These are the details about my current vitamin levels:
Vitamin B12 is 280 pg/mL. The normal range is between 211 and 911 pg/mL.
Vitamin D is only 5 ng/mL. The normal range is between 20 and 160. Vitamin D deficit is between 12 and 20. Severe deficit is less than 12. So I have severe deficit of Vitamin D.

December 11, 2014:

- 8 local Jonathan apples
- 8 oranges

December 12, 2014:

- 2 local Jonathan apples
- 7 oranges
- 6 local Jonathan apples

December 13, 2014:

- 1.250 l fresh orange juice from 19 oranges
- 7 bananas

December 14, 2014:

- 1.7 l of banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300 ml water)
- 1.7 l of banana milk (11 fresh bananas, 300 ml water)

December 15, 2014:

- 1.9 l fresh orange juice from 30 oranges (they are small oranges, the size of mandarines)
- 2 bananas
- 1.9 l banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300 ml water)

December 16, 2014:

- 7 local Jonathan apples
- 1 banana
- 1.8 l banana milk (12 fresh bananas, 300 ml water)

December 17, 2014:

- 10 local Jonathan apples
- salad: 7 tomatoes, 1 long cucumber, 1 red pepper, 1 green bell pepper, 13 small raw champignon mushrooms (or button mushrooms)
- 2 bananas

December 18, 2014:

- 1 local Reinette apple
- 1.4 l fresly squeezed OJ (from 20 small oranges)
- salad: 7 tomatoes, 1 long cucumber, 1 red pepper, 1 green bell pepper, 13 small raw champignon mushrooms, lemon juice
- white cabbage salad (white cabbage, lemon juice)
- 1 local Reinette apple

December 19, 2014:

- 10 oranges
- 1.8 l choco banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300 ml water, 3 teaspoons raw carob)

December 20, 2014:

- 8 local Reinette apples
- 10 oranges
- 1.5 l choco banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300 ml water, 3 teaspoons raw carob)

December 21, 2014:

- 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice of 22 oranges - 3 kg)
- 1.5 l choco banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300 ml water, 3 teaspoons raw carob)

December 22, 2014:

- 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice of 20 oranges - 3 kg)
- 1 local Jonathan apple
- salad: red cabbage, white cabbage, lemon juice
- salad: tomatoes, cucumbers, red pepper, yellow pepper

December 23, 2014:

- 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice of 19 oranges - 3 kg)
- 1.5 l choco banana milk (10 bananas, 3 teaspoons raw carob, 250 ml water)

December 24, 2014:

- 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice from 3 kg oranges)
- leftover salad: red cabbage, white cabbage, lemon juice, red pepper cubes, yellow pepper cubes, cucumber cubes
- 3 local Jonathan apples

December 25, 2014:

- 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice from 3 kg oranges)
- sauerkraut and 3 tomatoes, 1 red pepper, 2 cucumbers
- cream of 3 bananas and 3 teaspoons raw carob

December 26, 2014:

- 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice from 3 kg oranges)
- few of my homemade salt-free pickled cucumbers, a bit of red cabbage salad leftover
- 6 local Jonathan apples

December 27, 2014:

- 1.5 l choco banana milk (11 bananas, 3 teaspoons raw carob, water)
- sauerkraut with 2 tomatoes and 1 cucumber
- 3 bananas

December 28, 2014:

- homemade salt-free pickled cucumbers
- homemade salt-free sauerkraut with 3 tomatoes and 1 yellow pepper
- 1.5 l choco banana milk (12 bananas, 3 teaspoons raw carob, water)
- 1 freshly squeezed orange grapefruit juice (200 ml)
- homemade salt-free sauerkraut with 2 carrots, 4 tomatoes and half a long cucumber
- half a teaspoon of raw carob (I sometimes have a bit of raw carob as it is, on its own, when I want a different taste in my mouth)

December 29, 2014:

