Leading The Natural Health Revolution

You've seen the film - what now? How to get your family, friends and children as excited about real food as you!

We've had a few questions lately about how to actually put all of this into action - where do you start? How do you get your family on board, especially when your children are used to eating whatever they have been for their whole lives. Dietary changes are an emotional issue for most of us - especially children if they think they are being deprived or tricked or punished!

I grew up eating a 'standard Australian diet' (modelled on the American version) and it was actually me who broke away from that to create a healthier life for myself - my family still thinks I'm crazy - but slowly, surely and gently I've been introducing them to new foods, ideas and recipes and broadening their palettes to appreciate real food. Through my journey I've really learned that our attitude/emotions/beliefs about our food are just as important as the food itself.

If your children see eating raw fruits and vegetables as 'punishment' or something negative they will no doubt rebel against it - that's their job as children!! Even your husband might not be seeing this change as something positive. My gentle suggestion would be transition as slowly as you can - don't cut out things you consider to be unhealthy, but use a method David Wolfe calls 'crowding it out'. Basically still continue your diet as usual, but just ADD things in - don't remove a thing. Add in vegetables - even if its alongside pizza. Add in fruit - even if its alongside pancakes. Both can be perfectly healthy by the way - the key is in wholesome pure ingredients (as I'm sure you know already). Keep adding in the good stuff - eventually it will start to take the place of the bad stuff naturally - you won't need to force anything.

There is no need for anyone to feel deprived or give up the things they love, just make small changes where you can to start. I.e. replace white processed flour with a wholesome flour you grind yourself (if you can) or a store bought wholemeal spelt flour or almond meal for your pancakes - no one will know the difference, and you will know they are getting nutrition along with their yummy breakfast. Still buy your waffles - top them with real maple syrup and fruit and if you eat dairy - enjoy the real (raw) stuff in the form of cream or icecream as a treat for your waffles.

Don't make your goal to be '100% raw' - you might want to head there later, but for most people this is too drastic a change in lifestyle and shock to your body. Of course if you want to go in guns blazing by all means go for it! But if you want to be a little gentler on your body and your family, make it your goal to get your family eating as much REAL food as possible. Real food is not packaged, processed or man made. Real food is how our ancestors and grandparents ate. Real food is not fast food. The best part is that real food tastes amazing and loves your body back!

Definitely increase your raw food intake for your family - add raw foods to your meals and gradually let the portions grow over time as you enjoy and crave them - but let it happen naturally, don't force it. Slowly, gently, kindly - make it a positive addition to meals rather than a punishment or a deprivation.

I think it's really important to try not to create a stigma around food for your children - eating disorders are serious business and new research is showing that the main cause of food relationship problems (bulimia, overeating, etc) could be simply from the body's reaction to restriction (calorie, food type, cravings) and feeling like it's in 'starvation mode'. I personally suffered from bulimia in my late teens/early twenties and have come to know this as true through my personal recovery experience. The more deprived I feel, the stronger the unhealthy relationship with food becomes. If your children are going to eat something you feel worried about, don't stress, just add something good along side it.

Jon Gabriel talks in his amazing book 'The Gabriel Method' (inspiring journey and method for weight loss and self love) about chopping up takeaway pizza slices and putting it on a raw salad and topping it with his favourite dressing when he first started out - the point was that he was getting the live raw foods along with the pizza - he did whatever he needed to do to get the nutrition into himself, that's where it starts! He never felt deprived because he always ate whatever he wanted - he taught his body that it wasn't being 'starved' and over time his body grew to crave healthier choices because they tasted good and make him feel energetic!

Add in nuts and seeds, seaweeds, greens, nourishing bone broths (aka Weston A Price) if you eat meat, raw dairy (again - if you eat it) and all things good that you know you should be eating. Keep adding and adding and adding the good food - don't consciously cut anything out - that will happen on its own.

Kids love dried fruit - which is a big leap above lollies. Air popped popcorn. Home made cookies made with real ingredients. Butter instead of margarine. Still enjoy these treats - make them nourishing and wholesome and bake them with love (most important part) - it doesn't have to be all or nothing. Small steps.

