Talking to My Doctor about the Fruitarian Diet
I just finished having an amazing conversation with my homeopathic Doctor, German Martina. This was the first time I have talked to him since I started to transition into a fruitarian diet. The reason for my call was to get his opinion on the rash that I have been experiencing since I began to eat so much fruit every day. The feedback he gave me was priceless and it made me feel very much at peace with myself and my choices. It also helped me clear out some heavy doubts that were hunting me.
Understanding our Margin of Adaptability
The first thing my doctor explained was that humans have a certain margin of adaptability. This can mean many things. The way I understood it is that there is a certain range of experiences, behaviors and attitudes that we can move within. We can clearly go from eating an omnivorous diet with heavy consumption of McDonald’s food just like we can also eat tons of fruit on a fruitarian diet. That is the range we humans are contained within. Outside of that there would be things like living from eating rocks or drinking mercury. That, as far as I know, will simply not work.
This margin of adaptability can also be applied to each one of us as individuals. It would have been impossible for me to become a fruitarian when I was following an omnivorous diet. At that time my personal margin of adaptability did not include the possibility of transitioning to a fruitarian diet. By adapting to vegetarianism first and then into veganism, I was able to expand my margin of adaptability until I was eventually able to transition to a fruitarian diet.
This margin of adaptability doesn’t apply only to diets but to all aspects of life. It can be used to understand transitions within careers, relationships, spiritual practices and so on.
Can Humans Survive on a Fruitarian Diet?
There is no doubt that the fruitarian diet is a very strict diet in comparison to the social norm across the world. For the most part, as I understand, most people across societies are omnivorous. Some cultures may focus more on animal products, others may focus on grains. Very few cultures in our world consume fruit as their main source of nutrition.
At this point it is clear to me that humans are able to live and thrive on a fruitarian diet. That of course, considering that they have enough time to transition into it. My homeopathic doctor agreed with this. That being said he made it clear that a successful and healthy fruitarian diet depends on having high quality fruit available on a daily basis. He admitted to be unsure whether there could be any deficiencies resulting from a fruitarian diet. Nonetheless, he was sure that every person is different and that we are constantly learning new things about the human body and how it gets its nutrition.
The doctor explained that from his experience people tend to need between 3 months and 6 months to transition into a new diet. In some cases this transition may take longer. According to him, the body needs to go through a process of metabolic adaptation and detoxification.
A Proper Transition into the Fruitarian Diet
There is no doubt that I am going through a process of transition. This transition requires my body and my mind to understand what types of fruit it needs, which quality it prefers and how much quantity it requires. Understanding new requirements for physical exercises is also part of the process.
Both of us agreed that most of the fruit available in the supermarket is full of pesticides and other toxins. There is a huge difference between them and the fruit that is available in the tropics, straight off the tree. This is one of the main reasons why I am choosing to move to Hawaii and live there for as long as I can. This will require me to make additional changes to my life and it is all part of the same process of adaptation. Making appropriate habitual changes is an almost certain requirement and bi-product of a transition into the fruitarian diet.
My homeopathic doctor noted that making such a drastic change to our diet should be approached as if we were training to run a marathon. One does not simply decide to run a marathon and signs up to run it the next day. The body requires to go through a process of training so that it can be ready on the day of the race. Otherwise we are taking a huge risk and they body may get hurt.
After going through this intense detoxification process there is no doubt in my mind that transitioning to a fruitarian diet should be done with much care and respect. It is certainly not something that can be achieved overnight. The detoxification process in unavoidable, sooner or later toxins will come out. That being said, a smoother approach seems like a much more enjoyable experience. If I had the choice I would certainly slow my way into it, spending more time as a raw vegan before moving on to only fruits.
Detoxification with a Fruitarian Diet
Everyone and everything is constantly going through a process of detoxification. Everything that consumes energy must purge out waste. We do it, animals do it, plants do it and our cells do it.
One of the most important things that I learned from Dr. Robert Morse is that our lymphatic system is tied to each cell in our body and they all eat and poop. In order words, our main waste management system is connected to 100 trillion organism which are constantly creating waste products that must be eliminated from the body. The bad news are that the more toxic we become, the harder it is to remove that waste.
I wouldn’t consider myself a toxic person, at least not today. My BMI is 21 and I have been following a vegan diet for almost a year, including two months eating raw vegetables and lots of fruit. However, I spent a good decade of my life drinking large quantities of alcohol and another seven years smoking weed on a semi-regular basis. I also didn’t focus on my nutrition until my mid-twenties and have gone through periods of my life that where very toxic for my body, heart, mind and spirit.
