, pp. 321–22.
Chapter 3
Restful A wareness and Restful Sleep

STRESS
Cannon, W alter. V oodoo death. American Anthr opologist 44(1943): 168–81.
Selye, Hans. The Str ess of Life. New Y ork: McGraw-Hill, 1978.MEDIT A TION
Elson, B. D.; P. Hauri; and D. Cunis. Physiological changes in yoga meditation. Psychophysiology
14(1977):52–57.
Ghista, D. N.; D. Nandagopal; et al. Phys iological characterization of the “meditative state” during
intuitional practice (the Ananda Mar ga system of meditation) and its therapeutic value. Medical and
Biological Engineering 14(1976):209–13.
Glaser, J. L.; J. L. Brind; et al. Elevated serum dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate levels in practitioners
of the T ranscendental Meditation (TM) and TM-Sidhi programs. Journal of  Behaviora l Medicine
15(1992): 327–41.
W allace, R. K. Physiological ef fects of tran scendental meditation. Science 167, no. 92 6 (1970):1751–
54.
W allace, R. K.; M. Dillbeck; et al. The  ef fects of the transcendental meditation  and TM-Sidhi
program on the aging process. International  Journal of Neur oscience 16(1982):53–58.
SLEEP
Chopra, D. Restful Sleep. New Y ork: Harmony Books, 1994.
Czeisler, C. A.; and E. B. Klerman. Circ adian and sleep-dependent hormone release in humans.
Recent Pr ogr ess in Hormone Resear ch  54(1999):97–130; discussion 130–32.
Irwin, M.; A. Mascovich; et al. Partial sleep deprivation reduces natural killer cell activity in humans.
Psychosomatic Medicine 56(1994): 493–98.
Shochat, T.; J. Umphress; et al. Insomnia in primary care patients. Sleep  22, Suppl. 2 (1999):S359–
65.
Chapter 4
Nurturing Y our Body Through Healthy Food

Key, Tj; G. K. Davey ; and P. N. Appleby. Health benefits of a vegetarian diet. Pr oceedings of the
Nutrition Society 58(1999):271–75.
Segasothy, M., and P. A. Phillips. V egetarian diet: panacea for modern lifestyle dise ases? Quarterly
Journal of Medicine 92(1992):531–44.W alter, P. Ef fects of vegetarian diets on aging and longevity. Nutrition Reviews 55, no. 1 Pt 2
(1997):S61–S65; discussion S65–S68.
Chapter 5
Using Nutritional Complements W isely

For readers interested in the scientific basis of our nutritional complement recommendations, a
detailed reference list is provided below.
Bauliey, E.; G. Thomas; et al. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), DHEA sulfa te, and aging:
contribution of the DH EAge Study to a sociobiomedical issue. Pr oceedings of the National Academy
of Sciences  97(2000):4279–84.
Bell, K. M.; S. G. Potkin; et al. S-adenosylmethionine blood levels in major depressio n: changes with
drug treatment. Acta Neur ologica  Scandinavica Supplementum 154(1994):15–18.
Bressa, G. M. S-adenosyl-1-methanonine (SAMe) as antidepressant: meta-analysis of clinical studies.
Acta Neur ologica Scandinavica Supplementum 154(1994):7–14.
Cohn, L.; A. G. Feller; et al. Carpal tunnel syndrome and gynaecomastia during growth hormone
treatment of elderly men with low circulating IGF-I concentrations. Clinical Endocrinology
39(1993):417–25.
Crook, T. H.; J. T inklenber g; et al. E f fects of phosphatidylserine in age-associated memory
impairment. Neur ology 41(1991):644–49.
Emmert, D. H., and J. T. Kirchner. The role of vitamin E in the prevention of heart disease. Ar chives
of Family Medicine 8(1999):537–42.
Fine, A. M. Oligome ric proanthocyanidins complexes: history, structure, and phyto pharmaceutical
applications. Alternative Medicine Review  5(2000):144–51.
Glaser, J. L.; J. L. Brind; et al. Elevated serum dehyroepiandrosterone sulfate levels in practitioners
of transcen dental med itation TM and TM-Sidhi programs. Journal of Behavioral Medicine 15(1992):
327–41.
Grimble, R. E., and P. S. T appia. Modulation of pro-inflammatory cytokine biology  by unsaturated
fatty acids. Zeitschrift für Ernährungswissenschaft 37 Suppl. 1(1998):57–65.
Head, K. A. Ascorbic acid in the prevention and treatment of cancer. Alternative Medicine Review
3(1998):174–86.Huppert, F. A.; J. K. V an Niekerk; and J. Herbert. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) supplementation
for cognition and well-being. The  Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2(2000):CD000304.
Kroboth, P.; S. Firoozeh; et al. DHEA and DHEA-S: A Review. Journal of Clinical Pharmacology
39(1999):327–48.
