The Skinny on Your Skin

Your whole body is covered with it. On average for an adult, it covers about 3000 square inches and weighs about 6 pounds.

It grows as you grow. It contracts as you get slim. It regenerates and repairs itself after most injuries to it.

Your skin is an important organ for releasing toxins from the body, through what many people prefer not to talk about — sweat. The skin also absorbs substances directly — topical remedies, environmental toxins, components of the water you soak in.

Your skin protects vital organs, aids in regulating body temperature, and gives you information through touch or sensations.

People spend thousands of dollars on skin preparations  to make their skin look a certain way, for example, younger or more radiant. Many of these products introduce chemicals into the body. Healthy facial products are also available for sale.

Raw Foods on Your Skin

Many health food advocates know the value of placing certain organic raw or living foods directly on the skin. Avocado, coconut oil, raw honey, aloe vera, raw apple cider vinegar, are among the popular favorites.

Cucumber slices soothe the eyes when you close your eyes, lie down, and put slices on your eyes. Raw honey soothes burns and heals abrasions. Raw apple cider vinegar acts as an astringent and fast facial cleanser.

We use a lot of aloe vera, directly from the plant leaf. We cut pieces for smoothies, raw soups, and salad dressings and then rub the rest on our faces. Topical application of aloe vera takes the discomfort and discoloration from a bruise.

Eating Raw Foods for Your Skin

When you start to eat raw foods after a long time of eating highly processed foods, you can have a healing reaction that shows on your skin. Acne, rashes, or other conditions can show that you are releasing toxins. When all your other releasing organs are working at maximum capacity, this is minor or non existent.

When your body is finished with its cleansing, though, you will see changes in the texture, tone, and vitality of your skin. Your skin will radiate. It will be well worth the discomfort (which you may not even experience).

Organic, living, raw foods provide you with the vitamins, enzymes, minerals, and amino acids your body needs for your skin. Raw foods are filled with water, so that you add moisture to your skin, from the inside out.

When your systems and organs are fed the nutrition they need to function properly, your skin advertises your health. When you get your nutrients and moisture from foods like leafy greens and apples and sprouts, you will know the real meaning of phrases like "inner beauty" and "inner glow."

When your body and skin are getting their nutrition with organic, raw, living foods, you’ll look and feel your best, naturally. Show the world your health with the glow of your skin!

Needless to day, I grew up with the notion that "soup" meant something warm or hot. These days, I have soups nearly every day when I’m not traveling, and they’re neither warm nor hot! They’re raw and room temperature. My friend Jill calls my soups, "salad to blender to bowl."

Here’s a recipe with some alternatives. We prepare some variation of the soup rather regularly because we love sprouted peas. When the children were little, we found that they loved to watch the peas quickly sprout a little tail. We learned lots of ways to use the peas they sprouted!

Sprouted Pea Soup: 4 Servings
Ingredients 2 cups sprouted peas 1 cup snow peas or sugar peas 1 medium avocado 1 small-medium apple 1 ½ cups best available water ¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper Celtic Sea salt to taste (or use any highly mineralized salt)
Directions Prepare apple and avocado by removing non-edible parts. Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor until it reaches the desired consistency. See a variety of suggestions below.

Sprouted Peas. We sprout these ourselves; however, some health food stores are now carrying peas that have been sprouted. I’ve pictured sprouted peas above, as distinct from pea sprouts (below), which are long with a leaf at the end. We purchase our peas for sprouting at a variety of places (see the left navigation bar in the "Sprouting Seeds" section for suggestions). Our special favorite is the San Francisco Mix at Sprout People. We use the peas when they’ve sprouted about 2-4 days.

Snow or Sugar Peas. To be honest, we usually make the recipe with sprouted peas. However, snow peas or peas right out of the pod are a nice addition. We have also added pea sprouts, as shown above, as another texture.

Avocado. Nicely ripened avocado makes this soup creamy and green, adding healthy fat and subtle flavor. When we’re ready to make the soup but without a properly ripened avocado, we use raw, soaked nuts. They also require proper timing, as almonds need to be soaked about 24 hours and cashews or walnuts need to be soaked 6-8 hours. Allow 3-4 nuts per serving.

Apple. We’ve prepared this soup without the apple and it’s just as tasty. The apple adds wonderful nutrients, crunch, and crispiness. "An apple a day …." If you haven’t had your apple that day, be sure to add one to this soup.

Water. Opinions abound about the "right" water to consume. I try to stay away from the controversy; besides, some people cannot get the water that raw food purists consider to be the best. So, you choose what you believe is the best available water.

Cayenne Pepper. We use ground cayenne pepper often. If that’s not to your taste, you’ll still find this a wonderful dish if you omit it. Because peas have a more neutral flavor than many vegetables, experiment with your own favorite herbs or spices.