On top of all of that I was born and raised during the most toxic times in human history. I lived for three years in one of the most polluted cities in the world (Los Angeles) and spent another decade in extremely polluted cities such as San Diego, San Juan and Madrid. The water I have been drinking all these years was certainly polluted and the environments I have been around have been quite toxic and stressful to say the least.
All this has certainly added up to the levels of toxicity in my body and I have felt it piling up over the years. It is no surprise that I have found myself crashing every so often, feeling anxious to get away from all the noise and dirt.
Around five or six years ago I began a more focused detoxification process, cutting foods, people and habits out of my life. I went through many processes of adaptation and renewal, but nothing compares to what I have gone through since I started the fruitarian diet. The physical detox symptoms I have been experiencing are the most intense and long lasting I have ever had in my life. On the other hand, the rewards I am getting for my efforts also seem to be more than what I have ever achieved before.
My Reasons for a Fruitarian Diet
During our conversation, my doctor reminded me about the importance of having a goal. I realized that over the past weeks I had lost track of what my goal was. I have gotten so involved with this transition and have placed so much effort on making it work that I almost forgot why I started. Being such a passionate person this tends to happen to me often.
Reflecting back on it I can remember that I got into fruitarianism first and foremost out of curiosity. There was also the desire to learn and become better. Health, ethics and environmentalism where big reasons for it too. Love for myself, my family and my fellow human beings was another driving force.
Since this detox rash became so intense it has been hard to focus on anything else. This has made it easier to forget my goal and the reason why I started all this. The rash also took away all the fun from being intro this transition into the fruitarian diet. Instead, the process became a live or die mission which I have been anxious to get away from. Putting things in perspective allows me to see that all I value and all that I strive for can still be achieve even if I slow down my transition into fruitarianism. I needed to remember that Love, Truth and Beauty are my number one goals.
Sacrifices with a Fruitarian Diet
Transitioning to a fruitarian diet implies many sacrifices. The most obvious is letting go of animal products and cooked foods. When I began to adopt a strict fruitarian diet consisting of only fruits I was forced to also stop eating vegetables. This wasn’t easy to do and the longest time I have been able to do this for so far has been five days. There are countless of reasons for me to continue to eat one or many of the foods that I have been eating all these years.
There is also a huge social aspect that got shaken up when I began my transition into the fruitarian diet. Family dinners disappeared and night-outs with friends became non-existent. This at times has brought much sadness to my heart. In a way, this process has felt very much like dying.
My commitment to the fruitarian diet also led me to make arrangements to move to Hawaii. I ended up losing (investing) my job and I do not know if I will be able to get something as good if I ever come back. I hope I will be able to return if I choose to, but I also know that this may not happen. Who knows… We’ll see.
Choosing the Fruitarian Diet
Ultimately, my doctor told me that going in this direction is my choice and that I have all the right to do so if I find that it is what I need. He couldn’t come up with a good reason for me to stop, but he did say this would be a challenging transition.
Moving to a fruitarian diet requires a period of psychological and physiological adaptation. It also requires patience to go through a process of deep detoxification. He mentioned that based on his understanding, this rash was indeed a sign of detoxification and not an allergy, which is what my medical doctor and dermatologist had suggested. According to him, the rash was a mechanical response to my increase in fruit intake. If it was due to an allergy it would be all over the place and I wouldn’t be getting better. He reminded me that if I choose to stay with the fruitarian diet, then I must make sure that the fruit I consume is pesticide free and high quality.
He also mentioned that my choice to go with the fruitarian diet was a healthy and rational choice. I just need to take care of all the lifestyle changes that come with it. Living in society requires a compromise and choosing the fruitarian diet requires a compromise too. If I choose to live like most westerners live (in big cities, eating a standard American diet and being surrounded by pollution) then I will be compromising my health in many ways. On the other hand, if I choose to move to Hawaii and live on a fruitarian diet, I will be compromising other things.
Am I Crazy for Becoming a Fruitarian?
My doctor does not think I am crazy and he does not think that what I am going through is completely out of the ordinary for someone who is doing what I am doing. Switching to the fruitarian diet implies a complete change in my organism and every cell of my being.
I asked him if there was a better or worse diet for humans and he said that some things work best for some but not for others. According to him, there is no right or wrong but simply choices that we make and must cope with their consequences. Everything we choose will have short term and long term effects. He thinks that it is likely that the fruitarian diet will provide me with most of my nutritional needs. He also mentioned that it is likely I will be cleaning my system way more than 99.9% of the population is interested in or able to do.
