Health Food: Is nutrional yeast raw..the kind you would buy at a health food store

Is nutrional yeast raw..the kind you would buy at a health food store?
I'm a raw vegan and lacking B12, and wanted to know if I could eat this? Thank you in advance. [[[For those of you who don't know... Raw vegan means that I only eat food in its natural, uncooked, unprocessed, unpasteurized state &&& no animal products...understand?]]]] :] thanks again
Vegetarian & Vegan - 6 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Looking for your answer online, I couldn't figure out whether or not it is raw. I would say, with my rudimentary understanding of yeast and the raw lifestyle, that nutritional yeast does undergo "some" processing before being sold for consumption, so if you're very strict on the raw aspect, you might not want to go that way, but on the other hand, it's a great supplement and if you're B12 lacking, I might suggest incorporating a little into your diet. It's supposedly delicious. I've never tried it, though, so again, all opinion and conjecture from this corner.
2 :
If you consider cultured foods like soy yogurt processed, nutritional yeast may not be for you. In addition, nutritional yeast is heated so that the live yeast is killed at pasteurization temperatures. The following site explains the process a bit better: http://www.lesaffreyeastcorp.com/SoY/nutritionalyeast.html Again, it does not sound like a raw product. If it is B12 that you are looking to incorporate in your diet, you may want to look into sea vegetables such as kelp, nori, etc. They are normally rich in B12 and other important trace minerals. I hope that helps.
3 :
No, it's been deactivated by heat. Nothing is living in it...if that's what you mean. Other than growing your own veggies....and not cooking them all the way...I don't know how you would get your B 12. Maybe someone else would know. B 12 is a mineral found in the dirt too....the veggies from the store have been washed so many times that the B 12 isn't present on them anymore..sounds like you'd benifit from your own garden.
4 :
Yes it is, many of my Uncook Books use it.
5 :
Nutritional yeast DOES NOT contain any vitamin B12 unless it is fortified with it. The highest source of natural Vitamin B12 (human active) in plants is spirulina. Human active B12 is also available in sea vegetables such as raw nori, etc. However, these sources not only have the human active B12, but also have B12 analog which prevents the human active B12 from being absorbed into the body. Thus there are ZERO vegan sources of Vitamin B12 without taking supplements or fortified foods. One exception would be from the soil which is naturally very high in Vitamin B12. Cows that are grassfed do not wash the dirt off of the grass before they eat it, but eat the grass which has dirt particles on it. For this reason beef and milk is very high in B12 (cows are vegan). So the only way you are going to get B12 without supplements is by eating dirty produce which hasn't been washed. The best source for this would be your local organic farmers market..
6 :
No, it is a cooked product. Says to on their website. You lack B12, why? See, B12 is left out of statistic because, for example, you will find B12 on the outside of most fruits and vegetables, thus, they are not part of the product, but ON the product. If you eat natural organic unwashed or or little washed (enough to get any visible dirt off) you can get B12 this way. It's also found in the mouth and intestines. So, try to promote the good bacteria in your intestines by not consuming thing that will kill them such as white vinegar, antibiotics, and such. You can eat things like miso, tempeh, and other fermented foods. There are lots fermented food in every culture around the world. There some great fermented tofu from China that is similar to miso... well, I won't bother making a list, it's very extensive. Take a look here for some ideas under B12: http://www.bestbread.ca/QUICK_-_REFERENCE_NUTRITION_CHART.pdf

Read more discussions :

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Is nutrional yeast raw..the kind you would buy at a health food store