Lighten Up This Summer! As Spring gives way to Summer many fresh local foods are in season, making it the perfect time to start eating more raw foods. This means trying to build more of your meals around fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and sprouts. Raw foods are loaded with enzymes, vitamins and nutrients. We are not suggesting you become a 'raw foodie' or adhere to strict guidelines, rather that you incorporate more fresh raw foods into your diet. Even if half of your meals each day consist of raw food as the foundation you will have more energy, lose weight and feel great. Five easy ways to add more raw to your diet: Have at least a serving or more of fresh fruit every day: This can include an apple, pear, orange, berries or a fresh fruit smoothie. Have multiple servings of fresh vegetables every day: Cut up carrots, celery, peppers, make a large dark leafy green salad or a fresh pressed green juice. Enjoy a handful (or two) of raw organic nuts and seeds. Put them into a trail mix with raisins, goji berries, apricots - and you can even add some pure raw dark chocolate (cacao) into the mix. Grab a bag of fresh sunflower or pea sprouts from your local health food store or farmers market, these make a great addition to salads, sandwiches, soups, stir-frys and smoothies. Get creative and try to prepare a few new raw recipes each week (check out different books, websites or online videos on how to prepare things like smoothies, raw nori rolls, cookies and nut based spreads). Sourced from Fully Nourished by Marni Wasserman.