Stress Management: The Life Science Approach

Lesson 64 - Stress Management: The Life Science Approach

64.1. Introduction

64.2. The Problem Of Stress

64.3. The Life Science Stress-Management Program

64.4. Questions & Answers

Article #1: Stress/Unstress by Ken Pelletier, Ph.D.

Article #2: In Search Of Emotional Well-Being

Introduction

The man was berserk. He drove his car through the front doors of an office building, and then leapt out with a shotgun in his hands. He took aim at the picture of the company president in the building lobby, and shot it full of holes before he was wrestled away by the police.

The man was an ex-employee of the company. He had been fired that morning by the man whose picture he blasted away that afternoon. The man was a victim of stress, and he was reacting in a way that let off the anger, frustration, and helplessness he felt.

Stress—it affects us all, and it can kill us as surely as any illness or disease.

We all experience stress every day of our lives. How we handle stress depends upon our current state of health. If we are healthy, we can manage stressful situations in a pos- itive, productive way. If we are sick, depressed, or simply “out of sorts,” then stress can trigger the berserk reaction of the man above, or it can send us into a helpless, destruc- tive state of fear.

Stress, however, can be effectively managed by applying the principles of Life Sci- ence and Natural Hygiene in these areas: diet, exercise, relaxation, and sleep.

Before we learn how to deal with stress, we need to recognize it in our own lives. If we can identify stressful situations, we can either learn to avoid them or to handle them so that they do not trigger a more serious and harmful reaction.

64.2. The Problem Of Stress

64.2.1 What Is Stress?

64.2.2 The Types of Stress

64.2.3 The Effects of Stress

64.2.4 What Is the Stress Reaction?

64.2.5 The Types of Stress That Cause Physiological Reactions

64.2.1 What Is Stress?

Hold a wooden pencil between your hands. Slowly apply pressure as you try to bend the pencil. Increase your pressure, and the pencil snaps and breaks. That’s an exam- ple of mechanical stress. Stress is simply a pressure or a strain that tends to distort a body—whether it be a pencil or a person.

Up to a point, we can all take pressure and strain. At some time, however, the stress can become so great that just like the pencil, we “snap.” If and when we “snap” depends on the ways we handle stressful situations.

And, to make it more interesting, all stress is not the same. To handle the stress in your life, you need to understand what type of stresses can be made upon you.

64.2.2 The Types of Stress

Most stress used to be physical and short-term. Now in modern times, stress is usu- ally emotional and long-term. What does this mean?

All living creatures experience short-term, physical stress almost continuously. Find- ing food, adapting to weather changes, reproducing, and growth are examples of com- mon, short-term stress situations. As soon as we find our food, or adapt to the season, or reproduce, then the physical stress brought on by these states is eliminated—it was temporary and for a short-term.

This type of stress is normal, natural, and perhaps even beneficial. Without a certain amount of stress, no change, progress, or growth would ever take place. We would be in continuous state of stagnation unless we experienced temporary feelings of stress.

When these stressful situations become long-term, however, then harm results. Also, when the stress becomes more emotional or mental and less physical, we have a harder time of dealing with it. Why? Because the responses to physical stress, such as intense hunger, are already learned. The body has its own way of handling physical stress, and it knows how to best compensate for the temporary demands placed on it.

On the other hand, emotional stress brought about by uncertainties, or feelings of helplessness are difficult to handle. We haven’t learned yet how to deal with the type of stress produced by overdue bills or individual shortcomings. And, unlike physical stress, these long-term, stressful emotional states and fears can last for weeks, months, or even years.

64.2.3 The Effects of Stress

You already know how stress affects you personally, perhaps it makes you feel tired, fatigued, nervous, or depressed. Stress may make you feel as if the weight of the world was on your shoulders. Emotionally, stress may make us prone to anger, irritability, or even tears. No matter how you personally react to stress, however, the physiological ef- fects of stress are the same for all living creatures. What happens to your body when you experience stress?

What are the physiological responses by the body to physical stress:

• An increase in arterial pressure.
• An increased blood flow to the muscles with a decreased blood flow to the organs.
• An increased rate of cellular metabolism throughout the body.
• An increase in blood glucose.
• An increase in glycolysis in the muscles.
• Increased muscular strength.
• Increased mental activity. The overall effect of these responses is to let you perform far more strenuous physi- cal activity than would otherwise be possible. Why is this? Because if a stressful, threat- ening, situation is present, then you would probably need to flee from it or fight it. This is called the fight flight reaction because an animal in a physically stress-state decides almost instantly to stand and fight or to n and run. Here’s an example of how extreme physical stress can activate the energy reserves of the body: In the national newspapers this week is an account of a 80-year-old grand- mother who had been on crutches continuously for the last two years. A fire broke out in her neighbor’s house and she heard the cries of a trapped child. Immediately she ran into the house and carried the child to freedom before she realized she had thrown her crutches aside. She then collapsed and had to be removed by ambulance. During a time of great crisis, or stress, her body responded so vigorously that she forgot she was an invalid.

So far, stress doesn’t seem to have that destructive an effect, and it doesn’t—if it is short-term, physical stress. When stress becomes prolonged and internalized, however, it has decidedly negative results upon the person’s health.

64.2.4 What Is the Stress Reaction?

It is amazing that almost any type of stress can cause the same reaction in the body. Scientists often refer to two kinds of stress: physical and neurogenic.

An example of physical stress is being exposed to extreme cold. An example of neu- rogenic stress is the worry that you won’t be able to pay your winter heating bill. A vital body can quickly adapt to physical stress. Neurogenic stress, worry or tension, however, may take their toll.

Regardless if the stress is in the body or in the mind, the same physiological reaction takes place in the body. The most noticeable effect of any type of stress is a marked in- crease of hormone secretion in the body.

The hormone known as ACTH (or adrenocorticotropic hormone) is released in large quantities whenever stress is present. This ACTH substance activates the secretion of cortisol. Cortisol, in turn, enhances the production of adrenal androgens in the adrenal cortex. The net effect of all these secretions caused by stress is to provide a sharp and immediate stimulus to the adrenal glands.

The adrenal glands sit right above the kidneys, and control many functions. Perhaps you’ve heard of athletes or other people speak of the “adrenalin rush.” Adrenalin is the most powerful stimulant known. Stress causes adrenalin to be released, and we con- sequently feel “stimulated.” If we are constantly overstimulated by stress, we become burnt-out and incapable of responding to true stress situations.

When some people drive in heavy city traffic or experience other intensely stressful situations, their adrenal glands may actually “ache” or hurt from the constant stimulation being received. An older gentleman who complained of lower backaches while commut- ing in rush-hour traffic believed he had kidney problems. In reality, his adrenal glands were just being overworked by the stress of commuter traffic.

This is the danger in the stress reaction. You can be under stress or overstimulated almost continuously. No one can run on “high” speed all the time, and the body eventu- ally suffers.

The type of stress that can provoke this adrenal reaction is widely varied. Re- searchers have discovered, however, that the following situations are sufficiently “stress- ful” to spark a high ACTH release, which means the body becomes highly stimulated.

64.2.5 The Types of Stress That Cause Physiological Reactions

1. Intense heat or cold.
2. Injections of any sort.
3. Surgical operations.
4. Trauma of any type (physical or emotional).
5. Pain.
6. Any debilitating body crisis.
7. Emotional outbursts or anxiety attacks. It seems as if stress is all around us, and its sustained effects can wear us down and make us vulnerable to negative thoughts and poor living habits. But there is hope. The Life Science program, which is based entirely upon our natural adaptations, pro- vides the correct basis for living that allows us to withstand stress far better than if we transgress our own biological requirements and nature. The Life Science approach to stress management, even long-term and emotional stress, is three-fold: Exercise, Diet, and Relaxation. These are three of the essentials of health and well-being. Let’s see how they help us overcome stress in our daily life.

64.3. The Life Science Stress-Management Program

64.3.1 Sweating Away Stress: Exercise!

64.3.2 Stress Management Through Diet 64.3.3 How Diet Affects the Stress Response 64.3.4 Relaxation

64.3.5 Relaxing the Mind

64.3.6 A Case History

64.3.1 Sweating Away Stress: Exercise!

Exercise is your best friend in combating stress. The value of exercise as a stress reducer is well documented by many researchers. Why should exercise, which is a vig- orous activity, have the power to relax us and eliminate stress? The answer is this:

Exercise channels the excess energy created by stress into a natural and positive out- let. As you learned earlier, stress causes the sympathetic nervous system to prepare for immediate physical action. The muscles become charged with fuel and the entire metab- olism quickens. Unless this excess energy is released through exercise, it can overload and “burn out” the body’s nervous system.

If stress becomes habitual and no exercise is taken, then the excess energy is inter- nalized as tension within the muscles. When this occurs, the muscles and tendons them- selves shorten and thicken. Excessive connective tissue is deposited, and a general con- solidation of all the tissues occur. In other words, holding in the stress and tension has destructive effects on the muscles of the body.

When you exercise vigorously, you dispel this muscular energy in a natural and ben- eficial way. After all, stress produces the “fight-or-flight” reaction. If we can quite lit- erally “run away” from stress by jogging or other forms of exercise, then we use the energy created by stress in a constructive manner.

A young man of my acquaintance was an aspiring body builder who went away to college. He was afraid that the time demands of college study would mean an end to his body-building program. After a year of school, he returned with an amazing physique. I told him that it certainly looked like college agreed with his exercise routine after all.

He smiled, and said: “You know it’s funny. I found out that the best way to get rid of tension and anxiety about my college studies and tests was to lift weights. The more anxious I got about my courses, the better it felt to work out with weights. It helped me burn up nervous energy that would have driven me crazy otherwise.”

Exercise does reduce stress and aid relaxation. In his book, Learn To Relax, C. Eu- gene Walker concludes that exercise has the specific ability to reduce anxiety and ten- sion. People on regular exercise programs tend to be more healthy, have better vital ca- pacity, and in general, can cope with life in a more satisfactory way.

Regular exercise not only makes you feel better, but also makes you become more optimistic, and have a better self image. So not only does exercise reduce anxiety, it seems to be a good preventive for developing future fears and stress problems.

Some people have downplayed the importance of exercise in stress reduction. They say that stress is “all in the mind” and the only effective way to combat stress is through mental or emotional avenues. Not true.

In research conducted by Richard Driscoll, groups of people who were suffering from high anxiety and personal stress were given four types of treatment. One group simply used visual imagery and imagined themselves relaxed, happy, and free from stress. Another group used only exercise. A third group used only physical relaxation techniques, and the last group combined exercise with a positive program of mental op- timism.

The group which used exercise in addition to positive thinking had the highest suc- cess rate in reducing stress. The groups which did not use exercise programs with their other stress-reducing techniques had a much lower rate of success.

The evidence is in: to reduce stress, you must exercise.

64.3.2 Stress Management Through Diet

“Sure, I use diet to take care of stress. When I get tense, I just stuff my face!” The young man laughed, but his overweight figure showed the truth behind his joking.

Unfortunately, many people respond to stress by overeating or by indulging in drugs or other destructive habits. To make things worse, the types of foods usually favored un- der stress—ice cream, candy, soft drinks, coffee, alcohol, junk foods—have the effect of making us more susceptible to stress and illness.

Diet and nutrition play an important role in stress management. By simply avoiding destructive foods and following a wholesome diet, you can withstand normal stressful situations in a cheerful and optimistic fashion. A junk food diet, on the other hand, can make us crumble under the slightest bit of tension. Why is this?

64.3.3 How Diet Affects the Stress Response

A strong and healthy nervous system is our first defense line against stress. Good nerves and a steady disposition allow you to shake away stress and handle tension ef- fectively. Although many factors ensure a healthy nervous system, most nutritionists be- lieve that B vitamins play the vital role in good nerve health.

If you follow the natural Life Science diet of fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and sprouts, you will have a super abundance of all needed nutrients—including B vitamins as well as important minerals and trace elements that build strong nerves.

On the other hand, junk foods, refined sugars and starches, processed foods, non- foods like alcohol and coffee, and many of the other substandard foods commonly eaten deplete the body of B vitamins during the metabolism of these foods. These types of foods are nutrient destroyers. In this case, the nutrients being destroyed and depleted by junk foods are the exact same nutrients that your body needs to withstand stress.

Perhaps now you can see how the stress junk food cycle gets started. A person feels stressed and insecure; he or she then reaches for a sugary “reward” food, such as ice cream or candy. After the food is eaten, additional B vitamins and other nutrients are depleted. This nutrient loss predisposes the nervous system to more stress attacks, and more junk food is eaten, and so on.

Why do people use food as a refuge from stress? First of food is a very reassuring substance. Our earliest memory of security go back to being fed by our mother. Feeding or eating, then represents a way back to security.

