veganism: I'm converting to Raw veganism and i have some questions First, is it alright for me to take my medicine...I mean I don't know whats in it but I don't think I should stop taking it because I have some serious health problems second, is tofu alright to eat? Third are things like olive oil and balsamic vinegar and spices alright to eat? thanks so much guys!|||i would not stop taking the medicine. you will see some health benefits from going raw, and perhaps after a while you might check with your doctor about cutting down, but i don't think it's a good idea to just stop taking them. since raw foodism is all about cleansing the body, soy products such as tofu are avoided because they form mucus in the body. i think tofu is fine to eat in small amounts while you are transitioning, probably for evening meals, but the best thing is to avoid it. olive oil is great! use extra-virgin, and look for cold-pressed oils. vinegar and spices are your friends as well. enjoy!|||Woodpecker and Molly are right! I am a Raw Vegan for a month now and read a lot of books to help me get started. I love to use Cold-pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Celtic Sea Salt, and Apple cider vinegar! I use a lot of spies, like rosemary, curry, Cayenne, etc. Can't live without the spies! If you want to get over your sickness, I suggest eating ONLY ORGANIC fruits and vegetables. Go slow, because detoxifying your body will be hard on you. After eating raw for awhile, i am sure your doctor will lower your medicine dosage, and eventually end it! A message board I go to, a woman has curred herself of cancer by going raw.|||Tofu is not a raw food. The pre-tofu mixture is boiled for a period of time before the coagulant is added and the tofu is pressed. Even if you don't fry it, you're still eating a cooked food. (Just for clarification).|||It's like a walk through Hell. I would have killed a man for some fries and a pint of soy dream after two weeks of that.|||I think you mean a raw-plant-based diet. Veganism has nothing to do with not cooking your food. I'm sorry Chris, but someone misinformed you. Eating a plant-based diet is not the same thing as being vegan. If you eat a "vegan" diet for health reasons, you are not vegan. If you do because you want to be different, you are not vegan. If you you do it because you believe that this planet and all of its denizens ARE NOT the property of mankind and you abhor the suffering of innocent beings, than you ARE vegan. Going around telling people that you are vegan and you don't eat food that is cooked sends the wrong message about our beliefs. If you are really vegan that is great. Just make sure you describe yourself as vegan, not "raw vegan" and don't talk about any of it to any one UNLESS they like you and are actually interested. Thanks, smart *ss|||everybody has really good points! i am wanting to go raw myself, although i would read ingredients in your medication. If they are capsules they may contain a milk based lactose product for binding, it is very common. so you could just undo the capsule and just get the medicine out of it and throw the capsule away. Deffinantly talk to your doctor and keep him informed on what you are doing and make sure he knows how serious you are about it so he can monitor you and not give you animal products in your meds! good luck and i hope this gets you well, raw diets can do wonders!|||http://www.living-foods.com/recipes/ for a great page to help you get started. Also, I would recommend Michelle Cooks book on detox. It has alot of great suggestions. Tofu is allright to eat, just don't fry it up. Apple cider vinegar is what you will want to shoot for.