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We have explored in other segments about the different qualities of the various macro-nutrients that exist in the food world — carbs, proteins and fats.
As you embrace the power of raw foods, fruits and superfoods in their ability to clean, detoxify, energize and regenerate, you may come to realize that the intake of carbohydrates especially in the form of simple sugars and fructose from fruits is perhaps the most ideal source of sustenance and energy.
But this seems contrary to how we’re used to eating in modern society — in the savory world, we’re accustomed to eating a diet high in protein and also high in fat. Protein is covered extensively in another segment, but it’s closely related to fat. Oftentimes a food which is high in protein also contains high amounts of fat and vice versa.
It is normal to feel a big-time craving for a high intake of fats. As you get healthier and more vibrant, I would expect that you would consume less fats and your overall fat consumption would decline. Here we will explore more about that transition element and how and why to navigate from eating too many fats.
It is important to understand the nature of fats (AKA fatty acids), the benefits, and the downsides of consuming them. Fatty acids are important to the body for many different functions (covered in depth in the section breaking down carbohydrates, proteins & fats), including providing insulation, structural support, lining the cell walls, supporting nerve tissue, serving as an anti-inflammatory buffer, and providing reserves for future conversions to energy.
Fats are not, however, a straightforward fuel source like carbohydrates are. While carbs (ideally simple sugars) are basically digested in the intestines, and absorbed directly via the bloodstream to then go to the cells, fats on the other hand go through an extensive digestive process. Fats are first broken down partially in an acidic process in the stomach, and then get hydrolyzed and digested using bile salts from the liver. After being made water-soluble via this process, the pancreas must then secrete specific digestive enzymes to break down the fatty food into usable fatty acids. The fatty acids then get distributed throughout the body for various functions or stored as fat storage. This fat storage can be converted by the liver into glycerol and stored fatty acids can later be used for energy.
This process, whether it’s concerning the liver, gallbladder, pancreas or digestive system, requires much more energy and creates much more metabolic wastes and acidic byproducts, compared with the digestion of simple sugars. This is something to keep in mind because although there are some definite benefits and upsides to fats, just keep in mind you are expending much more energy when creating, storing and using them — and making more of a chemical mess of metabolic wastes and acids.
Much like protein consumption, there is a sweet spot as well in terms of the amount of fats that can be consumed and processed effectively by the body. Your body’s systems may have no issues digesting modest amounts of fat and can handle that job. But if you really turn up the dial and start eating excessive amounts of fats, then it can overload the system, causing the body and its organs to be in a constant state of working themselves, completing various laborious tasks and molecular transformations, and not giving your internal organs and digestive systems enough time to rest, recover and repair themselves.
This is sort of the academic understanding of fats and fatty acids, and how they effect the body. But how does it work in a real life application? Quite frankly — as you will see covered in another section about ‘How to Transition’ — going from a standard diet of cooked foods into more of a healthy and raw consumption of foods is not an easy thing. With this in mind, as you transition into being more healthy and especially consuming more raw foods, fats are your friends to help you transition. They can ‘take the edge off’ in terms of cravings, whereas eating a big bowl of carb-centric fruits may not satiate your hunger.
It’s a lesser of evils — although it may hold you back from going to the ultimate high levels of wellness and energy, eating things like avocados or coconut or other fats are not super harmful, per se. Nuts and seeds are a little bit of a different story because they are more acidic forming (although not nearly as acidic forming as other junk foods or cooked foods). So everything is being taken into consideration.
If somebody is transitioning from the ‘Standard Modern Diet’, then this individual will be faced with a choice, many times over. It’s inevitable that for the first three or six month this person will endure serious cravings to go back to comfort foods. It’s very tough to satisfy this craving with a bowl of melons, berries, oranges or apples, or even a banana smoothie. So having a salad with avocado, or eating a bowl of nuts, or nut butter, or a coconut wrap, or even olive oil (although oils are processed so are considerably more difficult for the body to process) would be much more progressive than eating a plate of typical ‘comfort food’ with grains, beans, dairy, cooked meats, processed foods, and all the rest of it. This person can still alkalize the body overall and still maintain momentum in the direction they are going while at the same time can satisfy their craving for fat.
With that in mind, the intake of fats can ‘slow down’ the process of detoxification and regeneration and this is important to consider. High fat consumption literally clogs up your body’s systems with tasks and work and causes your organs to expend energy and create a mess of chemistry that the kidneys need to filter out. Your intestines, stomach, pancreas, liver, gallbladder and kidneys all get overworked in this scenario.
