Akuc Bol, 31, from Camden Town, north-west London, has not worn deodorant for two years, claiming her fully raw vegan diet means she no longer smells even when “sweating buckets” at dance classes. She began following the diet in 2024 after being inspired by a plant-based retreat in America.
Diet change and motivation
Bol, who has followed a vegan diet since 2015, decided to slowly transition to raw veganism in summer 2023 after attending a retreat in Florida. She said: “One of the doctors at the retreat said once he started eating lots of raw foods, he noticed that he didn’t have to wear deodorant.”
She was also motivated by a desire to support animal welfare and eat less processed food. Throughout 2023, she gradually increased her raw food intake and said she noticed her “natural odour smelt very different”. She has not worn deodorant since, even when exercising.
Daily meals and adjustments
Bol typically starts her day with a 1.5-litre smoothie of bananas, blueberries and dates, or a large serving of fruit such as an entire papaya. For lunch, she usually has a salad with pomegranate, avocado, sprouts, carrot, plantain and seeds, followed by more fruit for dinner, such as three mangoes or a tub of dates.
She said her biggest adjustment was getting used to eating only cold food. “I felt freezing cold most of the time, I think because my food was digesting so quickly – I was going to the bathroom three times a day,” she added.
Social life and criticism
When socialising, Bol tends to meet friends and family during the day at cafes or restaurants offering salads or smoothies. She has adapted traditional celebrations, having savoury tomato and onion juice on Christmas Day 2024 and dehydrated mushroom burgers the following year.
Bol has shared her journey on Instagram under the handle @therawfoodglow but has faced criticism online. “There was a lot of pushback online – people have accused me of having an eating disorder, or that I eat cooked food behind the scenes, but these small voices don’t count for anything,” she said.
Health considerations and future plans
The NHS says limiting spicy foods and red meat can help manage body odour, and that fruit and vegetables should make up just over a third of your daily food intake. However, it also recommends a balanced diet with higher-fibre starchy foods, dairy or alternatives, protein and unsaturated oils.
Bol gets minimal protein from foods such as avocado, seeds and nuts, and takes no supplements. Within two months of changing her diet, she said she had gone from a size eight to a size six and noticed more muscle definition.
Looking ahead, Bol hopes to meet a life partner who follows a raw vegan diet, or at least is vegan initially, and would like to have children who follow her lifestyle. She said: “I’ve seen some raw vegan men on Instagram and they’re so hot! I’m just waiting to meet one in real life.”
