Customer Reviews

The 80/10/10 Diet

5 star:		(77)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

This is a very interesting book, and I am extremely glad it has been written. The strange sounding title refers to the name of an eating plan that derives 80% of total calories from carbs as found in fruit, and 10% each from fat and protein, and does so within a raw vegan framework. Graham's opinion is that this is the optimum and natural diet for human beings and therein lies the premise of this book, and he spends the next 300+ pages convincing the reader why this is so.

To accomplish this, Graham uses mostly common sense arguments and scientific analyses. The former are more effective here, and he peppers the text liberally with them. The combination is a very convincing mix, and I felt ready to dive into a pit of bananas before I had read too far. By the time Graham describes how eating a high-fat diet stresses the adrenals I was both fascinated and reflecting in horror on my past dietary sins.

There are 348 pages here; 170 of them are essay in chapters, and the balance goes to sample menus, nutrient breakdowns, portion equivalents, testimonials, faqs, and so on. These miscellaneous parts do not come across as filler, even the perhaps overly lengthy testimonial section. Graham's writing style is clear and though he engages in repetition at times (for instance when talking about fat and blood sugar) the flow is mainly undisturbed. The end feeling I had was that it was very intelligently laid out and well done. I also appreciate that he doesn't try to sell you anything. (see "The PH Miracle" for an example of that!)

I really don't have much to criticize here, I did wonder what stripe of doctor "Dr." Graham is, and some of the menu plans (dinners) seemed a bit complex to coexist with a "mono is best" philosophy. He cites some vague and trivial sources ("a 1999 journal article says..." and "according to a brochure from the Colorado Vegetarian Society..."), and I was left wondering why Dr. Graham recommends eating any "overt" fat at all (given that sweet fruits and greens naturally contain 5% fat). He never gave a reason. Also, he says to eat juicy fruit for breakfast, sweeter fruit for lunch, and I remember something about acid fruits at dinner. Again, he never gave a reason for this. Very minor things in the broader context. I would overlook a great deal more to get to the profoundly worthwhile message of this book.

I guess the most compelling thing about this book is that by the end, the diet proposed within seems like a no big deal, normal, almost. It's like a secret hiding in plain sight. That's amazing considering how truly rare it is to eat in such a way. Go out into the world and you will see it is borderline revolutionary. I have applied these principles and experienced nothing but positive results for myself- If it were not so I would never write such a review. I must say thanks to Dr. Graham for putting this out there for everyone to benefit from.

Note: I don't know what the deal is with the 4-6 weeks Amazon takes to ship it, I bought mine from [...] because of that.

I have owned the book since it first came out, having ordered it pre-publication, and have a nice hand-written comment by Dr. Graham in the
front of the book.

The 80/10/10 Diet is based upon living in harmony with Nature's design. As other reviewers have pointed out, Dr. Graham does an excellent job of explaining why that is so. Working (writing?) in combination with Laurie Masters' wonderful editing skills, the book is a true winner!

What may not be obvious from the title or from the other reviews is that this is a diet that works! Works for what? Works to allows the body to rebuild itself, cell by cell. Eating fruits and shoots (or whole, fresh, ripe, raw, organic or better...), in combination with the other 31 Fundamental Elements of Health, as outlined on p. 10, is a proven method of building Health.

And I loved the outright, upfront honesty of the statement describing this diet: "This radically different view is unpopular, because it does not generate any revenue. The 80/10/10 approach uses no repeat products, no supplements, no high-priced, elitist 'superfoods'. 80/10/10 uses a simple grocery-store approach to nutrition that brings this program easily into the grasp of everyone." (p.11) Works for me! and it has!

I see this book as an excellent investment in my health, and a grand addition to my health library.

Bob Farrell

I have certifiably read nearly every "raw food" book in existence. I've tried every version of the raw food diet and experiemented greatly. There is no way for me to put into words how enthusiastic I am to have found this book and to tell the world "This is the only one you need." I think to myself, wish I'd just found this one in the beginning! But it's alright, I've found it now and I tell others often.

