Every year since teaching/talking about the benefits of raw foods, when the weather turns cold, I am inevitably asked how I can possibly just eat raw food. You may have read books, articles or blog postings from other raw foodies who write about how they make it through the winter months, some warming things up in their dehydrators or just drinking lots of hot tea. (Some believe that tea, since heated, can’t be raw so it’s off limits. I happen to love herbal teas of all kinds and drink copious amounts.) Lots of raw food proponents provide tips and tricks for staying raw when the mercury drops, with suggestions like using the dehydrator or adding warming spices to foods (such as cayenne or cinnamon). The truth is, while I am a proponent of raw and living foods, when the weather turns cold, I eat warm (i.e. cooked) foods, too. That’s why this article is subtitled ‘Confessions of a Raw Foods Advocate.’ I’m confessing here and now - I don’t always eat raw foods. There, I said it!

I happen to love hot soups and stews in the fall and winter and find that they can be as nutritious as they are comforting. As a student of herbal medicine and nutrition, I enjoy adding health-giving herbs and roots to soup stocks and include many herbs from my own garden, which I dried or stored for winter use. At least once a week, I break out the pressure cooker and make a delicious soup with white beans (cannellini, Great Northern or Navy), carrots, celery, onion and garlic, to which I add dulse, thyme and sage. Or I’ll fill my favorite soup pot with vegetables and throw in ingredients specifically for their medicinal properties - such as burdock root (also known as Gobo), garlic, astragalus, shiitake mushrooms and kombu.

I know that a lot of raw food purists would find this disagreeable. Actually, I was a bit of a purist when I first started out. I knew that raw foods were making me feel better, look better, and sleep better… why would I ruin that with cooked foods? I was dealing with a lot of health issues and it wasn’t until I went fully raw for a time that my body was able to really get to the business of healing. Over time, however, I learned that a varied diet of whole, organic foods can be enjoyed in many forms - cooked or raw - and can provide maximum nutrition when care is given to the preparation.

It must be said, of course, that when the foods are prepared by cooking, the enzymes are lost. This is one major reason raw purists abstain from cooked foods. Those enzymes that are naturally in fruits and vegetables in their raw form make things so much easier for our systems. Our bodies don’t have to work nearly as hard, nor draw upon their own limited stores of enzymes, in order to digest what we’re eating if what we’re eating has all of its enzymes intact. In addition, when foods are cooked at high temperatures or for long periods of time, vitamins, minerals and heat-sensitive amino acids are lost as well. So, no matter what your diet, it’s going to be difficult to get what you need from your food if you overcook it.

Today, I can honestly say that the more raw and living foods that are in my diet, the better.  Each day that is started with a raw breakfast (usually a smoothie), and includes a salad heaping with lots of leafy greens for lunch or dinner, keeps me feeling happy and healthy.  And when the weather warms, there is no doubt that the days will be filled with delicious, juicy raw foods. There is something to be said for eating seasonally - not just for health, but for sustainability.  And on a cold winter’s day, a hot bowl of organic veggies, steeped with herbs that are as rich in nutrients as they are delicious, is both healing and soothing.