Here they are. 7 of them.

1. Diversity

   Love: Going raw helped me discover so many new varieties of fruits and vegetables. I tried new tropical fruits from around the world (like durian), and delightfully local vegetables growing in my backyard.

   Hate: I cut out tons of things that some might not even consider to be fit for human consumption. Most days I’m fine with that, but sometimes it sucks.

2. Relationships

   Love: I met tons of amazing new people through my foray into healthy eating-land. I still meet new amazing people, most notably: you.

   Hate: Like I’ve written about in the past, going raw can rock the boat on any relationship. It’s not something to be overlooked.

3. Evangelism

   Love: When you find something that works for you, you want to shout it off the rooftops and make sure everyone knows about it. That’s how it is for me and eating more fruits and veggies.

   Hate: Sometimes people make their own judgement about your experiences and your ideas. They think you’re promoting an eating disorder, or that you’re trying to push a scam diet onto them.

4. What Defines You

   Love: On the one hand it can be great to be “the healthy one” in the room, always able to lend a hand or recommend a solution to someone.

   Hate: Eventually you realize that you’re a lot more multifaceted than you thought, and you would like to discuss topics other than raw food, weight loss, and the like.

5. Ancestral Habits

   Love: I love the idea of eating closer to nature, eating the way that my long-ago ancestors may have eaten. Grazing, picking berries.

   Hate: Humans have been evolving for thousands of years, and there’s a reason that we’ve got cooked food and blenders. We don’t have all day to sit around and chew.

6. The Word Diet

   Love: Having boundaries and lines helps. We’re all a little too easily swayed by commercials and photos of happy mouths eating unhealthy food.

   Hate: I’ve never dieted. I don’t like the word, and it’s not something I think really works for anyone really. So why use the word, with all the baggage that comes with it?

7. My Calling

   Love: I love that I am here to help people eat more raw food. Whether I can spare you the hate part of the love/hate relationship, I don’t know. But I’ll certainly try to make eating more fresh fruits and veggies a fun experience. Not an all or nothing, but a balanced, welcoming life style.

   Hate: I can’t stand watching people I love hurt. It hurts me to see them, especially if I think I have the answer. (Do I have the answer? We can only know once we give things a try.) But I think that’s part of the job too, allowing people to come to their own realizations.

What do you love or hate about raw food?

These are mine. Share yours in the comments. :)

Photo by Darwin Bell

In keeping with my mission to help people understand raw and living foods better, I’ve decided to start a weekly series here on Raw Food Switch.

I plan on writing about the benefits of eating a predominantly raw vegan diet every week. Each article will focus on a different set of benefits, or benefits for certain groups.

Be sure to subscribe not to miss any of the upcoming Raw Food Benefits Explained posts, they will provide you with motivation to include more raw food into your diet!

This week I’m going to highlight some of the Raw Food Benefits for college students, since I’ve been there myself. These are just some of the benefits, please post any benefits you’ve experienced in the comments!

1. Raw Food Provides Energy To Study

Or to pull all-nighters, as the case may be.

I discovered raw and living foods about 2 years into my 5 year University degree. As soon as I started to include more raw foods in my diet, I realized how much more energy I could have.

When you’re a college student, you are constantly on the go: you’re either doing assignments, working on group projects, or studying for midterms and finals.

The more energy you have to keep going, the better you will do.

Let’s face it, a lot of people in college drink far too much coffee and energy drinks to artificially boost their energy. Not being dependent on these harmful, addictive substances can save money, and prevent long term side effects.

2. You Get A Flexible Food Schedule

Being able to blend a meal within a few minutes really saved me a lot of time.

I was able to make a green smoothie for breakfast, or whenever I didn’t have time to make something more involved.

I knew I was getting the nutrition I needed because I was adding lots of green leafy vegetables, and supplements. These smoothies gave me the energy I needed, and took less than 10 minutes to make.

You can also schedule your food preparation for the whole week in advance. You can make a few simple recipes on Sunday that are ready to go for most of the week.

For example, I used to make an herb salad with sunflower seeds on Sundays after my grocery shopping. I could bring some of it with me for lunch for a few days, hassle-free.

3. Mental Clarity

Photo by Jonathan Pobre

When you’re giving your body the fuel it needs to concentrate, it’s much easier to learn and apply what you learn. I went raw gradually, and my grades improved along with my transition.

Whereas I was an average to below-average student in my first two years, I quickly increased my grades to above average. I graduated from University with Distinction, and I can honestly say that my diet is partly responsible.

Waking up to go to early classes wasn’t a problem for me anymore. A green smoothie in the morning was enough to keep me satisfied until lunch. For lunch I ate a raw meal and never felt groggy or tired for my afternoon classes.

This really helped me to focus during classes and absorb the information I was being taught.

4. Improved Immune System & Overall Health

Every winter college students tend to get sick, and fall behind. Since most University students get by on very little sleep, lots of caffeine, and pizza, it’s no wonder that colds spread easily.

No one wants to be sick during midterms, finals, or big projects. Although eating a predominantly raw food diet isn’t a guarantee against colds, it does help to keep your immune system humming.

It’s much easier to do well in your classes when you’re healthy. You aren’t going to miss class because of a passing flu, and you can devote your energy to your studies instead of fighting off viruses!

More Raw Food Benefits…

This post is part of the Raw Food Benefits Series.

• Raw Food For College Students
• Raw Food For Weight Loss
• Raw Food For Weight Gain
• Raw Food For The Elderly
• Raw Food For Mothers