- 4 homemade salt-free pickled cucumbers
- 4 red apples (a bit similar to pears in taste, good, sweet, not crunchy)
- 1.9 l choco banana milk (13 bananas, 3 teaspoons raw carob, water)
- 1 freshly squeezed orange juice (200 ml)
- 1.5 l sauerkraut juice (I saved the juice, it is so good, I had 500 ml at a time, with breaks in between)
- fresh cabbage (some bits of leaves plus the core of 2 heads of cabbage, while making a new batch of sauerkraut - I prepared 4 jars)
- homemade salt-free sauerkraut with a few carrots, 6 tomatoes and half a long cucumber (the last sauerkraut of this batch)

All this cabbage gave me huge pain, cramps, like knives in my stomach, I got bloated, it was awful, I thought I would have to go to emergency room. Lesson learned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

December 30, 2014:

- 10 oranges (2 kg)
- 2 red apples
- 1 banana
- 1.9 l choco banana milk (13 bananas, 3 teaspoons raw carob, water)

I slept only 5 hrs last night, from midnight to 5 am. My nose is still very runny, I'm getting tired of using so many napkins, my nose hurts. I wanted to go to church tonight for New Year midnight service, but I think I'll just stay home in bed for a few more days until I recover, outside is freezing cold (around -11 degrees C).

Have a great New Year 2015!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

Ela2013 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> These are the details about my current vitamin
> levels:
> Vitamin B12 is 280 pg/mL. The normal range is
> between 211 and 911 pg/mL.
> Vitamin D is only 5 ng/mL. The normal range is
> between 20 and 160. Vitamin D deficit is between
> 12 and 20. Severe deficit is less than 12. So I
> have severe deficit of Vitamin D.
>
> December 11, 2014:
>
> - 8 local Jonathan apples
> - 8 oranges
>
> December 12, 2014:
>
> - 2 local Jonathan apples
> - 7 oranges
> - 6 local Jonathan apples
>
> December 13, 2014:
>
> - 1.250 l fresh orange juice from 19 oranges
> - 7 bananas
>
> December 14, 2014:
>
> - 1.7 l of banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300 ml
> water)
> - 1.7 l of banana milk (11 fresh bananas, 300 ml
> water)
>
> December 15, 2014:
>
> - 1.9 l fresh orange juice from 30 oranges (they
> are small oranges, the size of mandarines)
> - 2 bananas
> - 1.9 l banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300 ml
> water)
>
> December 16, 2014:
>
> - 7 local Jonathan apples
> - 1 banana
> - 1.8 l banana milk (12 fresh bananas, 300 ml
> water)
>
> December 17, 2014:
>
> - 10 local Jonathan apples
> - salad: 7 tomatoes, 1 long cucumber, 1 red
> pepper, 1 green bell pepper, 13 small raw
> champignon mushrooms (or button mushrooms)
> - 2 bananas
>
> December 18, 2014:
>
> - 1 local Reinette apple
> - 1.4 l fresly squeezed OJ (from 20 small
> oranges)
> - salad: 7 tomatoes, 1 long cucumber, 1 red
> pepper, 1 green bell pepper, 13 small raw
> champignon mushrooms, lemon juice
> - white cabbage salad (white cabbage, lemon
> juice)
> - 1 local Reinette apple
>
> December 19, 2014:
>
> - 10 oranges
> - 1.8 l choco banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300
> ml water, 3 teaspoons raw carob)
>
> December 20, 2014:
>
> - 8 local Reinette apples
> - 10 oranges
> - 1.5 l choco banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300
> ml water, 3 teaspoons raw carob)
>
> December 21, 2014:
>
> - 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice of 22 oranges - 3 kg)
> - 1.5 l choco banana milk (10 fresh bananas, 300
> ml water, 3 teaspoons raw carob)
>
> December 22, 2014:
>
> - 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice of 20 oranges - 3 kg)
> - 1 local Jonathan apple
> - salad: red cabbage, white cabbage, lemon juice
> - salad: tomatoes, cucumbers, red pepper, yellow
> pepper
>
> December 23, 2014:
>
> - 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice of 19 oranges - 3 kg)
> - 1.5 l choco banana milk (10 bananas, 3 teaspoons
> raw carob, 250 ml water)
>
> December 24, 2014:
>
> - 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice from 3 kg oranges)
> - leftover salad: red cabbage, white cabbage,
> lemon juice, red pepper cubes, yellow pepper
> cubes, cucumber cubes
> - 3 local Jonathan apples
>
> December 25, 2014:
>
> - 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice from 3 kg oranges)
> - sauerkraut and 3 tomatoes, 1 red pepper, 2
> cucumbers
> - cream of 3 bananas and 3 teaspoons raw carob
>
> December 26, 2014:
>
> - 1.5 l fresh OJ (the juice from 3 kg oranges)
> - few of my homemade salt-free pickled cucumbers,
> a bit of red cabbage salad leftover
> - 6 local Jonathan apples
>
> December 27, 2014:
>
> - 1.5 l choco banana milk (11 bananas, 3 teaspoons
> raw carob, water)
> - sauerkraut with 2 tomatoes and 1 cucumber
> - 3 bananas
>
> December 28, 2014:
>
> - homemade salt-free pickled cucumbers
> - homemade salt-free sauerkraut with 3 tomatoes
> and 1 yellow pepper
> - 1.5 l choco banana milk (12 bananas, 3 teaspoons
> raw carob, water)
> - 1 freshly squeezed orange grapefruit juice (200
> ml)
> - homemade salt-free sauerkraut with 2 carrots, 4
> tomatoes and half a long cucumber
> - half a teaspoon of raw carob (I sometimes have a
> bit of raw carob as it is, on its own, when I want
> a different taste in my mouth)
>
> December 29, 2014:
>
> - 4 homemade salt-free pickled cucumbers
> - 4 red apples (a bit similar to pears in taste,
> good, sweet, not crunchy)
> - 1.9 l choco banana milk (13 bananas, 3 teaspoons
> raw carob, water)
> - 1 freshly squeezed orange juice (200 ml)
> - 1.5 l sauerkraut juice (I saved the juice, it is
> so good, I had 500 ml at a time, with breaks in
> between)
> - fresh cabbage (some bits of leaves plus the core
> of 2 heads of cabbage, while making a new batch of
> sauerkraut - I prepared 4 jars)
> - homemade salt-free sauerkraut with a few
> carrots, 6 tomatoes and half a long cucumber (the
> last sauerkraut of this batch)
>
> All this cabbage gave me huge pain, cramps, like
> knives in my stomach, I got bloated, it was awful,
> I thought I would have to go to emergency room.
> Lesson learned.
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ela, for future reference with gas problems, enemas really can be a life saver. That would have been one bad ride to the hospital in that condition. Not to mention the expense.

