If you live in Arizona or happen to be visiting the Phoenix area, you won't want to miss the Friday Raw menu at the Blue Nile Cafe.

Although I now am happy to eat very simply with many whole fruits and salads, I enjoy the creativity and taste of the raw dishes Chef Moon prepares each week. She presents a new cultural theme each Friday, from Middle Eastern, to Italian, Indian... each week something new. The presentation is awesome with taste and flavor to match.

The soups are particularly enjoyable... one of my favorite is the sweet carrot ginger.

There are normally at least three choices of entrees (one or two often include a salad), a salad, soup and desert.

The raw menu is available for both lunch and dinner and in between as well. You'll leave satiated... great for raw fooders and anyone looking for a delicious and healthy meal.

The Blue Nile Cafe is located off the corner of Rural and University at 933 E. University Drive, Tempe, AZ 85281

Phone: (480) 377-1113

To your best health!

Mark

I struggled with my weight for almost 20 years and overeating was a regular experience. I most often ate to 'feel' a certain way, or because I felt a certain way and wanted comfort. This is not uncommon, most of us eat emotionally, due to lack of nutrition and as a result of addictions to foods.

Now I follow the 'have I earned my hunger?' question and feel satiated naturally without a temptation to overeat. Of course, it does happen occasionally, most often when out at a social gathering.

The following article by Paul Nison explains this concept in detail and how we can break the 'overeating' habit.

This month my article is about overeating. I chose to write abut this topic because, even though most people overeat all year, they especially overeat around the time of the holidays.

I have found that people do not eat and drink for nourishment only. Most people go way beyond their nourishment needs. Their need for nourishment becomes a pleasure to fulfill their addictions. How many people have heard that too much pleasure can be a bad thing? That is very true, and indulging in the pleasure of eating and drinking too often has left our world full of sick people, crying for help but not willing to give up their pleasers that are causing the problem. Many people do not even know that overeating is the cause. (Drink is not limited to alcohol, today many people consume many different beverages simply for pleasure, coffee, soda, energy drinks, etc.)

People are treating their own body as waste dumps, stuffing as much food and drink in as possible. Overeating might seem harmless, and a person can seem to get away with it for many years, but it is slowly leading to disease inside the body. Nothing takes more energy from the body than dealing with too much food. It drains our energy, creates disease and intoxifies our blood stream, leading to many deadly problems.

My good friend Dr. Fred Bisci has this to say about overeating:

Overeating creates havoc in the body, causing improper digestion and improper elimination. When the large intestine retains food longer than it should, harmful bacterial action occurs. The result is that gases and toxins are formed. They are absorbed by the tiny vessels on the walls of the bowel and poison the entire bloodstream. This is known as auto-intoxication.- Dr. Fred Bisci

It is so sad that people are conditioned to over-consume food. More money is spent on food each year than gas and medical care combined. These people who are overeating are also using more gas driving to and from the doctor and medical facilities, resulting in more money spent on medical care when they overeat.

"Man lives on 1/3 of what he eats. The doctor lives on the other 2/3's"
Why do people eat so much?

Most people eat for false hunger. It is important to learn the difference between hunger and appetite. Most people have never felt true hunger, but they say all the time, “I’m so hungry.” This is just your programmed appetite kicking in. It usually happens when you see or smell something you like. Many times food was the last thing on your mind until you see a commercial or billboard with an advertisement for food. Once people start, they just can’t seem to stop.

People in most of the civilized world don’t eat out of hunger; they eat for pleasure. There is nothing wrong with a little pleasure. A little pleasure has never hurt anyone. However, a lot of pleasure has killed many. Learn to control your pleasure. You must gain control. It’s fine to experience the pleasure of food, but overdoing it turns into overeating. Learn to insure that all your nutrient needs are met while reducing your caloric intake to the amount needed. The right number of calories is different for everyone, but you can be sure that the higher the quality of the food (the closer it is to nature), the fewer the calories needed.

Boredom is another major reason why people overeat. Keeping busy is a great way to avoid thinking about food. The body can last for weeks without food. It is very rare for anyone to reach the point of true hunger.

If one doesn’t reach true hunger, how does he or she know when it is time to eat?

The answer is to eat when you feel you need food for its value, and not for emotional reasons. And then, when you consume food, limit it only to what you feel your needs are, not your appetite. Most people could reduce their meals to half of the current amount, and their health would improve.

