The term ‘Tradition’ has some unfortunate connotations.
In modern society it is used to denote the preservation of the past, the heritage of society or communities, or religious beliefs, customs and practices passed down from generation to generation. In these contexts, tradition is merely a passing of knowledge at the conceptual level from person to person, the ability of humankind to co-operate in the discovery of knowledge and to transmit and expand the store of knowledge from generation to generation. Knowledge then is a mental grasp of the facts of reality, reached either by perceptual observation, or as in the case of tradition, by a process of reason based on perceptual experience. The important aspect is that however aquired, knowledge or learning requires a process of thought on the part of every individual who is implicated in its use. It is a volitional process.
The virtues of the capability of passing knowledge diminish if the context isn’t properly considered. For example, it is certainly irrational to use the ‘new’ as a standard of value, to believe that an idea is good merely because it is new. But it is much more preposterous to use the ‘old’ as a standard of value, to believe that an idea is good merely because it is ancient.
The argument that we must respect ‘tradition’ as such, means that we must accept the values that others have chosen, simply because others have chosen them, rather than using our own rational faculty to determine their value.
There is no denying that determining which foods are biologically appropriate for modern humans requires some pre-generational knowledge. It is most definitely an advantage to consider the dietary habits of our predecessors in order to observe how they lived, what they ate, and how their health was affected by their choices. In fact, with regards to nutritional requirements, it could be argued that no choices really exist within this realm, that our nutritional requirements are genetically predetermined by evolution, and that we needn’t pusue the requirement to think at all. In a perfect world, that would in fact be the case. An animal would not be required to exercise it’s rational faculty in order to determine would would best meet it’s nutritional requirements. It would only require a basic perceptual or instinctual basis of learning. In fact, complicated choices would not exist, and hence, neither would a rational faculty with which to deal with them.
Humans are rational animals. Our rational faculty is our mode of survival. It is what sets us apart from every other animal species who all rely upon instinctual or perceptual means in order to survive. Animals adapt to their environment. Humans adjust their environment to suit their specific requirements.
The further along the timeline continuum we get, the more adjusting needs to be performed and the more there is to think about. The more there is to think about, the more we tend to rely upon ‘tradition’ or passed down knowledge. This is because it is certainly more economically efficient to obtain knowledge in this way, rather than have individuals be forced to think. In latin, ‘tradition’ translates to “…giving up, delivering up, surrendering.” It implies that information brought into the present from the past subjugates the need for individuals in the present to exercise conceptual awareness beyond said traditional information. This is why many people tend to do things without thinking at all. Irrationality is the rejection of ones means of survival, the suspension of consciousness, and a commitment to a course of blind destruction.
The error in traditional logic is often that the knowledge fails to consider present circumstances. The context is dropped. The application of passed on knowledge must account for present situations and conditions and then be integrated by a process of conscious methodology, experience and induction. The consumption of traditional foods suited traditional environments. Not only that, but because little knowledge on nutrition had been aquired 50-100 years ago as opposed to now, little consideration was given to a foods value, other than that which was discovered retrospectively. Having a heightened conscious awareness of eating has become imminently necessary since there is now more to know. Knowing a foods value in a given situation or under certain conditions is important so that this information can be applied to relevant situations i.e. current environmental conditions. It has become an undeniable requirement to develop a ‘new understanding’ of the nutritional requirements of humans to suit the current day. In short,this means the application of new knowledge including technology to further adapt our environment to suit our ever changing requirements.
The foods necessary for optimal modern human health still exist in nature. These foods are virtually identical to the ones that were necessary for ancient humans. We can’t escape evolution, but it’s a slow process. Modern humans are very much the same biomechanical structures that ancient humans were. Our environments however bear very little resemlance since industrialization. So the important work of those such as Weston A. Price, in establishing the nutritional links to health, needs to be applied to an industrialized, polluted environment, and consequently to it’s polluted inhabitants. The foods remain the same, their growth preparation and consumption patterns need to be reviewed. The fact that most of us have also compromised our natural capacity for optimal health by making poor food choices makes the problem two fold.