Langsjoen, P. H., and A. M. Langsjoen. O verview of the use of CoQ10 in cardiovascular disease.
Biofactors 9(1999):273–84.
McAlindon, T. E.; P.  Jacques; et al. Do an tioxidant micronutrients protect against the development
and progression of knee osteoarthritis? Arthritis and Rheumatology 39(1996):648–56.
McAlindon, T. E.; M. P. La V alley; et al. Glucosamine and chondroitan for treatment of
osteoarthritis: a systematic quality assessment and meta-analysis. Journal of the American Medical
Association 283 (2000):1469–75.
Marcell, T. J.; D. R. T aaf fe; et al. Oral ar ginine does not stimulate basal or augment exercise-induced
GH secretion in either young or old adults. Journal of Ger ontolog y. Series A, Biological Sciences and
Medical  Sciences 54(1999):M395–99.
Martin-Du Pan, R. C. Are the hormones of youth carcinogenic? Annales d’Endocrinologie (Ann
Endocrinol [Paris]) 60(1999):392–97.
Meydani, S. N.; M. Meydani; et al. V itamin E supplementation and in vivo immune response in
healthy elderly subjects. Journal of the American  Medical Association 277(1997):1380–86.
Papadakis, M. A.; D. Grady; et al. Growth hormone replacement in healthy older men  improves body
composition but not functional ability. Annals of Internal Medicine 124(1996):708–16.
Perkins, A. J.; H. C. Hendrie; et al. Association of antioxidants with memory in a multiethnic elderly
sample using the Th ird National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. American Journal of
Epidemiology 150(1999):37–44.
Pryor, W. A.; W. Stahl; and C. L. Rock. Be ta-carotene: from biochemistry to clinical trials. Nutrition
Reviews 58(2000):39–53.
Richardson, J. S. Neuroprotective agents. Physical Medicine and Rehabili  tationClinics of North
America 10(1999):447–61.
Rigney, U.; S. Kimber; and I. Hindmarch. The ef fects of acute doses of standardized Ginkgo biloba
extract on memory and psychomotor performance in volunteers. Phytotherapy Resear ch 13(1999):
408–15.
Rimm, E. B., and M. J. Stampfer. Antioxidants for vascular disease. MedicalClinics of North
America 84(2000):239–49.
Rudman, D.; A. G. F eller; et al. Ef fects of human growth hormone in men over 60 years old. New
England Journal of Medicine 323(1990): 1–6.Salvioli, G., and M. N eri. L-acetylcarnitine treatment of mental decline in the elder ly. Drugs under
Experimental


her jawbone was cleaned up, shortly afterwards she had three normal pregnancies.
A father wrote to us to say that he was impressed by the report, published in our Newsletter,
on the damage caused by root canal treated teeth. It caused him to arrange a dental examination
for his son who had been suffering from schizophrenia for several years, without being helped by
the drug treatment he had received. When the young man’s teeth were checked and a root canal
filled tooth was removed, he gradually recovered and needed no further medication.
Fibromyalgia
This chronic condition is another eloquent example of the many kinds of ill-health caused
by the toxic condition of the body. Fibromyalgia causes severe chronic pain in muscles and
soft tissues surrounding joints. Efforts to control it with anti-inflammatories, including cortico-
steroids, have not been helpful, nor has any effective treatment been found for it so far. Pain
relieving drugs are used to help the patients sleep.
According to the conservative estimate of the National Fibromyalgia Research Association,
6 million people in the U.S. suffer from this disease.
In our experience, fibromyalgia is basically a toxic condition, caused by the combined impact
of polluted air and water, poisonous chemical residues in agricultural produce, and food additives
used in processed foods. There comes a point where the body can no longer excrete these harmful
substances; in order not to overload the liver and to keep the toxins ( enzyme inhibitors)  from
interfering with the functions of the essential organs, it releases them into the muscles and soft
tissues. Once there, the toxic irritants cause pain, which eventually becomes almost unbearable.
Like all conditions resulting from a high degree of toxicity in the body, fibromyalgia yields
very promptly to the organic, vegetarian, toxin-free diet of the Gerson Therapy, combined with
intensive detoxification via the coffee enemas. We have seen some cases in which it took only a
few days to ease and then banish the pain, enabling the patient to resume normal activity. In more
advanced cases, aggravated by the use of many pain relieving drugs, and also with bedridden
patients, it takes possibly several weeks to obtain lasting pain relief and healing.
We recall with wry amusement the experience of a seriously ill, mostly bedridden lady, who
arrived at the Mexican Gerson clinic from Germany. She had suffered from fibromyalgia for
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 7 9Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comseveral years and had eventually found the physician who was regarded as the top authority of
that condition. However, he himself was suffering from an advanced case of fibromyalgia and
was unable to help her. On the contrary: on one occasion, when she called him after a particularly
painful, miserable night, he replied to her complaint by saying, “Y ou are telling me!”