I hope you are working with your doctor on your serious vitamin D deficiency so your hips can have a chance to heal. Are you taking any herbs for your bones or are those taboo on your diet?

I wish you a happy and healthy new year!!

Wishing you a wonderful new year, SueZ

Thank you for your advice. I think the cramps were because I had raw cabbage plus sauerkraut juice plus sauerkraut. Especially all that 1.5 l of sauerkraut juice in one meal. When I have only sauerkraut, I have no cramps.

Regarding the vitamin D deficiency, I don't take any supplement now, I'm having trouble finding a vegan one that I can buy locally. I found the Vitashine D3, but I have to buy it online from England and it's more expensive. But at the same time it's the best one. I will order B12 first (this one I can get locally), I want to see how I feel after I take it. I think I'll buy the Vitashine and it will take minimum 2 weeks to get here.

No, I take no herbs for my hip.

If you have any idea about a vegan Vitamin D3, please let me know.

Btw, I'm on my own solving this vitamin D deficiency, the doctors will surely recommend vitamin D from lanolin

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/2015 02:20PM by Ela2013.

December 31, 2014:

- 10 oranges (2 kg)
- 1.9 l choco banana milk (13 bananas, 3 teaspoons raw carob, water)
- carrots and raw white cabbage (I craved chomping raw cabbage and carrots, it was a satisfying meal)
- 3 red apples

I had 4 carrots and some cabbage leaves left after my carrots cabbage meal, so I decided to pickle them. I read that carrots help the cabbage ferment quicker, so I wanted to try this. I'm looking forward to seeing the result.