Food or digestion, is also used to deaden the feelings of stress.When the body is loaded down with a mess of food to digest, the mind becomes cloudy, dull, and desen- sitized. Food is used as a drug to obliterate feelings of tension, obsession, despondency, or stress.

Eating while under stress is actually one of the worst things you can do. Under any type of stress—physical or mental—the digestive faculties are inhibited and digestion ways suspended. What this means is that if you eat when suffering from stress, indiges- tion will surely result.

A favorite quote from Dr. Herbert M. Shelton is: “Whenever you are uncomfortable in body or mind, skip the next meal.” If you ever suffer from feelings of stress or fear, resist the temptation to eat. Fast for awhile. A short fast will do much to dispel feelings of delusion, insecurity, and stress. At the same time, the fast allows the body to rebuild itself and strengthen the nervous system. The result of proper diet and occasional fasting is you receive immediate “stress relief”.

The wholesome Life Science diet provides all the nutrients we need to build body and mind that can cope with stress. No foods are included which disrupt the body’s bal- ance or deplete the vital nutrients that we need to withstand stress. A proper diet, cou- pled with exercise can be your best partner in stress management. But there is another important factor in effective stress mangement, and that is: relaxation.

64.3.4 Relaxation

Rest, sleep, relaxation, poise, equanimity—whatever want to call it—is absolutely essential to the continued health of the organism. In fact, the opposite of stress is recre- ation. Every muscle, cell, and portion of the body is in a continually alternating state of stress and relaxation. s long as we alternate periods of stress with periods of relaxation, then all is fine. At times, however, stress gets upper hand and relaxation—true and total rest—never occurs, even while asleep.

A young woman who had just accepted a top executive position with one of the na- tion’s leading banks was sitting in a dentist’s chair. She had a strange problem, but one this dentist had already seen in dozens of his patients: When she was asleep at night, the woman ground her teeth continually. She had so much tension and was going through so much stress with her new job that she actually ground her teeth down through a gold crown covering, and now grinding away at the tooth underneath.

“It’s a common problem of the last ten years,” the dentist told me. “People have so much stress in their daily lives that the only way they can release it is by grinding their teeth in their sleep. Some patients have to wear plastic in their mouth when they go to bed so they won’t grind the teeth down to the bone.”

Just because you get seven or eight hours of sleep does not mean that you are getting adequate rest and relaxation. No, relaxation is different from sleep and strangely enough, you may have to learn how to relax in order to offset stress.

Dr. Herbert M. Shelton wrote in his book Human Beauty: Its Culture and Hygiene: “Worry, strain, and stress exhaust the nervous system more rapidly than physical activity, producing such danger signals as tension, irritability, and a tendency to worry over tri- fles. If we neglect the necessity for adequate relaxation and repose, we have no chance to replenish our energies or repair our worn tissues.”

Dr. Shelton then concludes that “relaxation is an essential condition of continued healthy existence. Without it, the most vital and necessary processes of life are not car- ried on or they are conducted with much lowered efficiency.”

But how can we relax if we are feeling stress? The trick is to relax before stress de- velops and tension sets in. After all, doesn’t it make more sense to use relaxation as a preventive treatment for stress instead of as a “curative?”

Just like regular exercise and a sustained good diet, relaxation and rest should be a normal daily activity that you engage in—whether you need it or not! Modern life can sometimes fool us that we have no time or no need to relax. We feel that we can handle anything, and we take on more projects, more work, and more responsibility. Eventually, the body that has been continually deprived of rest, and relaxation will rebel, and illness may result.

Rest and relaxation must become a daily part of your activities. Give up an hour a day to constructive rest and contemplation. You may engage in some restful hobby or activity that makes no mental or physical demands. You may take a walk by yourself or listen to some music. There are many ways to relax, but don’t fool yourself that you are relaxing when actually you are just doing some other type of work or watching televi- sion.

Many people are worried about the “right” way to relax. Some people have been told that meditation is essential, and others believe that relaxation can only come by taking some course or by reading a book.

As far as stress reduction goes, it makes absolutely no difference which relaxation method you use. The important thing is that the relaxation be total: both body and mind must be free from tension and stress.

64.3.5 Relaxing the Mind

Much stress and tension is in the mind, but as we saw, that does not make it any less “real.” The mind can also be relaxed in a manner similar to the body. First of all, the mind must be used constructively—“exercised” if you will. Mental laziness breeds anx- iety and a lack of self-worth. These feelings lead to stress.

If you diligently apply your mind to new tasks and learning, it will be more eager to relax and let go of the petty worries that sometimes occupy the thoughts.

Along with working or exercising the mind, you must give it time to relax, wonder, and dream. Daydreaming is not bad at all, if it doesn’t interfere with our daily lives. Giving the mind free reign to explore and visualize can do much to dispel the mundane worries that can dominate our thoughts.

Listening to fine music, painting, reading inspiring books, and just quietly sitting in contemplation are excellent mind relaxers. Whichever way is best suited for your tem- perament, find a way to relax your mind and leave your worries behind for at least a small time every single day.

Simply relaxing and “doing nothing” may be very hard at first, but if you give your- self the scheduled time to do it every day, you will eventually look forward eagerly to your “relaxation period.”

64.3.6 A Case History

The man before me should have been at the prime of his life. Forty-five years old, the man had started his own computer company three years ago and was now earning over a hundred thousand dollars a year. Yet he looked distinctly unhappy.

I can’t enjoy life anymore. Food I eat doesn’t agree with my acid stomach. I worry I’m getting ulcers. After a day of work and dealing with problems, I don’t want to even talk to my wife—much less make love to her. I’ve got everything I want except peace of mind, so I guess I really don’t have much at all.” The man folded and unfolded a piece of paper in his lap. His hands shook, and he couldn’t meet my eyes.

After talking some more, I discovered that his diet was typical for business execu- tives: a breakfast of coffee and orange juice and toast, a fast-food lunch, and a supper of beef and potatoes. His only exercise was taking his sailboat to the lake on summer weekends, and he had no other interests outside of his work.

The first thing we worked on was his diet. He wasn’t about to give up meat or some of his “favorite” foods, but he did agree to practice the rules of food combining. He lived about a-mile-and-a-half from his office, and he decided that he would walk there and back at least three times a week, weather permitting. Finally, he renewed an old interest in music, and told me that he was going to start practicing on the piano he had bought for his children.

Two months passed. I met the man again, and noticed his relaxed and smiling ex- pression. “No more ulcers or acid stomach” he told me. “I don’t know if I believe that food combining stuff or not, but something sure worked on that diet. And I also realized how much I missed being outside as I walked to my office. Now I’m riding a bicycle to and from work about every day.”

And his new hobby? “Ah yes, music. It sure is soothing my savage beast after a day of work. I gave up on the piano,” he confided, “but I got an excellent classical music library now, and I’m taking a music appreciation course.”

It all seemed so simple. Just a consciousness about the diet, minimal daily exercise, and a relaxing outside interest were all that was needed to turn the man’s stress-filled life

around. The Life Science approach to stress management is simple. Only a small amount of commitment and personal effort is required. And the reward? The greatest of all—a stress-free, healthy, happy, and productive life.

64.4. Questions & Answers

What are the early warning signs of stress?

Irritability and fatigue. If you continually feel tired or short-tempered, then you are experiencing stress. If small annoyances make you angry, or if you become up- set for no apparent reason, then you are experiencing stress. In other words, if you even suspect you are under stress, then you most certainly probably are. Stress can “sneak” up on you. Often, people brush aside the early warning signs of stress and continue to push themselves on. Finally, the demands made by stressful situations become so great that the body becomes ill at ease, or “diseased.”

The final outcome of stress is a breakdown of the healthy functioning of the body. Be very sensitive to emotional changes and your reactions to your job, fam- ily, and surroundings. These types of things can warn us when the stress load is becoming too great.

Can we “eat” stress away? I mean, is a good diet the main thing you need to avoid stress?

Unless you are following a good diet and a regular exercise regimen and a satis- fying relaxation program, then you will be adversely affected by stress. Without an excellent diet, however, all the exercise and relaxation in the world will not over- come stress. Until you are well-established on the optimum Life Science diet, then at least make sure that none of the “stress-promoting” foods, such as junk foods, white sugar, white flour, alcohol, and caffeine, are forever eliminated.

You cannot, however, “eat” away stress, “run” away stress, or “sleep away stress. You must combine all three, along with a positive and cheerful mental out- look, to curtail the harmful effects of stress.

Stress can often come about because of changes in your lifestyle—like getting a new job, moving, becoming married, death of a spouse, and so on. In light of this, wouldn’t it be ill-advised for a person suffering from stress to make the types of changes in diet and exercise as you propose?

Most stress that comes from changes in our lifestyle comes about because these changes were made for us. In other words, stress usually arises because we perceive ourselves as “helpless” in face of these changes.

Now, if we make positive changes in our life, as a result of a conscious decision, then we feel that we are in charge of our lives. We no longer feel helpless. We as- sume control of our destinies. This is one of the greatest values of the Life Science Stress-Management Program. It consists entirely of positive steps that may be un- dertaken by anyone at any point in their lives.

Not only will these changes reduce stress, they will also increase our overall level of health. If you feel overwhelmed by stress in your life, immediately take a positive, constructive step to improving your life. Start an exercise program. Give yourself a time and place to relax. Improve your diet. As soon as you decide to do one or more of these things, you will immediately lower your stress level. Try it. It works!

If stress is not properly managed, illness, disease, depression, and despondency may result. Because of the many mental and emotional demands made upon us by modern life, all of us are susceptible to stress and its negative effects.

The best defense against stress is a healthy lifestyle and positive outlook on life. The requirements for effective stress management, are basically the same, as those for health and well-being: a sensible exercise program, wholesome and natural diet, and regular relaxation.

Article #1: Stress/Unstress by Ken Pelletier, Ph.D.

No one can achieve optimum health so long as they allow stress to dominate their lives. Much of peoples’ physical sickness is a result of allowing the autonomic nervous system to get out of control.

Yogis and meditators learn to control their pulse, brain waves, blood pressure, heart rate, skin conductance, muscle tension, peripheral circulation, and respiratory pattern and rate. The subjects’ patterns are very coherent—when one goes up they all go up. When one goes down, they all go down.

There are two kinds of stress: short-term and long-term. The short-term we can take. That’s the kind we share with every other biological organism. We react in a certain way when we’re in a threatening situation.

When there is a long-term stress such as money difficulties, family stress, job stress, emotional conflicts, all bodily functions accelerate as though your life was in danger, and they stay elevated, without release. They continue at a rate of high excitation. This is the kind of biological stress pattern that leads to disease, heart attack or stroke.

Yogis learn to let go of these excess levels and simply quiet themselves down.

You can think of your bodies as being naive. They can’t tell if your life is really in danger, or if you’re just thinking as if your life is in danger. The fear of losing your job might feel just as threatening as if a speeding truck were coming at you. You might react this way to a nagging creditor or to your income tax coming due.

In someone with a real chronic stress pattern, one thing that may break the cycle is a serious problem or illness such as a nervous breakdown, a heart attack, a stroke, a debil- itating headache, or one of any number of such things. During or after a serious illness, a very different set of demands is placed upon you. It’s now okay to stay in bed and take it easy.

The same stress that may produce a heart attack in one person might produce only a headache in another. Certain families, both genetically and behaviorally, will predispose to certain illnesses. Your environment will predispose you one way or another. So will your lifestyle.

The most exciting thing about research work in the field of thinking is that once peo- ple get moving in the direction of health, they don’t want to stop at just being “normal.” They keep going toward becoming healthier than the average.

The main ways to break the chronic stress pattern are stress management, diet, and exercise. Exercise breaks up both physical and mental tension.

The physiological effects of light exercise for high blood pressure are comparable if not greater than those brought about by drugs. The information is in medical literature but is not taught in medical schools. How often does a doctor put a hypertensive patient on an exercise program?

Post heart attack victims often undergo a conceptual shift in thinking, so that after- ward, things that were considered highly stressful are no longer perceived as so poten- tially perilous. This process is something like, “I just looked at all the things that used to bug me, and I said to heck with it.”

This is the change all patients should strive to produce in themselves—to learn to decide whether a given event is life-threatening or not.

It’s a mistake then, to think that all stress is bad. There are times when the stimulus of stress can save your life. The error comes in when you start interpreting relatively nonthreatening situations—like balancing your checkbook or dealing with a certain per- son—as though they were life threatening. Then you are creating the crisis in that life

event. All the same responses take place as if a car was coming at you at 80 miles per hour.

You can achieve the conceptual shift in any number of ways, one of which is the painful, involuntary way through severe illness that forces you to look at your values. Illness can be a very creative experience—a potential source of regeneration and renew- al instead of just a breakdown.

There are many symptoms before actual illness strikes. You’re being told that you’ve pushed yourself beyond a level of healthy functioning. Too many people miss the early signals and get the opportunity to examine their lives—perhaps for the first time—at the cost of a serious illness.

