Disclaimer: In the society we live in, I have to include this — I’m sharing my personal experiences and knowledge about raw foods. This is not medical advice.

© 2023 Michel Keck. All Rights Reserved. 

🏥 My Raw Food Journey — Why I Turned to Raw Food Healing

It was the end of the 90’s, I was only in my 20’s, and I had hit absolute rock bottom health‑wise. I had gained nearly 60 pounds in a very short period of time, and some days I had a hard time just walking. Doctors kept running tests, and I was handed what I now call “wastebasket diagnoses” — fibromyalgia, lupus, possible Bell’s palsy, constant sinus infections, recurring yeast infections (from antibiotics), crippling migraines, hair loss, loss of libido, and unexplained chronic fatigue that never went away.

For years, I trusted the prescriptions, the antibiotics, the caffeine‑laden migraine meds… and none of it helped. In fact, some of it — like the caffeine in Excedrin and the antibiotics — were actually prolonging and intensifying my symptoms.

What I later discovered — years after the harm was done — was that the real trigger for my health collapse was Depo‑Provera birth control injections. I was given nearly ten times the amount I was supposed to receive, and that dosage error was never disclosed to me while I was begging doctors to tell me what was happening to my body. Overnight, I went from a healthy, active young woman to someone battling a long list of serious conditions — autoimmune, metabolic, hormonal, neurological, digestive — and nothing made sense. I believe God puts us through events in our lives to learn from and to help others. I went on to help many women, who had also been poisoned by Depo‑Provera, to reverse their health issues through a raw / living foods diet. While I was severely poisoned by the massive amounts they gave me, women who received even just the "normal" dose were severely affected as well. The reality is Depo-Provera should have never been on the market.

It wasn’t until I turned to a chiropractor — truly my last‑ditch effort of hope — that my life began to change. I had never been to a chiropractor before, and I want to be very clear about what that experience was like: Dr. Jennings didn’t do traditional “cracking” adjustments like most people think of when you hear the word “chiropractic.” He didn’t twist or snap my bones. Instead, he used very *gentle, subtle tool‑assisted manipulations — almost like a soft massage hammer — that you barely feel in your body. But honestly, that wasn’t even what ended up being the life‑altering part.

The real transformation began with the information he gave me. Dr. Jennings didn’t just “adjust my back” — he armed me with knowledge that changed the course of my health journey. He told me to read two books: The Miracle of Fasting by Paul Bragg and Fast Your Way to Health by Lee Bueno‑Aguer — which details how fasting can trigger profound healing in the body.

I didn’t question him for a second. I immediately bought the books and read them — cover to cover — before my next appointment. When I told him I had actually read them, he was stunned; he said that rarely, if ever, did someone follow through. I couldn't believe he was shocked because I was so desperate to heal that him asking me to read books seemed far less dangerous than, "here take these pills". Conventional medicine had failed me, I had tried everything they asked of me, and nothing helped. I was going to give this one last chance my 100% effort, and I meant every word of it.

Dr. Jennings also suggested I meet with a nutritionist to help implement what I was learning, and as fate would have it, I already knew one — she worked at one of the many doctors’ offices that never got me well. The combination of the guidance from the books, Dr. Jennings’ insight, and the nutritionist’s support led me to a 30‑day raw food diet that changed everything. Within just days, my symptoms began to shift. Within weeks, I felt profoundly better. By the end of thirty days, I knew I had reversed conditions the medical community had told me would never go away.

Since that day, sharing this information has become a true passion of mine — helping people find the kind of healing that conventional medical care often can’t or doesn’t provide, especially when they feel they’ve tried everything. My mission, since I healed myself with dietary and lifestyle changes, is to give others hope, understanding, and real tools for better health when all else has failed.

Over two decades later, I have walked this path fully — and lived it, fallen off it, and come back to it again — and every time I return to plant‑based, high raw foods, I thrive. When I drift away from it, my health suffers. That history makes me confident in saying that this way of eating isn’t a fad — it is healing biology in action.

🥗 What Are Raw & Living Foods — And Why They Matter

🌿 What “Raw” Really Means

A raw food diet means eating foods that are not heated above approximately 118°F (48°C). At this temperature or below, heat-sensitive nutrients like certain vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients remain intact. This is why raw juicing, smoothies, dehydrating at low temperatures, and gentle soaking are key techniques in a high raw food diet.

⚠️ Important Temperature Note:
Some nutrients begin to degrade above 104–106°F (40–41°C), with most heat-sensitive compounds significantly reduced at 118°F. Light steaming or minimal cooking can improve the absorption of certain nutrients like lycopene and beta-carotene, but it comes at the cost of some heat-sensitive vitamins.

🌱 Supporting Your Body’s Natural Catalysts

The human body produces specialized proteins that help break down food and fuel nearly every chemical process in your cells. Every digestion process, energy production, and tissue repair depends on these catalysts.

