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4th March, 2009 Today I read a very interesting post by Adam on 30-bananas forum. It offers a very sensible, intelligent perspective on juicing and fasting: Water fasting is definately seen as a good thing by Hygienists (811 is really just purist natural hygiene) . Juice fasting is a problem however. Water fasting is beneficial to the body because of biochemical necessity...ie. the process is designed in such a way that it has to be beneficial. Juice fasting has a different biochemical process. Let me explain...When one waterfasts exclusively for more than -6-8 hours, the body begins using using up excess sugar in the digestive system, along with some muscle protein and glycogen from the liver and muscles. When this has all gone, usually by the end of 2 days, the body switches into using its own fat for fuel. This is to conserve the muscle protein to prevent the body tissues becoming damaged. Because fat tissue is where toxins are stored, this means toxins begin being released in large quantities, so the body is forced to begin improving the functioning of the liver, kidneys and skin to eliminate toxins as effectively and quickly as possible. This is why people notice detoxification when waterfasting. When juice fasting, because the body is continually moving between having adequate sugar being provided, and insufficient blood sugar levels, it will cause muscle protein to be used as fuel, but very very little fat for fuel. This is where the idea of juice feasting came in. Providing a larger amount of calories from juices to prevent muscle wasting. However the problem is more complex than this. Juicing is a problem for a number of reasons. For example, the lack of fibre in the juice causes the sugar to be released really quickly, stressing the pancreas, and the adrenals. The adrenals are particularly important here, because they must create the emergency for the pancreas. Ie. they must alert the pancreas immediately that there is a potential threat of blood sugar levels being raised to an unmanagable level. They do this by producing massive amoutns of cortisol and adrenaline so that the body can be kickstarted into overproducing insulin to get the sugar out of the blood stream and into the cells. The blood sugar levels then go up and down very quickly. This causes the adrenals to further be required, by producing more adrenaline and cortisol to make up for the now depleted blood sugar levels. This creates an increased demand for B vitamins, Magnesium, Zinc, Vitamin C, and glucose to aid their recovery. In addition, juices also are damaging to the liver. The body is only designed to recognise whole foods. Hence it is used to registering fructose, a type of sugar, in the presence of fibre. Robert Lustig, an endocrinologist at UCSF, has found that when fructose is not presented with fibre, in the form of juices, syrups, honey, cane sugar or any other refined/fibreless form of sugar, the body is unable to recognise and therefore utilise fructose. So it is regarded as a toxin and sent to the liver for elimination. Unfortunately, in the absence of fibre, the liver is unable to recognise and process the fructose, and it is processed like alcohol. It causes damage to the liver, and is stored as fat, since it cannot be fully eliminated in phase 2 of detoxification. Juices are a contributory factor in the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and cirrhosis, he has found. Even vegetable juices like carrot and beetroot juice. Therefore to consume fruit juice exclusively for extended periods of time as in juice fasting or feasting, will be a serious assault on the liver, equivalent to a binge drinking episode. I therefore do not recommend juice fasting, or juicing, as a general rule. Orange juice is regarded by Doug as an acceptable form of juicing. To me, I see this as convenience, not science. Juicing oranges may still leave some soluble fibre present, but it is not a whole food. Our body was designed to recognise oranges with all of the soluble and insoluble fibre. Hence there will still likely be some problems caused by consuming Orange juice, and Robert Lustig certainly does not support the consumption of orange juice, even with the fibre. As one off practises, its not likely to be a problem, but I know he, and others who follow his advice, often consume upto 2 litres of orange juice per day, every day, for periods of time. I dont believe this is a healthy practise. Particularly when many people often underconsume on methionine, an amino acid that is essential for liver detoxification in phase 2. Orange juice is also nutritionally different to oranges in their whole form. Oranges are high in calcium and lower in phosphorus. The reverse is true for orange juice. The ratio of calcium to phosphorus is massively imbalanced. The protein content is lower in oranges too. For example, you can get 3-400mg of methionine in 2 kg of oranges. But 2kg oranges, when juiced, provide 0mg methionine. 9th March, 2009 I just read this open and honest article by Richard: Although I avoid defining myself as anything, it helps to know that I am not alone. I have learned to keep my thoughts to myself on those various issues, such as being isolated or attacked by cooked foodists and even raw foodists for loving fruit, sometimes difficult physical detox, harrowing emotional detox. I think that despite all these issues, it is very much worth living my life the way I love to live it. Living my life the way others think I should is having a miserable life. It is very hard to open up about those things, in particular since one leaves oneself vulnerable to attacks, so thumbs up to Richard for sharing his story. 21th March, 2009 Sharing some rambling for today: I am such an individualist. I do not accept the dietary truths on the face value, I taste them myself and come to my own conclusions. I also find it amazing how sensitive my body has became, or perhaps how sensitive my mind has became to the needs of my body. As far as my cooked-food experiments, I have had confirmed with no doubt that my body does not want those foods at all. I had found that even a small piece of chocolate or a chocolate drink will lead to the loss of sleep. Even the weakest coffee will do the same. Cooked foods as well are guaranteed to negatively affect my sleep. On top of that they leave me hungry. Even if I ate a whole pizza, I would still feel hungry! I will only be satisfied if I get some nutritious foods in the form of sweet juicy fruit. Hunger to me is no longer grumbles in my tummy, but I feel it in my mouth and throat. Grains make me puffy, bread feels like a lump of goo in my belly, my body relieved once it's out. Any added salt makes me feeling terribly dehydrated. Meat, probably the worst of all, would make me feeling very very toxic, sort of drugged and in need of a emergency detox. And the bad breath. Even steamed vegies, considered to be probably the least taxing cooked food on the body, leave me with a bad breath. So, I really do not need to believe in the claims that bad cooked food is for my body. I know it first-hand! This existing scientific research that confirms the links to cancer, the toxicity of the colon of a cooked foodist, the toxicity of the meat, the frugivorous origin of the human, is what I would expect, completely. As far as my raw-food experiments, I had confirmed that starchy vegetables, although a better food choice than the cooked foods for my body, are not as welcomed by my body as the fruit. To my juicing experiment, my body responded by a sudden strong and urgent urge to have to chew on something, and so I gave up on the idea of juicing altogether. One thing I am not quite sure about is the greens. Sometimes I like them, sometimes I don't. But as far as the fruit, this is MY food. Give it to me, baby. Oh, and fasting, this is also interesting. I did some fasting many years ago, but it was based on intellectual decisions. Since going raw, I have not really fasted, perhaps ate less on various days, and dried-fasted (basically started my first meal later than usual), bot not really fasted for more than a day. I simply have not felt the need. But now, I begin to be able to feel that my body has times where it truly does not want any input, except for water perhaps. It started yesterday, actually, I ended having a rock-melon in the evening (mmm such a heavenly experience, especially after not eating all day before that). And today, again, I seem to only want water, at least for now... next |