Curing the Common Cold

The first time I got a sinus infection after a common cold I was in college. And I was miserable. Imagine not being able to taste anything for two weeks. Imagine eating for no other reason but your body is hungry and needs food. Imagine everything tasting the same - the only excitement...texture. I was miserable.

After a few more of these sinus infections I knew something had to change. Antibiotics have never been my first response to illness (or second, or third for that matter). So I began researching and I discovered that if I eliminated sugar, root vegetables, gluten and dairy, the sinus infection would go away on its own. However, it still took some time and the infections continued to return following certain colds.

Since eating raw most of these foods are no longer a part of my diet. And for the first time in a long time, I came out of this cold feeling great. No stuffed nose. No headaches. I could taste every bite.

If you find that you feel clogged, have diarrhea, flatulence, bloating, skin problems and/or headaches it may be a sign of gluten sensitivity or lactose intolerance.

It is now estimated that 1% of the population is gluten intolerant and 1 in 7 have some form of gluten sensitivity. Gluten, if you don't know, is found in all forms of wheat, rye, barley, triticale and oats. Most Americans consume large quantities of wheat in some form. The more gluten-type foods we eat, the fewer vegetables and fruits a person tends to eat.

As we age we produce less lactase (the enzyme responsible for breaking down lactose found in dairy) and our body is therefore, less able to process dairy foods.

And sugar, well...it's just not the best thing for us.

The more raw foods a person eats, the less gluten, dairy and sugar a person will consume. Processed foods contain large quantities of sugar and almost always gluten and/or dairy. So if your body needs a break, even if you don't normally eat a lot of raw foods, try cutting out the common culprits at least for a little while.

I cannot tell you what a difference it has made for me. Ah...the joy of taste!

chewy chocolate freezer fudge

If you don't know already, I have a bit of a sweet tooth. For years I struggled with what I later termed a sugar addiction. I would swear off the dreaded drug only to lose myself in wild abandon a mere four or five days later. I have tried so many things most of them not worth mentioning and then I became raw.

And I swear it completely changed. Well...almost completely. I have lost my desire to indulge. I no longer stand by the open fridge at night searching desperately from something, anything, sweet. Gone are the raids on the pantry. But I still like sweets. It appears, with this new diet, I have found the perfect compromise.

I make sure to always have something sweet in the house. Then when I really want to satisfy that sugar desire I reach for my raw ice cream or a piece of "chewy chocolate freezer fudge." I made the fudge last night when both my husband and I felt like a little something sweet. The absolutely amazing thing about eating raw is that I have one piece and I'm done. I idolized people who could "eat just one." I never thought I would be one of them.

Here is the recipe for the fudge. I got it from Raw Food Real World. I chose this one because I had almost all of the ingredients on hand (made one substitution) and I could eat it within an hour.

The ingredients are:
2 cups almond butter
1/4 cup cocoa powder, or raw carob powder, sifted to remove lumps
1/2 cup plus 2 T. maple syrup
1 heaping teaspoon coconut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt

Basically, you put everything into a bowl and mix. I find it easiest to use a wooden spoon or my hands but you can stir with a standing mixer if it has a paddle attachment.

Then line a square baking pan with parchment or plastic wrap. Place the fudge in the pan. Flatten. Place parchment on top. Freeze for an hour. Turn over and cut into 1 inch squares. Store in the freezer, covered, until ready to eat.

We, of course, were ready to eat them after an hour.

A few notes - I used raw honey instead of maple syrup because I thought I didn't have any maple syrup. It turns out I did - so much can disappear in a pantry. I recommend sticking with syrup. I made these once before with syrup and I much prefer the taste.

Second I used wildcrafted raw carob powder. I am not a big fan of carob but we recently ordered this wildcrafted carob powder from Blue Mountain Organics and oh my...it is amazing. We also got our raw almond butter from there. For awhile I skimped on almond butter and went with toasted. No more. Raw almond butter is a whole different species. And if you buy it in bulk it can actually be quite reasonable (depending on what is reasonable to you).


The best thing for me about eating raw (besides how I feel) is that for the first time ever I truly enjoy sweet foods. No binging. No indulging. Just pure pleasure. How great is that?