Hi Debbie,

it's a good question.

I asked this question of Dr Fuhrman many times, and the answer is this, human nutrition uses human enzymes, and plant nutrition uses plant enzymes, we are not dependent on plant enzymes for nutritional excellence.

That said, enzymes help ripen and prepare fruits and vegetables for consumption, and do assist in digestion.

The loss of enzymes in a hot tea, first of all, which is not that much hotter than 117 degrees F, (over which a food that is cooked is no longer considered raw) is not doing much damage, if at all to the enzymes and plus, in that case I'm not exactly drinking the broth for enzymatic action, I'm drinking for nutrient rich pleasure.

So, all that to say, this is a good question, but I wouldn't worry about it if I were you. Nutritional insight like the point about killing enzymes when cooking can be taken far out of context and taken way too far. You'll be getting plenty of nutrient value from VegiZest even in hot water! ;-)

And remember there are dozens of ways to consume VegiZest that have nothing to do with hot water, soups, salads, seasoning in countless recipes. I put it on hummus sandwiches, over chickpeas and sauce (a favorite snack)... etc.

Great question.

John Allen Mollenhauer

You know what's funny, it's the people who think that they always have to be busy, always working, achieving, doing etc, who "think" they are living a PerformanceLifestyle, and really aren't.

Ironically, it's those who aren't driving themselves crazy, seem to have more time to be, and the naturally occurring energy to do more... who are healthy and actually achieve more, who are the Healthy High Achievers. Those people have PerformanceLifestyles.

It's all in how they structure their lives, the way they think and live and how they achieve their goals that makes the difference.

Shawn you've got it right... that all that the "lofty vision" of the Healthy High Achiever is about. It's about winning more, being able to do more, being able to "be" more (be able to perform at higher levels, but not always be always going and burning yourself out) and... actually achieving your goals!

So many people, don't achieve their goals in their life and in the business because they are overwhelmed. This overwhelm, leads to exhaustion and fatigue and once that sets in they don't have the energy to accomplish and achieve at the levels they aspire to, nor the quality of life. Those who do in spite of their condition, do so at such a personal cost to themselves, they literally trade their health for success and it shows.

Poor lifestyle practices ensue and before you know it, they are drinking whatever, eating whatever, busy but physically inactive. They've got everything going on but they're barely hanging on!

We've all been there.

Then, if they are fortunate a lifestyle or fitness pro will get through to them and inspire them to do something about it, and help them get out of their downward spiral.

And why are we successful in having them make changes?

Well, what is the reason why anyone really changes their lifestyle?

What are the signs and signals?

The obvious is overweight, perhaps health complications that inspire someone to change their lifestyle, but the reality is, it's the lack of energy, inability to function and perform at the level they need to, to achieve their goals in any area of their life that's important, like their business or sport that tends to kick forward moving people over the edge.

Maybe they can't keep up, they are struggling, not having fun, not hitting the marks they want, procrastinating etc... maybe they are unable to keep with their friends, take part in a weekend ride, play with their kids when they come home, challenge them self in adventure activities or play their amateur sport the way they like to.... when this is realized and they are sick and tired of not being able to do what they want, look and feel the way they want, changes in your lifestyle occur - now their is purpose.

Nobody changes their lifestyle unless they are going to function and perform better, feel better and ultimately look better; nobody changes their lifestyle unless they see greater success and quality of life on the horizon.

Lifestyle success, means health and success, and when you focus on your capacity to function and perform well you get the feedback you need to make changes!

Otherwise, if we could all eat crap, drink, be lazy in front of a television, live out of balance, spend our energy frivolously, perform non stop, never have to sleep and could still look feel and perform well, then people would... but that's not normal or natural, that is just stuff that people are caught up in.

None of those practices equal the other.

Those ways of life and quality of life do not go hand in hand, they are unsuccessful practices, even though we engage in therm from time to time for one reason or another.

But let me say this, taking care of your self feels better and it stays that way most of the time and over time it becomes effortless. It's only hard when you are living so out of balance that anything good feels bad and what is bad feels good; believe it or not, that's a pattern most people are caught up in, and that's why they struggle with making changes for the better.

We help achieving people out of that mode of thinking and living because it doesn't serve them or help them be more successful by changing, or "upgrading" their lifestyle.

Healthy High Achievers like to win and are high achievers (actually achieving their goals) largely in part because of how healthy they live, not because they are living healthy for the sake of being a healthy nut, but because the way they live helps them be more successful.

Healthy High Achievers are seeking better quality of life and greater success in their life; greater health, greater strength, more energy, and vitality are essential to all that.

To win more often and achieve more in their lives, to be able to do more and sustainably, you have to prepare more, rest more, recover more, eat better and sometimes more, stay fit...

To do all of that, how you structure your life, think and live, and achieve your goals has to be optimized and the reality is, life is easier when things are working, it's just plain hard when it's a struggle to achieve your goals because aspects of your lifestyle are weighing you down.

This is why healthy high achievers almost always have time to take care of themselves and do things right, they just want to be successful.

Yes, you can eat raw or slightly bake at low temperature for 10-15 mins or so.

I will be watching this, I know Dr Fuhrman is not the biggest proponent of Juice fasting but there are many health benefits of Juicing for sure.

Personally I am not a big juicer, I eat the whole fruit, but I often buy juices at whole foods or wherever I am; mostly vegetable.

I just finished a beet, apply celery juice this morning. MMMMM