[greenbunny]

Hey Gypsie,

Here's my understanding regarding enzymes. I'm really into them because it was the logic of taking this into account that got me really into raw to begin with back in the beginning of the 80's.

There are many kinds of enzymes. My understanding is that you are born with a certain amount. They can be altered by the body. This is why you can steal away enzymes from other things like healing. You use up your enzymes to change enzymes into digestive enzymes that in nature are provided in raw food for you. Then you also have to use enzymes for your immune system to get rid of the toxins created in eating cooked food and especially junky cooked foods.

When you eat raw food you preserve your other enzymes for their own jobs.

As far as vitamins go, they get destroyed at different temperatures depending on the vitamin. There are also different enzymes that come in food that are killed at different temperatures. They say 115 - 118 degrees because that's where the destruction begins.

As far as soil, that is true up to a point, but it's not the main point in eating raw imho. Enzymes are skimmed over by most athorities when at the center of the nutrition process. It's not only how much you take in, but how much your body can assimilate. There is so much more to nutrition than the amount of minerals in your food. If you are concerned about getting enough minerals it's very easy to get lots just by eating seaweed or putting celtic sea salt on your food. Done.

Vitamins are really a tricky matter. It's amazing how plants take air, water and sometimes soil to make those for us. I will let someone more knowledgable on this subject speak to it. (Not all plants even need soil - like the epiphytes or bromeliads etc. You can grow many plants in water and air alone).


There have perhaps been more studies on dogs and raw food than humans (sad to say) and it turns out that the most important increase in health comes first from raw - whether the cattle is raised organically or what they are fed doesn't seem to have that much affect on overall health (according to my vet anyway - and he's into researching this stuff). I suspect that it is the same in humans. It is at least the same for me!!! The one thing that makes the biggest effect on my health and energy is whether the food is raw or not. All other issues of supplementation, minerals, vitamins etc. have relatively negligable affect.

Hope that answers some of your questions!

Greenbunny