[ronb]

Raw foods only for me for the last year, and for many years before that, no refined sugar or processed grains (with the switch to raw though, no grains. I did the switch to raw in order to help heal my back from a really terrible injury...I thought that the advice to go raw was probably bu!!***** but i was in such pain that I'd try anything. And it did help a lot).

Dropping all sugar and refined foods is really a great way to regain the energy you had as a kid. As you age, what you've been putting into your body becomes more and more important.

Without getting too dogmatic about it, it's possible to have great meals all the time, without processed stuff. One finds one has a lot more energy and muscle as well.

There's a lot of conflicting info out there, one of the best books i have seen is called "the 3 season diet" - it's a very intelligent reworking of ayurvedic thinking (the writer doesn't really tell you that (ayurveda = indian medicine, 5000 years of excellent observation of body types etc). It shows you how to figure out your body type, and what foods and ways of working are most appropriate. You keep eating what you normally eat, it's not some sort of odd diet thing, but gradually a few things shift and you realize that you're in much better health than before. Worth getting the book, the author is John Douillard.

Before i went raw foods only, on the rare occassions i'd buy meat, it was only local meat, much better than supermarket stuff....if it's too pricey...eat less of it. There is so much hormonal additives and antibiotics etc that supermarket meat is pretty toxic and really affects your health in the long term.

Now I eat a lot less, sleep less, have more energy and a lot more focus. I am one of the people though who is very effected by food, it's not the same for everyone. But regardless though cutting out the processed stuff makes your body much more happy.

I'm fortunate in that we have a huge vegetable garden that we eat from 8 months of the year (although we're in the Northeast), as well as our own fruit trees, and also that there are sources of fresh produce round here all year long. However it's possible to utilize farmers markets and or CSA farm shares - now in most urban areas - that's a great program which supports local agriculture - but more importantly - you get great food out of it.

Check out also the whole "Slow Food" movement. While it can be a little precious, the concept is great, and worth looking at...great meals and food, w/o processed *****.