A very wise person (my beautiful cousin) gave me the best nutrition advice I've ever had. Amidst all the competing theories on what is healthy and what is poison for our bodies - sometimes I find myself feeling a little lost. It always comes back to real food. My cousin said "Jess, why don't you just eat as if you were pregnant and responsible for someone elses life? Eat whatever you would eat in that situation." Best. advice. ever.

I hope this helps out. Remember to relax and enjoy your food too :)

Jess Etcell
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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jasselle P. on June 16, 2011 at 4:33am

Hi Marco,

I guess the main reason I feel like it can be more expensive is because of the amount of food I consume to maintain my energy. I am a very active person (I work with kids all day and exercise daily) and sometimes I feel like a raw smoothie or salad might not keep me full as long as say a tuna sandwich, so I feel like I need to eat more when I'm eating raw - thus I end up buying more groceries. I'm sure my body will even out soon enough and start appreciating the real food, but I get the feeling that right now it thinks I'm starving it since I've JUST started doing the almost completely living food diet.

I noticed you're from Italy - I just returned to the US from spending 2 weeks there with a college course, it was WONDERFUL. I hope this makes some sense! Cheers

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Permalink Reply by Marco from Italy on June 16, 2011 at 5:10am

you've been in italy? where ecsactly?

anyway you had the opportunity to see that italy is the country of cooked food!! :D

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Permalink Reply by tegist gezahegn on October 20, 2011 at 1:48am

Hi Jess,

very interesting story. thank you for your advice. I am a vegan and my children don't eat meat or drink milk. I give them orangic orange juice with calcium in it. I know orang juice has sugar but i couldn't find anything else so far for their calcium and B12. i read about superfood such as barley grass rich in B12 and calcium and cacao rich in iron. But i coudn't find any barley or cacao that shows the nutrients facts as it has been said. Is there a specific one that i have to look for. Can you advice me other way of supplementing iron. B12, and calcium with superfood or natural supplents. Please give me specific names if you can since there are a lot to choose from.

Thank you again

Tegist

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Permalink Reply by Katie Manning on November 5, 2011 at 4:09pm

Hey Jess! Thanks so much for your advice- what a fantastic motivator having just watch the film and joined the forum!

I've become interested in the raw food/organic movement having suffered from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome on and off for around 10 years. I've always eaten a healthy, vegetarian diet, but am realising it might not have been healthy enough! Thank you so much again for your article! Here's to health!

Warmest wishes,

Katie

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Permalink Reply by Johnny on November 29, 2011 at 7:50am

Great info...I do this myself because of the sudden "crash of desire" to put gmos in my mouth..I replace slowly things i find that are bad.

Now as far as those around me,that is a different story and I did more research on the matters of our community and getting the word out.

My main thought was to not "make people see as I do or believe what I do but to invite them to the threshold of their own imagination."

Things we did to that help...

We made trips to the store and found items that were safe but found they were scattered all over the place mixed in among the other items unlike Krogers for instance they have set up a section that is natures market inside where the items are costly but already made that are organic.

So we made a trip to wal mart and found they had organic products on the shelves but mixed all throughout the store and I thought to play the consumer game on them in the fact that I went in and seen the fruits they had on stand for sale.

The oranges had a sign on top that said "locally grown" so i picked up the orange and it had a sticker on it that read china.I got home called the managers and spoke out against false promotions to sell..Urged them to remove the sign or get locally grown oranges in its place,.first step...

secondly i went back to wal mart and it was late while all the stockers were loading shelves and I went to one after another asking where the organic foods and products were located?Then speaking of another grocer that already grabbed it and ran and that is where we will shop for most of our needs.

My hopes were to create a demand from consumers to make it more accessible to us...Hope it makes a curve!

And to the statement about being cheaper? It is if you look "beyond" the surface and save on doctor visits and hospital bills and medications when you get sick and did I not say WHEN you get sick from eating gmos...

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Permalink Reply by Carolyn on April 30, 2012 at 12:16pm

My heart aches when I hear the kids ask for foods I know are not healthy for them. I "lead by example" and try to be patient with them, crowding out the bad with real foods that nourish their bodies. I have to remember that I learned late in life with no one to lead me through the process about what food really is and what it is not. As for my circle of influence, I am amazed at how the topic of food comes up and with subtle diplomacy, I navigate through conversations and offer information as requested. Thank goodness we have wonderful, inspiring, undeniable videos to refer friends and family to!