Health Food 'Junkies'

By Sarah Best.

So raw food made another appearance on prime time TV last night, in a half-hour documentary which featured interviews with several raw fooders: Suki Zoe, Kate and Andy Richards, and Kate Wood with her delightful sons. American author and speaker Matt Monarch was also shown in action, during a lecture filmed in summer 2007. All of them did a wonderful job but clever editing ensured the show was like a whirlwind tour of Weirdsville for all except the very well-versed in holistic health and raw nutrition. You only have to look at the comments on this popular TV forum to see how the show came across to the average viewer.

It was by no means the worst 'raw foodist' media stitch-up job ever, but an indication nonetheless that mainstream TV is still not quite ready to take the subject seriously.

So the subjects were portrayed as obsessive, self-depriving and socially isolated, and their comments were taken out of context to ensure they would make as little sense as possible to the average viewer. So all of it sounded sane and reasonable and came across brilliantly...as long as you've been into raw food and holistic health for a long time and have read extensively on these subjects. The other 99% of the viewing public would have needed serious amounts of background information to make sense of it. That information was, no doubt, in the original interviews, but was promptly relegated to the cutting room floor once editing began.

Writing on the Give It To Me Raw forum last night, participant Suki Zoe had this to say about her experience on the show: "you do the best you can & then they take the bits they want & it's out of your hands. 5 hours of footage becomes 5 minutes & you just hope your knife skills don't let you down!! there was lots of great info that Kate Wood, Kate & Andy Richards & I talked about which didn't get used - that's the way it goes... ps. including me feeding the camera crew raw chocolate & their sighs of delight." 

Comments

[Neil Porter]

Anyone who seriously expected CH 4 to portray raw food in a fair light, with a view to positivity, is either not up to speed with how mainstream "anything" works, or just blindly hopes that things will change on their own, as if by magic, for the better.
The opening shot, if I remember correctly, of the sound of a toilet flushing, and some woman exiting the lav with a fresh glass of urine, tells you everything that you need to know.
Add that to a selection of other negative shots or implications, and you have the whole show.
One other thing..Is it my memory losing its way, or did the show carry no advertisements at half time.
I really like the idea of raw food being so unpalatable to business that everyone baled and ran to the mainstream hills.
Mind you, with toilet cocktails, and the suggestion that little boy with long blonde hair had no friends, you can see why, and cannot blame them.
Neil Porter.

[Neil Porter]

As an add on to the comment I have just submitted to this site..It dawns on me that the CH 4 programme could not possibly have been so bad, if most of the people involved in it were to have reeled themselves in a little. I mean to say, what persuaded the urine drinker to think that weeing in a glass and parading around with it, was a good idea.
And as for the couple who invited friends over to try a raw dinner, well, couldn't they have invited friends who knew how to be enthusiastic, or at least smile.
I know it all comes down to editing, but some responsibility must lay at these peoples feet.

Neil Porter.

[Marie-Anne Syre]

Hi there
I watched the Channel 4 documentary Health Food Junkies online last Sunday (online because I don't have a telly), completely randomly (I was browing 4oD and stumbled upon it). I was omnivorous, had never heard of raw foodists before and only been exposed to one or two vegans in my friends circle.
The blatant biased way the documentary portrayed the raw foodists made me really angry at the way television reports things in general (sensationalist and targetting completely moronic and basic intellects). On the other hand, it also made me extremely curious and interested in discovering a more real picture of raw food. Contrary to you, Neil, I felt that the "shocking scenes" (urine drinking, kid with no friends, dinner guests raising eyebrows and smirking) were not due to editing, but were down to the crew setting these situations up in a most blatant way (of course, they would deny it, but it's soooooo obvious). So, it was probably in a reaction to the desperate effort the reporters made to manipulate viewers that I started googling raw food after watching and read everything I could for the rest of the afternoon, and then decided to give it a go. So I'm now a convert thanks to (or despite) Channel 4's depiction of raw food; I'm very excited about it, feel already much better than when I was omnivorous and look forward to trying out the versatility that raw food can bring. I'm the living proof that no publicity is bad publicity and that however bad the intention of people, something positive always comes out in the end. People who take the documentary at face value, don't understand their mind was being manipulated and haven't been made curious about the raw food movement are stuck in their mud, if you ask me.
Ditch your telly and go raw!

[Neil Porter]

Hello All,

I'm glad to hear Marie-Anne got enthusiastic about the show, and good on her for appreciating the more avant garde elements of the whole subject. Sadly though, going straight for the extremes of the subject, any subject, come to think of it, is never going to work if you want more people to give the subject, any subject, a chance.
As Marie-Anne says, the editing "may" not be entirely to blame, and the setting up by the crew, may be just as likely.
However, the wee wee drinking was neither, and is something that is still making me shudder.
As Chandler in Friends would say.."Oh My God".............