These were my last bananas, I need to buy some more.

I had a very relaxing lazy day yesterday, I spent the whole day in bed watching Youtube, it was so great. Close to midnight I went to church service for the new year, it was so beautiful, in the end there was champagne and cookies (I didn't have any, btw), I was there with my friend Laura, having a wonderful time. At around 2 am I was already back home and ready to sleep in my bed.

Today I went to morning church service (I only slept 6 hrs and 30 min last night, so I was pretty tired this morning).

The weather now is awful, freezing, snow is hard and frozen. Last night it was so cold that I couldn't even breathe, the air was extremely harsh and cold. We had like -22 degrees C this morning

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

Ela2013 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wishing you a wonderful new year, SueZ
>
> Thank you for your advice. I think the cramps were
> because I had raw cabbage plus sauerkraut juice
> plus sauerkraut. Especially all that 1.5 l of
> sauerkraut juice in one meal. When I have only
> sauerkraut, I have no cramps.
>
> Regarding the vitamin D deficiency, I don't take
> any supplement now, I'm having trouble finding a
> vegan one that I can buy locally. I found the
> Vitashine D3, but I have to buy it online from
> England and it's more expensive. But at the same
> time it's the best one. I will order B12 first
> (this one I can get locally), I want to see how I
> feel after I take it. I think I'll buy the
> Vitashine and it will take minimum 2 weeks to get
> here.
>
> No, I take no herbs for my hip.
>
> If you have any idea about a vegan Vitamin D3,
> please let me know.
>
> Btw, I'm on my own solving this vitamin D
> deficiency, the doctors will surely recommend
> vitamin D from lanolin
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks, Ela!

Here is a Vitamin D that uses certified organic mushrooms for it's D. It does have some, to me, objectionable other raw vegan ingredients in it which you can see by clicking on "supplement facts" at the linked source. It's certainly a way better choice than lanolin. There is no way anyone can convince me that there is no toxic sheep dip left in the lanolin from sheep that have not been organically raised without chemical dips - I know better.

[www.vitacost.com]

Vitacost ships to most countries.


Raw organic stinging nettle sun tea is something I take for silica - which is essential for bone support. You might want to look into that, too. It is very inexpensive and easy to grow for yourself.

Tai, who is an herbalist member here now, said that boiling horsetail makes it a good herbal choice, too. You might want to ask Tai for the specifics if you are interested in looking into herbal bone support.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/2015 03:28PM by SueZ.

I know you said you're looking for something local, but you can find vegan D3 here - [www.longevitywarehouse.com] - made from wild-harvested lichen. I just bought a six-month supply, good enough to get me through the winter. Be sure to take D3 with a meal that contains a decent amount of fat as D3 is fat-soluble and otherwise absorption will be poor. Personally, I bite into them, swallow the D3 and throw away the capsule.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/2015 03:46PM by jtprindl.

jtprindl Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I know you said you're looking for something
> local, but you can find vegan D3 here -
> [www.longevitywarehouse.com]
> ence-labs-veggie-d3-60-capsules - made from
> wild-harvested lichen. I just bought a six-month
> supply, good enough to get me through the winter.
> Be sure to take D3 with a meal that contains a
> decent amount of fat as D3 is fat-soluble and
> otherwise absorption will be poor. Personally, I
> bite into them, swallow the D3 and throw away the
> capsule.

You forgot that Ela is VERY passionate about staying RAW vegan.

These are not raw organic ingredients - "Sunflower Seed Oil, Vegetarian Shell (non-GMO Modified Corn Starch, Vegetable Glycerin, Purified Water, Carrageenan, Sorbitol)".