Part III
It must be remembered that despite its great healing potential in so many areas of ill health,
the Gerson Therapy is no panacea, and that there are conditions in which it can heal only partially
or not at all. There are sound reasons why the high-powered twin Gerson methods of hyper-
alimentation and detoxification don’t work under some circumstances, and in this chapter we set
them out briefly in two sections.
Diseases Difficult to Cure with the Gerson Therapy:
Brain Cancer:  We have seen total long-term recoveries of brain cancer cases—but also
failures. The problem is not the cancer itself, but the location of the tumor. In the course of a
healing reaction the body almost always produces an inflammation, which in itself is desirable,
since inflammation fluid usually destroys tumor tissue. However, it also causes swelling in regular
tissue. But a brain tumor is enclosed within the skull, where there is no room to accommodate  the
swelling.. Instead, the ‘healing inflammation’ with its swelling causes serious pressure, which is
likely to bring on seizures. These have to be handled carefully, reducing the swelling to decrease
the seizure activity—thus blocking the healing process! It is hard to find a middle way between
allowing inflammation, yet relieving severe headaches and seizures. Understandably the dilemma
also worries the patient. There have been several who gave up on the Gerson Therapy and returned
to orthodox treatment.
Bone Metastases:   Certain cancers can be counted on to produce metastases ( spreading of
malignancy)  into specific tissues. Thus a majority of prostate and breast cancers, if they spread,
are found to have migrated to the bone(s).
Bone tissue is difficult to heal. While a regular tissue lesion, sewed up, can be relied on to
heal within a week to ten days, a bone fracture will take many weeks, often even several months
to heal. As bone metastases are painful, the patient must remain determined and strong-minded,
knowing that the healing will take a long time.
Open Breast Cancer Lesions:  While Dr. Gerson warned that cancers within glands are more
difficult to reach, generally breast cancer has responded well to the therapy over many years.
The situation changes if and when the breast tumor breaks through the skin: open lesions leading
possibly to infections are much more difficult to heal, and require the best possible care and much
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 8 0Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.compatience.
Leukemias:  There are several kinds of chronic leukemia, usually of the age-onset type,
which do not present special problems. However, the rapid-advance childhood leukemias must
be stopped rapidly. This is far from easy. For various reasons, such as difficulty in administering
the complete intensive Gerson Therapy, the child’s resistance or other external problems, the
effectiveness of the treatment is hampered and slowed down. When this happens, an acute
leukaemia can possibly advance too rapidly for the therapy to stop and reverse it.
Multiple Myeloma:  Like leukemias, this condition does not belong in the class of solid
tumors. It is a disease of the bone marrow, with myeloma cells ‘forming multiple tumor masses.’
These infiltrate the surrounding bone, generally the blood-forming long bones of the upper leg,
but other parts of the skeleton as well.
The disease occurs more frequently in men than in women, by a ratio of 3:1. Since it damages
the blood-forming bone marrow, it causes anemia and renal (kidney) lesions. As explained above,
it is always more difficult to heal bone lesions, and this also applies to Multiple Myeloma. It
takes longer, and—according to Dr. Gerson’s observations confirmed by the latest research on
this condition, it also requires more Vitamin B 12 than other kinds of cancer. Due to the invasion
of bone by Myeloma tissue, it is also possible for pathologic fractures (weakened bone breaking
without external cause) to occur. On the Gerson Therapy we have seen such fractures heal, very
slowly.
Long Term Prednisone Treatment and/or Chemotherapy : All drugs are liver-toxic, hence
long-term use causes severe liver damage. Prednisone, a powerful steroid routinely prescribed
for Multiple Sclerosis, lupus, arthritis and many other conditions, depletes the body’s defenses
and causes considerable organ damage. If this damage becomes excessive due to long-term use,
it can be difficult or even impossible to truly heal, i.e., fully restore the liver and other essential
organs.
Chemotherapy is much more toxic. While we have seen many reversals of chemo-treated
patients’ disease, beyond a certain point the damage caused by powerful chemotherapy is no
longer reversible. As a general rule, patients treated for lengthy periods with toxic drugs are more
difficult to heal than those who were treated for only a short time or, preferably, not at all.
Diseases Not Curable by the Gerson Therapy:
The list of chronic degenerative diseases that are curable by the Gerson Therapy includes
some 1500 conditions. However, a very small number of diseases, mainly those affecting the
Central Nervous System, do not respond well, or not at all, to the nutritional healing approach. It
has to be understood that the Central Nervous System, comprising the brain and spinal cord, is
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 8 1Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comso highly specialized that it does not replace lost tissue; for that reason it is almost impossible to
heal serious damage afflicting this area.
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, A.L.S.:   This is also known as Motor Neuron Disease
(M.N.D.), or popularly as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. While orthodox medicine considers its cause
unknown, in our experience all affected patients had had extensive exposure to pesticides.