How Do I Manage my Detox Symptoms?
It was clear to my doctor that we need to let the rash come out and by no means suppress it in any way. I told him that I had been feeling a little better over the past few days but that I didn’t know if it was his homeopathic medicine or the herbs I have been taking from Dr. Robert Morse. To him, it didn’t matter, as long as I am feeling better there is no reason to change what I am doing. The most important thing is to find equilibrium in the reaction.
He advised that I continue taking my homeopathic medicine for 2 more weeks, reducing the dose in half.
How Come Other People Can Be Healthy and Thrive without a Fruitarian Diet?
As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, humans have a range of adaptability that allows them to find a relative equilibrium with respect to their chosen lifestyle. This entails different energy levels, mood changes and abilities to adapt to changing circumstances. Humans can choose countless different ways of living and each one requires its own process of adaptation and balancing.
He did admit that he didn’t know enough about fruitarianism to give a more clear opinion on these issues. That being said, he mentioned that according to general theory the fruitarian diet does lack some essential nutritional elements.
From his understanding, an omnivorous diet is the most adequate since it provides the largest range of nutrients available and it is also the easiest to adapt to. I asked him about potential deficiencies I could suffer from being on a fruitarian diet for a long time and he said that perhaps there would be none. He has learned that the body, in many cases, is able to produce its own nutrients and that scientists are still trying to figure out how nutrition actually works. According to him, our outside needs are relative. I strongly agree.
Making the Diet Work for Us Instead of Working for the Diet
In addition to being a homeopathic doctor, German is also an Ayurvedic practitioner. This is why his practice is geared towards finding balance. To him, the goal of my diet should be to find a pain free balance point where I can achieve the most adequate personal adaptation for myself. The fruitarian diet is extreme, but this does not make it wrong, I just need to find a way so that it works for me.
German also made emphasis on all the individual factors that need to be considered when we make a dietary change. He also reminded me that I need to keep some level of flexibility in my diet in case I am in a situation where I need to eat something other than fruit.
Ultimately, choices and modifications to our lifestyle must be considered and processed from a personal view. After all, all we can do is perceive and adapt.
How Do We Measure the Success of Our Lifestyle?
When it comes to the effects of a dietary transition, we need to look at the short term effects and the long term effects. A person who smokes and drinks every day may not experience any negative effects for a handful of years, but statistically speaking, sooner or later, his organs will start to shut down. On the other hand, a person who eats healthy and exercises regularly may not notice the positive effects of this lifestyle when he/she gets started, but sooner or later results are bound to show up.
In today’s world, conventional success is superficial. The masses tend to pay more attention to someone’s looks, fame and bank account rather than the health of their internal organs, the quality of their heart and the impact that they have in the world.
It is useful to ask ourselves what is the legacy that we wish to leave in this world after we pass. What is it that we want to accomplish in life for ourselves and others? Sometimes other people may not see the effect that our actions have in the world, sometimes we may not be recognized for our good deeds, but we will know, or at least our conscience will know. We need to find the lifestyle that feels right for us, deep within our heart.
Not everyone is destined to be an animal rights activist, or a plant rights activists. Not everyone will be able to transition to the fruitarian diet just like not everyone is fit to be a firefighter, or a garbage man, or an investment banker. This world isn’t full of yogis, or rock stars. There is a mystical balance that keeps everything working together for a higher purpose that we may never understand.
Keeping Ourselves and Others in Balance
We all have heard the saying “do on to others as you would like them to do onto you”. I find it very useful for building healthy relationships. My doctor has a similar saying “what we do must not harm others and what others do must not harm us”.
With those saying in mind we must do of our lives what is good for us. There is no ideal diet, political system, religion or lifestyle. We are all unique and in different places within our existence. We need to find what is healthy for each of us and stay vigilant of how our actions affect our life on a day to day basis. We all have different paths and each one will give us different answers to consider. We need to pay attention and be humble and sincere with the reflections that life throws back to us.
We must embrace our individuality and know ourselves inside and out. We also need to practice understanding, accepting and emphasizing with others. We need to practice compassion so we can love ourselves and each other unconditionally.
We may never understand what it is to find equilibrium within our life. Just like we may never understand what it looks like to have equilibrium within the human race or the environment. We are organisms within organisms within organisms.
What we do must not harm others and what others do should not harm us.
We Are One.
