Digestive problems, aging skin, extreme exhaustion. If this sounds all too familiar, maybe you should stop cooking. Seriously.In Ayurveda, (Ayurveda is a traditional Hindu style of alternative medicine that focuses on maintaining balance to achieve good health), summer months are acknowledged by eating very little cooked foods. Just about everywhere but SF, summer is hot. Your body needs to stay cool and stay hydrated. Raw fruit and vegetables are mostly water, plus they contain the enzymes your body needs to break food down effectively.Many of us honor this system of balance unknowingly by eating salads, fruit and other cooling foods when the weather is warm. It’s unusual to crave a thick bowl of chili when the temperature is 101. This seasonal regulation is our body’s way of letting us know what it needs from us.Summer is an ideal time to eat foods that are uncooked and full of body-regulating goodness that detoxifies and balances our system – restoring us to a natural state of health. Many health problems stem from treating our bodies in undesirable ways, or from being so out of touch with our natural rhythms and needs that we become desensitized to the undesirable effects of modern food.Raw foods are part of a larger category of foods called living foods – foods that are still alive and haven’t been steamed, boiled, baked or otherwise processed to a point where they’re devoid of nutrients and healthy benefits. By eating raw, you allow yourself to reconnect with nature. Your awareness is heightened and your feminine intuition (yes – even you men have a feminine intuition) that comes alive when you are connected to Mama Nature, allows you to be open to the possibilities that your life has to offer. When you are open to all life has to offer, you become more alive in body, mind and spirit. You are energized, you are inspired. You make life happen for yourself. And that’s a pretty darn good feeling!
