Know Any Literary Animal Lovers?

Hi there PureJeevan readers! We wanted to let you know that Jim's new novel CHROO is available on Amazon. It's a crazy adventure involving a billionaire heiress, her Chihuahua BFF ("Chroo") and a host of human and animal characters. Find out more on Amazon! Here are some links:




We just returned from the East End Food Co-op, where we answered raw food questions for two hours. We were still answering questions on our way out the door, and would have stayed longer but the place was closing. ;-) So, if anyone from this evening stops by our site and you still have questions, just comment here (or send me an email) and I'll be happy to answer them.

I'm more of a one-on-one kind of person, so I was a bit nervous about sitting in front of everyone to answer questions. Jim and KDcat were there to help me, of course, otherwise I probably wouldn't have been there at all. Once people started arriving, I was comfortable. The first people who entered the room were super sweet and I could tell they were genuinely nice people. Then little by little the room filled up, and I was surprisingly comfortable.Maybe in addition to all of the other positive changes in my life, my self confidence is getting better, too!

Getting Lyme Disease after regaining my health on the raw foods diet was a tough thing to accept. How could a body cure itself with a raw food diet, yet then fail to even recognize and destroy the Lyme bacteria? So many individuals have recovered from awful diseases, including cancer, by eating a raw food diet. Why, as a raw foodist, has my body been unable to easily eliminate this lyme disease?

I know Jim and I weren't the only ones wondering this. Many of you have voiced concerns, as well. Questions have been asked about how healthy my raw diet has actually been. Have I been cheating and eating cooked foods? Have I been eating too many packaged raw food snacks? Am I drinking alcohol? What have I been doing *wrong* with my diet in order for this to happen in my body? Here are some answers:

This is a recipe for the coconut shake that brought my cholesterol levels from very unhealthy down to extremely healthy within the span of one month!

Young Coconut Shake

Flesh and water from one young coconut

Jim here... We know a lot of people who exist on a high-raw lifestyle, and many others who aspire to eat a 100% live food diet. I don't believe there is an exact threshold that makes one a "raw foodist." That term is more or less just a general description you might use about yourself or anyone. Aside from the labels, though... If you want to talk about recommended levels of raw intake for optimal health, quite a number of web sites and health books seem to recommend shooting for around 80% of one's intake to be raw, with a careful eye on the other 20%. We certainly agree with that as a good starting goal, adjusting upward or downward as you gain feedback from your body.

Of course, most of the people who do follow a high-raw diet are usually by definition highly health-conscious about any non-raw foods they eat. I've yet to meet, for example, a raw foodist who occasionally eats Burger King Double-Whoppers ?(although, I'm sure that seemingly odd combination must exist somewhere).

Yesterday we began a discussion of adding protein powders into your diet (for those who feel that they want or need to do this). One of the easiest ways to get this powder into your body is to add it to your morning smoothie. ?Now, if you're not into the habit of having a morning smoothie, step #1 is to get into that habit. ?(Actually, I don't just "have" morning smoothies; I thoroughly enjoy them!)

Now, you'll notice that smoothies made with protein powder taste quite a bit richer than what you might be used to. So, I want to start with a smoothie that I found to be somewhat light tasting. In fact, I'd even call it "The King" of smoothies. ?:-)

***** DISCLAIMER: As with all of our posts here at Pure Jeevan, and particularly those coming up over the next week and a half (which will all be tagged with a new term, "Nadi Balance"), please refer to the disclaimer that runs at the bottom of all Pure Jeevan Pages. Wendi and Jim are health researchers, educators, and extreme self-experimenters -- not doctors. ******

Nadi Balance: Part II

Even though this ground-breaking information we're sharing is not necessarily about Lyme disease, the story of Wendi's contracting, suffering, and healing from it is essential background information. So, we're going to talk about Lyme disease frequently here and in the next few posts, but know that the real, underlying story is about so much more than Lyme disease. (In fact, it's about overall health for everyone!)

?

Wow, it's been four months since we've run an article in our "Produce Buying Tips" series! Well, in today's installment, we want to remind you that our tips don't stop at the grocery store; you want to make sure you store your produce properly once it is at home to keep it fresh for as long as possible. After all, what good is your amazing organic produce going to do you if it goes bad? (That would be some super-expensive compost!)

Since Wendi has a difficult time right now with many motions involving her shoulders and wrists, I've taken over the responsibility of putting our groceries into the refrigerator. (I'm usually the "carry it all into the house" person, and then she likes to put away the refrigerated stuff.) But, wow, who knew so much went into storing vegetables and fruits I had no idea some things required air circulation, while others needed to be kept in sealed bags. Over the years, Wendi has fine tuned a system for keeping our fridge produce as fresh as possible and for maximizing storage time.

To keep all of you inspired while we are away, we've asked some

remarkable individuals to share their raw food stories with you. Enjoy!

Jim here... Well, I may have lived 100% raw for nearly one year now (and mostly raw for a few additional years), and I have definitely witnessed the reversal of many physical ailments during that time, but I can say with certainty that, if raw actually cures people of allergies, it looks like I still have a ways to go before reaching that milestone. Here's a snippet from an article I published a few years ago in a book:

I believe I was roughly 12 upon learning of my allergy to poison ivy (the hard way, naturally). By age 14, I'd heard all of the poison ivy folk lore and "wisdom" out there -? that sensitive people like myself can inadvertently contract it via smoke from a nearby brush fire, that ingesting the plant's concentrated essential oil can reverse one's sensitivity to outbreaks (even, some said, to the point of complete immunity), that scratching spreads the rash, that scratching does not spread the rash, that going to get the shot and the steroids makes it fade more quickly, that calamine is best, that it's not, et cetera.

Day 8:

Let's focus on creativity for a bit. This is an area where many men have been comfortable expressing a feminine quality, especially when done through art and music. I say many, because we all know at least a few men who were raised to believe that a strong, powerful man doesn't spend his time with such frivolous things. Instead, he works hard to earn an income to support his family. In the past, and still sometimes today, creative men were viewed as weaker and less masculine, not practical and in control. The feminine quality of creativity was, however, encouraged in women who were afforded more time for such "frivolity."

Q. I am trying to go raw and juicing for only two days now and I am soooo hungry and I really don't quite understand what to eat. I went out and bought a bunch of raw vegetables but I am lost on exactly how to prepare the meals and I'm so tired of being fat. Can you direct me to a simple start of book or can you give me some simple recipes or what you did to get started on your first month? Thank you.

Signed,

Frustrated and Fat in Virginia

A. Dear LOVELY BEING,