Raw foods support your body by:

• Reducing digestive workload (fiber and water make digestion easier)
• Providing nutrient-rich building blocks for catalyst production
• Supplying compounds that protect metabolic pathways

⚠️ Note: While plant catalysts are destroyed in the stomach, the vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and other phytonutrients in raw foods remain intact and are fully available for your body to absorb. This is one reason raw fruits, vegetables, and sprouts provide superior nutrient density compared with cooked foods.

🍓 Fiber & Glucose

Raw fruits and vegetables deliver intact fiber and glucose that fuel the nervous system, support blood sugar stability, aid in satiety, and feed beneficial gut microbes. Raw diets naturally optimize energy use rather than relying on processed carbohydrates or protein as fuel.

🧪 Leukocytosis — Your Body’s Response to Cooked Foods

Leukocytosis refers to an increase in white blood cells — a marker your body uses to signal a stress or immune response. Some raw food researchers noted that eating cooked meals often triggers a transient but measurable rise in white blood cell count in some individuals — almost as if the body is responding to a foreign or stressful load.

For many people, this response is mild and unnoticeable. For others, especially those with compromised immune systems or chronic inflammatory conditions, cooked foods can increase:

• Bloating
• Sinus congestion
• Fatigue after meals
• Subtle inflammation

Raw foods, on the other hand, tend to produce minimal leukocytosis response and often make people feel lighter, clearer, and more energized after eating.

💡 My Personal Experience With Raw and Cooked Whole Plant Based Foods

I eat a whole foods, plant-based diet with a high proportion of raw foods, but I also include cooked whole food plant-based meals. I am a strong advocate for a short-term 100% raw food diet if you find — like I did — that even small amounts of cooked food trigger swelling or bloating.

When my body was in such an overstimulated and inflamed state, the leukocytosis that occurs in response to cooked foods would send my system into overdrive. Yes — my body was that challenged, and sadly, many people in our modern society can relate to being in this state. For those individuals, a 100% raw food approach often produces rapid, noticeable improvements in digestion, energy, and inflammation.

Personally, I do best on a high-raw, whole foods plant-based diet, roughly 75–80% raw foods. My typical routine is raw foods all day until around 4 pm, and then I enjoy a nourishing cooked whole food plant-based meal. Sometimes that cooked meal is at lunch, other times at dinner — it depends on the day and what my body feels it needs.

I did live on a 100% raw food diet for two years, and I won’t lie — I was in the best shape of my life during that time. But as my body healed, I was able to reintroduce cooked whole foods, which works beautifully for me now. This experience reinforces that raw foods are incredibly healing, but reintroducing cooked meals can be beneficial once your body is ready.

🍇 Fruit: The Foundation of Raw Food Energy

A raw food diet without plenty of fruit is not complete, because:

• ✔ Your body runs primarily on glucose, not protein
• ✔ Fruits provide fast, clean energy with fiber
• ✔ Fruits supply vitamins, antioxidants, phytonutrients, and abundant water
• ✔ Glucose fuels the brain, nervous system, red blood cells, and cellular metabolism more efficiently than protein alone

🍓 USDA vs Optimal Fruit Intake
Official U.S. guidelines (USDA / MyPlate):

• Minimum: ~2 cups of fruit per day (~4 servings)

But this is a minimum designed for processed-food populations — not a recommendation for optimal health.

🔥 Optimal Raw Food Fruit Intake
Whole-food and longevity communities suggest 6–12 servings/day of fruit, especially for active adults, mature women, and anyone optimizing metabolism.

Examples of Raw Fruits (Nutrient Highlights):

🥬 Vegetables: Raw vs Lightly Cooked (With Purpose)

Some vegetables are best eaten raw for maximum nutrients. Others benefit from light cooking to unlock specific compounds.  I am not an advocate of 100% raw, I am an advocate of a high raw diet, because some vegetables offer more nutrients when cooked. 

🍃 Best Raw Vegetables:

• Leafy greens: spinach, kale, swiss chard, romaine
• Crunchy salad staples: bell peppers, cucumbers, celery
• Roots: carrots, radishes, beets
• Herbs: parsley, cilantro, basil
• Tender squash: zucchini, summer squash
• Sprouts (major nutrient boosters)

🥦 Lightly Cooked (<3–5 minutes) Advantage:

• Tomatoes: Lycopene becomes more bioavailable
• Sweet potatoes: Beta-carotene absorption increases
• Cruciferous veggies: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts
• Light steaming (~3 minutes) preserves nutrients, longer destroys some

🌱 Sprouting — Nutrient Explosion You Won’t Get Otherwise

Sprouts are living foods in the most biologically active form. They awaken dormant nutrients and enhance availability:

• Natural catalyst activation
• Vitamin increase (C, B)
• Anti-nutrient reduction (phytic acid)
• Mineral bioavailability
• Protein availability

📊 Sprouting Guide — Soak & Sprout Times

Sprouts can be added to salads, wraps, smoothies, and bowls. They are one of the most nutrient‑dense foods on the planet.