I suggest each person figure out their own nutritional needs not on “how they feel”, but on a simple occasional blood profile. A simple blood test will show any differences if anyone is not getting enough, but just about everyone (who is healthy) can cut down to two high quality meals a day of fruits, vegetables, nuts and/or seeds. Once you figure out what you need, have set meal times to help yourself not eat more than your body needs.

As people consume more and more food, they usually look for more and more stimulants and condiments to relish their food. The best way to get out of this habit is to give your digestive organs a rest and stop consuming all foods for a certain amount of time. This is also known as a fast or fasting.

One of the major health secrets when it comes to eating is moderation and also occasional abstinence. Going one day a week without food is something I recommend to every person. Yes, fasting one day a week to give the body a complete rest is extremely beneficial. This can be done with water or green vegetable juices.

Most people overeat, and once they get started they just can’t seem to stop themselves. Before eating, ask yourself, “Do I need to eat, or do I want to eat?” If the former, enjoy your meal, but be true to yourself. Your wellness will depend on it.

To your best health,

Mark

Essential fatty acids are an important part of a well balanced diet, especially if you're trying to lose weight. What is surprising is that many people don't know fat is essential to maintaining normal weight as well as many other health benefits. Our country has fallen in love with "low fat"... and in part, it's making many people fat. If your body senses a lack of fat intake, it starts storing it... and surprise, surprise, you stay fat!

Fish is routinely recommended by many as a great source of EFA's although there's one small problem.

"...nearly all fish and shellfish contain traces of mercury."
FDA / EPA What You Need to Know About Mercury in Fish and Shellfish

"Children under age 5, nursing mothers and women who are pregnant or trying to conceive should avoid fish with the highest mercury levels -- tile fish, swordfish, king mackerel and shark. They should also limit their fish intake to no more than 12 ounces a week of fish and shellfish that contain low levels of mercury, foods such as shrimp, salmon, pollock, canned light tuna and catfish.

Albacore tuna is higher in mercury than canned light tuna, so consumption of albacore tuna should be limited to nor more than six ounces a week, the experts write.

Eating a variety of fish may reduce the potential negative effects of environmental pollutants. Try to avoid farm-raised fish, which tend to have more fat and calories and slightly less protein than wild fish. Farm-fed fish may also contain higher levels of contaminants due to toxins in their feed, according to the experts."
HealthDay

Why is mercury bad? Well, for many reasons, and the report above, directly from the FDA plays down the effects on everyone except for young children, and pregnant and nursing women. Unfortunately it's a little more serious than that:

"Canadian scientists studying the toxic effects of mercury have made a major breakthrough, showing for the first time how the metal that gave rise to the expression 'mad as a hatter' actually debilitates and destroys parts of nerve cells.

The finding, announced yesterday, is likely to raise further controversy over exposure to mercury in dental fillings and food, and provide new clues to the development of Alzheimer's disease.

Three scientists at the University of Calgary exposed the brain cells of snails to small amounts of mercury and found the damage caused by the silvery-grey metal was similar to that seen in brains of humans suffering from Alzheimer's.

The protein in snail brain cells is identical to that in the nerves of human and other higher animals.

One of the co-authors of the paper, Dr. Fritz Lorscheider of the university's faculty of medicine, said the research highlights the need to reduce public exposure to mercury. The experiments used mercury levels that are typically found in people who have a large number of amalgam fillings.

"What it really means is that we . . . need to be far more concerned about sources of mercury exposure,' Dr. Lorscheider said.

A paper outlining the findings is being published as the cover story in the April issue of the British journal NeuroReport.

Almost everyone in North America is exposed to trace amounts of mercury. Fillings emit mercury vapour when people chew. Mercury concentrations have been rising in many seafoods, as fish absorb metal dispersed by coal-burning power plants and mining.

Until now, scientists have known that mercury is a potent nerve poison, causing tremors, loss of memory, insomnia, depression and personality changes, but they did not understand how."
Scientists unlock mystery of mercury's harmful effects

I don't know about you, but would you knowingly eat a poison that could cause tremors, loss of memory, depression and countless other effects. Would you feed it to your children? Especially if you had options? Since you can get EFA's from many other sources, why risk your health and the health of your children? Is it worth it?

To me, another reason for the vegan diet... for your health and your life.

Peace.

Many ask me how you learn about a raw food diet, how to be successful, how to lose weight and what you can expect.