Interestingly, while we were able to obtain healthy young calves’ livers and produce liver juice for
the treatment of these patients, a number of them showed considerable improvement. Since liver
juice


cendence as measured by the Temper-
ament and Character Inventory [36]. All three traits are related
with the functionality of oxytocin [37,38] and disruption might
cause pathological dominance of one of them, leading to several
disorders such as autism [39]. We suggest that intra- and inter-
species behaviour at the waterhole could serve as example of
how to recover health, trust and mental well being in and between
modern humans, which is the hypothesis we present in this review
paper.
3. People at search for oxytocin; the pandemic use of oxytocin-
ergic drugs and the need for new interventions; our hypothesis
Prosocial and empathogenic behaviour depend on endogenous
oxytocin systems, which might be disturbed in people engaging
in drug use and addiction [40]. It has been shown recently that
the rate of parental bonding and attachment in childhood is
directly related with adult psychosocial behaviour including drug
use and abuse [41]. It might even be so that drug users become
‘‘bonded” to their drugs and the environmental triggers related
with the use of drugs [40].
On the other hand, stable social bonds and happy relationships,
perhaps associated with higher levels of oxytocin, might be protec-
tive against addiction to drugs [42]. Social reintegration and reha-
bilitation are important factors to promote drug abstinence and
recovery from addiction [43] and family management seems to
be of speciﬁc signiﬁcance [44]. These studies suggest that the role
of oxytocin signalling is central to drug use and abuse and that suc-
cessful interventions should focus on recovery of dysfunctional
oxytocin mechanisms, which perhaps is the secret behind Alco-
holics Anonymous [45] and group therapy [46]. An enormous
amount of young and not so young people are engaging in the
use of a wide range of oxytocinergic drugs such as ecstasy, fantasy,
cannabis and cocaine and not all of them suffered childhood abuse,
lack of parental bonding or neglect (World Drug Report 2012). We
think that they are ‘‘searching” people for normal social interaction
in a society dominated by ‘‘egoistic hawks” and very few social
‘‘doves” [3,47]. As stated by Blum et al. [48]: ‘‘people provide the
real ‘‘highs”. People need people. However, in today’s screwed
up, ﬁnancially unstable (1.4 million bankruptcies 2009), and
very scary world, loneliness and alienation are commonplace.
Everything would look perfect if we were all living in a vacuum,L. Pruimboom, D. Reheis / Medical Hypotheses 92 (2016) 80–83 81but instead millions, if they are lucky enough not to be homeless,
are probably living in glass houses vulnerable to being shattered.”
When social interaction, social support and family bonding is
lacking we always have the probability to use synthetic happiness
as fallback strategy. Oxytocin signalling through social interaction
might protect against drug abuse, but if so, water household ther-
apy might do the same thing. Oral and intranasal oxytocin
decreases the use of drugs signiﬁcantly [49], endogenous oxytocin
does the same but also decreases carbohydrate intake [50], regu-
lates the immune system and make people basically cooperative,
trustworthy and prosocial [51]. The pro-social effects of ecstasy
and fantasy, observable in ‘‘house parties”, seem to be produced
by oxytocin pathways and oxytocin signalling might be further
increased by intense sweating during partying, leading to loss of
water and dehydration [52–54]. Oxytocin signalling is further
stimulated when environmental temperature is high [55]. This
could easily explain why the majority of people feel better in a
warm climate when they are on holidays and even seem to be
more empathic and therefore ‘‘oxytocinergic”, knowing that empa-
thy is deﬁnitely an oxytocinergic trait [56]. The warm weather/
oxytocin equation seems clear; high temperature produces sweat-
ing, sweating induces dehydration and dehydration activates oxy-
tocin pathways. Drinking a beer only supports this ‘‘holiday
bonding” feeling by induction of more thirst and dehydration
which can even cause beer intoxication (beer potomania, [57]).
Mild thirst induces oxytocin production and oxytocin improves
multiple pathophysiological pathways and therefore it could be the
use of intermittent drinking protocols that helps to solve chronic
inﬂammatory states, bonding disorders and perhaps even addic-
tion; our hypothesis.
4. Discussion
Bulk drinking, earlier deﬁned as non-frequent drinking up to
satiety, resembles the animal behaviour at waterholes. The major-
ity of herbivores travel from waterhole to waterhole to cover their
ﬂuid needs and will drink up to satiety every time they visit this or
another waterhole [58]. Animals at the waterhole show low level
of anxiety and fear and this behaviour is probably caused by
dehydration-increased oxytocin signalling [12].
More speciﬁcally, numerous studies have demonstrated that
oxytocin producing neurons in the hypothalamic supraoptic
nucleus (SON) and the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) are activated
in response to osmotic and volemic thirst and that this results in
secretion of OT into the bloodstream [59–61].