SueZ Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> jtprindl Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I know you said you're looking for something
> > local, but you can find vegan D3 here -
> >
> [www.longevitywarehouse.com]
>
> > ence-labs-veggie-d3-60-capsules - made from
> > wild-harvested lichen. I just bought a
> six-month
> > supply, good enough to get me through the
> winter.
> > Be sure to take D3 with a meal that contains a
> > decent amount of fat as D3 is fat-soluble and
> > otherwise absorption will be poor. Personally,
> I
> > bite into them, swallow the D3 and throw away
> the
> > capsule.
>
> You forgot that Ela is VERY passionate about
> staying RAW vegan.
>
> These are not raw organic ingredients - "Sunflower
> Seed Oil, Vegetarian Shell (non-GMO Modified Corn
> Starch, Vegetable Glycerin, Purified Water,
> Carrageenan, Sorbitol)".


Most of that is in the actual capsule which you don't have to consume. I don't see why the sunflower oil wouldn't be raw, though. Not that it would really matter that much given that it's an extremely minute amount, but it's up to her. This is probably the highest quality vegan D3 product out there. Even if the sunflower oil wasn't raw (which it likely is), there's not going to be any harmful effects from such a small amount and certainly not as harmful as severe D3 deficiency.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/2015 05:36PM by jtprindl.

SueZ and Jtprindl, thank you so much for your advice.

Indeed, I surely want to keep things raw, but I think that when it comes to supplements, it's very rare to see a raw one.
I did see a raw vegan vitamin D:
[www.iherb.com],
and also a raw B12: [www.iherb.com].
I think these are the only raw ones, maybe I'll order them, especially since they are on the same website. If I won't be able to get these, I guess a non raw supplement will do, as long as it's vegan.
But of course I'll be more comfortable knowing that even my supplements are raw. I heard a raw foodist saying that she stopped her supplement as she felt she didn't want to put something not raw in her body anymore. My thinking is pretty much going in the same direction.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

January 01, 2015:

- fresh OJ from 4 kg oranges
- 5 Golden apples

January 02, 2015:

- fresh OJ from 4 kg oranges
- sauerkraut (from the new batch) with half a long cucumber, 2 large tomatoes, 1 small sweet red pepper

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

Ela2013 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> SueZ and Jtprindl, thank you so much for your
> advice.
>
> Indeed, I surely want to keep things raw, but I
> think that when it comes to supplements, it's very
> rare to see a raw one.
> I did see a raw vegan vitamin D:
> [www.iherb.com]
> AW-D3-5-000-IU-60-Vegetarian-Capsules/39195,
> and also a raw B12:
> [www.iherb.com]
> aw-B-12-30-UltraZorbe-Vegan-Caps/15848.
> I think these are the only raw ones, maybe I'll
> order them, especially since they are on the same
> website. If I won't be able to get these, I guess
> a non raw supplement will do, as long as it's
> vegan.
> But of course I'll be more comfortable knowing
> that even my supplements are raw. I heard a raw
> foodist saying that she stopped her supplement as
> she felt she didn't want to put something not raw
> in her body anymore. My thinking is pretty much
> going in the same direction.
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Garden of Life D3 isn't vegan, it's made from sheep lanolin. The D3 I posted above is raw and vegan (if you bite the capsule open, suck out the D3 and discard).

From my knowledge, this is the best B12 supplement on the market (soil-based) - [hippocratesstore.org]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/02/2015 09:24PM by jtprindl.

Ela2013 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> SueZ and Jtprindl, thank you so much for your
> advice.
>
> Indeed, I surely want to keep things raw, but I
> think that when it comes to supplements, it's very
> rare to see a raw one.
> I did see a raw vegan vitamin D:
> [www.iherb.com]
> AW-D3-5-000-IU-60-Vegetarian-Capsules/39195,
> and also a raw B12:
> [www.iherb.com]
> aw-B-12-30-UltraZorbe-Vegan-Caps/15848.
> I think these are the only raw ones, maybe I'll
> order them, especially since they are on the same
> website. If I won't be able to get these, I guess
> a non raw supplement will do, as long as it's
> vegan.
> But of course I'll be more comfortable knowing
> that even my supplements are raw. I heard a raw
> foodist saying that she stopped her supplement as
> she felt she didn't want to put something not raw
> in her body anymore. My thinking is pretty much
> going in the same direction.
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ela, whatever supplements you settle on please do it quickly - even if what you can get from your doctor right now isn't ideal you are really jeopardizing your health by not acting on these deficiencies - especially if you are located north of latitude 40 (in the Northern hemisphere) where you can't get enough D from the sun no matter how long you sunbathe in the winter.