Many people recognize a physical symptom and instead of realizing this calls for a change to correct it, they say, “This is something to worry about.” This further adds anx- iety, and gets them deeper into a chronic stress cycle. You can run from a snarling dog and be attacked or stand your ground, stay relaxed, and relate to the dog.

What can people do to minimize the feeling of stress in their lives? Any activity that you have in your life can be used as a meditation. Prayer, walking, sex, running, singing, listening to Bach—it can be anything. An activity that you invest with prolonged and focused attention can be a form of meditation.

Self care is paying attention to a beneficial way of living your life so that your ex- changes and interactions with other people are loving and caring, and your attitudes to- ward yourself are that way, too. People come to meditation by very different roads. For some people, paying attention to nutrition leads to paying attention to other areas of their lives. Others come at it through exercise.

They realize they can’t even run around the block if they’re feeling tense, and they get interested in meditation. Another might start meditating and become conscious of being overweight. Meditation leads to self-discovery and self-care.

Pay attention. The unexamined life is the unlived life. Invest your life with attention. Henry James said, “Try to be someone to whom nothing is lost.”

All the things we do to ourselves by eating a nonoptimal diet make us more sus- ceptible to specific disorders so try decreasing your intake of refined sugars which are uniformly destructive; decreasing your fat consumption; diversifying your protein base away from meat into non-meat sources of protein; and eating more fresh fruits and veg- etables.

People who have a slight to extreme overweight problem eat as a form of tranquil- ization. That relaxed feeling after a large meal is something they seek again and again.

You can get this same feeling from meditating or running several miles a day and this changes your perspective on food. But remember—all things should be fun. Too many people are so dour. They’re going to become healthy if it kills them.

If you drive yourself to do anything, you’re sunk. There must be a spark, an element of vitality, of discovery, that makes it really exciting. You’ve got to follow the little mes- sages from inside that tell you what’s right for you, no matter what any expert says.

Article #2: In Search Of Emotional Well-Being

Mental and emotional well-being is conditioned by far more influences and factors than physical well-being. While physical well-being arises from meeting the physical needs of the body correctly, this is not always enough to assure mental and emotional serenity.

In ascertaining the conditions necessary in achieving mental well-being, we must consider more than the requisites of physical health. We must take into account those el- ements in our ecosystem that promote mental and emotional health and, likewise, those factors and influences which undermine it.

There are many who assure us that we are responsible for how we feel and act, that we are the architects of our feelings and moods. We can control the factors that affect

us or at least so rationalize our attitudes in response to external factors that we are not adversely affected.

Those who are under emotional control are said to be poised: calm, cool, and col- lected. They respond rationally.

Individuals who do not have strong emotional reactions to stimuli and phenomena, be it adverse or favorable, are rare. Most of us react to unexpected conditions in an in- volved rather than in a detached manner. This is how almost all creatures of nature react to abnormal situations or extraordinary circumstances.

If there are very few humans who can view affairs in objective fashion, there are fewer nonhumans that have this capability—perhaps porpoises (dolphins) and whales. Where there are immediate and dire threats that require timely action, even the most poised may forego their usual detachment and objectiveness.

In Natural Hygiene/Life Science we teach that every effect is the result of foregoing causes. Hence we need to explore causes—causes over which we can exert control and causes which are beyond our control—in order to improve our mental and emotional condition. Essentially we all seek mental equilibrium, poise, or stability within the con- text of our respective lives. Within this setting we have certain desires and expectations. Thus we become disturbed and upset when something we expect or want appears to be or is denied to us.

Whatever the causes of depression, all are within the province of our control. We can take several steps to fulfill most of the requirements necessary to live a joyous life.

Some significant areas in which we can exercise control of our emotional and mental well-being are:

1. Our health regime. We can adopt and closely observe our biological requirements. Though we may be subject to many of the stresses modern society imposes upon us, we will fare far better if the basics of life are correct. The Life Science/Natural Hygiene pro- gram is scientifically correct, for it is based squarely upon our natural adaptations. It is within our province to decide to live healthfully and to pursue it diligently.

2. Ourthoughts.Wecanthinkconstructivethoughtsinsteadofdestructiveones.Ifwehar- bor animosities or the disapproval of others, we injure our minds. We must psyche our- selves into thoughts that are optimistic and positive in nature, and quash our thoughts that are negative in nature. It is said, “As you thinketh, so shall you be.” By focusing your thoughts and reflections upon yourself and your relationships with the world, and directing your attention to how you can improve yourself and your interaction with others, you’ll be laying the foundation for mastering your own destiny and happiness. Should you feel defeated or depressed, despondent or in despair, you can refuse to in- dulge in those thoughts that perpetrate these mental states.

3. Accepttheworldasitis.Acceptandadapttochangesandlookuponthemaschallenges rather than trying to resist them.

When we are in rapport with the world, we can take advantage of events and condi- tions rather than lose out by resisting them. In doing so, we create a positive influence on ouselves and those around us. We must be committed to what we believe but we must be realists and know what we can and cannot do.

We must, finally, address ourselves honestly to the limit of our reach. Each personal- ity has its limits—to extend ourselves beyond our capabilities will only lead to self-pres- sure and our bodies will automatically become stressful. And that mental serenity will escape us.

Lesson 65 - There Are No Cures

65.1. Introduction

65.2. Herbal “Cures”

65.3. Acupuncture

65.4. Megavitamins

65.5. Reflexology (Zone Therapy) 65.6. Relaxation Therapy

65.7. Ultrasound Therapy

65.8. Radiation Therapy

65.9. Laetrile

65.10. Spurious Products Sold Through The Mail 65.11. High-Fiber Diets

65.12. Fructose Diet Cure

65.13. Bland Diet For Peptic Ulcer Patients 65.14. DMSO

65.15. Mineral Water Therapy

65.16. Bee Products

65.17. Macrobiotic Diet Cure

65.18. Questions & Answers

65.1. Introduction

Many of the methods of treatment that were often prescribed by physicians during the 19th century and before are today considered useless and life-threatening. But the physi- cians during that time persisted in such practices as bleeding, blistering, purging, and the use of heavy metals, especially mercury, because they witnessed that, in some patients, symptoms would disappear. This, however, was an illusion. Symptoms were suppressed but there was no recovery of health. Indeed, many people died because of the treatment but the physicians did not recognize that the “cure” itself was the direct cause of the deaths.

Since that time, there has been a constant search for that elusive “cure.” Harmful re- sults occur when people become so convinced that these “cures” will restore health that they rely upon this illusion instead of looking to their modes of living as the real cause of their ill health. You must, therefore, strive to become more independent thinkers. You must begin to question “cures” and seek the truth by seeing things from a different per- spective.

If a certain drug is found particularly harmful and taken off the market, we are told that we should not doubt the effectiveness of all of these agents. However, we should not follow ourselves to be deceived by them. One may feel better for awhile after taking one of these symptom-suppressing agents, but our so-called “cure” is a deception. The “cure” will not last. By seeking the truth, we will be lead to the true cause of disease and from this we may know how to regain our health.

A good example of how the American people have been misled by this delusion of “cures” lies in the practice of immunization. People have been told that vaccines build up antibodies that protect the vaccinated from disease. This is a false claim. Disease is the result of unhealthful living and one cannot be “immunized” against his errors in liv- ing.

Any violation against physiological law always results in sickness. This would in- clude any failure to meet sleep requirements, proper food, air, water, sunshine, exercise, or other needs The body’s ability to adapt is remarkable but freedom from symptoms is a delusion when it is produced by drugs in contravention of physiological functions.

Under such circumstances, the body will inevitably become exhausted and more chronic illnesses will ensue.

The adverse effects of drugs were illustrated in a previous lesson and more and more people are realizing the dangers of these poisons and are looking elsewhere for “cures.” Thus, we see many drugless practitioners throughout the country promising all sorts of “cures.” This lesson will review some of the more popular “cures” and it will be demon- strated that they are harmful and, at best, relatively innocuous.

You should keep in mind that there are no “cures.” There is no diet, no herb, no mas- sage therapy that will restore health if the underlying cause of sickness is not removed. As we have stated before, health will result only from healthful living.

65.2. Herbal “Cures”

65.2.1 History

65.2.2 Herbal Medicine Today

65.2.3 Comfrey (Symphytum Officinale) 65.2.4 Ginseng (Panax Schinseng)

65.2.5 Cayenne Pepper (Capsicum Minimum) 65.2.6 Peppermint (Memha Piperitu)

65.2.7 Aloe Vera

65.2.1 History

Herbs have been used throughout recorded history as “cures” for various ailments. However, the use of herbs came into the forefront more formally in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Samuel Thomson is credited for the wide spread of this practice during that time in history. During that time, the regular medical practice included harsh bleed, purge, and blister methods. The popularity of the Thomsonian sect arose not necessarily from their success in curing patients’ ills but from the fact they seemed to kill fewer pa- tients than did their entrenched competitors—the regular medical practitioners. Thom- son’s empirical system was based largely on the use of steam and herbs.

Many people opposed the regular profession, but they had no more knowledge of how to remedy its deficiencies than did the regular physician. They found many aspects of regular medicine repugnant but they did not know why or how they were undesirable. The public could only choose among the alternatives available at the time.

Thomson saw his mother die of measles in spite of the care of several local physi- cians (or was it because of their treatment?); earlier, he felt he had “cured” himself of the same disease through the use of botanies. The illusion is that what appeared to “cure” did not. At best it was less harmful than the regular mode of therapy and therefore the body was able to overcome this drug obstacle and achieved the purposes for which it institut- ed the healing crises. A year after his mother’s death, Thomson’s wife became severely ill following childbirth. Several local physicians treated her, but her condition continued to worsen. As she neared death, Thomson wisely dismissed the traditional practitioners and their poisonous treatments. He then called in the local “root doctors.” One day later, his wife appeared “cured.” Of course, the herbs did not “cure” but the body promptly set about the process of healing when the deadly drugs were removed.

On another occasion, Thomson badly lacerated his ankle with an axe while clearing some virgin land with his father. After a number of treatments, including soaking it in turpentine, he naturally became worse. He then ended up at the home of one Dr. Kit- teridge who treated the wound with herbs and was credited with healing him. The body cannot heal if it is continually assaulted with toxins. When toxic herbs are removed, healing and repair are accelerated. Dr. Kitteridge or his herbs did not assume healing ob- viously. Herbs cannot help. They present less of an obstacle to the body than the harsh treatment of medical practitioners.

These incidences were enough to convince Thomson that herbs had the power to “heal” and the Thomsonian Sect began to emerge. Thomson became convinced that all disease arose from one general cause and that one remedy could effect a “cure.” The cause was cold and the cure, heat. He, like the Greeks believed, “all animal bodies are formed of four elements, earth, air, fire, and water.” Any imbalance among these four el- ements which reduced the power of the heat resulted in illness. To effect a cure, one must restore the balance. Thomson sought to restore the balance through the use of purga- tives, enemas and sweat producing botanicals. The chief ingredient was lobelia, an emet- ic which grew wild in much of North America. To this he might add capsium, hem- lock, bayberry, ginger, or pepper, and cloves to make a concoction often referred to as “Composition Tea.” What Thomson did not realize is that you cannot poison anyone in- to health. But he killed fewer people with his method than the regular practitioners and was therefore considered successful.

Thomson patented his system and marketed it through representatives who traveled about the country selling copies of his two volume work, New Guide to Health; or Botanic Family Physician.

The treatment that Thomson advocated was rather harsh. As with the regular ther- apeutics, if the patient recovered, it was in spite of the treatment and not because of it. The following is one patient’s account of treatment that he received (Frank G. Halstead, “A first-hand account of a treatment by Thomsonian medicine in the 1830’s” Bulletin of the History of Medicine 10 (1941): 680-687.):

“The Thomsonian treatment is a steam bath 30 minutes in duration. When the sweat rolls off as thick as your finger the body is washed with cold water and the patient is straight-way put to bed with hot bricks to bring back his heat. Then a powerful vomitive is administered, composed of bayberry, of cayenne (red pepper) and lobelia, which suffer naught impure to remain in the stomach, and all these herbs are mixed in 40 proof brandy, after which warm water is drunk until there has ensued the most extraordinary vomiting. Next, the patient rises and takes a second bath, like the first. He takes again to his bed, after having been laved with cold wa- ter and is surrounded with hot bricks and remains in bed for an hour. At the end of this time he takes two injections (enemas) of pennyroyal, cayenne pepper and lobe- lia and the treatment is over for the day.”

The fact that this system was of no value is obvious. It is remarkable that the body could withstand such a treatment. Yet some individuals recovered to a certain extent and, as harsh as this treatment was, it was still less harmful than the heroic treatment that it supplanted.