It has long been known that dehydration affects physical and
cognitive behaviour signiﬁcantly, including physical, visuomotor,psychomotor, and cognitive performance [63]. Dehydration can
even affect the cognitive performance of pilots, affecting ﬂight
safety [64]. These dehydration effects are noticeable when people
loose 2% of their bodyweight [65]. It’s clear that these effects are
not at all beneﬁcial for the host, which is further evidenced by
recent research of dehydration consequences caused by the use
of alcohol [66].
Nevertheless it are these effects which makes the need for
water urgent and it could easily be that these effects produce the
observed inhibition of fear and anxiety at psychological level when
people suffer from dehydration. It should further be noted that the
negative effects are observed when people suffer from long term
dehydration (20 h), which is something we do not propose. We
propose a water drinking rhythm based on ‘‘waterhole behaviour”
– bulk drinking which will only produce mild dehydration and
most probably the positive effects of not only increased oxytocin
but also the second ‘‘thirst” hormone, vasopressin [63]. Although
not mentioned earlier, vasopressin is an important hormone affect-ing human behaviour as evidenced by several investigations show-
ing that vasopressin inﬂuences a wide range of traits, including
increase of social attachment, inhibition of anxiety, improvement
of memory and positive social behaviours [67].
The combined effects of mild increase of oxytocin and vaso-
pressin decreases stress-axis activity, produces a feeling of relax-
ation, increase social bonding, inhibits fear, and regulates
sympathetic/parasympathetic activity [68]. Fear, social isolation,
chronic HPA-axis and sympathetic nervous system activity are
undoubtless related with increased susceptibility for the develop-
ment of inﬂammation and chronic disease [69–71].
Bulk drinking behaviour could therefore recover social beha-
viour, bonding, decrease anxiety, reduce sugar craving, regulate
appetite, induce spontaneous movement, decrease inﬂammation
and inhibit fear. Mild thirst controlled drinking is probably the onlyway to regulate water and mineral homeostasis, whereas the 8 /C28
rule (8 glasses of water of 8 oz each) has not been proven as scien-
tiﬁc sound and protective for health [72]. The effects of bulk drink-
ing as deﬁned in this article are easily testable, measuring different
behavioural traits and several biomarkers. If our hypothesis would
be conﬁrmed we would have ﬁnd one of the cheapest ways to
recover health and collaborative behaviour of people living in a
society characterised by abundance and chronic presence of food
and ﬂuid.
Conﬂict of interest
We state that both authors do not have any conﬂict of interest.
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[3]Korte SM, Koolhaas JM, Wingﬁeld JC, McEwen BS. The Darwinian concept ofstress: beneﬁts of allostasis and costs of allostatic load and the trade-offs in
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	visitor.
When	she	entered	the	kitchen	her	mother	was	crying.	The	little	girl	asked
why,	and	her	mother	said	that	there	had	been	a	sudden	death	in	the	family.	It
was	the	cousin	from	Chicago,	who	had	died	that	morning.	Did	the	girl	see	her
cousin	as	a	vision,	a	premonition,	or	merely	as	a	coincidental	act	of
imagination?	As	she	tells	the	story,	she	saw	her	cousin	“for	real.”	Yet	what	do
we	mean	by	“for	real”	except	that	something	is	convincing?	This	encounter
with	a	departed	relative	can	be	judged	as	either	hallucinatory	or	deeply
spiritual,	depending	not	on	the	event	itself	but	on	who	is	looking	at	it.In	the	afterlife	a	person	wakes	up	from	one	extremely	convincing
perspective—physical	existence—and	faces	the	possibility	of	freedom.
Akasha	isn’t	any	particular	perspective;	it’s	a	wide	open	playing	field	waiting
for	players	to	enter	it.	Who	will	the	players	be?
They	could	be	the	same	players	we	are	already	used	to.
They	could	be	players	we	have	imagined	and	are	eager	to	see.
They	could	be	otherworldly	beings.
They	could	be	emanations	of	ourselves.
They	could	be	embodiments	of	abstract	ideas.
In	world	culture	all	these	variations	have	been	reported.	Christian	heaven
is	a	specific	Akashic	play,	a	drama	of	redemption	with	otherworldly	beings	in
it,	along	with	familiar	people	from	the	past	and	an	abstraction	that	we	call
God.	To	the	extent	that	all	these	images	materialize	in	the	mind,	a	dying
Christian	accepts	that	she	has	arrived	in	heaven.	Vedanta	says	that	the	deeper
truth	is	that	the	dying	person	has	arrived	in	a	creative	space,	Akasha,	which
produces	whatever	is	wanted.
