby.com/interviews/gardendietphotos.shtml Fidyl Live Simply So That Others May Simply Live