Jtprindl, thank you for pointing that out. I read somewhere that Garden of Life D3 isn't actually vegan, I need to find that page. But given the fact that on their website they state that it's vegan, I thought they were telling the truth. But how come Garden of Life D3 isn't vegan? How do you know? Do you have a link? Why do you use only the inner part and discard the capsule? Is the capsule not vegan? I wish I could buy the one you mention, but it's so difficult to get supplements through international shipping, in our country things are so much more complicated...

SueZ, I know I need to act quickly, time is ticking indeed, but it's a very difficult process to find the right supplements.
I just talked to my sister and it isn't easy to do this, she lacks the money on her credit card so it will be a while until it's duable. Maybe I ask someone else to buy me D3, this time the Vitashine, as I know it's vegan certified by the Vegan Society.
I'll keep you posted. Thank you so much for your help.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

You are right, Jtprindl. Here is the link: [www.amazon.com].
And this one: [www.vrg.org].
If this is true, then why do people keep saying it's vegan? How are we going to know what is true and what is not? I'm confused. And dissapointed.
I guess I'll quit the raw supplements idea and stick to my non-raw but supposedly vegan ones, the local B12 one and the Vitashine (as Vitashine is my only real option right now and it seems the most genuine vegan D3).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/2015 12:46PM by Ela2013.

Ela2013 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> You are right, Jtprindl. Here is the link:
> [www.amazon.com]
> sules/dp/B0031JK94E.
> And this one:
> [www.vrg.org]-
> vitamin-d3-derived-from-lanolin/.
> If this is true, then why do people keep saying
> it's vegan? How are we going to know what is true
> and what is not? I'm confused. And dissapointed.
> I guess I'll quit the raw supplements idea and
> stick to my non-raw but supposedly vegan ones, the
> local B12 one and the Vitashine (as Vitashine is
> my only real option right now and it seems the
> most genuine vegan D3).
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ela, Please don't mistake those non vegan products with the one in the link I gave you. Their names are similar but they are different products from different companies. The one in the link I gave you is the most vegan D3 in the thread. The company from the link I gave you ships internationally. They also have good prices so their turnover is great. You won't have to worry about getting stale stock from them. They also pack things well. I have been buying from Vitacost for years.

I've done a lot of homework on the subject and am passing the results of that on to you. Here is the link again.

[www.vitacost.com]



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/2015 01:44PM by SueZ.

Thank you, SueZ, I knew about this brand and about Vitacost, but in our country, international orders and shipping are more complicated, it's not that easy here.

Yesterday I ordered my initial choice of B12. Today I found a complex with calcium from an ocean algae and natural vitamin D2 from an inactivated yeast. I know it's not ideal, but it's the best I could find. And I could order locally.

January 03, 2015:

- 1.6 l orange grapefruit juice from 3 kg oranges and 1 grapefruit
- sauerkraut with half a long cucumber, 2 large tomatoes, 1 small sweet red pepper and 5 amazing cherry tomatoes

January 04, 2015:

- 5 Golden apples and 2 red apples
- sauerkraut (from the new batch) with half a long cucumber and 1 large tomato

Yesterday I prepared a jar of red cabbage to make red sauerkraut, I want to see how it is.
Also yesterday I bought 8 kg of ripe bananas for my choco banana milk.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

It just occured to me that the D2 I ordered might not be in veggie caps, so I contacted the producer (it's a local producer). They seem to be natural based, organic ingredients, so maybe they use veggie caps. I'm looking forward to their answer.

And probably being calcium from a calcified ocean algae might not be considered totally vegan, probably just like the issue with nori sheets. I'm taking these things into account as well. I might be wrong though...
What do you think, are they vegan or not, if the calcium is extracted from this calcified algae?

They mention that the algae comes from unpoluted areas of the Atlantic Ocean. It's an algae that absorbs the calcium and 74 other minerals from the water, then at the end of its life it calcifies. It is then harvested, washed and dried, and turned into calcium. It's a red algae called Lithothamnion calcareum. The vitamin D2 comes from an inactivated yeast called Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

On to another topic.