But	how	does	a	person	know	what	he	wants?	The	answer	gets
complicated.	Let’s	take	it	back	down	to	earth	and	ask	the	same	question.	How
do	you	know	what	you	want	right	now?	Until	your	next	desire	appears,	you
won’t	know.	It’s	certain	that	you	will	want	something,
because
	the	mind	is	a
continuous	stream	of	desires.	However,	this	doesn’t	make	the	mind
predictable.	You	may	be	a	creature	of	habit	who	always	wants	two	scrambled
eggs	for	breakfast,	while	I	may	be	restless	and	want	a	different	breakfast
every	day.	Both	of	us	could	be	thrown	out	of	our	accustomed	pattern	by	a
sudden	stress,	such	as	having	a	death	in	the	family,	losing	our	jobs,	being
diagnosed	with	heart	trouble.	Suddenly	we	aren’t	hungry;	our	minds	want	to
grieve,	not	eat.	The	unpredictable	tug-of-war	between	old	patterns	and	new
situations	makes	it	impossible	to	pin	down	desire.
In	the	same	way,	Akasha	is	elusive	because	it’s	so	open-ended;	it’s	as
unpredictable	as	a	dream	and	just	as	convincing.	Even	so,	the	Akashic	field
can	be	navigated.	In	fact,	it	must	be	navigated	if	we	are	to	take	advantage	of
the	creative	leap	that	the	afterlife	opens	up.
Navigating	the	Field
We	have	a	chance	to	open	up	the	possibilities	beyond	what	our	culture	has
conditioned	us	to	believe.	One	experience	can’t	fit	everyone.	Our	eyes
continue	to	see	what	they	expect,	even	when	we	use	the	eyes	of	the	soul,	but
the	Akashic	field	isn’t	a	swirl	of	random	images.	It	is	more	structured	than	a
dream;	it	has	a	kind	of	invisible	landscape.	The	structure	of	Akasha	cannot	bedescribed	in	physical	terms,	yet	if	we	look	inside	ourselves,	the	seemingly
random	flow	of	our	minds	also	obeys	a	kind	of	invisible	structure.
Let’s	say	someone	walks	up	to	you	and	greets	you	by	name.	The	person	is
smiling;	there’s	an	expectant	look	on	her	face.	How	do	you	come	up	with	a
response?	Your	mind	does	several	things	at	once.	It	consults	its	stored	picture
files	for	familiar	faces.	It	looks	for	a	name	to	attach	to	the	right	face.	If	neither
can	be	found	immediately,	the	mind	doesn’t	feel	stymied	yet—it	has	backup
resources.	It	rummages	through	faces	that	could	fit	this	person	but	are
younger	or	fuzzily	recorded.	It	tosses	up	sample	names	that	might	jog	your
memory.	It
runs
	through	recent	events	that	this	apparent	stranger	may	have
played	a	part	in.	If	all	this	doesn’t	work,	the	mind	starts	thinking	of	what	to
say	to	cover	up	your	memory	lapse.
We’re	all	familiar	with	such	situations,	and	we	are	so	accustomed	to
matching	names	and	faces	that	we	don’t	marvel	at	how	astonishing	the	whole
process	is.	Not	only	can	the	mind	Google	itself	for	information	with
incredible	swiftness,	it	performs	multiple	operations	with	backup	plans	if	they
fail.	This	implies	an	amazingly	complex	but	invisible	structure.
In	the	afterlife	the	same	structure	continues	to	exist.	In	near-death
experiences	the	dying	person,	suddenly	confronted	with	an	unknown
situation,	searches	inside	for	familiar	landmarks:	deceased	relatives,
recognizable	voices,	a	divine	light,	the	presence	of	a	fatherly	(or	motherly)
God.	In	other	words,	we	all	have	a	built-in	map	that	we	consult.	This	map
prepares	us	to	convert	any	unknown	experience	into	something	meaningful.
(As	I	was	writing	this	chapter	a	TV	special	about	heaven	came	on,	and	one
woman	being	interviewed	was	certain	that	she	had	been	to	heaven.	Her	near-
death	experience	occurred	when	she	was	giving	birth,	had	a	crisis,	and	fell
briefly	into	a	coma.	Describe	heaven,	the	interviewer	said.	The	woman’s	face
grew	rapturous	at	the	memory.	She	described	an	endless	stairway	going	up	to
the	sky,	and	along	the	stairway	happy	animals	pranced	around.	She	added	that
the	blue	of	the	sky	was	like	no	color	that	could	be	found	on	earth.	To	me,	she
chose	to	interpret	her	experience	by	drawing	from	a	scrapbook	of	childhood
images.)
Psychologists	have	conducted	experiments	that	illustrate	how	we
automatically	create	meaning.	In	one,	a	group	of	subjects	sits	in	a	room	before
a	tape	recorder.	They	are	told	to	listen	to	a	tape	of	someone	talking	and	to	take
notes	on	what’s	being	said	as	best	they	can.	They	are	also	told	that	the	voice
on	the	tape	will	be	very	soft,	since	the	experiment	is	testing	how	well	the
brain	can	register	the	faintest	spoken	words.
