Hi everyone:-) Have been reading for the past couple of weeks and not posting much but I thought I would say hi and hopefully receive some advice..

I can't be sure but I think I am detoxing at the moment. I have a history of intestinal candida and bingeing (which I think is related to the candida eating my food!- oh the nerve!) Anyways I went on a mango cleanse for 2 weeks and finished about a week and a half ago.(Dr Dougs recommendations to my friend with similar problems)

Actually saw alot of improvements whilst on the mangoes, my overeating seemed to diminish towards the end, my skin sort of cleared up then I started to incorporate lettuce, celery and berries for a few days and seemed to be fine (overate at first). Have been trying to food combine correctly aswell. After that incorporated some nuts and dried fruit. Over the past week or so my skin has pretty much turned to acne on my face and shoulders, bloodshottish eyes, nails flaking off, loose stools, headaches, fatigue, rash on arm and mouth ulcers...so I'm feeling REALLY hot at the moment!

I have a history of taking the pill, some general anaesthetic and antibiotics + recreational drug use. Alot of overeating esp emotional. Have been raw for about 4months, period overdue by 1month..could these symptoms be hormone-related??

How can you tell if it is detox or food intolerance or hormones balancing??

Is overeating like the worst thing that one can do to their body?
Any and all advice please!!

Thanx for yr help beautiful people XX

Sounds like you are having some intolerances. I suspect the nuts as well as some of the fruits you are eating. The only way to figure out which ones are the culprits is to go back to an elimination diet (only mangoes, if you tolerate them) and gradually add back in one food at a time every 3-4 days or so and see which ones are causing problems for you.

My skin is incredibly sensitive. I do not get the "glow" when I use soymilk or other legumes. I only get the glow when I am very high raw or all with no legumes.

About hormones, well I think a lot of it has to do with bodyweight/bodyfat. There are problems if they are either too high or too low.

Overeating garbage (trans fats, fried foods from fast food chains, processed junk) is one of the worst things you can do, along with smoking and being obese. But being slightly overweight on a high raw f+v diet might not be that bad.

Thanx alot Arugula :-)

I really appreciate yr response and it makes alot of sense. The nuts and also unfortunately dates and other dried fruits have to go!

I have never really thought of the mangoes only as being an elimination diet but that's exactly what it is and I will definetly go back to it now.

My bodyfat is about 20%, I would like it to be alot lower because I like to feel light and agile for sports, training etc. I don't overeat garbage anymore, I just overeat raw! It can be so frustrating because so many people say 'just stop eating!' but it just isn't that easy and the more I think about it the more I want to binge. The fact that I have been doing it for a long time doesn't help either as it's a bad habit now too.

I'm not overweight, I'm actually quite muscular and lean, it's just the whole eating to suppress emotions thing which seems to get me.
Anyone else experienced similar??

I don't think it's an entirely emotional thing. We are programmed to prefer the calorie dense high fat junky foods and it's a rare person who can overcome those preferences consistently. It's even more difficult when we have a lifetime of bad habits behind us.

But some people do it.

I still have relapses occasionally. I am not in the 100% purity range, not by a long shot. But I think I do well overall.

20% bodyfat sounds perfect for a female to me. I, too, prefer to feel light and agile (and I do feel so at 14% bodyfat) but I am not so sure that going much lower is good for the bones. Also it looks a lot better in the 20-30 age range than in the 40+ age range. At some point in the future you will have to choose between your rear end being tight and compact and your face being full or bony.

Haha cool thanx!

How long have you been raw for and did you detox much intitially?

Wow 14% is low, were you alot more before raw?
20% isn't too bad for me but I have some cellulite on my upper legs which makes me feel quite toxic, so I just want to get rid of it!

Thanks again for replying, doesn't seem like anyone else is interested!

Love mango X

I've been about 80% raw for two years now. I have to go to the gym for 14%. Without the gym, relying more on walking and my bicycle, I am around 20%.

No detox for me, I think a lot of what people attribute to "detox" is inadequate kcal intake. I was a pretty "clean" veg*n before that. The biggest changes for me were eating a lot more fruit, less beans, and substituting some freshly shelled nuts for former olive oil kcals. But I still do use a little olive oil and I am more like 60C15P25F than 80:10:10.

Excellent Arugula I really appreciate you helping me

I saw you were getting abit of a hard time on the mon-eating thread. I think it's great that you are posting your research, for new rawfoodies having both opinion and facts is really helpful and informative!

Have a Beautiful day, you've made mine

Love mango Xx