JUICE….or the liquid component of fruits and vegetables can be seperated from the cellulose (fibrous) component by modern means which were previously inaccessible. As a result, the nutritional benefits of their consumption can now be enhanced. We can now consume a high enough concentration of green leafy vegetables (by seperating the juice from the pulp) so that the known benefits greatly increase. The requirement for these enhanced benefits stems from our altered living and internal environments. Fresh raw green vegetable juices are the only known non-toxic vitamin, mineral and enzyme supplement. This supplementation is necessary because of deficiencies that exist in modern food production (poor soils and the loss of nutrients through transport and storage). Because most of us have bodies that are in a constant state of accelerated detoxification, we have overly acidic blood rich in waste compounds. Green vegetable juices are alkalinizing, serving to neutralize this acidity, but this would be impractical to achieve by the consumption of whole vegetables, simply because of the volume required to produce the effect.
In a perfect world, devoid of pollution and populated by healthy bodies, ‘traditional’ eating methods would suffice. The requirement for supplemental nutrients was previously unnecessary because all that was required was provided in the quantities that could easily be obtained by simple methods. Eating whole vegetables (as part of a proper nutritional protocol) once provided the effects which were necessary to promote excellent health. Today we need a more concentrated source to provide similar benefits. This is true because most people are now suffering from less than optimal health, and so have ground to make up, and also deal with environmental stressors far in excess of those which were previously experienced.
The requirement for a non-toxic vitamin, mineral and enzyme supplement has not always existed. Nor is it specifically a requirement for everyone. In fact, hypothetically a child born and raised (from healthy parents) on a diet containing a myriad of raw, 100% utilizable, vitamin, mineral and enzyme rich foods, and living in a pristine pollution free environment would most likely not require a juice supplement. Most, upon reaching an age appropriate of developing a means of evaluation would probably choose to do so as a safeguard, but it may not necessarily be a physical requirement. Unfortunately, most of us have not been raised in this way. We simply cannot eat enough to reverse the enyme deficit created by years of consuming predominantly cooked foods, devoid of all enzymes, and almost all cellular utilizable vitamins and minerals.
Jan 25th, 2009 at 11:23 pm
Green vege juices are great for all the reasons that you’ve listed.
Fruit juices are not so good as most people are verging on insulin resistance these days. In my experience most people will choose the sweeter tasting fruit juices over the healthier green vege juices still thinking that they are receiving the same health benefits.
You are right on the money that most people require extra supplementation because we don’t live in a ‘Traditional’ (aka ideal) world (nutrient depleted soil, toxic water, artificial lighting, altered sleep wake cycles, off gassing of indoor furniture and carpets etc etc). The result is the majority of people are suffering from nutritional debts that cannot be repaid through a healthy diet alone. Switching to a healthy, traditional diet simply helps to stop the debt getting bigger. Green juices are one easy and effective way of providing these extra vitamins, minerals and enzymes required for optimal health. However, as many of the vitamins in green juices are also fat soluble in order to get the best results maybe take with a spoon full of coconut oil or even an organic egg/yolk beaten through.
Jan 26th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
Right…apart from bland fruits (such as tomato, cucumber, avocado, mushrooms etc.) I don’t advocate the use of fruits in large quantities, and definitely not juiced. Sweet fruits should be eaten whole, unripe and firm so that they contain more enzymes and less sugar. It would also be wise as you suggest, to eat these whole fruits with a fat. Two of the very best are coconut cream (that is whole fresh mature coconut meat with the pulp removed, such as when juiced in a closed case crush press juicer) and raw butter. I’m not a huge fan of consuming coconut oil as it isn’t raw. Raw fat should be an integral part of a diet for optimal health, even more so than green vegetable juices, and for the same reasons.
I do have a small issue with the idea of ‘balancing’ individual meals. I don’t believe it is necessary to consume all that is required nutritionally in each meal . A diet will be necessarily balanced if all that is required nutritionally is consumed, regardless of the timing of each nutrient. Pet food manufacturers try this one on all the time, selling the idea that your pet requires each meal to be perfectly balanced. Obviously this would not be the case naturally, but a wild animal would eventually balance it’s whole dietary requirements over many meals.
