My name is Teresa, I'm really interested in going 100% raw at some point, but I have a couple questions. I actually have so many, but I'll just focus on a few

For those of you with kids, do you feed them only raw vegan? I imagine you probably do. I'm a little worried about instituting a super restrictive diet at home. At some point my daughter will bump heads with a bacon cheeseburger, what to do? Will she rebel and go on Atkins? (She's only 16 months and currently is omnivorous).

Do any of you have spouses who are not at all interested in the raw food lifestyle? My husband would only eat barbeque for the rest of his life, if he could--which won't last for too long at the rate he's going. He's about 75-100 lbs overweight. How do you reconcile conflicting dietary arrangements at home?

Also. and I'll stop here, I'm currently breastfeeding. I know your body goes through a strong detox when going 100%, so should I wait until completely my baby's completely weaned? I'm still eating cooked foods now, but I'm incorporating more raw into my diet over time. Is that best?

Thanks so much! This is a great forum!

Welcome to the forum! It's good to have you.

Here are my answers to your questions....

I have a 4 year old daughter, and she is not a raw vegan. She goes to a Montessori school a few hours each day, and I am not able to send food there. At home, she gets raw dairy products. We can't make our children eat what we eat...we can only teach them about what is healthy and hope they make good decisions. Being a role model for your child when it comes to eating is the BEST thing you can do. My husband is great. He just goes with the flow and eats whatever I make. He's a good sport. He's not really interested in the raw food lifestyle per se, but he is just very supportive of me and always tells me to just make him what I make for myself. He's very muscular, so sometimes it's not enough calories for him, so then I make him other things as well.

As for breastfeeding, I breastfed my daughter for over 2 years, and I wasn't raw at that time. My advice would be for you to just make sure you get enough calories and eat a wide variety of foods! If it were me, I would wait to go 100% raw until my child weaned. You just never know what detox symptoms may arise. And, you don't want to cut your caloies too low, and then your body stops making enough milk for your child.

Hope that helps! Best of luck to you! It's a fun journey.

Kim

Hi Teresa

Yogamama is on the money, I believe.

I would offer the following to help you:
My children are embracing an increase in raw, simply because I am not pushing it, or cutting things out of their diet obviously. What i do is make something raw first (say a smoothie or a juice in the morning) and say to them:
Who wants a groovy smoothie, it's got mango in it..
or something along those lines.
I would have to say that by offering them those things - but not calling it breakfast - they eat it 99% of the time. If I call it breakfast, I think they start worrying that this is all they are getting..and they say that they want something else.
I always offer something as "have a try of this", which is less intrusive than "here is your lunch" - it really seems to work. They notice almost immediately that they feel better, and they now ask what smoothie we are having this morning...
In fact, my children would be around 75% raw - which they weren't a few months back.
I still cook a meal for them at night - but have masses of raw food to put with it. I think we need to remember that they are still children, and as such don't need to be burdened just yet with "whys".

The biggest thing, I think, is to just take each day as it comes. Both of my children would choose fruit over crap. And, yes, your daughter will be presented with all manner of poisonous foods - but you know what - she will have to make her own mistakes (I think that is what life is about) - and after she eats the hideous burger she will feel sick, and not do it again.

I too would avoid going 100% when breastfeeding - but that doesnt mean I would keep taking in all the toxins that are unnecessary. Great opportunity to get heaps of fruit and veg in, eliminate toxins through washing powder, toothpaste, deodorant (if you haven't already).

The other thing is - this isn't a race, it is your life..so you have to enjoy what you are doing.

This is just my opinion of what has helped me - hope that it helps you also.

Hi Red-Willow!

I think the most important thing is not to come on too strong. Your daughter will be easy I think - offer lots of healthy snacks - keep a few tubs of cut up fruits or veggies handy in the fridge, and before you know it, that will be her first choice.

I agonized over this a lot when I first became a vegetarian, (wasn't raw then, or even vegan), until I realized one thing. A lot of SAD meals have lots of vegetarian stuff in them. They just don't think about it. So, I resolved to create beautiful vegetarian meals for my family, and usually put a plate of meat on the table as well. (maybe I would put a chicken in the crockpot, and let that cook itself all day while I dealt with the good stuff, or whatever.)

Gradually, my family began to gravitate towards the better foods on the table. My kids would never skip the salad or anything with cucumbers or red peppers in it. They will still grab a piece of meat sometimes, but it's a small part of their choices (in fact, sometimes I think they only take meat in order to create leftovers for the dog!), and when I don't put any out, the kids don't even notice (although, the dad does, LOL). And if I put out a little fruit for dessert, they act like I have made them the best gourmet meal ever!

