I was just reading Victoria Boutenko's book a green life and in it on page 117 there is a testimonial from Elizabeth Bechtold , she also runs a web site called lizzyslanding. One off the things she says is that she cured her b12 deficiency with the help of green smoothies and a raw diet.

I find them really good and if you are struggling sticking to a raw diet all you have to have is a couple  of them a day and you are 80% raw minimum.   

I know this is not what you are asking but I thought it worth a mention.

Yes, sorry, I did not word my question very well.

I was at the tail end of my lunchbreak when my boss stormed into my office demanding something and I had to abandon my post rather abruptly.

My whole question was going to be............

Does anyone here get regular blood tests to check for vitamin deficiencies? And can you give me some good sources of raw B12? Because from what I can work out from all my reading on the subject, there doesn’t seem to be a reliable B12 source for vegans or raw vegans. And ideas and tips to maintain my vitamin levels?

I know sitting in the sun is good for maintaining vitamin D levels but currently it is cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey and for at least three days last week, the sky was permanently blacker than a black bulls bum.

So your suggestion of GS is a good start. Sadly I over did it and stuffed myself so full of GS at the start of my raw journey, that I have “gone off them” quite severely.

I also have to limit my fruit intake, as too much fruit gives me stomach cramps, wind and terrible diarrhea. I know if Durianrider was still posting here he say his mantra of eat-more-fruit to maintain vitamin levels (the answer to all of life’s woes apparently ). Sadly I can’t do this. My upper limit is five pieces a day and even that is pushing the borderline. I also can't eat too many nuts, dried fruit or rich gourmet raw, as they all make me feel nausea.

Because of these limitations, I struggle to maintain high percentage raw.

Some people on here eat masses and masses of food a day (things like 18 bananas or 12 mangoes in one sitting) so obviously they are well and truly covered for all their vitamin needs. If I attempted this, I would no doubt end up in hospital having my stomach pumped!

This is what I ate yesterday (and was full up each time):

Early Breakfast: 250ml carrot, orange, lemon, turmeric & ginger juice.

Late Breakfast: Banana X2

Mid Morning: Apple X2

(Felt tummy starting to get upset from fruit intake, so elected not to eat anymore)

Lunch: Mixed raw salad (small serving of lettuce, tomato, carrot, avocado, mushroom, cucumber) with a few slices of cooked sweet potato to help bulk it up. 

Afternoon Snack: Three handfuls of raw nibble mix (I actually over did the nibble mix and ended up feeling sick from the nuts & dried fruit.)

Dinner: 250ml beetroot, spinach & carrot juice. 500ml carrot, orange, lemon, turmeric & ginger juice.

All in all, not a lot of food.

This may be why I am getting deficiencies. So suggestions on how to improve my diet to get all the daily nutrients I need (whilst taking my limitations on certain foods into consideration) would be a great help to me..

 



 

I will have a read of that article, thank you for sharing.

Also (silly question maybe) how do you personally know you are feeling low in B12. Do you just feel tired or is there some other sign? Because from the link I posted above, they said there were no real signs.

I am sure you can get a good vegan b12 supplement

what do you mean you over did the gs ?

you will get there lot of others have

Hi KittyK

I guess since going high raw I have a better sense of what my body is telling me. When I feel my B12 is low I start feeling a little bit lethargic and down, it's a particular feeling in my body. And it seems to be the B12 because taking supplements for a couple of days picks me up again. It's not really scientific, but it works for me! (And this coming from a nutritional medicine student!!!)

As a rule I'm not a fan of supplements - many are synthesised from petrochemicals and the body may or may not recognise them as nutrients. My friend who is a chinese herbalist says that the body can actually start attacking the molecules in sythesised vitamins as foreign invaders! But B12 is a bacteria grown in a lab so I'm not so worried about that. For a multivitamin I take good quality spirulina because a) it's vegan b) it's a whole food and c) if you buy the right brand it's raw. I do have to build up slowly because it upsets my digestion if I take big doses right from the start. But it does pass.

I am juicing fresh turmeric root and fresh ginger root (not using the powder) as they are both anti-inflammatory.

Recent research studies have shown that they are an effective treatment for inflammatory bowel disease, such as Crohn's and UC.

They both seem to be working well.

I am trying to limit the orange / lemon juice and stick to plain carrot instead but I have also been trying to ward off the flu and a hacking cough.

In our small office of ten people, nine people have been sick. I have been juicing orange, lemon and carrot like crazy trying to ward it off. It has worked so far. Apart from feeling really lethargic and a bit "off" last week, I have avoided coming down with anything major.

I know I was taking a bit of a risk with the orange/lemon but I really don't want to catch this lurgy. One lady at work has been coughing for three weeks straight.

 

You could try including more superfoods for a general boost of nutrients. Especially foods like sesame seeds, chia seeds, that sort of thing. Personally i feel better including foods like this regularly.

As for b12, its a dilemma i worry about on an ongoing basis, and ive done so much reading on it and still have no idea what to think on it.

I bought some chia seeds recently and i noticed they say b12 in the nutritional analysis. Im not sure if its a human active form or not, but if it is its interesting, ive never heard of chia as a recommended b12 source but.

Not sure if having juices for dinner is too good an idea, but if its helping you well i guess its good. Personally as someone that did have appetite issues i didnt find juicing helpful, it just made me more likely to eat less. Smoothies i have found helpful, but that is hard with limited fruit. Blended salads are an option.

Maybe try having your salad at dinner time instead of lunch??? So your more likely to eat a large salad when you have it, i noticed you said small salad, i couldnt eat a big one at lunch either, but i can eat a really big one at dinner. By only eating a small salad its limiting your greens intake therefore limiting your nutrient intake.

Ive found a simple mix of tahini with a bit of water, and some sliced banana and sultanas a really satisfying meal. I know its not a good food combo, but sits really well with me, and is high calorie, nutrient dense, and not a big meal. Might be a better lunch option.

Alternately eating more berry type fruits with some ground flax also is satisfying. You might find berries are better, since they arent as bulky and again nutrient dense. Kiwi fruit and ground flax is a good option i like. If food combining works for you these options arent good. But this type of eating has worked for me.