Why Gwyn’s raw food detox could prove fatal on its own
THE raw food diet promoted by celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Demi Moore and Madonna is said to help detox the body.
But excluding all cooked meals in favour of crudités, juices and salads would eventually kill you, according to a leading biologist.
Steve Jones said that far from detoxing, raw food will simply pass through the body because humans no longer possess the enzyme to digest it.
He told the Hay Festival of Arts and Literature that if dieters eat only raw food they are guaranteed to lose weight, but would starve to death after about six months.
‘We are the only animal who has ever lived that would starve to death if we ate raw food alone,’ he said.
‘We’ve lost the enzymes and the absorption mechanism to digest raw food.’
The raw food diet is a more extreme version of the so-called clean-eating craze made popular by Deliciously Ella and the Hemsley sisters.
Tanya Maher, a holistic health coach and chef, told BBC Good Food magazine: ‘Raw food isn’t just about eating more salad. In this context, it means eating uncooked foods. Raw food is anything that has not been refined, canned or chemically processed, and has not been heated above 48C.’
Sliding Doors actress Gwyneth Paltrow is known for healthy-food fixes, and is an advocate of the raw food diet. The 44-year-old used to contribute to a lifestyle newsletter known as Goop but discontinued this last year.
Professor Jones, a world expert on genetics as well as being a TV host and author, was formerly head of University College London’s department of genetics, evolution and environment. He has written a book entitled Evolution, one of three Ladybird Expert titles published so far this year.
The Ladybird Expert series is designed to give adults pocket briefings on complex issues.