With the death of Samuel Thomson in 1843, his organization (already split three ways) disintegrated. The principal contending factions came to be known as True Thom- sonians, the Physio-pathists, the Physio-medicals, and the Eplectics.

65.2.2 Herbal Medicine Today

Herbal medicine is still practiced today but not on that formal basis. However, there are several misleading books, organizations, and schools that advocate and teach about herbal “cures.” We condemn herbs because, first of all, they have no ability to heal arid secondly, they are very dangerous due to their toxicity.

Some authors have been known to advocate the use of the herb squill which is an ingredient often found in rat poison. Mark Bricklin lists some of the most toxic herbs in his book Natural Healing.

“In general, it is safe to say that you should never use the following herbs for a home remedy: Jimson weed, daffodils, spurge, arnica, wormwood, mandrake, hellebore, squill, poison hemlock, tobacco, tonka beans, aconite, white bryony, nux vomica, calabar bean,

camphor, ergot, ignatius beans, bittersweet, gelsemium; henbane, celandine, belladonna, foxglove, and may flower.”

Tansy is a narcotic and may result in abortion. Valerian in excessive doses may result in headache and even delusions. Goldenseal is extremely toxic if taken in stronger doses than one-quarter of a teaspoon to a cup of water. Even in this dose, the poisoning effects are present but they are not immediately noticeable.

65.2.3 Comfrey (Symphytum Officinale)

Comfrey root will produce a high amount of gummy substance and the root and the leaf are both high in allantoin and pyrrolizidine, substances that are claimed to help with cell proliferation. An increase of cells will occur due to an inflammatory response to the presence of this foreign agent against the skin. Comfrey has no power to heal skin wounds but will interfere with proper healing initiated by the body. When this substance is applied externally to a wound, the outside of the abrasion will close faster than it nor- mally would. This is a response on the part of the body to protect itself so that foreign matter does not enter into the system. As a result, proper healing, from within, is im- paired.

It is also claimed that comfrey will help broken bones to knit. This is impossible since healing can only take place from within the body and no agent applied externally or ingested can promote this process.

Many herbalists advocate the use of comfrey as a tea or to be used raw in salads. However, recent studies have proven that this practice may be harmful. According to Dian Dincin Buchman (Herbal Medicine, New York: Gramercy Publishing Company, 1979). “Comfrey is in the same plant family as several other plants (Senecio, Crotolaria, Heliotropium), and these plants, investigation now indicates, contain some natural poi- sons in the form of pyrrolizidine alkaloids. These plants have been implicated in various accidental human and animal poisonings.

“The young leaves of comfrey, thought to be edible and rich in chlorophyll, and used in many natural green drinks, may contain up to 0.15 percent (1,500 parts per million) of the alkaloid.

“Dr. Claude Culvenor of the Animal Health Division of the Australian Common- wealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization has worked on this subject and studied this alkaloid in pasture weeds. He is particularly conversant with heliotrope, a weed from the same plant family as comfrey.

“He notes, ‘At least four of these alkaloids are known to be carcinogens, and it is probable that the type found in comfrey is also carcinogenic. While it is unlikely that anybody eating comfrey in small quantities would suffer serious effects, its regular use as a green vegetable could cause chronic liver damage or worse. Plants in the same fam- ily, have caused human poisonings: in the USSR, Africa, India, and Afghanistan after their accidental consumption in bread over a period of one or two years. The evidence of these outbreaks, considering the amount of the alkaloid we have measured in comfrey, suggests that daily consumption of several young leaves of the plant over a similarly lengthy period will lead to serious disease.’ ”

There are no cures in comfrey and we should eschew this herb. It is, however, useful in the organic garden as an excellent mulch and as an addition to the compost pile as it contains a large amount of nitrogen. Its prolific blossoms also attract honey bees to the garden ensuring proper pollination to all crops.

65.2.4 Ginseng (Panax Schinseng)

Ginseng is an herb with a long, flesh root that is often used as a medicine. It is a low plant with three leaves on the top. Each leaf is made up of five leaflets. Ginseng has small greenish-yellow flowers. Some of these flowers later produce scarlet berries. The

Chinese use ginseng to “treat” many illnesses. The name of this plant comes from Chi- nese words meaning likeness of a man, because of the shape of its root. Those shaped most like a human body are said to be the most valuable.

American ginseng is cultivated chiefly in Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, and Wis- consin. The plant glows wild in pans of the United States and Canada.

Ginseng is a stimulant for the central nervous system. It is often taken as a tonic, a “pick me up,” to sharpen the memory, suppress coughs, ward off colds, etc. This drug effect will eventually lead to extreme enervation and chronic diseases due to the con- stant stimulation and suppression of symptoms.

65.2.5 Cayenne Pepper (Capsicum Minimum)

The official name, capsicum, is derived from the Greek word “to bite,” and a single taste of this substance will convince you why it was so named. This “biting” effect on the tongue and mouth will give you a clue as to what effect it has on the internal diges- tive tract. It is a powerful irritant and poison. It is taken for its stimulant effect which are, in reality, nature’s efforts to eliminate this poison as soon as possible. Cayenne pepper should never be taken in any form, in any amount.

65.2.6 Peppermint (Memha Piperitu)

Peppermint is a favourite beverage all over the world. It is taken for a suppressive effect on the digestive system to control diarrhea, spasms, and relieve indigestion. Pep- permint is very high in tannin which is a very astringent acid and its use results in ener- vation and impairment of normal metabolism.

There are many other herbs that are commonly used but we should eschew them all. They do not have any property to “cure” and they contribute to ill health due to their poisonous products.

65.2.7 Aloe Vera

Aloe vera is a cactus that grows outdoors in tropical and subtropical climates and indoors everywhere else. When you break open one of its leaves, you see a thick, clear liquid ooze out.It is this liquid that is claimed to be a “cure” for burns, ulcers, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, psoriasis, shingles, hemorrhages, post-surgery treatment and more. It is applied topically and taken internally in a liquid form. However, instead of curing anything, it is actually a toxic substance. It contains allontoin which results in the same adverse effects as the alkaloid of comfrey. A cathartic, its purgative properties are due to three pentosides (barbaloin, iso-barbaloin, and beta-barbaloin) and to a resin. The resin is aloetin.

Aloe emodin occurs in the free state and as glycoside in various species of aloe and is extremely irritating to the delicate linings of the intestinal tract. The body attempts to discharge this poison quickly. Hence, its purgative effects.

But what about the claims? Many people experience that their sores, burns, and ul- cers heal almost immediately after applying aloe vera, where otherwise would heal very slowly. The body is continually striving toward health and will do all it can to protect itself from any poisonous substances. When aloe vera is applied to an ulcer, the body closes off that opening as quickly as it can to block the entrance of that poisonous sub- stance thereby protecting itself. This gives the false impression of proper healing. How- ever, when the ulcer was an outlet for toxic materials, this vital outlet is closed off and toxins are kept inside the body. Now a new outlet must be found. Either other ulcers will form or more serious diseases will result.

If you do not interfere with bodily intelligence, healing will take place. To “intelli- gently do nothing” is the best advice for all ulcers, psoriasis, etc. That is, simply follow

the teachings of Life Science/Natural Hygiene and your body will surely be vital enough to heal itself promptly.

65.3. Acupuncture

The principles of acupuncture are based on cell paralysis. The idea on which Chinese medicine is founded is the “Doctrine of the Two Principles: Yang and Yin.” According to this philosophy, everything in the universe is governed by these two principles. Yang is the masculine principle, Yin the feminine. They are opposite in all aspects. Yang stands for heaven, Yin for earth. Yang is heat, Yin is cold. Life and death, strong and weak, pos- itive and negative, day and night, dry and wet, hard and soft, light and dark—all these are Yang-Yin—pairs of opposites. Unless these two forces are in exact balance, accord- ing to Chinese folklore, health, peace, and well-being are impossible to attain. When the relationship between Yang and Yin get out of balance within a person’s body, illness re- sults. The task of the physician, then, is to restore health by renewing the equality of Yang and Yin, according to the Chinese acupuncturist.

The Chinese regard acupuncture as a complete medical system based upon the prin- ciple that man is a part of nature. Since nature is precise, then therefore, man is precise. Predictable order reigns in nature and in man. They claim that disturbance in that or- der results in illness and it is the acupuncturist’s work to restore that order and there- by “cure” the illness. By inserting hair-thin needles into certain points on the body, acupuncturists treat disease and malfunctions of every organ of the body. The Chinese people believe that channels of energy, called “meridians” run through the body. In acupuncture, needles are inserted at specific points along the meridians.

Illness is explained in terms of disharmony between man and nature, and in man, between Yin and Yang. Illnesses are either Yin or Yang and the therapy used to “cure” them will be either Yin or Yang.

Ch’i comes into the body at birth and leaves at death. During person’s lifetime it flows in a specific and continuous pattern in the forms of Yin and Yang. Ch’i does not inhabit the body at random, although it is present throughout the organism. Instead it flows inside a system of channels called “meridians” that extend into the arms and legs and around the torso beneath the surface of the skin. These meridians are not the vessels of the circulatory system that carry blood. They are not the nerves of the central nervous system.

The Chinese contend that Yin and Yang may not be equal—one rises as the other falls—but their total amount must be properly distributed among the organs for the body to remain healthy. In any organ, Yin and Yang are delicately balanced with each other. Illness results if the balance is disrupted. At certain times of the day, the Yin or Yang “influence” will be stronger than its counterpart, but this is a normal rhythm and will not cause illness or disease. When an imbalance causes sickness, the acupuncturist tries to discover where Yin or Yang has become too strong and with his needles restore the balance, as prescribed in an ancient book called the Nei Ching. The illness supposedly disappears when he has done this successfully.

Such treatment based on superstition and opposed to physiology must be discarded. Acupuncturists hold no “cures” and their needles cannot possibly heal. They can do harm if they strike a nerve and damage it. Cleverly-placed needles distress the nerves, resulting in the secretion of narcotizing encephalins, but this procedure cannot possibly restore health. One is anesthesized into relative unawareness of illness.

65.4. Megavitamins

65.4.1 The Vitamin E Cure

65.4.2 Vitamin C

Vitamins resemble enzymes in their catalytic action, producing changes without un- dergoing any changes in themselves. They are active in extremely minute quantities.

Vitamins are constant constituents of living tissues and they make it possible for the body to utilize proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and minerals and are essential to growth, re- generation, and maintenance of health. They must be taken in the context of whole foods since there is a distinct relation between the amount of vitamins required and the other food elements. As Dr. Shelton tells us, the efficiency of the vitamins is dependent upon the composition of the food mixture.

Adverse changes take place when an excessive amount of vitamins are taken in con- centrated form, especially vitamins A, E, and D. The other vitamins can be harmful, too, but these are the fat soluble vitamins and are difficult to eliminate and oxidize when tak- en in excess. As a result, you have abnormal changes that take place in the cells.

If the vitamins and minerals have been separated from their natural partners or nutri- tive elements that stabilize them and work harmoniously with them, they become harm- ful. There is not an isolated nutritive component that can lead to the same kind of activity that results when nutritional elements are derived from a natural source. In an extracted form, there is some activity but if is not a normal one.

The vitamins that are contained in fruits, vegetables, and nuts are much more avail- able than those derived from other food sources, such as flesh foods or any cooked foods. The vitamins in synthetic form are not utilizable at all.

Even those vitamins derived from raw foods may not be utilized due to certain ab- normal interferences such as the inhibiting effects of tobacco upon digestion, the use of coffee, tea, and other such substances. Also, the use of vinegar and condiments inhibit digestion and thus prevent vitamin utilization.

The body uses vitamins and minerals synergistically with one another. For example, the utilization of vitamin C is better with iron and the B complex. The B complex is used better with A and D. Such minerals as zinc, manganese, and magnesium are necessary for best utilization of vitamin C and B complex. In whole raw foods, we receive the vit- amins and minerals in correct proportions so that they are used appropriately.

Concerning the use of synthetic vitamins as “cures” Dr. Shelton says:

“The use of certain vitamins is said to ‘cure’ certain ‘diseases.’ We must not permit ourselves to be misled by these claims. They have no more validity than the claims that drugs, or other such substances, ‘cure’ disease. There is no so-called disease that is due to a unitary cause—every disease is the complex effects of a number of correlated antecedents—and no disease is curable by a unitary cure. On the other hand, practically all of the so-called deficiency states that are said to re- quire vitamins for their cure, will and do get well while the patient is fasting and drinking only distilled water. The wild enthusiasm caused by the discovery of vita- mins will sooner or later, give way to sober reflection and it will then be recognized that the research workers and others have permitted their enthusiasm to run away with their judgment.”