One of the main reasons this particular book is so compelling is because it's realistic, scientific, theoretic, humble, human and practical all at the same time. You'll get everything from dietary guidelines and menus, to hard science and facts, to personal testimonies and FAQ's, to great useful data about specific foods. And most of all - you will finally understand why we MUST eat all raw foods, which foods are optimal, and how our bodies work. Dr. Graham has an amazing skill of taking a concept (lifestyle) that seems rather "strict" and making it into something that's actually ... the easiest thing you can possibly do. It's a mind shift, a society change, a choice.

Make the choice and read this book immediately, if not sooner!

I recommend this book if you are ALREADY a raw foodist. If not, there are many other books that might help you transition easier. I would say that this book is the purest form of raw foodism. I have been raw for only 9 months and by trial/error have come to eat this way. I purchased it anyway because I wanted to know the science behind why "gourmet raw" makes me feel so terrible (drains my energy/diarrhea/achy). My review is biased by my experience but here is why I like "The 811":
1. Food prep is minimal which is perfect for my lifestyle
2. I love the simplicity of the the monomeals and feel satisfied
3. It gives tips on dressings (which I always like to rotate)
4. It gave me insight on "gourmet raw" transition foods and why they give me (what I call) "food hang-overs"
5. Performance wise, I have had only good experiences when eating this clean...I can tell you that with any nuts and/or any more than 2 T of seeds I can feel it
6. My grocery bill is a lot less.
7. It's really not about counting...just becoming aware of your fat intake.
8. BEST OF ALL: I feel great!

I recently spoke with another raw foodist who considers this diet his "cleanse". I don't know why he doesn't just eat this way all the time=it's so easy! Just fruit all day with one big salad.

FYI: If you are not an athlete I personally think you don't need to consume as much (calories)as they recommend. Remember in the raw world you process your food much more efficiently so you need less than what the USDA recommends.

This explains a lot for me, honestly. I have been in and out of a raw foods lifestyle for years now and never understood why it wasn't working for me and now it makes perfect sense - the high fat content was ALL WRONG!

Years ago I was "diagnosed" with a candida imbalance, which was true, and i did the Body Ecology Diet, which was phenomenally helpful because it was leaps and bounds above what I'd been doing, which was lots of soy and dairy and wheat...blech. So I improved but never for long and not to the level I really desired.

When I first heard about the raw foods movement it resonated and I tried it. The complex recreations of cooked foods like lasagna and pizza are certainly tasty, but I could never digest them, and now it seems preposterous to have even tried. They are almost entirely FAT! Way too heavy and just sends a candida imbalance off the charts, which Dr. Graham does a fabulous job of explaining. Not to mention the fact (though I AM mentioning it) that substituting cooked foods that aren't healthy with raw versions seems to be missing the point of walking away from those foods in the first place. Let's let our bodies enjoy the simplicity of the most delicious, sustainable and ecologically sound foods on this planet rather than substitute something that tastes like a cheesburger.

I think it's obvious that this man has lived this lifestyle for a loooong time and he's done extensive research to back up his own experiences. I myself feel 1000 times better immediately upon making this shift, even factoring in some detox effects. I'm easing into it by doing all fruit until dinner time so I can slowly replace the cooked foods that I still crave. This is a lifelong process of healing and revealing radiant health and I see and feel the differences already.

I have also wrestled with asthma since high school and I know the usual culprits (dairy, wheat, soy, miscombined foods) were pretty much all of my old "diet" foods and all of my cravings. The difference in how relaxed, open and clear my lungs are when eating this way is astounding. So simple, so logical and so powerful.

If ever there was a supplement junkie, that would have been me, but now I'm dedicated to being a living foods goddess instead. ;) Yes, it's a trip to buy THIS much fruit, and I'm not even eating the amounts he has in his menu (which is fine since I'm not as active yet either, but I will be!) but I'm spending less than I did on coffee drinks and take out food, even the healthy kind. Besides, I love the produce manager at my local store!

One of my favorite recipes so far, surprisingly enough, is the green smoothie made with (simply) bananas and romaine lettuce with a little water...I LOVE that! It's so refreshing, filling but not heavy and loaded with energy.

I used to think my morning smoothie made with coconut water, Miracle Greens powder, raw cacao and other superfoods was the bomb, but now I get why that wasn't moving me closer to my goals of ultimate health and fitness; too much fat, too complex, not what my body really wants and needs!