Fats are required for properly synthesizing some vitamins, so the diet must contain these substances, but they are not necessary at the same meal.
Jan 26th, 2009 at 8:37 pm
Scott, you mentioned that you avoid coconut oil because it isn’t raw. I thought virgin coconut oil was raw or isn’t it??
Jan 26th, 2009 at 11:20 pm
Usually not. It depends on the production method. Raw coconut oil needs to be prepared by a fermentation process. The Philippine method is to grate and press fresh coconut meat and allow this emulsion to ferment for about 12 hours. During this time the natural enzymes break down the proteins and release the oil which is skimmed off the top. Most other virgin coconut oils experience temperatures of at least 100 degrees celcius, such as those which are expeller pressed, even if stated “cold pressed”, due to speed and friction produced by the machinery. Check with your producer or distributor to discover the maximum temperatures that oil reaches during processing and bottling. It all comes down to what the definition of raw actually is. With regards to oils, you need to look for production temperatures below 36 degrees celsius so that all the healthful virtues remain in tact.
Jan 27th, 2009 at 7:33 pm
Wow, thanks Scott.
So are you familiar with Raw Pleasure’s coconut oil, or Green Pastures coconut oil and if so are these oils raw?
Is there a coconut oil that you use yourself?
Jan 27th, 2009 at 9:42 pm
As far as I am aware,according to their labelling (which can be misleading) both of these products are either expeller pressed or centrifuged. There labels provide no evidence of fermentation. However I have not taken the time to call or write to the producers or distributors to find out for sure. The only coconut oil which I know for sure is produced at temperatures below 36 degrees celsius is from Wilderness Family Naturals and is called Traditional Philippine Virgin Coconut Oil. However this is extremely hard to get in Australia, as it is an American company and their stock is often quite low.
Feb 1st, 2009 at 9:29 pm
Hi Scott and Cathy
Aclara Health Coconut Oil that GPA Wholefoods supply is not heated above 40 degrees during processing and bottling.
Feb 3rd, 2009 at 5:35 pm
Thanks Katrina,
Great to hear because Aclara is the most delicious oil I’ve tasted yet (I’ve tried most of them now) and because I use it as a body moisturiser I smell amazing too!
Aclara is a beautiful and delicious coconut oil.
Feb 5th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
All top-quality organic virgin coconut oils are effectively “raw” (even Raw Pleasure’s coconut oil is heated). Coconut oil never contains enzymes, else it would rapidly become rancid during storage. To learn more about this, go to www.tropicaltraditions.com/enzymes_and_coconut_oil.htm
Note that canned coconut milk/cream (all that’s widely available in Australia) is pasteurized and homogenized. To get all those beneficial enzymes, you’ll have to make your own coconut cream/milk — as described by Scott.
Feb 5th, 2009 at 7:33 pm
I guess then what you mean to say is that, by definition all coconut oils are ‘not raw’, as I have previously stated. Alot of sites, such as the one you have cited, propagandize the issue for the benfit of their own products. You will notice within their literature that they make reference to the fact that they have departed from traditional production methods in order to improve the economical viability of their products. This is not unlike what alot of raw vegan ’superfood’ manufacturers do (such as David Wolfe’s Sunfood’s) in order for their companies to remain viable; then they simply change the rules to justify what a raw food actually is. Traditional Philippine fermented coconut oil is not the sweet smelling processed oil that we are all used to, and it does go rancid or spoil during prolonged storage just like all raw foods. Shelf life is only relevant to profit, not nutrition. Stone pressed olive oil falls into this category as well.
Feb 5th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
Well put. There’s no better example of how (any why) we’ve lost touch with traditional foods.
Feb 10th, 2009 at 3:42 am
Hello Scott
Just wondering if you could share a favourite raw beef dish, something that your kids love too?
Feb 10th, 2009 at 3:56 pm
Hi Cathy, sure.
