‘Breatharian’ Couple Camila Castello And Akahi Ricardo Break Silence Following Backlash On ‘Food-Free’ Diet
“Breatharian” couple Camila Castello and Akahi Ricardo have issued a statement in response to the online backlash they’ve been receiving on account of a NY Post piece about “Breatharianism” that went viral last week.
According to the piece, the “Breatharian” couple believes that “food and water aren’t necessary and humans can be sustained solely by the energy of the universe.”
The article went its rounds on the Internet, specifically across all social media channels, sparking outrage from those who know better — that it’s virtually impossible for any human being to survive for weeks without food. A big chunk of those who stumbled on the article believe that Camila Castello and Akahi Ricardo’s statements about their diet are an outright lie. Understandably, many expressed outrage and worry over the fact that their unique lifestyle is putting the lives of their children — a five-year-old son and a two-year-old daughter — in danger.
After being bombarded by criticisms on the Internet, Akahi Ricardo and Camila Castello issued a statement to NY Post claiming that their statements have been overblown.
In the original piece, the “Breatharian” couple claims that Castello practiced a Breatharian pregnancy, which many took to mean that she went through her entire pregnancy without eating anything at all. As such, dietitian Tanya Zuckerbrot threw doubt on the couple’s claims, saying that people can only survive up to 21 days without food on the condition that they have enough glycogen and fat reserved in their bodies, as reported by CNN.
“It’s a faulty premise that they could survive off of the sun,” Zuckerbrot told The Post.
The couple, perhaps in response to the dietitian’s statement, clarified their previous assertion and explained that they did eat occasionally but consumed mostly liquids.
Breatharian mom ‘ate five times’ during her pregnancy, claims she lived off the energy of the universe https://t.co/Z8yu2InFOC pic.twitter.com/wxalvoaVRS
— Us Weekly (@usweekly) June 22, 2017
“During that time, we enjoyed mostly liquids, eating occasionally but surprisingly (to us also) not from hunger or a feeling of necessity,” the statement read. “So surely we were being nourished physically, but we were also aware of the very real non-physical nourishment that we receive from our breathing exercises and practices of consciousness.”
How a ‘breatharian’ couple surviving on ‘universe’s energy’ fooled news outlets https://t.co/oHXtvVIfOl pic.twitter.com/HPkzGPyYZY
— WGNT CW 27 (@WGNTCW27) June 22, 2017
Camila Castello and Akahi Ricardo, a couple who split their time between California and Ecuador, also said they prefer to call their practice “Pranic Nourishment or Consciousness” instead of Breatharianism because they now realize that the latter term often leads one to conclude that their way of life espouses the practice of not eating.
“And we don’t want to nurture that belief,” the statement said. “This is a natural state of freedom, not a diet.”
The couple also said they are not imposing the practice of Breatharianism on their children, saying that they eat “fresh homemade food” three times a day.
“We just don’t force them to eat if they’re not hungry, or obligate them to finish their entire plate if they feel satisfied. It has to do with body autonomy and learning to care for and know oneself, which is very valuable for everyone, of every age. They are their own people, and their lives don’t need to be the same as ours. We teach them to know their bodies, to respect them and love them and take care of their beautiful temples.”
[Featured Image by Akahi Ricardo/Facebook]
