raw foods: I've seen a lot about the raw food diet, but other than avoiding overly processed foods, I'm not sure why it's so beneficial? It also seems like a lot of effort for people, and it looks like it's difficult to create meals that are satisfying and leave one feeling full. In essence, why go raw?|||The raw food diet is an excellent idea for those looking to improve their health through good eating. At first it sounds extremely restrictive, but once you go raw you tend not to go back! The basic premise of raw food is that you are getting food at its freshest and purest form. These foods definitely aren't processed. Getting raw foods, mainly fruits and veggies, into your body is extremely beneficial because they contain many nutrients that normally break down during the cooking process. Antioxidants, enzymes, proteins and even some vitamins can all be destroyed when heating food. Another benefit of going raw is the chance to learn the difference between acid alkaline foods. Everything is either an acid or a base on the pH scale, including us! In fact, our bodies work very hard to maintain a specific blood pH level of around 7 or so. This is just perfect for carrying the right amount of oxygen in our blood cells. We can help our bodies maintain this balance by eating a good mix of acid alkaline foods, many of which are present in the raw food diet!