Ditto Ms.Free....i am totally in agreeance...this is also how i get my best results eating living this way...

Frangi hon....this is a personal choice...but to thrive and feel best on raw this is pretty much the best(only?) way to do it....

Nails may be flaking due to you not absorbing your nutrients properly which can stem from poor food combining, if the nutrition can't get into the cell then the bodymind will become malnutrtioned and send signals to us to get more sugar. You may not be chewing your food sufficiently either therefore not acccessing the nutrition. Avoid drinking water too close to eating as this will dilute your digestive enzymes and also affect the functions following digestion.
It may be an adjustment period too but I know if I am eating correctly in the right combos my nails are strong and happy :-)

I remembered last night that i was sick a week or so back, and became quite run down, that would have affected my nails as well. 
I also googled 'cracked nails' and  I visited the Blackmores site which said it can be due to a lack of omega 3 oils- which I had stopped taking when i was sick as my belly did not feel too good either.  I had also stopped taking my vitamins for the same reason. Lack of Iron is often a cause as well, and again i had stopped with the iron soooo getting them into me as well as recovering from the flu i had will be a good start as well.  I am sure that nutrients absorption is a problem and chewing is a part of it as well.         I am eating heaps more fruits than i was and loving it as well, specially now i can get some of the  tropical fruits here in Ad. again.  They are so yummy,  I love and adore mango green smoothies.        Nuts?  Well, well i have increased the quantity when i noticed the nails, but that will drop off again soon.  Though i do love the maca nut spread in celery or dates.  But know it is dripping with calories so dont indulge too often.  I also noticed that i had dropped off the greens - the all important greens..... that will make a big difference!


I did make some delicious flax seed and nut crackers the other day-

• soak flax seeds for about 18 hours till they are slimy - about 1 cup of them ( i used golden ones)
  soak as well either almonds or walnuts
  soak some dried fruits for a couple of hours Just a couple of hand fulls, I used fresh dates in some and in others sultanas and in others dried apricots
  then add to the flax seeds the drained dried fruits and roughly chopped nuts
  and honey to your taste to sweeten (I have not tried agave, not sure how it dehydrates)
  add a little salt
  add a little vanilla if you like and some cinnamon if you like as well.
  mix well then drop onto a dehydrator till crispy and yummo.   

As i had no troubles with my nails till i got the lurgy,  I will see how they recover and take supplements to help build my system again.  Thank you for all the help, it is re-assuring to know that it is not 'cos i am eating raw and lots of fruits, I will keep on top of the water as well.
Another thing that the Blackmores site stated was that people with cracked nails should keep hands out of chlorinated water-  I swim 3-4 times per week for one or more hours  and will not give that up - i am adicted to it.   
((()))
Frangipanni

eats for today
breaky
smoothie - with spinach and juices and strawberries and banana
Lunch
banana on the run
then
smoothie - juices with strawberries and banana
raw pastelli
two vegan chocolates
free sample of chick pea dip
Dinner
raw fried rice with cauliflower,
raw cracker with avo, tomato and onion
almond milk and organic hot chocolate powder
raw sweet linseed crackers x2
Man the warm hot chocolate was delicious -
Swimming - 2000 meters approx
Swam on Wed as well 2000 meters approx - hurt my left knee. I think i did it last week when doing some breaststroke drills as breast stroke today sent sharp pains up my knee.

Hi Frang, thanks for your recent kind words. I guess you have an idea about what things must be like for us here at home with Stef. I hadn't heard of SPD before - you learn something new every day.
So I think my mum is going to be leaving the beautiful little town in which you both live - maybe there are too many sad memories there for her - she bought her house as she took on the role of being full time carer for her parents and the place had enough room for all of them, but sadly her mum never even made it to the house, and her dad saw maybe a year there? maybe not even.
BTW, I made your little carrot cakes.....OMG heaven! I loved them. Stef just pulled out the nuts and ate the rest, and she adored the cashew cream frosting! I plan to make some crackers you have listed here somewhere but all in good time...
see you soon sweet frangipanni

xoxoxoxo

Glad Stef liked the cakes, good way to get goodies into her huh?
If you get a chance you can look SPD up on Google, very interesting.   GrandieSon is doing quite well today, with some days being better than others, Friday - no not a good day-.

Keep doing what you can and take each step at a time
love
Frangipanni

as long as we learn from our experiences thats what really counts

ahh the lovely pizza toxins...damn things keeping you awake....its good that we suffer if we eat less than optimally....its a damn fine detterent ...

enjoy yours fruits and smoothies
xx

thought by posting pics of my garden it might help anyone who is contemplating starting their own garden.  I started gardening 4-5 years ago in polystyrene boxes...... it grew to this plot which is 10 m long and 1.3 m wide....







In the middle of an area close to my house that is a steep slope full of weeds - see background of pics, I have a small oasis of garden which i have worked on and cultivated for about 4 years.  When i started it was like the slope int he background but with much mulch, compost and pea straw, digging and some imported soil the clay base is now a friable soil that yields me some delightful vegetables.  I cover my lettuce & spinach with 50% sarlon to keep the leaves tender; and at present, because there is a slight risk of frost,  i use this white, filmy, spiderweb type of stuff that keeps the frost off and keeps the seelings warm at night.  The spinach is a perpetual spinach and i pick it regularly.   The Cos is still young but is growing rapidly.  I have just planted tomatoes and lebanese cucumbers.  Two years ago i cultivated seeds to seedlings and the cucumbers are delicious but did not get to the seeds this year - next year will do it again as they are definately better that way. 
I fertilize regularly and use seasol for healthy roots on the plants.  I do use a bit of snail bait 'cos of millipedes and slaters and snails and slugs till the plants are established then i use nothing.  I am currently setting up a drip system for rain water and also use a lot of pea straw. 
It is fun and a bit of know how and work goes into good results, but gardeners are only too keen to chat about their experiences.
((())) frangipanni