The	tape	is	turned	on	and	is	barely	audible.	The	subjects	crane	forward
and	take	their	notes,	which	are	then	collected.	What	they	haven’t	been	told	is
that	the	voice	is	speaking	nonsense.	Only	random	words	are	coming	out	of	the
machine.	Yet	each	subject	will	take	notes	that	make	sense,	because	anexpectation	of	hearing	meaningful	words	leads	to	the
creation


 statement that you probably will not agree with: The
moment in front of you right now has absolutely nothing to do with you.
Before you disagree, just look at the moment in front of you. Don’ t do
anything with it. Don’ t meditate on it or try to be positive about it. Just
notice that there is a moment in front of you. Now, look to the left; there’ s a
different momen t in front of you. Look to the right; there’ s yet another
moment in front of you. Those moments were there before you looked at
them, and they will still be there when you’re done looking. How manymoments exist in the world right now that you are not looking at? How
about in the entire universe? You must admit that those moments have
nothing to do with you. They belong to themselves and their relationship to
all that surrounds them. You didn’ t create them, and you don’t make them
come and go. They are just there. The moment in front of you is just another
moment in the universe that exists even when you are not looking at it. It is
completely impersonal.
Nonetheless, the moment in front of you doesn’ t seem impers onal; it
seems very personal. That is why it can cause so much trouble. You suffer
when the mome nt in front of you is not the way you want, and you rejoice
when it matches  your preferences. As we will explore in later chapters, this
is because of something you are bringing into the momen t—it is not
something intrinsic to the moment itself. All moments in the universe are
simply moments in the universe; you are the one bringing your personal
preferences into these impersonal moments and making them seem
personal.
This is our first encounter with seeing how difficult it is to surrender
our habitual way of looking at things. We are perfectly willing to admit that
what is going on in T imbuktu right now has nothing to do with us. Likewise,
we have  no problem admitting that the rings of Saturn, the big storm on
Jupiter, and the sands of Mars have nothing to do with us. In other words,
more than 99.99 999 percent of the universe has nothing to do with us, but
somehow the.00001 percent does. Which.00001 percent does? The part
that’s in front of you. Somehow, because you’re looking at it, it’s no longer
part of the impersonal universe. It has become personal.
The problem is, you have made a really big deal out the mom ent in
front of you throughout your life by bringing your personal preferences into
that moment. Notice that the billions of people who are not looking at the
moment in front of you don’t have any problem with it. They couldn’ t care
less about it. It’s not stirring up their thoughts, and it’s not stirring up their
emotions. When  you’re no longer experiencing that moment, it generally
won’ t be bothering you either. Instead, the moment you turn to next will be
bothering you. “Why is she sitting there?” “Who’ s she talkin g to?” “The
lights are way too bright.” All of a sudden this new moment starts affecting
you because you’re looking at it. The truth of the matter is, it existed exactly
the same before you looked at it. One of the most amazing things  you will
ever realize is that the moment in front of you is not bothering you—you arebothering yourself about the moment in front of you. It’s not personal—you
are making it personal. There are countless moments unfolding in the
universe at any given time, and your relationship to all of them is exactly
the same: you are the subject, they are the object.
Once you realiz e this truth intellectually, it still won’ t look that way in
your everyday life. To help, let’s take a field trip out to Fisherman’ s Wharf
in San Francisc o, overlooking the beautiful Pacific Ocean. While you’re
gazing out there, ask yourself whether what you see in front of you has
anything to do with you. You see waves, you see spray, you may even see
some whales or sea lions. That just happens to be what is unfolding in front
of you at that moment. If you had come on a different day, or even a
different hour, what you’d see would be quite different. But this would not
bother you. It would only bothe r you if you came to the whar f with some
personal prefere nces: “I want to see a whale.” “I want to see the giant waves
people told me about.” With these preferences, you will have a very
different experie nce than someone who simply came to see what the Pacific
Ocean looked like that day. One person can simply enjoy the experience; the
other has to struggle to make the experience match their personal
preferences.
In the case of the ocean, it is not difficult to see that the moment  before
you has nothing to do with you, and you have the right to simp ly enjoy the
experience. Because you don’t generally identify yourself with the ocean,
this is easier to do than with the rest of your life. But let there be no doubt,
your relationship to what is in front of you is always the same, whether you
are looking at the ocean or at your life. These moments are just what
happens to be happening at that particular time and place in the universe
where you happen to be standing. None of it is personal. But since you seem
to take the moment in front of you so personally, let’s continue our
exploration of the outside world by looking at where that moment came
from and why it is the way it is.Chapter 7.
The World You Live In
If you want to know where the moment in front of you came from, it makes
sense to go to our scientists. They have inquired about this as far back as
Aristotle and Plato. From the beginning of our existence, humans have
pondered: Wher e did all of this come fr om? What made it?  Why is it here? If
we ask scientists today, they will say that what you are looking at when you
look at the outside world is actually a blending of much smaller objects.