Read more...

It's been a very interesting 8 months! As you may know I've been focusing exclusively on raw, whole foods and have avoided most everything else including raw 'junk food'. This includes high fat avocados, dehydrated foods, processed foods, sauces, oils, bars and other foods that contain raw ingredients but have been processed. Basically I've eaten locally or organically grown fruits and veggies with a very limited about of nuts or seeds.

There have been many benefits to this but the one thing that stands out for me has been the ability to feel how everything I eat affects me.

I was fascinated with what I've learned.

Read more...

One of the benefits of eating a raw vegan diet, meaning a diet of fresh, raw vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, is the ability to condition your body almost effortlessly.

Why do I say almost effortlessly?

Here's why conditioning your body is quite easy when you remove the obstacles... remove the toxins, processed foods, cooked foods and most unnatural substances from your diet and environment.

You see, when your body doesn't have to continue to struggle with obstructions, meaning the toxins we just mentioned, it can respond much easier to physical activity, and not need much recovery, if any to longer or more frequent activities.

For example, recently I found myself at a new aquatic center near my home. I normally don't swim often since most pools I've been to in the past in the area use a wide array of chlorine chemicals. To my surprise, this new center uses a salt based filtration system so I decided to enjoy the water.

To give you a quick background, the most I've probably swam in a pool throughout my entire life is 2-3 laps continuously without stopping. That's been the extent.

I noticed that there was a requirement for eligibility in order to be able to attend evening 'lap night' and found that you must be able to swim at least 20 laps without stopping. Oh my, 20 laps? Without stopping? Based on the fact that I hadn't swam for more than 2-3 in my entire life, I wasn't sure about 20.

Well, always enjoying a challenge, I decided to see how many laps I could do... without stopping.

30.

I was a little sore for a few minutes, but soon felt normal and energetic. In fact, I felt I could have continued (energy wise) but was getting a little dizzy :).

Now I'm not special, anyone can do this if they remove the obstacles our bodies battle with every day when we eat cooked foods, processed foods, ingest toxins and dangerous chemicals as well as being exposed to toxins in our environment.

On a raw vegan diet your body easily stays conditioned and you won't experience cramps, soreness and have plenty of energy to accomplish anything you want. Run 6 miles? Sure. Go hike a mountain? Of course! Swim 30 laps non-stop? Absolutely.

Just stay active regularly and eat a pure, raw, fresh, low fat, whole food diet of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds.

And this isn't just me, ask any raw vegan athlete and they'll share the same story. I had a friend that could do most any exercise, in most any length of repititions or distance without exhaustion or muscle soreness. He could go on as long as he wanted and enjoyed every minute. Of course this was after he transitioned to a raw vegan lifestyle.

Another benefit to the raw vegan diet.

Peace!

Mark

Related:

Use these two exercises you can do at home, without expensive club memberships or equipment, to stay conditioned, lose weight or tone up.

Recently, the only co-op in the Phoenix area, Gentle Strength, and a leader in locally grown, organic produce, went out of business.

Why?

Bottom line... not enough shoppers.

Sure there were probably a few other reasons, but the main one was lack of business.

It's funny, though, everyone I talk to in the area is disappointed and saddened by the closing (as I was). However, I believe there was too much talk and not enough action.

If we want to have better, fresher, organic and locally grown choices, we have to support those organizations. Support them with our shopping dollars and with our help in letting others know about the organizations.

Personally, I'll miss the co-op and the friends I've made there. They were the -only- central place to get fresh, locally grown greens and other produce. All the produce sold was organic and as much as possible was sourced locally. The only choices now are the national chains including Whole Foods and Wild Oats (now owned by Whole Foods), a few smaller chains and some traditional grocery chains that now carry some organic produce. I'm happy that they're all carrying more organic foods, although little, if any, is locally grown. Whole Foods advertises 'local' although a quick walk through shows just a few locally grown out of over 200 produce items.

Alternative sources include farmers markets and visiting farms directly. I've found a few farms and frequent farmers markets on weekends and can find some of the same items. Although not as convenient, it's a solution for now.

Find the local co-ops in your area and support them. It's a fact, traditional companies will continue to market non-organic products and source all over the world unless we 'vote' with our dollars. Using as much locally grown organic produce not only supports your community and the environment, the food is also more nutritious and benefits your health.

We can make a difference.. just do it!

To your best health!

Mark