I know my teens eat the occasional burger or pizza with their friends, but I don't worry about it. For them, that is the exception to the rule, and in time, they will stop being self absorbed teenagers, and realise that it's not a good choice for themselves or for the planet.

Sapphire

I don't think that there is a problem with going 100% raw while breastfeeding, just make the transition slowly.

Rob

--
Rob Hull - Funky Raw
My blog: [www.rawrob.com]

We have been raw vegan for 6 months. The kids and I were vegetarian before then. The first month we went raw 99%. After that month long commitment we decided to cheat one meal every week and wean ourselves that way. We gave our eleven year old positive affirmations to memorize about eating healthy food. We teach it and model it. I have always restricted their diet. We limited candy and any candy with artificial coloring was out. My 5 year old has lots of food sensitivities and we are discovering that we all are affected very negatively when we eat our one cooked meal every week. Since we homeschool it is so much easier. I don't keep the unhealthy food in the house. My kids eat all day long. I think staying full makes them think less about it. We also make lots of fruit dishes and sweets. I let them eat raw candy by itself for a meal. They are becoming less and less attracted to other foods.

My husband is 45 and he really started getting interested in keeping up with me about 5 years ago. We had a baby just after he turned 43 and he he started thinking about being around for awhile. I never in a million years thought he would not only eat this way, but love it. He is hasn't been this thin since high school. He still eats meat on his cheat days.

I don't have enough experience or knowledge to comment on detoxing and breastfeeding. I do agree with Deemel about not taking in unnecessary toxins. I would think you could try for your goal and if you feel sick you can have something more. Listen to your body.

Thanks for the replies! I'm intersted to see how other families work.

I'm trying to get into the habbit of not cooking the veggies I give my daughter. She used to eat only cooked veggies because, I guess, that's what you're "told" to do, lol! Also, I guess they're easier to eat when you have no teeth.

She's been eating alot of raw carrots, apples, berries, bananas, cucumbers. I learned the only way she'll eat brocolli is if I steam it and then puree it, but I'll continue to offer her raw versions.

I have to say that just by adding more raw food to my diet, I do feel better! I'm excited to learn more.

Thanks!

red willow, you might be able to get your daughter to eat raw broccoli if you shred the stalks it in the food processor with carrots and add raisins and apples and make a slaw. It's pretty yummy that way.

back in the hippy days-i raised my babies on fresh and raw foods. i mashed everything.combinations i did were-mashed banana mixd with mashed avocado's.my kid sloved this stuff.and mashed avocado's with applesuce.also bananas and pears or banana's and peaches.when a bit older-i made cornmeal with raisins and put soy milk on it.or mixed grain cereal/dried apricots-softened and cashew milk.when they got to be like pre-schoolers...they would eat there ground up soybean sandwiches on whole wheat homemade bread.the middle son loves wholesome food to this day.the other son likes junk and nothing that even sounds like it might be healthy.so win some and loose some.ARUGULA-i am gonna try the slaw u are talking about...it does sound yummy.thanks.taylor

I agree, Arugula, that slaw does sound good. I'll try it!

No my spouse would never go raw although sometimes he will try the odd raw recipe if it looks delicious to him.
My son is not raw. I do give him lots of veggie juices mixed with fruit and fruit platters. He even likes home made sorbet made with frozen fruits

Hello! I am a long time member of this community but a first time poster! First of all, I want to thank you all for sharing your raw food journey with me, it has inspired me to go from a SAD diet to a vegan diet predominately revolving around raw food and cooked veggies. I am also breastfeeding (my son is 6 months - so I will be breastfeeding for awhile yet!). My experience with being raw is that I lost a TON of weight while doing it along with breastfeeding. I am now adding A LOT of nuts and an extra avacado every day in order to get my weight up in a stable range. I am 5'5" and currently about 104 pounds. I would like to be up to about 110 before I eliminate all of the "extra" fats. It has been difficult because I do not "feel" hungry and often have to "force" myself to eat all of the foods during the day. My advice to you is to emphasize the fruits and veggies but please don't forget about the importance of fat while breastfeeding. It is the food that fuels your baby's brain development.
Good luck to you and welcome to this fantastic, vibrant, and intelligent community!

Peace,
Inner Beauty

If I were pregnant or lactating, I'd take supplemental DHA from algae just to be on the safe side. You might be making enough of it for your infant if your intake of alpha linolenic acid is adequate (flax, hemp, walnuts, chia, leaves, fruit). But if your linoleic acid intake is too high (just about every other plant fat), you might not be making enough of it.

The only way to know for sure is to get a blood test. If you don't want to do that, then you might consider supplementing. Just until you quit lactating. And if you don't want to do that, then make sure your LA:ALA ratio is between 2:1 and 4:1. This will require use of a nutrient tracker until you get the hang of it.

[www.nutritiondata.com]