Celtic Sea Salt. Be certain not to spoil this wonderful raw soup with "regular" table salt. What you want here is a highly mineralized salt, of which there are many to choose from. Sea vegetables are another alternative, about ¼ to ½ teaspoon. Another alternative is celery. When we add celery to this soup, we place the water and celery in the blender first to break down the fibers. Then we add all the additional ingredients because they need much less blending.

Texture. Varied textures create different taste sensations. This soup, as many raw soups, can be successful as chunky, smooth, or pureed. We usually prefer a chunky soup, as that reminds us to chew. Chewing is an important part of the digestive process. Here are some considerations for experimenting:

• Blend these ingredients into a puree. If you do that, be certain to save out some of the sprouted peas or pea sprouts for garnish.
• Create a nice texture this way: blend the ingredients briefly, remove most of the soup to a bowl, puree the remaining, and add the puree to the briefly blended soup. This thickens the soup, but without any artificial ingredients.

Temperature. At our house, we eat most of our foods at room temperature. If you like a different temperature, consider:

• For a warm soup, heat the water (be careful to keep it below 118° if you want a truly raw soup) or place the soup in the dehydrator or on a warming tray enough to warm it. Some people, especially in colder climates, prefer warm foods.
• If you like it chilled, start with refrigerated ingredients, then place the soup in the refrigerator for a brief period.

Whatever you eat, eat with a smile on your face and love in your heart.

It’s common for people to worry or at least wonder about getting enough protein. This is especially true when considering or hearing about individuals who live on uncooked foods derived from plant life.

I believe that "how am I going to get enough protein?" is not the correct question. The correct question is: "how am I going to get enough amino acids?"

On this topic, I’ve read lots and lots of resources, and have some favorite sources that I trust more than others. I have some expertise, but don’t consider myself an expert. Keep in mind that not all the "experts" agree on the subject of protein. Here is my synthesis which forms the basis for my own food choices.

Amino Acids

Many, many, many raw plant foods contain protein; and, as I said, it’s more helpful to think in terms of amino acids, which both comprise and form protein. As human eaters, we need the building blocks that create the protein in our own body, and those building blocks are amino acids.

There are 20 amino acids, of which 8 are called "essential." Calling them "essential" without qualification is confusing, as it implies that the other 12 are not essential. Just think of that as meaning "essential to get from food sources because the body cannot manufacture these amino acids inside the body." The body needs all of these amino acids, but can manufacture those that are not essential if provided the proper nutrition.

The term "complete protein" has come to mean that a food contains all the essential amino acids. But it’s also important to understand that — and let’s be in awe of the fact that — the body can take some amino acids from some sources and other amino acids from other sources at another time and through its wisdom make the protein the body needs.

Incidentally, enzymes (which are best thought of as catalytic) are also proteins. I will put together an article on enzymes in the near future. When I first understood the value of enzymes, it was like putting together the final puzzle piece in what was a mystery of proper physical health through foods.

Plant Protein Sources

Understanding the relationship of amino acids to protein makes it easier to embrace the importance of choosing a WIDE VARIETY of plant foods. In other words, you don’t need to sit at a calculator to figure anything out if you’re getting enough protein as long as you’re choosing from a wide variety. In making your choices, keep in mind:

PopEye knew. The best source of protein for human food is (… Drum Roll …) green leafy vegetables, the darker the better.

Goji berries contain all 8 essential amino acids plus some others. The added value of high amounts of Vitamin C, extensive shelf life, and portability (try putting kale in your purse and see how long that lasts!), these are orange gems.

The various super greens like chlorella, blue-green algae, Spirulina and some prepared green powers are concentrated sources of protein.

Hemp nut seeds and Flax seeds are both complete proteins and have the added value of fat sources that are healthy. More in future articles on these two favorites.

Sprouts of all types provide a variety of amino acids. I’ll be writing must more about sprouts and the process of sprouting seeds in future articles.

Bee pollen is a complete food, one of the food sources on which a person could sustain life without other foods. I find the flavor somewhat unappealing. Some people are allergic, so starting with small amounts is very smart.

Everyone Has an Opinion

Several years ago I attended a Vegetarian dining club in Santa Monica. Many are vegan who base their meals on grains and shun animal products, but seem to know very little about nutrition. The program that evening was on raw foods. The facilitator, in an effort to get audience participation, asked the group’s opinion on how raw foodists get their protein. He even offered a prize for the correct answer. Of course, most said "nuts." And he awarded the prize to the one who said it first.

While it’s the prevailing opinion, it’s not based on fact. It’s my understanding that almonds are the only "complete" protein among the nuts. In other words, they have all 8 of the essential amino acids and some of the other amino acids. However, if you adopt the model that the body requires a combination of three elements protein, fat, and carbohydrate (each body with a different ratio), nuts are not even classified as protein, but as fat.

I know that I have only touched the surface, but I want to get started on this important topic of nutrition of foods. Please add your comments or questions by clicking on the comment link just below.