A study was conducted to determine the link between adequate amounts of vitamins and the ability of the liver to produce a group of enzymes that inhibits the action of car- cinogens. Laboratory animals were fed an artificial diet that included sufficient quanti- ties of all known vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients in a highly-purified form. The animals were unable to produce the important liver enzymes. When small amounts of alfalfa were added to the artificial diet, the enzyme production began almost immedi- ately. Other fresh vegetables—cabbage, brussels sprouts, turnips, broccoli, cauliflower, dill, and celery—also enabled their systems to produce the anti-carcinogenic enzymes.

We cannot utilize inorganic vitamins and minerals. All the essential nutrients that we require are provided in abundance in a diet of raw fruits, vegetables, and nuts. If our diet is correct, we do not have to worry about deficiencies of any kind.

65.4.1 The Vitamin E Cure

Vitamin E is widely promoted as a preventive, a treatment, or a “cure” for literally scores of human ailments—ranging from diabetes and heart disease to infertility, ulcers, and warts.

A consumer’s report cited an early experiment conducted to determine whether vita- min E was a valid therapy:

“In 1953 M. K. Horwitt, M.D., head of the Biochemical Research Laboratory at Elgin State Hospital in Elgin, Illinois, made the first study of what happens when humans are maintained for protracted periods on low-E diets. The project spanned more than eight years—making it one of the longest as well as one of the most thor- ough studies of human metabolism under controlled conditions. A total of thirty- eight subjects participated in the study.

“The outcome of the project can be simply stated: There was no apparent phys- ical or mental impairment caused by the restricted intake of vitamin E. Low-E pa- tients remained in satisfactory health, despite the fact that blood levels of alpha-to- copherol were lowered by 80 percent. The survival time of their red blood cells be- came somewhat shorter—on the average, about 100 days instead of 123—than that of the two comparison groups (those on a low-E diet who received vitamin E sup- plements, and those on a standard diet). But the number of cells remained adequate and no patient became anemic. Nevertheless, the shorter survival time was consid- ered sufficient reason for termination of the experiment. In earlier studies monkeys maintained on diets severely deficient in vitamin E had developed anemia, and Hor- witt did not want to risk that possibility with the Elgin patients. In short, the study showed that human beings apparently need some vitamin E, but that the require- ment is a modest one and can be easily satisfied by typical, everyday diets.”

Vitamin E enthusiasts claim that millions of Americans, especially those whose in- take of polyunsaturated fats is low, don’t get enough vitamin E in their diet. The deficit, they insist, should be made up by vitamin E supplements. The fact is, however, as the National Research Council made clear in 1973, that vitamin E is available in adequate quantities in the ordinary diet. More than adequate supplies are in vegetables or fruits or nuts.

In a report published in March 1979, a recommendation against the over-the-counter sale of vitamin E supplements on the grounds that deficiencies of vitamin E are “prac- tically nonexistent.” Currently, the Recommended Daily Allowance of vitamin E for adults is 12 to 15 International Units, equivalent to approximately 8 to 10 milligrams of natural vitamin E in foods.

Very low levels of vitamin E have been found in patients with cystic fibrosis, celiac disease, nontropical sprue, chronic pancreatitis, and a few other diseases. These disor- ders are not caused by lack of vitamin E, however, nor can they be helped by vitamin E. All of these ailments have one feature in common: an impairment in the small intestine’s ability to absorb fat. Consequently, the vitamin E dissolved in that fat is not absorbed either. Even if such patients eat diets with an abundant quantity of vitamin E, very little of it would reach their bloodstreams.

The doses of vitamin E specified in medicinal use commonly range from 300 to 600 milligrams a day or even higher—from thirty to sixty times the Recommended Daily Allowance. Clinical trials have failed to show any vitamin E benefits for miscarriages, sterility, menopausal disturbances, muscular dystrophies, cystic fibrosis, blood disor- ders, leg ulcers, diabetes, and a variety of heart and vascular diseases. No drug, including vitamin E, can “cure” these diseases because the causes for them are not dealt with. The 1973 statement by the National Research Council was also negative about the supposed

value of vitamin E supplements for the wide variety of ailments for which vitamin E is promoted.

The efficacy of vitamin E in toilet soaps or cosmetics for skin care, despite adver- tised claims, has not been demonstrated. We know that no substance possesses any cu- rative properties. Its proposed advantage in a deodorant was ruled out when the distrib- ution of Mennen E was halted by its manufacturer because of an unexpected number of adverse reactions in unhappy users.

65.4.2 Vitamin C

Vitamin C has been recommended to combat cancer, atherosclerosis, every “viral” disease, every so-called bacterial disease, poisoning of all kinds, mental illness, colds, injury, temperature extremes, old age, diabetes, allergy, cataracts, kidney stones, radia- tion sickness, arthritis, headaches, and bee stings.

While vitamin C plays a very important role in human physiology, it does not have the ability to wipe out the effects of unhealthful living that result in numerous acute and chronic diseases.

Since Dr. Pauling declared that vitamin C was a sure “cure” for the common cold, millions of Americans have been running to their neighborhood drugstores to obtain this vitamin. The effect of this practice is really a drug effect. While the body is eliminat- ing excesses of vitamin C, other housecleaning duties (such as debris eliminated during colds) are temporarily halted. Thus, the illusion of “prevention” or “cure.”

All fresh raw fruits and vegetables contain several times over the vitamin C that we need. When cooked, however, this vitamin is readily destroyed and is, therefore, not available to us. It is important that we consume all our foods raw and as fresh as possi- ble. Even in the winter, when freshness is lacking in many of our fruits and vegetables, we still receive a more than adequate supply.

65.5. Reflexology (Zone Therapy)

Reflexology is a specialized form of massage and, among the many claims, it is said to be able to restore normalcy of function and give relief from pain to virtually any part of the body. The two basic modes of this therapy are foot reflexology and hand reflexology.

According to reflexology therapists, organs or parts on the right side of the body have their reflex areas on the right foot or hand. Organs on the left side of the body have their reflex areas on the left, foot and hand. Organs extending past the middle or center of the body will have reflex areas on both feet and hands. Where there are two like or- gans or parts (kidneys, ovaries, etc.), each has a reflex area on its corresponding foot and hand. The lower half of the body has its reflex areas on the lower half of the, foot, and the upper half of the body has its reflex areas on the upper half of the foot. The waistline is located approximately halfway between the base of the toes and the lower part of the heel.

It is said that reflexology stimulates the internal organs and increases circulation. It is based on the theory that if the body is in a healthy condition, with no congestion in it, no tender areas should be found on the feet. The tenderness, they say, is caused by crystalline deposits that form at the nerve endings in the feet. The purpose in doing com- pression foot massage is to break up these deposits (or crush them) so that they may be- come solvent and be carried away with the rest of the waste material in the body. Once these deposits are dissolved, the congestion is relieved, and the circulation to the body is improved.

This theory sounds reasonable, but like other therapies, it is based on symptomatic relief. It does not restore health because it does not remove the underlying cause of ill health. There can not be any “cures” through this method or any other if the causes of

disease are left in force. Calcium deposits that may be deposited in the feet are the result of incorrect living habits. Simply removing these deposits does not create health.

65.6. Relaxation Therapy

When the fight-or-flight response is evoked, it brings into play the sympathetic nervous system, which is part of the autonomic, or involuntary nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system acts by secreting specific hormones: adrenalin or epinephrine and no- radrenalin or norepinephrine. These hormones, epinephrine and its related substances, bring about the physiologic changes of increased blood pressure, heart, rate, and body metabolism.

Dr. Herbert Benson (The Relaxation Response, New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1975) says:

“While the fight-or-flight response is associated with the overactivity of the sympathetic nervous system, there is another response that leads to a quieting of the same nervous system, indeed, there is evidence that hypertensive subjects can lower their blood pressure by regularly eliciting this other response. This is the Relaxation Response, an opposite, involuntary response that causes a reduction in the activity of the sympathetic nervous system. Since we cannot easily change the nature of modern life, perhaps better prevention and therapy for hyoerten:ior and other creases related to the fight-or-flight response might be achieved by actively bringing forth the Relaxation Response.”

It is true that stress does affect our health and we should learn to deal with this prob- lem. It is also true that we need rest and relaxation on a daily basis. But this aspect alone will not produce health. All the other requirements for health must also be present in one package of totally healthful living. There are no “cures” in the Relaxation Response. If blood pressure is lowered, or metabolism is lowered through this method, this does not indicate that total health has been achieved. One or two symptoms of ill health may have temporarily disappeared, but that is all.

It has been claimed that people have been “cured” from such symptoms as facial pain after a single session of this therapy. Do not be fooled by this illusion. Ill health is developed after a period of time and the body needs time to heal. It cannot accomplish this task in a few minutes or a few days, it takes time. But when the proper conditions are provided (e.g., through a fast), the body will restore health.

65.7. Ultrasound Therapy

The device used for ultrasound therapy consists of a small box. On its face are a few simple dials and gauges. Attached to a cord running into the unit is a transducer similar in appearance to a small bathtub shower spray extension. This transducer emits a stream of sound waves, at a frequency so high that they are inaudible to the human ear.

When this therapy is applied, a gel is spread on the surface of the body that is to be treated. When the transducer is placed against the injured part, the gel keeps the sound waves from being lost in the air.

On the box of the ultrasound unit is a dial where the ultrasound frequency may be set. It produces heat as the sound waves rub against cell molecules and cause them to vibrate. This heat penetrates just slightly under the skin but the ultrasound can penetrate into the joint.

This therapy is often used for persons with arthritis associated with calcium De- posits. The ultrasound waves break up the calcium which then disperses. One main prob- lem is that it can also effect healthy bone and cause destruction there. The higher the ultrasound frequency, the greater the risk of bone damage. Since this therapy is still re-

ally in experimental stages, it is unknown what is a safe frequency, if indeed, there is. a safe range and also how long to apply the treatment. Besides being risky, no real and long-lasting benefit can be achieved. Calcium deposits may be broken up but the cause for their deposition has not been removed. They will, therefore, once again accumulate. At best, it is palliative. On the other hand, it can destroy healthy tissues and bones.

65.8. Radiation Therapy

65.8.1 Radiation Destroys Cells

65.8.2 Tissue Damage

65.8.3 Effects on Genes 65.8.4 Hormonal Disturbances 65.8.5 Depression of Cells 65.8.6 Brain Damage

Repeated surveys have shown that those physicians who have the most contact with radiation (radiologists) have a significantly higher incidence of leukemia—at least nine times greater than that among all other males of the same age and at least four times greater than that for other physicians.

65.8.1 Radiation Destroys Cells

As atomic radiation permeates living tissues, highly-organized units of living matter in the cell are disrupted. Fundamentally, the cell is composed of atoms and molecules which are split by radiation into electrically-charged fragments. This ionization process is completed in less than a trillionth of a second, yet it triggers off a chain reaction of subtle events within the cell leading to its damage or eventual death. Since cells are not inert blobs of matter but living, reproducing, organisms, they react to the radiation-in- duced injury by repair processes which lead to apparent recovery. If the radiation dose is overwhelming, immediate or only slightly delayed death of the cell ensues when the cell attempts to divide.

Radiation also harms cells by producing changes in the environment. Cells are bathed by solutions from which radiation-produced activated products can reach and damage them. Also, cells can be damaged by interference with their blood supply and the action of poisonous products released by radiation-killed cells themselves.

65.8.2 Tissue Damage

Since tissues are a specialized population of cells, their exposure to radiation causes damage as a consequence of injury and death of the component cells. The overall effect involves not only the direct action of the radiation on the individual cells but changes in the surroundings of the tissues.

One tissue may give an immediate response to radiation and another no apparent or detectable response. However, the seemingly unresponsive tissue may show injury at a much later date. The recovery of tissues from immediate radiation injury depends on the specific cell types, or the size of the radiation dose, and on the time between repeated irradiations. These factors have been summarized by Doctors E. G. Williams and S. C. Ingraham II in a United States Health report for 1956 (Jack Schubert, Radiation NY: Viking Press, 1957):

“The blood-forming organs, the skin, the membranes lining body cavities, and the secreting glands may regenerate completely and resume their normal functions. Muscle, brain, and portions of the kidney and eye cannot regenerate; their repair results only in scar formation. Even those tissues that can regenerate may fail to re- spond after repeated ionization and cause conditions such as nonhealing ulcers or

aplastic anemia (bone marrow destruction). Also, repeated regeneration may pro- duce cancerous conditions ... These changes have all been observed in animals fol- lowing radiation exposures at levels corresponding to doses only slightly above the accepted safe limits for man. There are no constant clinical symptoms which can be relied upon to warn of latent radiation injury before life-threatening changes be- come manifest.”

