On a high raw diet I decided to get 15% fat but I now think this might be too less. The authors I have read have different views. Joel Fuhrman does not give a number, Frederic Patenaude says 15% or so is good, Gabriel Cousens recommends 25-45%. The 80-10-10 is another view which recommends even lesser fat.

After about 9 months on a high-raw diet, I feel I need more than 15%. I have lymphatic congestion around my eyes and a bit on the rest of the face, and from what I have understood, lack of fat can cause this - although so far I haven't understood the mechanism behind this phenomenon. So I am going to work on getting at least 25% of my calories from fat now.

However, I don't quite understand if it is OK to pour, for example, 2 tablespoons of olive oil over a salad. Or eat 20 walnut halves a day.

What percentage of calories do you aim to get from fat?

What are your sources of fat?

Can lack of fat cause lymphatic congestion?

Actually, Joel Fuhrman writes that more than 20% fat may cause cancer -

"In light of the preponderance of scientific evidence available, it would be foolish to consume a diet containing more than 20 percent fat, even though the National Cancer Institute still recommends a diet with no more than 30 percent of calories from fat. Studies indicate that diets drawing 30 percent of calories from fats have negligible effect on cancer incidence. To prevent cancer, fat intake must be reduced to the low levels found in countries with extremely low cancer rates, such as China, where less than 15 percent of calories are derived from fat."

- page 35, Fasting and Eating For Health.

Hi iandthou

There comes a point when you realise all the raw gurus are giving completely different advice and the whole thing gets really confusing. I remember reaching that point and feeling really frustrated and hopeless, and just wanting to give up.

So nowadays I don't really listen to anyone and just eat what I feel like, lol. Some days I eat lots of fat and some days I eat none at all. I don't pay attention to any percentages or how many calories I've eaten. I just pay attention to my body, eat when I feel hungry, and stop when I'm full.

I hesitate to say something as simple as 'listen to your body', because sometimes those signs can be misleading too - but mindfulness / conscious eating is certainly a good place to start.

ps - as for where I get my fats from: I aim to eat the freshest, least processed kinds of fat, so for instance I would eat avocados, and nuts & seeds (preferably sprouted and/or fermented) rather than their oils. I sometimes eat olives, but quite rarely, as it is hard to get them properly raw and unsalted.

That's not to say I never eat oils though - for instance, today I just made some chocolates with cacao butter and coconut oil - but that's kind of a special treat



Free Newsletter: [bit.ly]
Facebook: [www.facebook.com]
Instagram: [www.instagram.com]
Blog: [RawFoodScotland.co.uk]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/20/2016 01:36PM by lisa m.

110%, and from Burundi.

iandthou Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> On a high raw diet I decided to get 15% fat but I
> now think this might be too less. The authors I
> have read have different views. Joel Fuhrman does
> not give a number, Frederic Patenaude says 15% or
> so is good, Gabriel Cousens recommends 25-45%. The
> 80-10-10 is another view which recommends even
> lesser fat.
>
> After about 9 months on a high-raw diet, I feel I
> need more than 15%. I have lymphatic congestion
> around my eyes and a bit on the rest of the face,
> and from what I have understood, lack of fat can
> cause this - although so far I haven't understood
> the mechanism behind this phenomenon. So I am
> going to work on getting at least 25% of my
> calories from fat now.
>
> However, I don't quite understand if it is OK to
> pour, for example, 2 tablespoons of olive oil over
> a salad. Or eat 20 walnut halves a day.
>

nothing wrong with it


> What percentage of calories do you aim to get from
> fat?
>

it doesn't matter

> What are your sources of fat?
>

everything


> Can lack of fat cause lymphatic congestion?


i don't think so

our lipid needs are very small

not necessary to focus on a certain amount of fat

the congestion is from eating foods that are not efficiently cleared from the body.

Thank you lisa.

If you get most of your fat from seeds and nuts, and avocados, I wonder if there is a limit you keep to the amount of seeds and nuts you can take? They can be high on protein. I remember eating too many cashews, walnuts and almonds and feeling tired all day after that. From my reading and calculations with the help of cronometer it seems that it is good to eat upto 10 walnut halves a day, preferably soaked, and a 2-3 tablespoons of sprouts. More than that is too much protein, especially from the nuts. What do you think?

Thank you fresh!




fresh Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> iandthou Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > On a high raw diet I decided to get 15% fat but
> I
> > now think this might be too less. The authors I
> > have read have different views. Joel Fuhrman
> does
> > not give a number, Frederic Patenaude says 15%
> or
> > so is good, Gabriel Cousens recommends 25-45%.
> The
> > 80-10-10 is another view which recommends even
> > lesser fat.
> >
> > After about 9 months on a high-raw diet, I feel
> I
> > need more than 15%. I have lymphatic congestion
> > around my eyes and a bit on the rest of the
> face,
> > and from what I have understood, lack of fat
> can
> > cause this - although so far I haven't
> understood
> > the mechanism behind this phenomenon. So I am
> > going to work on getting at least 25% of my
> > calories from fat now.
> >
> > However, I don't quite understand if it is OK
> to
> > pour, for example, 2 tablespoons of olive oil
> over
> > a salad. Or eat 20 walnut halves a day.
> >
>
> nothing wrong with it
>
>
> > What percentage of calories do you aim to get
> from
> > fat?
> >
>
> it doesn't matter
>
> > What are your sources of fat?
> >
>
> everything
>
>
> > Can lack of fat cause lymphatic congestion?
>
>
> i don't think so
>
> our lipid needs are very small
>
> not necessary to focus on a certain amount of fat
>
> the congestion is from eating foods that are not
> efficiently cleared from the body.

iandthou Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thank you lisa.
>
> If you get most of your fat from seeds and nuts,
> and avocados, I wonder if there is a limit you
> keep to the amount of seeds and nuts you can take?
> They can be high on protein. I remember eating too
> many cashews, walnuts and almonds and feeling
> tired all day after that. From my reading and
> calculations with the help of cronometer it seems
> that it is good to eat upto 10 walnut halves a
> day, preferably soaked, and a 2-3 tablespoons of
> sprouts. More than that is too much protein,
> especially from the nuts. What do you think?


It's hard to say really - I don't really pay attention to the numbers.. but I think perhaps I eat more than 10 walnut halves and 2/3 T sprouts per day, averaging out...

I'm the same as you, too much fat makes me feel a bit sluggish, so that's one way I know when I've eaten too much.

I think it makes a difference how it's processed too... for instance if I were to soak walnuts overnight, then blend them and add a little kefir and leave them to turn into a kind of yoghurt to eat as a salad dressing, then that would feel a lot easier to digest than if I just ate them unsoaked.

The other thing about soaking them is that you're less likely to overeat them in that way. It's one thing having a small jar of nuts that you're soaking and planning to eat with your dinner the next day, but it's another just snacking on a few bags of unsoaked mixed nuts... they're tasty, so it's very easy to forget how many you've had



Free Newsletter: [bit.ly]
Facebook: [www.facebook.com]
Instagram: [www.instagram.com]
Blog: [RawFoodScotland.co.uk]

Thanks lisa