My kids current favourite beef dish (they constantly change their minds) is a bolognaise sauce style dish which they eat without any pasta. I peel 5-6 large organic roma tomatoes and 1/3 of a red capsicum with a vegetable peeler. To this I add 1 crushed clove of garlic, 3-4 tablespoons of raw honey, a few drops of organic vanilla extract and 2 teaspoons of raw apple cider vinegar. I may also add either some red onion or chilli depending on the spice level. All this is thrown into the food processor or blender for about 15 seconds with a good dash of stone pressed olive oil, then taken out. I then blend\mince about 2 cups of raw pastured organic beef (any cut) plus 1 cup of beef fat and bone marrow trimmed from organic bones (I buy soup packs). I leave this at a fairly chuncky consistency then add the sauce back in and blend a little more. I guess it’s kind of like a chuncky soup, the kids love the convenience of not having to chew much, I prefer to pour this over some more thinly sliced meat and use it as a sauce. Depending on your nutritional preferences, I guess you could pour this over some pasta (or spiralized veges) and grate some good quality raw milk parmesan over the top for a more traditional dish.
Feb 11th, 2009 at 3:00 am
This sounds amazing! Thanks heaps Scott!
I need to buy a food processor, any recommendations?
Feb 11th, 2009 at 6:16 pm
i took my first dose of frozen raw liver “pills” this morning and i am feeling slightly more energised than i have been ( been very tired last few days) it could also be the extra cups of tea i had! How much raw liver do you reccomend to produce more energy and hopefully lift my brain fog? i took about a teaspoon, wondering if this is enough? I did struggle to get the last few down as i started to taste it so any other suggestions on getting it down without tasting it would be apprecieted. Thanks all.
Feb 11th, 2009 at 10:51 pm
I’ve only ever owned one food processor and it is a cheap Breville that has lasted for years. I do intend to buy a good one, like a Kitchenaid or something when this one dies, but I don’t know if the extra expense is warranted or not. Others would know more about these than I do.
Feb 11th, 2009 at 11:26 pm
M.J.
First of all, I woukd only eat fresh, UNFROZEN liver from organically raised, pasture fed animals.
Too many nutrients are destroyed when foods are frozen, especially meats. N.T recommends the freezing of meats intended for raw consumption. In my opinion this is an unnecessary practice bourne from parasite/microbial phobia and medical propaganda. It shows a very apparent lack of understanding in parasitology and microbiology.
Secondly, if you are trying to apply the ‘magic bullet’ approach to nutrition, you won’t succeed. There isn’t any one food (or substance) that you can use to supply energy if the rest of your diet is poor. If you have a need to produce more energy and lift your brain fog, you need to take a look at your diet holisically.
Lastly, part of this is to learn to reverse the social conditioning which has led you to consider raw meats repulsive. You should be able to enjoy your raw liver in any quantity by focusing less on the taste and more on the healthful benefits you will enjoy. Once you have conceptualized this notion and experienced these effects empirically, you will consider raw liver to be delicious, just as many traditional cultures did.
Feb 12th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
Scott, love your article, I wonder what you think of my sons craving for cooked potatoes with lots of butter and raw buffalo mixed in. I always try to get raw meat mixed in somewhere with what he eats, but what are the consequences.
I often wonder if his craving or apetite for isn’t because of my families history of meat and potatoes, anyways - thumbs up or down
oh and what does that soup you described taste like, just curious?
Feb 12th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Hey Jason,
I think your sons craving is a healthy one. Craving cooked starches is common, my kids eat moderate amounts of potatoes, unbleached and unfortified breads and pastas, and popcorn. They always eat these with lots of raw fat, typically butter. The reason for this craving in children is most likely to arrest excess hormones resuting from an overly stimulated pituitary gland during rapid growth phases. Starch and gluten are useful for this function but are difficult to synthesize from raw foods. After a few years of eating raw, they are generally no longer required, or craved.
The main consequence of consuming raw meat is optimal health. If you wish this for your son then continue to offer it to him any way he likes it. That soup or sauce I described, or something similar would be perfect to add to the meal you mentioned. It just tastes like a sweet\spicy tomato sauce with lots of fat.