🍽️ Raw Food Meal Planning — 30‑Day Framework

High raw diets are easier and more satisfying with a structure. Below is a template you can follow for 30 days, building habits, energy, and metabolic clarity.

Daily Targets:

• ✔ 6–12 servings fruit
• ✔ Plenty of vegetables (raw first)
• ✔ Sprouts regularly
• ✔ Occasional light steaming for specific veggies
• ✔ Hydration (water + fresh juices)

🌞 Sample High Raw Day (150 lb Adult — Fruit Prioritized)

🍓 Breakfast – Fruit Smoothie:

• 2 bananas
• 1 cup berries
• ½ mango
• Fresh spinach
• 1 tbsp chia
  High glucose, hydrating, energizing

🥗 Mid‑Morning Snack – Fruit Salad:

• Melon, grapes, pineapple

🍉 Lunch – Raw Veggie Bowl with Sprouts:

• Bell peppers, cucumber, celery, carrots
• Sprouted lentils
• Raw dressing (lemon + mustard + maple)

🥑 Afternoon Snack:

• Handful of soaked almonds
• Sliced apple or pear

🍅 Dinner:

• Raw zucchini noodles with raw tomato‑basil sauce
• Raw side salad (greens + sprouts + radishes + cucumbers)

🍍 Evening Dessert:

• Mixed fresh fruit, 'nice cream' (made from frozen bananas), mango sorbet

Total fruit = 6–10 servings; high glucose for energy, sustained satiety, and metabolic fuel.

🍕 Raw Comfort Foods — Best Recipes with Links

Here are verified, highly rated raw recipes you can add to your high raw menu. All links go directly to raw food recipe creators:

• 🍕 Raw Pizza — Rawmazing Raw Vegan Pizza
• 🌮 Raw Tacos — Raw Vegan Tacos (Noracooks)
• 🍔 Raw Sloppy Joes — Raw Sloppy Joes (Rawmazing)
• 🍝 Raw Zucchini Pasta / Alfredo — Minimalist Baker
• 🌯 Raw Burritos / Wraps — Simple Vegan Blog
• 🍣 Raw Sushi / Vegetable Rolls — Rawmazing
• 🍲 Raw Soups — Raw Tomato Gazpacho (Minimalist Baker)
• 🍰 Raw Desserts:
• Raw Carrot Cake Balls (Two Spoons)
• Raw Cheesecake (Rawmazing)
• Raw Ice Cream (Simple Vegan Blog)

Comfort foods can be raw AND nutrient‑dense — just prepare with fruit, vegetables, nuts (moderation!), and raw sauces.

🧂 Dehydrating & Nuts/Fats Moderation

🌾 Dehydrating

Dehydrators turn raw foods into crunchy snacks by gently removing water (below 118°F). This increases:

• ✔ Flavor intensity
• ✔ Digestibility
• ✔ Snack appeal

But dehydrated foods are calorie‑dense — very concentrated. Enjoy them in moderation.

🥜 Nuts & Fats

Nuts and seeds are nutritious but high in calories and fats. On a raw food diet:

• ✔ Eat nuts & seeds lightly soaked or sprouted
• ✔ Use them as condiments, not staples
• ✔ Keep fats at a lower percentage (most calories should come from fruit & veggies)

That helps avoid weight plateaus and supports metabolic clarity.

💡 Raw vs Lightly Cooked — The Truth You Need to Know

Some people never want to eat 100% raw — and some who do will hear arguments from certain whole-food, plant-based advocates that “cooking is better for some foods.”

Here’s the truth: some vegetables and roots can be slightly cooked (usually lightly steamed for ~3 minutes) to improve digestibility or increase absorption of certain nutrients — but the trade-off is that nutrients are destroyed above ~118°F (48°C).

This approach lets you preserve as many vitamins, phytonutrients, and fiber as possible, while also taking advantage of certain cooking benefits where they exist.

🍲 Raw vs Lightly Cooked Table (Selected Veggies & Sprouts)

🌎 Evolutionary & Anthropological Context

Humans in tropical regions evolved largely on raw plants and fruits — abundant carbohydrates, fiber, and phytonutrients. In colder climates with less fruit available, animal foods played a greater role, but the baseline human digestive setup (gut length, teeth structure) aligns more closely with fruit and plant‑based diets than with a heavy diet of cooked meat.

Many longevity cultures emphasize high raw plant diets with vibrant energy, youthful physiology, and low chronic disease.

🙏 Final Takeaway — Thrive With Raw Foods

Raw and living foods are about more than calories or macronutrients. They are:

• 🔥 Natural catalysts
• 🌿 Phytonutrients
• 🍓 Glucose fuel
• 🧠 Cellular hydration
• 🌱 Gut vitality
• 🌈 Antioxidants
• 💪 Metabolic clarity

When you prioritize living, raw foods — fruit first, greens next, sprouts regularly, mindful fats — your body begins to heal without force, with biology supporting you naturally.

🕊 “Then God said, ‘Behold, I have given you every seed‑bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it; they will be yours for food.’” — Genesis 1:29