65.8.3 Effects on Genes

No cell fully recovers from a dose of radiation. While a cell may seem to recover, there is an irreversible effect on the chromosomes and genes. According to Drs. Williams and Ingraham: “Ionizing radiation can alter the genes in the body (somatic) cells and in the reproductive (sexual) cells and cause them to grow or reproduce abnor- mally. If a gene change occurs in a sexual cell, a mutation will occur in later generations provided that the cell is used in reproduction. If a gene change occurs in a cell of grow- ing or regenerating somatic tissue like skin, liver, or bone marrow, it may cause cancer- ous or other harmful changes in the exposed individual.”

65.8.4 Hormonal Disturbances

The late effects of radiation are often produced in cooperation with disturbances in body function in general. One of these disturbances in particular—hormonal imbalance —can in itself aid and abet the cancer-producing effects of radiation or even delay years the appearance of the cancer. Consequently, in evaluating the changes wrought by radi- ation in the body we must also take into account the complex inter-relationship existing between the various organs and the hormones released by the different endocrine glands.

Dr. Schubert theorizes that since hormones influence the regeneration and growth of almost all the cells in the body, it is reasonable to assume that many of the late changes and cancers developed in the body after radiation are related to the impairment of the endocrine glands such as the pituitary, thyroid, gonads, and adrenals, either as a result of the radiation directly on the endocrine organ or, indirectly, because of damage to a distant organ which then brings forth a response from the endocrines.

Since a female child possesses at birth all the ova she will ever use, it is very im- portant to note that exposure of the ovaries to radiation affects eggs which are to be fer- tilized in the future. Thus, radiation damage is preserved by the ova and may result in defective children. Even if the children appear normal, they may carry defects in their heredity (the genes) which will be manifest in later generations.

65.8.5 Depression of Cells

A single dose of 50 r to the whole body causes the number of lymphocytes to drop by one-half in about “two to three days. It takes about a week for it to return to the preradiation level. After higher but nonlethal doses of radiation, the lymphocyte drop is abrupt and little or no evidence of recovery may be apparent for several months. In fact, it may take years before the number of white cells returns to normal. Another significant observation is the fact that individuals previously exposed to radiation show a greater depression of cell numbers upon subsequent radiation exposure.

65.8.6 Brain Damage

The brain is considered to be relatively insensitive to small radiation doses, but this does not mean there is no damage—it means rather that there exists no suitable means of detecting damage, or that it has not beer, looked for, or that no cases have been followed for a long enough time. One must be suspicious of all tissues to which radiation has been given.

Relatively small doses of radiation to localized regions of the brain give immediate effects. In 1953, two volunteers were given 100 r to a localized region of the brain (diencephalon). About one and one-half hour; later they complained of ringing in the ears, generalized numbness, and apathy. Shortly thereafter they felt mentally stimulat- ed. Sleep that night was very deep. The next morning they were very active and “high.” Then they became unusually quiet. The disturbances lasted about seven to ten days. These effects were confirmed in another experiment involving 120 persons.

There have also been several reports of brain damage in persons given heavy doses of radiation for brain tumors or for scalp lesions.

65.9. Laetrile

Derived from apricot pits, which contain cyanide, Laetrile was considered too toxic for human use by its discoverer, a Californian, Ernst Krebs, Sr., M.D. But years later, after his son, Ernst Krebs, Jr., claimed to have “purified” Laetrile, both father and son advo- cated it as an effective treatment for cancer. The Krebses patented their promising prod- uct as “Laetrile”—an acronym derived from the chemical name Laevo-mandelonitrile, the cyanide-containing substance they extracted from the crushed kernels of apricot pits.

The next step was to explain how Laetrile worked. With a little imagination, the younger Krebs came up with a “magic bullet” theory. Cancer cells, he claimed, contain an abundant amount of an enzyme that releases cyanide from Laetrile. The cyanide, in turn, kills off the tumor cells. Normal cells are low in that enzyme, the Krebs theory went, but rich in another enzyme that detoxifies the cyanide. So normal cells live while cancer cells die.

This theory was proved to be wrong. The supposedly abundant “releasing” enzyme is scarcer in cancer cells than in normal ones, and the “protective” enzyme is found in equal amounts in both kinds of cells. Moreover, cyanide does not have bullet-like pre- cision. Because cyanide diffuses rapidly across intercellular barriers, any destructive ef- fects would spread to both cancerous and noncancerous cells.

Its promoters then took a different course. Laetrile, the drug, was suddenly trans- formed in 1970 into Laetrile, the vitamin. Cancer, according to the later theory, was a vitamin-deficiency disease. Laetrile, it went on, was “vitamin B-17,” the “missing vita- min” needed to prevent and treat cancer.

Besides daily injections or oral doses of Laetrile, the “total holistic metabolic nutri- tional” regimen includes massive doses of vitamin C and other vitamins, chelated miner- al supplements, even coffee enemas. The Laetrile-centered regimen emphasizes a strictly vegetarian diet, free of all animal protein. Often another nonvitamin B-15 or “pangamic acid,” is prescribed (B-15 is also the creation of the same Ernst Krebs, Jr., who chris- tened Laetrile “B-17”).

Laetrile is one of the most tested substances ever put forward as a remedy for cancer. In 1953, the Cancer Commission of the California Medical Association investigated Laetrile and found it ineffective. As part of that study, the commission discovered that all but one of forty-four patients treated with Laetrile still had an active form of cancer or were dead.

The most comprehensive series of animal tests were done at Memorial Sloan-Ketter- ing in New York City. From 1972 to 1976 approximately thirty-seven experiments were conducted using Laetrile on mouse and rat tumors. Laetrile neither prolonged life, nor reduced tumor size, nor checked the spread of cancer.

Medical records submitted by Laetrile proponents have never substantiated the claims made. Many cancer patients who believe they had been cured by Laetrile find out later that they still have the disease. Others never had cancer to begin with. Some cancer patients have temporary remissions—periods when symptoms lessen; if Laetrile use co- incides with such a remission, the patient may think Laetrile was the cause.

The FDA’s pharmacological analysis, in 1977 indicated that Laetrile smuggled or imported from Mexico in the form of oral doses and vials of injectable material under the names of “Laetrile” and “amygdalin” were potentially lethal sources of cyanide. Labo- ratory tests hinted that amygdalin might even be cancer-causing in its own right.

Jerry P. Lewis, M.D., chief on onncology and hematology at the University of Cali- fornia School of Medicine in Davis, reported late in 1977 the case of a seventeen-year- old in Los Angeles who swallowed approximately 10 1/2 grams (one-third of an ounce) of injectable Laetrile. The young woman had a convulsion ten minutes later, and died without recovering consciousness. In mid-1977, a ten-month-old girl died in an upstate New York hospital a few days after gulping down several Laetrile-tablets. Beyond these documented deaths, the FDA toxologists suggest that many cancer patients whose death after long-term, high-dose Laetrile medication was attributed to their malignancy actu- ally succumbed to slow cyanide poisoning from Laetrile.

In addition to being deceived, the patients or their families have to pay dearly for the deception.

Laetrile therapy does not come cheap. The cost of 6 month’s treatment at a Mexican clinic has been estimated at between $1,500 and $2,000. Laetrile smuggled into the Unit- ed States is priced as high as $50 for a half-ounce vial for injection, compared with a $9 price tag in Tijuana. Tablets sell for nearly two dollars in this country, but cost only about three cents to manufacture.

Cancer is the end point of a lifetime of unhealthful living and the accumulated toxins that results from such a lifestyle. Adding more poisons to our body as “medicines” will not produce health.

65.10. Spurious Products Sold Through The Mail

Probably the most extensive study of mail-order health advertising was done in the summer of 1977 by the quackery committee of the Pennsylvania Medical Society. The committee screened five-hundred nationally-circulated magazines and found that about a quarter of them carried ads for mail-order health products. Altogether, about one- hundred-fifty such products were offered by fifty promoters. The products included weight reducers, bust developers, blemish removers, hair-loss remedies, longevity for- mulas, aphrodisiacs, impotency aids, and others.

According to Postal Service estimates, mail-order fraud costs Americans at least $150 million a year.

In January 1978, some two million copies of a four-page brochure were accepted for insertion into the various editions of eighteen city newspapers from coast to coast. The brochure promoted a handbook, “Modern Solution to Age Old Physical Problems,” published by the Midwest Health Research Laboratory. The handbook, it was claimed, “contained a solution or prevention for as many as forty different diseases and illnesses,” including arthritis, diabetes, and hardening of the arteries. More than one thousand read- ers surrendered to the inviting logic of the promotion: “Our special introductory offer of $9.95 can save you unnecessary visits to the doctor, the hospital, and save you money.”

Those who mailed money received a twenty-five-page booklet revealing the secret cure-all and end-all of disease —“colonic irrigation,” otherwise known as an enema, preferably “two and three times a week.” Coupons were available for those desiring “personal Home Treatment Kits” at $29.95 apiece.

The Washington Post and eleven other prominent publications carried full-page ads for Thera-Slim-100, the “diet aid” that supposedly “burns away more fat each 24 hours than if you ran 14 miles a day.”

Research conducted by the Consumer’s Union resulted in several conclusions con- cerning some of the more widely-publicized health “cures”:

1. Wrinkle removers - No cream or liquid that’s safe to put on the skin can do more than temporarily increase the water content of the skin, and then only to the point of mask- ing the most superficial of wrinkles. ‘Anti-aging’ pills containing RNA, DNA, or other chemicals have no beneficial effect at all.
2. Baldnessremedies-Malepatternbaldness,themostcommontypeofbaldness,iscon- sidered to be hereditary. (But other factors are also involved.) Medical science knows of no pill or cream that can arrest that genetically-determined condition. In some instances, loss of hair may also be symptomatic of various emotional and physical disorders.
3. Aphrodisiacs-Mostpillsandpowderswithaphrodisiacalpretensionscontain‘Spanish fly,’ a legendary ingredient celebrated for its purported effect on women. Today’s ‘Span- ish fly’ consists mainly of red pepper. It causes nothing more than mild irritation of the urethra. The ginseng root, long used as an Oriental cure-all, has recently acquired a rep- utation in this country for improving sexual prowess. The FDA has unearthed no evi- dence to support the root’s reputation.
4. Dietpills,proteinsupplements,reducingdevices—thereisnoproofthatsuchgimmicks are effective for weight loss. Most nonprescription diet pills contain either phenyl- propanolamine or methylcellulose. Some evidence indicates phenylpropanolamine can act as an appetite suppressant, but only for short periods. Methylcellulose is a ‘bulking agent,’ which supposedly expands in the stomach to relieve hunger. There’s no evidence that it works. Weight-loss powders are usually accompanied by instructions bidding users to follow a rigid low-calorie diet as well. The diet might very well promote a weight loss, but protein products contribute nothing. Clinical studies by the FDA have shown that ‘body wraps’—devices wrapped around parts of the body for selective weight loss—are useless. Some can be harmful.
5. Megavitamins - Everyone recognizes that adequate amounts of vitamins are necessary for good health. But none has ever shown that extra large or ‘megavitamin’ doses pro- duce better health. Depending on the vitamin, amounts beyond the National Academy of .Sciences/National Research Council’s Recommended Daily Allowances can be danger- ous or just a waste of money. Too much of the fat-soluble vitamins A and D can build up in the body to dangerous levels. Doses of water-soluble vitamins that exceed what the body can use are simply excreted in the urine. There are many other “cures” being sold through the mail and magazine advertise- ments, but all are worthless. They are all dishonest attempts to make money from an uninformed or unknowing public. There are no “cures.” 65.11. High-Fiber Diets It is claimed that this single dietary factor plays a role in such diseases as appendicitis, diverticular disease, polyps of the large bowel, cancer of the bowel, irritable colon, hia- tial hernia, gallbladder disease, diabetes, atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, obesi- ty, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, thrombophlebitis, and dental disease. Dr. Benjamin H. Ershoff, a research professor of biochemistry at Loma Linda Uni- versity and the University of Southern California, points to many studies conducted dur- ing the past twenty years that he says indicate the beneficial effects of plant fiber-con- taining materials when administered to animals fed on low-fiber diets. But the beneficial effects are seen when this fiber is part of the natural food and not separated from it. In 1943, two American medical investigators observed that immature mice who were being given a compound related to vitamin C—glucoascorbic acid—developed a severe condition characterized by growth failure, diarrhea, hemorrhages beneath the skin, hair loss, and death. But the condition developed only in mice who were being fed on a highly-refined ration. It did not develop at all in mice fed similar doses of glucoascorbic acid in conjunction with a natural food stock ration or in mice fed the refined diet sup- plemented with dried grass.

In 1954, Ershoff showed that alfalfa meal, when incorporated in the diet was similar- ly effective. He continued to see if any known nutrient in the alfalfa meal might account for the phenomenon. It was not a nutrient that was responsible. When juice was extract- ed from the alfalfa, it had no effect. But the whole alfalfa with pulp included provided beneficial results.