Do I see the general public doing this? No. I think it's something you need to be ready for on many levels or have been working up to for a while, or just something you are called to do. For the person on the Standard American Diet, this will seem ridiculous and unhealthy. To anyone who is free of the marketing hypnosis machine and/or has a deep connection to their own body, this will resonate as the best road to radiant health inside and out.

I'm so grateful to Dr. Graham for being a nutritional iconoclast! This is what has been calling to me for years but I needed a framework and some validation to do it properly, with enough food intake and variation. Now, there's nothing standing between me and the best health of my life. How empowering is that?!

If you are ready to do something special, different and totally natural to claim your right to perfect health, this is WELL worth the money and the read. It's nothing short of life changing for me.

UPDATED: 6/8/11
I do still think the principles and nutritional ideas in this book are incredible - I never feel better than when I do my banana romaine smoothie for breakfast and eat loads of seasonal fruit all day long, it's incredible. But having tried the high-fat camp (bloody awful!), this lifestyle and many others I personally feel that a strict 811 raw vegan lifestyle is great for me in the warmer months; it keeps me cool, hydrated and gives me the patience and balance for the 105 degree days we get often in the Valley. But I also notice that in the winter months, when it's colder and wetter, I'm not content on purely fruit and greens no matter how much I eat or what varieties. I find that's when I want and enjoy small quantities of sprouted almonds or sunflower seeds, or homemade cooked vegan soups of simple veg combos, and my homemade veggie stew. I know all the arguments from the 811 camp on why that's "bad", how it's just a matter of needing more calories, etc, etc, etc. But the truth is that when I look at Dr. G I see a remarkable athlete who is also facially aging incredibly rapidly. He's 57, can outperform athletes in their 20s but could also pass for being around 70 in terms of how he looks. I see the same thing with some of the other well known proponents who have done this for 4 years or more; they're lean, incredibly fit, full of energy, and seem to be aging way faster than they should be or need to be. I personally feel totally energized and vibrant on 2000 cals per day or less, but many 811ers push the need for 3000+ cals per day. So at the end of the day, I took the ideas inherent in Dr Graham's wonderful book and synthesized them with other concepts that compliment and augment this lifestyle so it works beautifully for me; seasonality and specifically addressing my own metabolism needs. I would still recommend this book with ALL of my heart to learn about true nutrition, and certainly look to Dr Graham to see human potential because he's a true warrior. I've just found a need to knit these concepts in with others to make it really shine for me. Structure is wonderful, rigidity is solely restrictive. Live well. :)

UPDATE as of 7/11/11:
Well, it seems I have found my balance with raw living! And I also figured out why the 811 program wasn't quite right for me without a little tweaking on my part; when eating mostly fruit you need to consume a ton of calories in order to get that ratio of 80/10/10, which is why most folks thriving on it consume about 3,000 calories per day at minimum. Of course, then you have to do quite a lot of exercising to make good use of those calories and certainly daily exercise is crucial for health and well-being, but I see a lot of passionate extremism in this group. I admire folks who run several marathons per week, log in 7-10 miles per day, etc but that's not something I personally see as being good for the body in the long term. I think the idea of a high fruit, lower fat diet is optimum, and can be benefit the body for a couple of years but I do believe that doing super low-fat diets for longer than that can start to result in premature aging. I feel that we need a bit more than that to thrive, and I also believe that doing high intensity and high endurance workouts daily, or training like athletes over long periods of time will result in wearing the body down regardless of the diet or the high from so many calories. For me, personally, I find that with a balanced daily raw regimen of fruits, smoothies, green juices, luscious salads and some great raw nut/seed (sprouted) based dishes, I don't need to consume nearly as much food or worry about caloric intake and I feel incredible; high energy sustained all day long, sleeping better than ever, thriving on about 6-7 hours of sleep rather than needing 10 like lots of the 811 folks (who are also doing some hardcore workouts). I get daily compliments on my "glow" and folks asking me what I'm doing, my yoga and rebounding and dancing feel great and I recover quickly from any sort of experience with them...but I'm definitely outside of the 80/10/10 paradigm with my current raw lifestyle. So for my own use, this amazing book was a great launching pad and really taught me a lot, but in the end I had to find my own path. I've been enjoying working with The Garden Diet and see in that raw program a man who has been 100% raw since 1971 and is very athletic, muscular and lean but consumes nowhere near the same amount of calories and does eat more raw fats that 10%. There are many paths, and in the grand scheme of things raw living is very new to us all so listening to our own bodies is crucial. Dr Graham may not believe in the concept of unique needs, but I do. In my lifetime of consuming complex, god-awful junk foods and cooked concoctions, taking medications, vaccinations, ect I know my specific needs are not the same as another woman with a different history who is my age, size, etc. Use this book as a tool to hone your own raw foods paradigm. There is much to be learned here, but there is much to be learned from listening to your body as well. ;)