A girl on the Romanian forum is interested in my raw vegan diet, she says she craves the fruits I'm eating and she loves the pics I post with my food. However, she says she doesn't eat fruits that often as she stays away from them. Deh, the old-fashioned losing weight mentality...

Anyway, she asked me to post my current weight and hight on this diet. I haven't weighed in a long time, but I knew I lost weight as I felt it with my clothes and I saw in the mirror. So her post made me weigh just this morning, and I also took my measurements.

So here is my data:

- The last time I measured myself was on July 2, 2014: 52.1 kg, 1.63 m, 35 years young, fat percentage 27%, water percentage 50.7%, upper arm 24 cm, breasts 84 cm, waist 72 cm, hip 84 cm, bottom 88 cm, thigh 50 cm.

- Today January 4, 2015: 47.7 kg, 1.63 m, 36 years young, fat percentage 20.8%, water percentage 56.4%, upper arm 22 cm, breasts 77 cm, waist 64 cm, hip 78 cm, bottom 83 cm, thigh 46 cm.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/04/2015 08:23PM by Ela2013.

"The mineral-rich extract is a natural product obtained from the skeletal remains of the red marine algae L. calcareum (Pallas), also known as Phymatolithon calcareum (Pallas) [33]. The algae thrive in the cold Atlantic waters off the southwest coast of Ireland and the northwest coast of Iceland. Minerals from seawater are
accumulated in the algae fronds over the life span of the organism.
Eventually, the mineral-rich fronds break off of the living organism and fall to the ocean floor, from where they are harvested. The mineralized fronds are separated from extraneous materials, sterilized, dried, and milled under ISO and HACCP certification. The mineral extract contains 12% calcium, 1% magnesium, and measurable levels of 72 other trace minerals. The extract is sold as a food supplement under the name Aquamin® (GRAS 000028) and is used in various products for human consumption in Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America (Marigot)."

"Lithothamnion calcareum is a red alga of the Corallinacea family whose main feature is the formation of calcium carbonate precipitate in its cell walls."

[www.epa.gov]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

Jtprindl, so would you say it's ok to break the capsule open and just swallow the content? Most probably the capsules I ordered are from gelatin.
I read that sometimes breaking the capsules is not a good idea as the powder might irritate the mouth/stomach, or cause too fast absorbtion of the supplement, etc.
How do you exactly take the powder without the capsule, and with what kind of fat? I guess it goes ok in a bit of mashed avocado, or in a nut cheese.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

I also found this article saying that nutritional yeast (which is exactly the non-activated yeast having D2 - Saccharomyces cerevisiae) is actually another form of monosodium glutamate: [www.daystarbotanicals.com].
What do you think?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

January 05, 2015:

- 5 apples
- sauerkraut with a quarter of a long cucumber and 1 large tomato
- 1.7 l choco banana milk (10 bananas, 3 teaspoons raw carob, water)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

I found this article saying that supplements, especially vitamin D one, are a waste of money, as vitamin D deficiency is the result of the inflammation caused by the disease in the body: [www.forbes.com]

What do you think?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

A very good article and comments: [kblog.lunchboxbunch.com]

I just got both vitamins delivered, and I already took the B12 sublingual. It's a small purple pill that slowly dissolves under the tongue and has a lovely gentle acai flavour.

The vitamin D comes in small transparent capsules (you can see the white powder inside), they can be opened and I can use only the powder.

What do you think, what is the most effective way to take this powder?

I'm thinking to take B12 in the morning as it's said to cause insomnia if taken in the evening. And to take vitamin D in the evening with my meal. I read that it doesn't matter if vitamin D is taken with or without fat as it's still absorbed in the body: [www.vitamindcouncil.org]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/06/2015 10:34AM by Ela2013.

