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I have lived on the shores of Queen's Lake in southeast Virginia for almost
three years. In that time I have come to enjoy our quiet bird sanctuary, putting
out feeders and even posting continuously updated images of the feeders on the
Web
Click. But in that time I
have never seen what I saw this past week. A bird of prey, a juvenile
Sharp-shinned hawk, landed on a branch outside my window with a freshly caught
bird in its talons.
For the next ten minutes, until a squirrel jumped on the branch and chased it
away, the hawk proceeded to devour its kill: plucking off the feathers and
consuming the meat as well as the entrails with obvious satisfaction. I took
some pictures and have uploaded them to the Web
Click. Hawks enjoy
their meals fresh and raw.
So, too, did early humans. Over the course of our evolution, we went from
gatherers to hunter-gatherers to chefs. Apart from drying meat and fruit in the
sun, the use of fire to cook food represents the first technology-assisted food
processing. With the advent of cooking, not only could food be stored for longer
periods of time but many foods that were heretofore inedible (e.g., potatoes,
beans, grains, and some nuts) became edible.
Just because they became edible does not mean they necessarily contributed to
our health and well-being. And there are those who have gone back to eating all
their foods fresh and raw. Fresh and raw foods contain enzymes and organisms
that foods cooked above 116 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius) do not. Of
course, some of those organisms can make us sick, especially as the time
increases between harvesting or hunting and eating. This was obviously not a
problem for the hawk outside my window!
Given the limitations of eating everything fresh and raw in the modern world, it
behooves us to at least pay attention to the raw / cooked balance. On the
simplest level, we can eat as many fresh and raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, and
seeds as possible. A daily tossed salad, with an abundance of edible greens,
root vegetables, sprouts, and fruits, is an excellent staple in human nutrition.
So, too, with a daily fruit smoothie. Make your own in a blender in order to be
sure the ingredients do not include the two staples of modern, processed foods:
sugar and preservatives. At our home, the fruit smoothies are so thick that we
call them fruit chewies! In addition to fresh fruit, we add freshly ground flax,
hemp, and sesame seeds (all raw), plus psyllium husk, organic cocoa powder,
cinnamon, ginger, and blackstrap molasses as well as a scoop of dried egg-white
protein.
Then, be sure to eat fresh and raw fruits and vegetables throughout the day, if
and when you feel like snacking. Avoid all processed-food snacks. When it comes
to dinner, do what you can to minimize cooking and, when you do cook, use the
lowest temperature possible. Very high-temperature cooking is especially harmful
if you cook with oil, since the high temperature creates toxic byproducts.
Fresh sushi is one way to eat raw animal protein (although sushi also contains
cooked rice that is often made sticky with high-fructose corn syrup). By and
large, however, unless you know what you are doing and like the taste, raw meat
and eggs are to be avoided.
Many have discovered that they can live without potatoes, beans, grains, and
roasted nuts altogether. In our home, we have reduced our consumption of these
foods to the point where they represent a very small part of our diet. As a
result, we are eating a lot more fresh and raw foods than ever before. And
that's the way it should be, since it's hard to eat too much of them.
Coaching Inquiries: What section of the grocery store does most of your food
come from? How often do you eat fresh and raw foods? How could you increase your
consumption of fresh and raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds? What cooked
foods would you be willing to eliminate if doing so would improve your health?
 To reply to this Pathway, use our
Feedback Form. To learn more about our
Wellness Coaching programs and to arrange for a complimentary wellness coaching
session, use our Contact Form or
Email Bob.
May you be filled with goodness, peace, and joy.
Bob Tschannen-Moran
LifeTrek Coaching International
121 Will Scarlet Lane
Williamsburg, VA 23185-5043
U.S.A.
Telephone: 757-345-3452
Fax: 772-382-3258
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