After suffering a debilitating car accident where a drunk driver crushed my Miata... and I walked away, alive... I spent months in physical therapy. I ended up with two crushed spinal disks and a host of other painful injuries. I spent a year in severe pain, a year in which I could barely walk, could barely sleep.

I tried everything - and I mean everything - to help alleviate the pain. Massage. Physical Therapy. Prescription Medication. Aspirin. Herbs. Yoga. Acupuncture. Nothing worked.

I somehow came across Dr. Doug's book and my life changed. I began eating all fresh raw fruits and vegetables in the proportions Dr. Doug recommends. My family laughed to see me make enormous smoothies of 10 bananas and entire heads of celery which I would slam down with relish.

I lost 35 pounds within six weeks. My skin is so smooth and clear. My eyes are incredibly bright. And my back pain? GONE. Gone. The raw foods reduced the amounts of inflammation in my body.

Dr. Doug explains that the road to health includes a very low fat vegan diet where only ten percent - or less - of your mails consist of fat. Making those foods raw increases the health benefits a hundred fold, too.

I feel amazing. I have a new lease on life. I am so grateful I came across this book here at amazon.com, and recommend it to anyone struggling with back pain or weight issues.

This is the kind of book so full of intriguing facts and truth, that you just want to lend it out to everyone, but afraid that you might not get it back.

Loaded with charts and information not only for the raw foodist but for the health enthusiast, this book is sure to answer many questions, and will shed light on the big protein and the "eat lots of good fat" debate so prevelant in today's weight loss, health minded society.

I could not recommend this enough, along with the China Study for a very thorough and very convincing information and facts on why a low-fat plant based diet is the very best for health and life.

Like Jennifer, I own just about every book out there on raw vegan diet and lifestyle and have tried every nutritional approach to health imaginable.
Now, finally, I have discovered the simple truth! After hearing about Natural Hygiene and then reading this book, I immediately began this diet and have never looked back. Stubborn health issues disappeared and I have felt the joy of vibrant health since.
This approach has many pluses: fresh fruit is sumptuous food and the pleasure of "indulging" is sweet indeed; my body feels light and fit at all times; my mind stays sharp, never dulled by heavy, fatty or refined non-foods; and most of all, preparing meals is so quick and simple, i am no longer a slave to stove or sink!
Now it is clear to me that this way is right -- the theory JUST MAKES SENSE -- but many people are hooked on modern science to tell them what is true. Here is where this book really shines. Dr. Graham's presentation of the theory and related facts should give even the most skeptical something to chew on and, if they try it out, easily digest!
Seriously, there is plenty of good science here, not to mention Dr. Graham's long standing and impeccable reputation in the health and fitness world. The FAQ's and testimonials add even more clarity to the concepts presented and, finally, the menus and nutritional charts give the reader all the practical information needed to get started easily on this exceptional plan.
My hope is that everyone will one day return to this way of eating (it is, after all, what we humans did for millennia) and witness a return of health to all people and the whole planet.

I absolutely love this book! It is the kind of book that you read cover to cover in a hungry reading frenzy, then you read it again to absorb more. I have found that I keep referring to it. It will be come your reference book for all things food!

I especially like the seasonal menus, nutritional charts, the personal success stories and the 32 fundamental elements of health.

If you are serious about reaching your potential, this is the book for you!

I've been interested in how diet affects health for many years. In my research I've come to the conclusion that eating raw is the way to go. Unfortunately, I was confused by all the conflicting information out there. Finally, there's a book that puts it all together in an easy to read & understand format. Thanks Doug!