[Suki]

From Suki Zoe who was featured in the documentary:

I hope someone got my joke about the knife skills?..

I have had the most Amazingly diverse responses (and several new clients & MANY existing clients have now gone raw) from people who watched HFJ! I’d like to clarifty a few things:

1. I have only, can only speak for myself / I am representing no one other than me - even if I know you how could I speak on your behalf. So, if I’ve never met you?… They were in My house, My life - no one elses.

2. My family aren’t embarassed by any aspect of the show, so if they’re happy I’m happy. I’m getting more negativity from raw people than non-raw!!

3. Not all raw fooders drink pee, eat superfoods, have colonics or enemas - those are personal choices & guess what - there is more to my life than being raw (raw has made my life more magical)! Matt Monarch’s latest book Raw Success is the modern Bernard Jensen, Arnold Ehret, Gil Jacobs, Norman Walker & Fred Bisci rolled-into-one source of colon cleansing info - check it out & you may realise why your transition phase or cravings are causing you problems.

3b. The original idea was not to make a Raw documentary, but to look at people who were living different lives from the mainstream. Breatharians & systematic under-eaters were filmed too, but they didn’t make the final cut. The purpose of the doc was not a ‘beginners guide to raw’.

4. For me health starts with cleansing, not Raw. I encourage my clients to start Juicing & to cut out the wheat & dairy - after that, we tailor each person’s diet depending on health, circumstance, lifestyle/living arrangements & budget. I never advise that anyone does anything 100% until they/their body is ready for change.

5. I am MUCH happier, clearer & more creative, grounded & healthier now than I have ever been. I am not lonely (I have a couple of friends), I really do have The Best Day Ever most every day, I’m more comfortable in my body & my mind works really really well, usually.

6. I experiment & research - as a therapist I need to know about remedies, gadgets, therapies, healing modalities, cleansing techniques - to share knowlege about wellbeing to all the amazing people who walk through my door seeking higher levels of health & an increased connection to their real selves.

7. Health: I had acne since 13 years old. I tried everything I could think of to gain clear skin & nothing works for me other than raw. I have cured myself of endometriosis, fibroids, numerous allergies/anaphylaxis, ‘IBS’, sinusitis, annual bronchitis, asthma, hayfever - all without drugs or medical intervention. I do not get sick - I wake up clear & full of energy - even on Monday mornings. I don’t need cigarettes to dispel boredom, coffee to wake me up or wine to wind down. I don’t need to drink on a 1st date or drugs to dance.

8. The facts about Thames Water were triple checked by Ch4 lawyers (for obvious reasons) & were all found to be correct. The water ionizer I have is the Jupiter Microlite - sole UK distributers are Aviva Water - contact katie@avivawater.co.uk.

9. The info about Parasites is true too - check out the testimonials on World Without Parasites.

10. Urine Therapy (Amaroli) is ancient - it works & it’s FREE. Do some research, pinch your nose & try it for yourself.

11. Reuben is beautiful, healthy, articulate & happy. Yes he is home-schooled & if you listened closely you would have heard that he was asked if he had many raw friends, not if he had any friends.

12. I Love to have parties & to make + eat raw chocolate - this is us on Saturday night! The film crew liked it too…

13. Cost: Most of my friends buy wholesale, have trade accounts & buy in bulk. It cuts down the prices to 1/5 of store bought goods. Kate Wood runs her own company RawLiving so she gets all her stuff at trade prices anyways.. It’s a shame that only Andy & Kate’s shopping total was shown - what we didn’t see is how much they bought or what they bought - maybe they were shopping for their fancy-schmancy dinner party AND their monthly refills. They were also in one of the most expensive health stores in London.

[tiffany]

i really enjoyed the show, but again its for mere entertainment.
perhaps eating RAW food will make you healthy, maybe not. who knows?
but I'll tell you that some of that food that was in show, looked sure as hell really yummy looking.

[GC]

Thanks for commenting. Indeed, most of these points are not new. Unfortunately they seem to be forgotten by a lot of people in healthcare.

[Em]

Thanks for commenting Suki! That really answered any questions I had after watching the doc. I'm fairly new to raw and without support of friends and family it aint easy! Docs made to imply it is a bit of a weird choice don't help in motivating me either -BUT i feel bloomin great!! woo! And your reply has has further confirmed that I should continue to give myself a chance with this. :)