It turned out that various grasses—rye, orchard, wheat, fescue, and oat—were also effective. When cellulose was tried, it had a moderate effect, considerably less than that obtained with the fiber—containing alfalfa and varied grasses.

“Nearly all disease,” says Denis Burkett, “has more than one causative factor. Not in any of these diseases would suggest that fiber deficiency is a sole causative factor, mere- ly that it may be one important factor. What I would emphasize is that a fiber-depleted diet is a common factor, common to a number of characteristic Western diseases. It is a major factor, I believe, in some, a less important factor in others, but it is common to each of them and offers the only reasonable explanation put forward, I think, why these diseases are associated.”

These diverse diseases are related because the underlying cause is the same in each. That is, an unhealthy and unnatural diet plus other poor living habits. A natural diet of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds will provide us with all of the proper nutrients needed to ensure a state of health. The natural fiber will be there in proper amounts and we do not need to think about providing this one ingredient separately. The fiber is the undi- gestable part of the plant and we receive no nourishment from it anyway. It is certainly not so important as is claimed. It is not any “cure” since it is an inert substance that pass- es through the digestive tract unchanged. It is discarded by the body in this way because it is nonusable.

The mice fed on an unnatural and refined diet became sick not because of lack of fiber alone but because of the presence of toxins in an unnatural diet. This diet was for- eign to their body and was not sufficient to promote health. When some of their nat- ural foods were given, such as alfalfa, health was restored because their organism was once again provided with the nutriment they needed, and healing and normalization took place. This was certainly not due to the fiber present in the diet but due to the many fac- tors in their natural diet that are essential for their particular requirements.

Many human disease conditions are associated with low-fiber diets consisting large- ly of refined breads, cereals, sweets, etc. However, this again is not due to the lack of fiber alone. Other aspects to take into consideration are the presence of toxic elements and lack of vitamins, minerals, and proteins in ‘these refined products. Merely adding fiber in the form of bran will not decrease the toxicity of these foods.

Our natural foods are complete with all nutrients including fiber and these are the foods that will provide the conditions for health.

65.12. Fructose Diet Cure

List 1 – “free foods”

List 1A (Unlimited in raw state; limit to 1 cup cooked—it is claimed that these foods are most digestible cooked.)

List 2

List 3 - Fats

List 4 - Milk and milk products

List 5 - Vegetables - 1/2 cup per serving List 6 - Fruits - servings per day

List 7

This diet depends on the periodic ingestion of fructose and a high-protein, low-car- bohydrate diet is followed. Dates are eaten between meals to maintain high blood sugar levels.

The foods are divided into seven basic types: 1) “free foods” which can be eaten in any amount since they contain negligible amounts of carbohydrates, fats, or proteins; 2) meat; 3) fat; 4) milk; 5) vegetables; 6) fruit; 7) flour products.

The fructose diet is intended for people who have functional hypoglycemia, for those who wish to lose weight without feeling hungry or irritable, for those who wish to reduce their craving for alcohol, for people who wish to avoid the onset of migraine headaches or premenstrual tension, for hyperactive children, and for persons with certain psychot- ic tendencies. Do not be fooled by these claims. The Fructose Diet or any diet cannot detoxify and heal. But they certainly can derange the body!

The lists of foods for this diet is as follows:

List 1 – “free foods”

Bouillon Pepper & other spices

Clear broth Pickles

Coffee Rennet tablets

Cranberries Salt

Horseradish Seasonings

Lemon Vinegar

Mustard

This list of “free foods” contains the most toxic food elements that we can ingest. Except for lemon, all of the above foods are eliminated on the Hygienic diet not only for their toxicity but because they are irritants, and interfere with normal digestion.

List 1A (Unlimited in raw state; limit to 1 cup cooked—it is claimed that these foods are most digestible cooked.)

Asparagus Eggplant Rhubarb

Bean sprouts Lettuce Sauerkraut

Broccoli Mushrooms Spinach

Brussels sprouts Parsley Summer squash

Cauliflower Peppers String beans

Celery Pimentoes Tomatoes

Cucumbers Radishes Zucchini

Sauerkraut, spinach, rhubarb, radishes, parsley, and mushrooms all contain toxins which interfere with normal assimilation of certain nutrients. The other vegetables would be healthful additions to our meals if consumed raw.

List 2

This list includes meats, fish, cheese, peanut butter, and eggs—each serving contains seven grams of protein. All of these foods are unnatural items in the human diet and con- tribute to disease.

List 3 - Fats

Avocado - 1/8 French Dressing - 1 Tbsp.

Butter - 1 tsp. Mayonnaise - 1 tsp.

Bacon - 1 slice Nuts - 6 small

Chocolate - 2 tsp. Oil - 1 tsp.

Light cream - 2 Tbsp. Olives - 5

Heavy cream - 1 Tbsp. Shortening - 1 tsp.

Lard - 1 tsp. Cream Cheese - 1 Tbsp.

Except for the avocado and nuts in this list, these “foods” would result in ill health in anyone consuming them.

List 4 - Milk and milk products

1 cup of milk or yogurt equals one serving

1/4-cup ice cream equals one serving

Humans cannot digest milk products due to lack of the enzymes rennin and lactase.

Ice cream contains many unnatural and toxic ingredients and a high percentage of re- fined sugar. Yogurt is fermented milk and also may contain high levels of sugar. Humans cannot digest the byproducts of fermentation and putrefaction.

List 5 - Vegetables - 1/2 cup per serving

These vegetables are all served cooked and add little to the value of the diet.

List 6 - Fruits - servings per day

Beets Rutabagas

Carrots Winter squash

Onions Turnips

Green peas Tomato puree

Pumpkin Frozen mixed vegetables

Apple - 1 Orange -1

Applesauce – 1/2 cup Peach - 1

Apricots - 2 Pear - 1

Banana – 1/2 Pineapple - 1/2 cup

Berries - 1 cup Plums - 2

Cantaloupe -, Vi Watermelon - 3” x 1 1/2”

Cherries- 10 Grapefruit - 1/2

Fresh figs - 2 Grapes - 12

Nectarine - 1 Honeydew - 1/4

List 6 provides the only major worthwhile contribution to the diet but in such small portions that they are merely “crops in the bucket.”

List 7

Flour products and starchy vegetables.

As was explained in earlier lessons, humans have a limited capacity for starch di- gestion. In addition, wheat has toxic acids that are harmful and therefore should not be consumed.

For most people following this diet, Dr. Palm recommends that two to three servings of protein foods from List 2 and usually just one serving per meal for the remaining cate- gories be included. Such high amounts of protein will only further endanger your health.

Several recipes include the use of concentrated fructose. In addition, Dr. Palm re- quires that you eat between 75 and 100 grams of fructose daily—available in tablet or powder form. Fructose is refined from sucrose, ordinary white sugar. The health conse- quences of such a practice is the same as ingesting the same amount of refined white sugar. This diet is dangerous and could never result in any benefits.

65.13. Bland Diet For Peptic Ulcer Patients

65.13.1 History

65.13.2 Theory

65.13.3 Acid Neutralizing 65.13.4 Nonirritating

65.13.5 Chemical Irritation 65.13.6 Mechanical Irritation 65.13.7 Thermal lrritation 65.13.8 The Four-Stage Pattern 65.13.9 Research Studies

65.13.1 History

The roots of diet therapy in the treatment of patients with peptic ulcer extend far back in medical history. As early as the first century, Celsus ordered smooth diets free of “acrid” food, and practitioners of the seventh century wrote of their belief in “special healing properties” of milk for patients with digestive disturbances. In the first half of the nineteenth century, peptic ulcer became established as a pathologic and clinical enti- ty, and physicians generally advocated a liberal dietary regimen with frequent feedings.

However, in the later part of the nineteenth century, a radical change developed in medical opinion concerning peptic ulcer treatment. The belief spread that food was harmful to the ulcer, and only complete rest—meaning an empty stomach—would allow the stomach to heal itself. When the body is free from the irritation of the presence of food and when the digestive system is given a complete rest, healing will commence. This is the safest known method to regain health and its beneficial results can be docu- mented by anyone who is familiar with fasting.

However, in 1915, an American physician, Bertram Sippy, broke the common prac- tice of fasting end established the beginning principles of continuous control of gastric acidity through diet and alkaline medication. He outlined a program of milk and cream feedings with slow additions of single soft food items over a prolonged period of time, allowing little variation.

65.13.2 Theory

In general, Sippy’s regimen is used today by many physicians and dietitions for gas- tric ulcer patients. This diet therapy is based on several erroneous principles. The food must be both acid neutralizing and nonirritating, according to this principle.

65.13.3 Acid Neutralizing

The therapy begins with milk and cream feedings every hour or so, to supposedly neutralize free acid with the milk protein, suppress gastric secretion with the cream, and generally soothe the Ulcer by coating the stomach. However, these assumptions have not been supported by research. In fact, clinical evidence proves them to be worthless.

There are gradual additions of soft bland foods over a period of time, keeping some food in the stomach at all times to mix with the acid to prevent its corrosive action on the ulcer. These bland foods are usually limited to choices of white toast or crackers, re- fined cereals, eggs, milk, cheeses, a few cooked pureed fruits and vegetables, and later, ground meat.

With such frequent meals, the digestive organs are never allowed to rest, and recov- ery is prolonged rather than assisted. In addition, many of the foods advocated are toxic and further contribute to the reason for the disease.

65.13.4 Nonirritating

The therapy is concerned with eliminating chemical, mechanical, and thermal irrita- tion.

65.13.5 Chemical Irritation

Any food believed to stimulate gastric secretions is prohibited. These include highly- seasoned foods, meat extractives, coffee, lea, alcohol, citrus fruit juices, dried foods, spices, and flavorings.

I could concur with this rule. The above foods are highly irritating for anyone and all except citrus juices contain toxic components that would result in sickness in a well per- son. For a sick individual who is already enervated, the results are just that much worse.

65.13.6 Mechanical Irritation

Any food believed to be abrasive in its effect upon the ulcer is prohibited. These in- clude all raw foods, plant fiber (strained fruits and vegetables are used), coarse or rough foods, whole grains, and “gas forming,” or strongly-flavored foods.

Hygienists advocate that all foods should be withheld for the gastric ulcer patient. To ensure complete return of health, a fast is in order. After the fast, a diet of the same foods that are prohibited above would be those that would be the best to maintain health. That is a diet that consists of raw foods, mostly fruit.

65.13.7 Thermal lrritation

Any very hot or cold food believed to irritate the lesion by its effect on surface blood vessels are prohibited. These include hot beverages and soups, frozen desserts or iced beverages.

On this point. I would concur.

65.13.8 The Four-Stage Pattern

After initial hourly milk and cream only, the diet is gradually increased as the ulcer heals. The routine usually, follows a progressive four-stage pattern as follows:

Stage 1 - For this initial stage of the dietary therapy, the following foods are per- mitted: milk, cream, butter, margarine, eggs, cooked and refined cereals, plain custard, Jell-O, rennet, plain puddings, vanilla ice cream, noodles, macaroni, spaghetti, white rice, white bread, soda crackers, cheese, jelly, honey, sugar, white potatoes, and creamed soups.

A healthy man could live for a very short time on this diet before he became ex- tremely ill. Why, then, is it advocated for sick individuals? It defies reason.

Stage 2 - During this second stage of the bland diet, strained fruit juices are allowed to a limited extent (starting with 1/2 cup). In addition to the fruit juice, the following “foods” are added to the diet: plain cake such as angel food, sponge, pound, butter cake; winter squash; strained asparagus, peas, carrots, green beans, beets, spinach; cooked, stewed fruits.

The fruit juice would be a welcome addition to the diet if it is served fresh. No in- dividual—healthy or sick—should be served cake as it contains toxic ingredients along with refined white sugar and flour that will result in toxicosis and sickness. Since the vegetables and fruits in the above list are all served overcooked and strained, they con- tribute little value to this diet.

Stage 3 - At this stage, flesh foods are added to the diet. These include fowl, fish, and beef that has been ground.

As we have stated in earlier lessons, flesh is a terrible food for man. We are not equipped to deal with the many toxic byproducts of flesh and therefore, its ingestion will invariably lead to ill health.

Stage 4 - At this stage, certain desserts are added such as prune or apricot whip, plain cookies, plain sherbert, water ices, and fine graham crackers. Also, some additional cooked vegetables and fruits are added.

65.13.9 Research Studies

This entire diet is a nutritional disaster and will result only in disease. Recent re- search studies demonstrate the uselessness of this type of dietary therapy.

A. M. Gill reported a series of studies with chronic ulcer patients, whose ulcers healed in four to eight weeks with placebo treatment of a daily injection of one ml. of distilled water and no diet or exercise restrictions or medications. He concluded that ul- cers healed not by manipulation of the various common therapies used but because, “... the man with the ulcer comes under the care of a physician who is able to transmit some of his own confidence to the patient.”