Feb 12th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
Hi Scott,
can you elaborate on arresting these excess hormones(which hormones?) that are stimulating the pituitary? And out of curiosity what are your qualifications? ( nutritionist, naturopath?) And where did you study?
Thank you also for the tips on raw liver. I only eat organic grass fed meat and liver. At one point in my life i was a vegetarian for 7 years and have done well over the last 10 years to reintroduce meat and recently started with liver. i still struggle with the taste of certain meats, just as some people struggle with the taste of certain fruit or vegetables. I think i am over my “social conditioning” about raw meat but simply dont like the taste . Im not after a “magic bullet” just friendly advice about enhancing my already healthy diet and lifestyle and getting through busy and hectic periods in life.
Feb 12th, 2009 at 11:32 pm
Hi M.J,
The pituitary is the master endocrine gland. There are obviously others but I singled the pituitary out in this case because it houses the hypothalmus which is the the main growth hormone regulator. All of the endocrine organs are activated by neural stimuli. In chidren, sometimes heightened stimuli causes excessive GH secretion during rapid growth and neurological activity. Usually any excess hormone would be burned up with physical activity, but a more sedentary lifestyle causes accumulations which require arresting by chemical means, otherwise they may form tumurous masses around the gland itself. Cooking starches, such as potatoes, releases gluten which can bind with excess hormones so that they cannot be synthesized. This is the reason why cooked starches may be craved at certain times as mentioned previously.
I am a Certified Fitness Clinician with the I.A.R.T, Ontario, Canada. I studied exercise science including nutrition. I am not qualified to practice medicine and could think of no reason why I would want to do so, preferring to concentrate on health rather than illness. I prescribe exercise for enhanced functional ability and provide nutrtional information for optimal health. Thanks for your interest.
Feb 13th, 2009 at 7:49 am
Hello Scott, thanks for the response, I love the consequences of eating raw meat, my next question is how well the body assimilates the raw meats when mixed with cooked starches?
I assume it all breaks down, I have read that when raw milk is drank with raw meat, the meat doesn’t digest so well… any comments
Feb 13th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
Digestibilty would probably be impaired somewhat, as opposed to eating meat and cooked starches seperately. However, I’m not a great believer in all of the various food combining laws from differing nutritional protocols. Unless you experience a very apparent problem from eating a certain food combination, eat whatever you like. I only suffer digestion problems if I eat meat with certain fruits, like bananas or dates. Combining meat with milk should be fine, unless you are already predisposed to lactose intolerance. I often blend certain meats and glands with milk and have not experienced any evidence of digestive disturbance.
The only precaution I would take when adding any raw food to cooked starches is to allow the starch to cool down reasonably before adding the raw food.
Feb 28th, 2009 at 8:17 pm
You might like the material from Robert Von Sarbacher
Mar 2nd, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Hi Scott
You mentioned you use stone pressed virgin olive oil, I’ve never heard of this. What is the difference between a good virgin cold pressed oil and stone pressed or are they the same?
Mar 2nd, 2009 at 7:32 pm
Hi Cathy,
Stone pressed olive oil is more likely to have been produced in a way which has the least impact on nutrient values. I prefer stone pressing as opposed to hydraulic pressing as long as it is not centrifuged after. The trick is to find a good stone pressed or cold pressed oil that has not been filtered, is still cloudy and has been stored in darkened glass bottles. Real olive oil should store this way for 2-3 years. Many so called ‘cold pressed, extra virgin’ olive oils are not made this way. Again, do your research and you can find them either stone pressed or cold pressed, but usually only in small quantities from low volume producing estates. If you intend to cook with it however, none of this really matters, but quality should still be a consideration.
Mar 3rd, 2009 at 11:10 pm
Scott, once again, thanks heaps. Even though I do cook, (I love my bone broth and casseroles every now and again) I do try to eat most of my food raw, and olive oil I almost never cook with. I do try to get the best affordable quality.