Raw food , or the raw food diet, has become very popular in recent years. The idea is simple: you do not heat your food and if you process it, you only do this by cutting/blending, pressing and/or mixing. In addition, soaked products such as sprouts and fermented products such as sauerkraut are also considered raw food .

In this way, most processed foods are immediately eliminated - because they are heated or processed in other chemical ways as standard. In essence, raw foods are whole foods that you don't heat, which makes them a healthy food choice in the first place. There are also a few other benefits such as retaining water-soluble micronutrients and enzymes which make some raw foods easier to digest.

But what exactly are micronutrients and enzymes ? And are there also foods that you should not eat raw, or that are better for you if you heat them ? That is correct, that is why I explain in this blog article how that works exactly and how you can best add raw foods to your diet.

What is raw food and what are its benefits?

Raw food is food that is not heated above a certain temperature, usually around 40-48 ℃ . This is of course an energy-efficient way of preparing, but that is not the only advantage. At this temperature, a lot of nutrients are also retained that would be lost when heated:

• Water-soluble micronutrients : vitamins, minerals and trace elements. Some of these are water-soluble, such as vitamin C and B, the minerals potassium, calcium and magnesium, and the trace elements iron and zinc. When you heat food, these micronutrients disappear into the cooking liquid or are lost in the water vapour. Very high temperatures and long heating can even destroy them. Raw food therefore contains a higher concentration of these micronutrients.
• Enzymes : Raw foods contain natural enzymes. These play a crucial role in digestion and metabolism (converting nutrients into energy), just like the enzymes in your saliva and digestion. By helping your digestion in this way, you absorb nutrients better and your food becomes easier to digest.
• Live probiotics: Fermented raw foods like sauerkraut and kimchi and fermented drinks like kefir and kombucha contain live probiotics. These bacteria are beneficial for healthy gut flora and a strong immune system.
• Heat-sensitive antioxidants : Some antioxidants in fruits and vegetables, such as polyphenols , carotenoids and flavonoids, are degraded at high temperatures. These antioxidants help fight harmful free radicals that can otherwise damage your body's cells.

Are there also products that you should not eat raw?

Raw food has many benefits for your health and digestion. But there are also products that release more nutrients when cooked and others that are even toxic when eaten raw.

For example, cooking tomatoes makes their lycopene content more available, which is known for its antioxidant properties. In addition, potatoes and many raw mushrooms, beans and pods are toxic if not heated.

You also need to be careful with animal products. Although dairy products made from raw milk retain the beneficial live probiotics, they can also be contaminated with dangerous bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella. Raw meat, fish and shellfish can also contain dangerous bacteria. Especially during pregnancy, breastfeeding and questionable producers, it is important to always heat animal products properly to neutralize potential contamination.

In short, it is important not to blindly follow the raw food hype and eat all your food raw.

What are the disadvantages of raw food ?

Besides potential contamination, the taste of raw food is a disadvantage for some people. Also, some people find it boring to eat only raw fruits and vegetables, making it difficult to feel fully satisfied.

But, even with raw foods you can still be creative with your ingredient combinations. You can also flavour dishes with different dressings and toppings.

It also helps to vary your processing methods. For example, you can use a blender or food processor to make smoothies, chop cauliflower into rice grains, make pasta noodles from zucchini, or blend nuts and fruit together to make delicious raw cakes or raw bites . And finally, you can ferment raw cabbage into sauerkraut or kimchi, transform beans and pods into sprouts by leaving them in water, or make overnight oats by putting your bowl in the fridge overnight .

How to add more raw foods to your diet?

If you are not used to eating raw foods , it is important to adjust your diet gradually so that your body can get used to it. Start by adding raw vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds to the meals you already eat. They are also ideal additions to salads, (green) smoothies and yoghurt/oat/chia bowls.

In addition, you can also eat sprouted beans and pods such as bean sprouts, alfalfa and broccoli sprouts raw. To do this, they are submerged in water for several days, after which the bean or pod opens and the sprout (the “baby plant”) appears. Sprouts also have a number of unique advantages:

• Germination releases more nutrients. In fact, all the nutrients the plant needs are already in a germ, so in an extremely high density.
• Sprouts are easier to digest and the nutrients are better absorbed by your body.
• Sprouts are crunchy, fresh, spicy and nutty - delicious in salads, as a garnish and on bread!

Finally, don’t be afraid to combine your raw foods with heated products – dogmatically following one diet is rarely a good idea in the long run. Plus, you can get the benefits of both raw and heated foods and make your dishes a lot more flavorful.

The unique taste of our Energy bars , for example, comes from the combination of raw dates and oats with 80% dark chocolate and a roasted nut paste of almonds and hazelnuts.

#Pro-tip: Don't just boil your potatoes and vegetables like the old-fashioned AVG, but also try steaming, stir-frying, roasting or grilling them. This way you get different flavors and you retain more nutrients than when you boil them in water!