Also keep in mind that the lymphatic system of your body is a fluid and lipid based system — like a liquid soap formula, using both oil and water. Fatty acids are actually sent directly into the lymphatic system after digestion, before being absorbed by the bloodstream. So you are making your lymphatic system more lipid-based, which can help if you want it to be more buffering and more anti-inflammatory, but it will actually dilute and slow down the compressing and deep-cleansing efforts that occur when you cut out more fats and your lymphatic system becomes more water-based. Adding or removing fats can have an effect of slowing down or speeding up detox for you in this way.
If you were just eating regular fruits, the body would be absorbing this nutrition and energy so easily, with all systems running smoothly with minimal effort required. This is the beauty of fruits and consuming smaller and less portions of fat and protein. Under this scenario running on fructose and glucose, the body can focus on cleaning itself, repair and regeneration.
Whilst the detoxification process may get slowed down a bit when a meal of high fat is consumed but which is sourced from raw foods, if a regular All-American cooked comfort meal is consumed instead of healthy fats, it will stop the detox/regeneration process of the body dead in its tracks. This food relapse may even reverse the progress and set you back several days because of how negatively impacting that food chemistry can be.
So you can see it’s a question of momentum. It’s great to keep up a high speed as you head towards your health goals, but if you’re not careful and you eat too much fruit your cravings can get the better of you eventually and you can relapse into eating junk foods. So fats (and proteins) can assist to titrate off the cooked diet you’ve been eating, like a junkie quits taking heroin but transitions off slowly using methadone or other methods.
My transition story is a bit wild because I was quite hooked onto the junk foods and processed I liked eating before I got into eating healthier. It took me about six months to transition mostly off animal products and to the point where I was eating a lot of raw foods. But I was still eating grains and cooked foods a lot over the next approximately two years. During this time I was also eating lots of avocados, olives, nuts, nut butter, and foods made with oils — sufficed to say I was eating a high amount of fats and/or protein every day.
Desperate to get to the next level of healing, I finally gave up cooked foods and grains and went to mostly (about 95% or more) raw foods— but I was still consuming a high amount of avocados. I was eating around 6 to 10 regular size avocados per day, which is a decent amount of protein and a high amount of fat. My understanding is that the avocado contains a very high ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 fatty acids (13:1) which is higher than ideal (optimal being 1:1). This means that the body ends up creating acidic or inflammatory conditions when breaking down and digesting this food, and it is a less-than-optimal source of fatty acids (but that is a different topic that will be covered more later).
I felt that avocados were sustaining me and providing a very filling food source for me which was important for many years. Keep in mind that transitioning was very difficult for me and I had been quite hooked on eating junk foods, so the avocados created a buffer and a way to satisfy my overwhelming cravings. However, ever after I switched to mostly raw foods, I also felt like I was not thriving with energy and that this was a food which was slowing me down. I was also eating a good amount of coconut in different forms which I felt similar towards.
After about three years of eating lots of avocado and coconut, I switched off from eating these things daily and ate them much more rarely. I started eating much more bananas and banana smoothies. To satiate the urge for fats and/or proteins, I would add one big scoop of hemp seeds and one scoop of chia seeds to a banana smoothie. This seemed to address the Omega 6 / Omega 3 ratio issue because hemp and chia seeds have a much more favorable ratio in the regard.
So over the years, my actual cravings and desires for fatty foods (and protein-type foods) has changed. In the beginning I had to have them — it was like an addiction that I was getting over. As time went by, ultimately my cravings and appetites completely changed (thank God for that), and so it was no longer a big deal. I could go a day or multiple days without eating much fat or protein and wouldn’t even really notice it.
But you can see that it took six months for my first transition phase, another two years before really getting off the cooked junk foods, and then another three years after that while I was still eating a high intake of fats, before really reaching ‘take-off’ speed and elevating my lifestyle to the next level.
Much of this is about the art of balance and transition. Through that period of about five and a half years, I went through a lot personally, and many great challenges which tested me greatly. I felt I didn’t have the bandwidth to commit fully in terms of food intake, as I was fighting other battles. Eating more balanced and grounding fatty foods helped me I think to keep my life in order and overcome some personal obstacles over the years. The better your life is in a good place and supporting you, then the more you can put your foot on the gas with how healthy your food choices are because you have more energy and focus to do so.
Fats really have allowed me to get where I am now. I am so grateful for this gift from nature because it can help somebody transition with great assistance. But since I am now playing this game at a new level, heightened more so than ever before, I now see fats as something to help the body, to provide essential inputs, but also as something to eat in moderation and something to watch out for. I am cautious not to eat too much and notice a drop in my energy levels and level of self-healing if I do.
Maybe you have less dependency on junk foods and can get off a high intake of fats quicker than I did, if you can commit greater strength, willpower, resolve and bandwidth in your life to do so.
Whatever the case, stay positive, stay strong, don’t give up and keep moving towards your goals!