Gill’s studies were valuable in that he found that the orthodox dietary therapy was useless even though he arrived at some other erroneous conclusions. But his theory that no therapy is better than the bland one, is valid.

Other researchers likewise have found that bland food do not increase the rate of healing, nor was there any particular benefit from avoidance of all foods thought to be commonly irritating (such as fruits and vegetables).

It has been demonstrated that routine omission of any fiber in the diet also seems to have no benefits.

Modes of eating—wrong foods or wrong combinations of foods, improper mastica- tion, and rapid consumption of meals are more involved as sources of irritation. Many physicians, such as Dr. H. J. Shull, contend from their experiences with individual pa- tients that so-called coarse or rough foods; such as lettuce, raw fruits, celery, cabbage, and nuts, do not necessarily traumatize a peptic ulcer when they are properly chewed and mixed with saliva. Grinding or straining of food is needed only when teeth are poor or absent!

65.14. DMSO

Barry Tarshis (DMSO New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc. 1981) believes that he has found the true panacea for all illnesses. He states:

“... let’s say, for the sake of argument, that (somebody—the government, a drug company, a foundation—pulled together a blue-ribbon group of pharmacologists and physicians, presented them an unlimited budget and told them to develop a drug that came closer to being a panacea than any substance now known. Imagine the properties that such a drug, were it ever developed, would embody.

“To begin with, the drug would be effective not only against one or two con- ditions and diseases, but against a broad range of maladies, from simple, everyday problems such as sprains and sinusitis to life-threatening diseases such as stroke or cancer. The drug, in other words, would be far more powerful than aspirin and a good deal more versatile than, say, penicillin.

“Apart from its effectiveness, the drug would be safe, keeping in mind that not even aspirin is completely harmless. Physicians who prescribed it wouldn’t have to concern themselves with the adverse reactions that may claim as many as 30,000 to 60,000 lives a year in the United States alone. And the people who take it wouldn’t have to suffer the myriad side effects—headache, fatigue, blurring of vision, mental

disorientation—that come with the territory when you have a chronic disease for which there are only a handful of medications available.

“The drug would also be versatile—versatile enough so that, depending on the condition, a physician could administer it orally or topically, by injection or intra- venously. And it would be stable enough so that you could ship it anywhere in the world, or keep it on the shelf for months and not have to worry about it spoiling or losing its potency. The raw materials from which the drug was made would be readily available, so that you would never have to concern yourself with a shortage. And, finally, if you had a social conscience, you’d want the drug to be inexpensive enough (somewhat less expensive than, say, the interferon treatments now being of- fered for cancer in Europe at a price of $65,000) so that patients who took it on a long-term basis wouldn’t have to spend a big chunk of their yearly income for the privilege of living without pain.”

The name of this new “wonder drug” is dimethyl sulfoxide or DMSO for short. It is being used for such ailments as sprains and sinusitis to burns and arthritis. Some people claim that it has the ability to stabilize progressively crippling arthritic conditions and to alleviate certain forms of mental illness.

This powerful and toxic drug passes through cell membranes so quickly that you can taste it minutes after it has been applied to the skin. Combined with other drugs, it will carry them through cell membranes that were formerly impenetrable to these drugs when taken alone. Due to this property, DMSO can cause immeasurable damage to all the cells of the body. These cell membranes can become weakened or altered and many other toxins besides DMSO will enter the cell which would not ordinarily enter. Such derangement of the cells may result in serious health consequences—much more serious than the ailment for which it was given.

There is never any “easy way out”—no quick and magical path to health. Many ath- letes have been using this poisonous drug for years for sprains, pulls, and other soft-tis- sue injuries. Continued suppression of pain by this drug will eventually result in perma- nent damage. Besides this, DMSO is now being used regularly by thousands of arthritic patients. People use DMSO for cuts, for sores, for itching conditions. Some people even rub it on their gums.

Do not be fooled by misleading claims. No agent outside of the human body has the ability to heal. The regular use of drugs can result only in greater health destruction.

65.15. Mineral Water Therapy

Certain places of the world are well known for their mineral springs that are said to have therapeutic properties. Sometimes it is recommended that these waters be consumed or bathed in as a “cure” for assorted ailments.

The theory behind all forms of hydrotherapy is that the minerals of the water will, in very small amounts, enter your system through the skin or mucous membranes and help restore your entire system to a healthier state.

However, these inorganic minerals are inert substances and have no magic about them. They cannot enter the system through the skin and impose any health benefits. If consumed, they cannot be utilized by the body and may prove toxic.

65.16. Bee Products

Honey, bee pollen, bee propolis, and royal jelly are substances collected or produced by bees for their winter food supply, for reproduction, protection, etc.

Honey is a popular product and is essentially sugar (about 1/3 to 1/2 glucose, 1/3 to 1/2 fructose, and the rest water). Bee pollen consists of certain pollen grains of flowers incidentally collected by bees while gathering nectar. It contains protein, vitamins and

minerals, and enzymes. It is not a food that bees consume except as a honey contami- nant.

Bee pollen is often used by athletes because it is claimed that it will increase their energy and stamina. This effect, however, is an illusion. Its stimulatory effect will first produce a false sense of increased energy, but like all other stimulants will soon have the opposite effect due to enervation of the stimulation of the organs involved.

Neither is propolis one of the bees’ food products. It consists of various tree resins, collected and applied to the interior of the hive by them. It acts as a kind of cement to keep their hives intact. When ingested by humans, this substance will have a stimulatory effect due to the response of the body to attempt to eliminate this foreign material. It has no place in human nutrition and has no property to “cure” as is often claimed.

Royal jelly is produced from honey and pollen and fed exclusively to the queen bee. It is made by the bees for the unique dietary needs of developing a queen bee and is ex- cellent food for her.

With respect to honey it cannot be emphasized enough that:

1. It is not a natural food of human’s but of bees which created it for their specific needs.
2. Honeyislacedwithsixprotectiveacids.Humanscannotmetabolizethreeoftheseacids, thus making it a toxic substance.
3. Honeyisusedasasweetener.Anythingthatrequiresasweetenertobepalatableisnota fit food for consumption in the first place. In the second place, the addition of a sweet- ener creates an incompatible food combination that vitiates digestion and begets toxic byproducts.
4. Humandesecrationofthebees’foodsupplyisunnatural,contrarytothesymbioticrole of creatures in nature, and unhealthful both to bees and humans. With respect to pollen keep in mind that, in gathering nectar, the bee performs a sym- biotic service for the plant. It becomes contaminated with pollen and spreads it to the female flower, thus fertilizing it. Pollen’s role is to create a seed package, not to serve as a food. When the seed package is mature, it ripens a part of the package as fruit which is free food for the creatures that incidentally perform a service in distributing the plant’s seeds. That is symbiosis. Pollen is not unique as a food and has no value. It fails to furnish our foremost need, carbohydrates, for energy. It is only the incipient nutrients and components to fertilize a flower ovary and thus create a seed package of which a part might be edible fruit. In that case we get not only all the nutrients contained in pollen but in a form specifically creat- ed to meet our needs. Most important of all we get an easily absorbable complement of simple sugars ready to convert to energy! 65.17. Macrobiotic Diet Cure The macrobiotic diet consists of 60 to 100% grains. These include brown rice, buck- wheat, wheat, corn, barley, and millet. They are eaten raw, cooked, creamed, with or without water, fried, or baked. A maximum of 30% of the diet may consist of vegeta- bles. These vegetables that are considered permissible include: carrots, onions, pumpkin (a fruit), radish, cabbage, cauliflower, and lettuce. Grain is considered “Principal Food” and is eaten at every meal. The principle be- hind this diet is based on the same Yin-Yang theory as for acupuncture. Yin and Yang are antagonistic but complementary forces. Certain foods are considered Yang foods and others are Yin foods. There must be a certain balance between Yin and Yang. When a person becomes ill, it is recommended that he/she eat 100% grains. In ad- dition to this, certain specific beverages and/or foods are used for specific ailments—all based on the superstitious Yin-Yang theory.

This type of diet not only cannot produce health but it can be very harmful if per- sisted in over a period of time. Humans are not grain eaters—we are frugivores. We are not biologically equipped to digest, assimilate, and utilize large amounts of grains. Fruits contain plenty of sugar, but little or no starch, whereas the cereals are largely starch. Starch requires much more time and energy to digest than fruit. Cereals are among the most difficult of foodstuffs to digest. The protein of most cereals are inadequate. They also contain an excess of acid due to the absence of certain base minerals, especially cal- cium. The need for calcium of most cereal plants is relatively small so they do not draw much of this mineral from the soil. In the human organism, on the other hand, the need for calcium is very great. Cereals, are therefore, inadequate to support growth.

Oats are deficient in many basic salts. Wheat is deficient in sodium and calcium. Rice is deficient in salts, and especially in calcium. It is also deficient in sodium and chlorine. They are all lacking in iodine. What does this mean when we consume large amounts of cereals? Since cereals are acid forming, they must draw on base minerals from the body to neutralize these acids so as not to create a condition of acidosis within the body. These base salts are withdrawn from the tissues, bones, and teeth, eventually resulting in various pathological disorders such as osteoporosis and dental caries.

Dr. Shelton says, “We have learned that all cereals have certain defects which may be looked upon as characteristic of these nutriments. As regards organic salts, they are de- ficient in sodium and calcium; they are also poorly supplied with organically-combined sulfur and with bases generally; but they contain a superabundance of acid-formers and of potassium. The cereals are also poor in vitamins A, B, and C. Finally, the proteins of the cereals are always inadequate; they are lacking in essential amino acids, and are especially poor in lysin and cystin.”

A study of the human anatomy and physiology will clearly demonstrate which food humans are best suited to eat. For optimum health, we should stick with our biologically- correct fruitarian diet.

65.18. Questions & Answers

Are the natural or “organic” vitamins any better than the synthetic ones?

No, a vitamin is nothing more than a specific compound, whether it is synthe- sized or extracted from a plant. In either form, they are not usable by the body but may be toxic. All the vitamins that we require are found in our whole natural foods and this is how they must be taken to be utilized.

Is choline effective in keeping fat from accumulating in the liver and arteries as claimed by some advertisements that I have read?

Choline manufacturers may have a difficult time explaining why anyone should swallow choline pills. Choline is widely available in the diet and is also manufac- tured in the body. It is considered an essential nutrient, but dietary deficiencies have never been demonstrated in man. Although choline has been widely used to treat fatty liver, as well as cirrhosis and hepatitis, it has never been demonstrated that this type of therapy is of any value. It is, in fact, worthless, and should not be used.

I have diverticulitis and my doctor told me not to eat fruits and vegetables. Is that good advice?

Diverticula are outpouchings that can develop in weak spots in the bowel wall. When many of these outpouchings are present and one or more become inflamed causing pain, the condition is known as diverticulitis.

This condition was virtually nonexistent in the early twentieth century and is now known as a disease of Western civilization. Its incidence has increased steadi-

ly in industrialized countries until between one-third and one-half the population over forty in the United States, Great Britain, France, and Australia suffer from it. Diverticulitis results from the increased use of refined flour and cereals and the substitution of foods containing large amounts of sugar and of meat for fruits and vegetables. In countries where the diet is high in fruits and vegetables, diverticular disease is still nonexistent.

The very foods that you were told to avoid are the ones that you should be eat- ing exclusively. It would, however, be advisable to fast first to allow the bowel to heal.

Will apple cider vinegar “cure” colds and catarrh?

Cider vinegar is made by pressing the juice out of the apples and fermenting it, in the same way as making cider. The fermented juice is left to age for about six months and then the process of turning the alcohol into acetic acid begins.

Acetic acid is very destructive and corrosive to the tissues of the digestive canal and to all tissues and cells of the body. A small amount will halt digestion com- pletely. This acid is so strong that it will dissolve certain metals and remove rust from steel. Consumption of vinegar will result in ill health and should never be con- sumed. There is no “cure” for colds. This is a reaction on the part of the organism to rid itself of accumulated toxic debris and should not be interfered with. Vinegar is a drug whose use suppresses the body’s vital activity in conducting the eliminative task called a cold.

Could you suggest a diet for migraine headaches?

There are no diet “cures.” Foods cannot act as specifics and go directly to the afflicted area to effect a cure. Only the body can heal and will promptly do so when the proper conditions provided. A natural diet of raw fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds will provide the proper condition for the body to heal if the other conditions for health are also present.

What is the difference between white and red Ginseng? Are either forms ac- ceptable to take?

All ginseng roots are naturally white. The red roots are produced by a special process that includes treating the white roots with other herbs, steaming, and other steps. This process is supposed to preserve the root and prevent insect infestation. As mentioned earlier, ginseng is a toxic substance and should not be consumed. The red root is just that much worse because it has the addition of other toxic herbs. Neither forms are acceptable.