The quality of the diet is the ultimate determinant of overall health, which is really about your body
functioning and performing well. This has been proven extensively by now over decades of
research and population study, but it also just makes sense. Since every cell and tissue in our bodies
is made from the food we eat, the saying “you are what you eat” isn’t just a cliché; you really are
what you eat and in actuality absorb. More on that later!
When we eat healthy, plant-based, nutrient-rich foods, we become healthy. When we don't, we
develop disease because the body is unable to function due to nutrient poor foods, among other
lifestyle factors, that prevent it from functioning right.
For example, while the prevailing viewpoint is that body muscle is primarily fueled by protein due
to nutritional marketing even though this is not true; many people also don’t know that actual
strength is very closely tied to micronutrients. A recent Italian study examined the effects of serum
carotenoid levels—a good marker of overall fruit and vegetable intake—with hip, knee, and grip
muscle strength. Those in the lowest versus the highest quartile ( 25 %) of carotenoid serum levels
were about three times more likely to develop poor hip and knee strength, and about two times
more likely to develop poor grip strength over a six-year period.^82
A separate marker of fruit and vegetable intake, 24-hour urine potassium, was found to be
significantly correlated with lean body mass (muscle and non-fat mass as a percentage of total body
weight) in older adults. Researchers at Tufts University concluded that consuming high-potassium
foods, such as fruits and vegetables, may favor the preservation of muscle mass in older men and
women.^83
Consider that one of the primary reasons seniors end up in assisted living or nursing homes is lack
of mobility. As lack of mobility is highly correlated with muscle strength, you can see that fruit and
vegetable intake is a large determinant of whether seniors will be able to live independently.
An informal study of 500 people switching from a standard diet to an 80-90% raw food diet found a
highly significant correlation to increased energy and improved health. For example, after two
years, the percentage of those requiring eight or more hours of sleep dropped from 59% to 19%!
There was a significant increase in the number of respondents indicating “good” or “excellent”
health related to each of the five senses: sight, touch, hearing, smell, and taste. Constipation
dropped from 73% to 30%, and the percentage of respondents indicating that they easily get sick
with colds or flu dropped from 53% to just 3%. Lastly, the percentage of those indicating “good” or
“excellent” energy levels rose from 31% to 88%.^84
These were just a few of the interesting findings of the raw food study, and many more can be found
by following the footnote (#97) link provided below. While this book isn’t necessarily advocating
that all nutrient-rich foods come from raw sources, a high amount (high raw) of foods will come
(^82) Lauretani F, Semba RD, Bandinelli S, et al. Low plasma carotenoids and skeletal muscle strength decline over 6 years. J
Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2008;63(4):376-83.
(^83) Dawson-Hughes B, Harris SS, Ceglia L. Alkaline diets favor lean tissue mass in older adults. Am J Clin Nutr.
2008;87(3):662-5.
(^84) Zajic, LJ. Raw Food Diet Study. The Iowa Source. http://www.iowasource.com/food/lenkastudy_0806.html