I just got a call from the producer of this vitamin D and the lady on the phone (with whom I also talked yesterday, and she told me she would get back to me) said the capsules are from gelatin. She also said that it's no problem to open the capsule and take the powder alone, before a meal, not with food and not dissolved in water. She advised to take the powder sublingual and let it dissolve slowly, so that it's best absorbed in the body. These are not time-release ones so their role is just to hold the powder. She even mentioned that plant-based vitamins are best taken this way, without the capsules, so that the liver doesn't have to do a lot of processing.

So I'll take B12 in the morning before the meal, and vitamin D in the evening, before the meal.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

This is the B12 I got: [www.vitacost.com]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

Ela2013 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is the B12 I got:
> [www.vitacost.com]
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Glad you were able to find a good one!

Yes, SueZ, me too, I was happy I found it on one of our local websites, so shipping was so easy. I have access to other good B12 brands here, in case this one won't be available when I next want to order it.

Other good links:

[www.easy-immune-health.com]

[www.huffingtonpost.com]

[www.easy-immune-health.com]

January 06, 2015:

- 7 red apples
- sauerkraut with pickled carrots, 1/4 long cucumber, 1 large tomato

I prepared a new jar with sauerkraut in the making. Once I eat one jar, I fill it with new cabbage, so that I have sauerkraut all the time, either ready to eat or in the making. The pickled carrots turned out so good, pickle flavour yet still crunchy, and the cabbage that was pickled in the same jars with the carrots was very tasty.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.

January 07, 2015:

- 2 kg small oranges - the variety is called "navelina"
- 7 red apples
- 1.7 l choco banana milk (10 bananas, raw carob, water)

Today I prepared the 4th jar with sauerkraut in the making, just white cabbage. The red sauerkraut is almost ready. I'm almost running out of bananas, I need to find more bananas with ripening potential. I'm also craving cauliflower and possibly some butter lettuce. Last night I had too much sauerkraut and I got plenty of cramps afterwards. I couldn't help it, the sauerkraut was absolutely delicious and for some reason I was very hungry. Looks like I have no "stop, I had enough" mechanism when it comes to sauerkraut...

The supplementation is going great, I already got used to taking the sublingual B12 tiny pill and the sublingual Ca+D2 powder, today was day 2.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/07/2015 08:54PM by Ela2013.

January 08, 2015:

- 2 kg small oranges - the variety is called "navelina"
- red sauerkraut (sauerkraut made from red cabbage) with zucchini spaghetti in cauliflower tomato dill sauce and decorated with small cauliflower florets and grape tomatoes

Due to some unpleasant times at home, today I felt like old times, wanting to find my happiness in comfort food. Only this time I did it the raw vegan way: I went shopping for some ingredients for un-cooking my dinner this evening. I was craving cherry tomatoes so I got like 5 boxes (1 of 500 g and 4 of 250 g each) from 3 different supermarkets, to see which was was better. I also got 2 heads of cauliflower, 1 bunch of dill, 10 regular tomatoes, 3 large zucchini (well, they are actually summer squash, but to be easier I just call them zucchini), 11 small thinner carrots (I like these ones better), 1 head of white cabbage for sauerkraut, 2 different bottles of sparkling water. I noticed that the prices went up so high these past days, with the money I paid today for all these, I could have bought like 30 kg of oranges - the whole thing cost me around $20.

So I prepared this wonderful meal and I instantly felt happy and secure - I started feeling like this the second I went shopping, as shopping for fresh fruits and veggies is now my therapy.

I love these cherry tomatoes. Actually, the shaker has grape tomatoes, which are smaller, but tasty. Cherry tomatoes (imported) are the best and the only tomatoes in winter, the regular ones (also imported) are varying from ok to awful.
The red sauerkraut turned out so great, so soft and tangy, slightly similar to horseradish at times, it's very tasty.

I first marinated the spaghetti in some sauerkraut juice (the one from the white cabbage sauerkraut and the pickled carrots), so they had a light carrot taste as well. The cauliflower tomato dill sauce was so creamy, then I mixed it with the spaghetti in the sauerkraut juice and it diluted, but it was still very good. Such a satisfying dinner.

Here is a link about the difference between grape tomatoes and cherry tomatoes:

[www.thekitchn.com]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raw vegan for life. Vegan for the animals. Raw for my health.