Your eyesight and all your senses are averaging molecular structures. As
we’ve already explored, you are not actually looking out at the world; it is
coming into you through your senses.
To see how this works, let’s examine the nature of color. When you
look at the world, it certainly appears to have color. But other than light,
itself, objects have no color. The only reason you experien ce color is
because the light bouncing off the objects has color. You see this when
examining a prism. If you shine light through a prism, you will get different
colors. It is called the electr omagnetic spectrum.  Light has different
wavelengths, and you perceive each visible wavelength as color. Remember
ROY -G-BIV : red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet. They make up
the colors of the visible part of the light spectrum. When light waves hit a
physical object, the different atoms and molecules of that object absorb
some frequencies of the light and reflect others. Objects themselves have no
color; it is the light reflecting off them that has the differen t colors we
perceive. This is a perfect example of how truth is not always what it
appears to be. We will see this time and again as we examine the true nature
of what consciousness experiences.
Scientists used to think the atom was the smallest possible unit, and it
could not be subdivided any further. Today we understand that an atom is
composed of electrons, neutrons, and protons. It forms the basic unit ofeverything we look at every day. We could stop right here and have some
fun with the very personal way we look at things. For example, what exactly
do you mean when you say you like something? What is it you claim to be
liking? If you like the color of the wall, that’s like saying you like part of the
electromagnetic spectrum and not other parts. Likewise with any outside
object. Do you really like some atoms and not others? It gets a little weird,
doesn’ t it? This truth is very powerful because all you’re ever looking at is a
bunch of atoms with light bouncing of f them.
After hundreds of years of study, scientists have told us that atoms get
pulled together into molecules through the laws of covalent and ionic bonds.
This may sound  complicated, but they are really just the laws of magnetism
determining which atoms will bond together. These laws, in turn, determine
what you will see in the outside world. Certainly at this level you can see
that it’s not personal. It has nothing to do with you. You don’t decide which
atoms or molecu les bond together naturally. It’s been going on all over the
universe for billions of years.
Our scientists have told us there are currently only 118 different types
of atoms in the known universe, with 92 of them occurring naturally on
Earth. These are what make up the periodic table of elements. The periodic
table represents the building blocks of what you are seeing and interacting
with every mom ent of your life. This is not just on Earth. All the stars, the
planets, and everything everywh ere that we


Iceman, down to the content s of his stomach, the minera ls in his
hair (showing  traces of copper and arsenic), and the exact
composition of  his DNA. His genes reveal that he had brown eyes
and dar k hair, along with a predisposition to heart disease. But my
mind goes to the invisible inner journey that Homo sapiens  had
taken b y the Copper Age, strongly hinted at in the physical
findings.
There had been many awakenings in consciousness to make
Ötzi po ssible. We have to imagine what these awakenings were
like. Ag riculture, sewing, the  tanning of hides, the discov ery that
rocks could be heated until they oozed with pure metal—these are
titanic leaps in awareness. T he Iceman’s brain was outfitted to
perform extremely sophisticated tasks.
Keeping thoug hts in consecutive order, each leading to its own
conclusion, isn ’t a modern trait. A highly organized mind made it
possible for the Iceman to navigate a surprisingly complicated
existence. We can infer thi s, for example, from his e laborate
costume: shoe s, a hat, a belt, leggings, and a loincl oth, all
fabricated from  different leathers. His cape was of woven grass,
pointing the way to the intricate weaving that lay ahead as cultures
evolved.
The Iceman feels very far awa y from us and yet very close a t the
same time. However, as members of Homo sapiens, we inhabit the
same s pecies of consciousness as Ötzi. Some of the s trongest
evidence of our kinship across the centuries is tragic. On the day of
his death, the I ceman was heavily armed with an ax, fashioned out
of 9 9 percent pure copper, and a flint knife, both crafted with
wooden handl es. Over his shoulder was slung a longbow and a
quiver filled with fourteen arrows. Clearly, he met adversaries
similarly arme d, because an arrowhead had pierced his cloak atthe sho ulder and lodged itself. The arrow shaft was broken off,
probably in an unsuccessful attempt to remove the arrowhead.
There was DNA on the bod y from three other individuals: his
friends, his enemies, perhaps someone he killed before he himself
was slain?
Ötzi was found facedown, suggesting that someone else placed
him tha t way while trying to  pull the arrow out of his back. But
Ötzi quickly bled to death and was covered by ice from an ice
storm a lmost immediately a fterward. It’s not hard to im agine a
link from him to familiar emotional states in modern life: tribal
warfare and loyalty, angry att acks and defense, the desire to save a
fallen comrade. The war between light and darkness had already
become endemic in human society.
T h e  L o s t  S o u r c e
The Ice man wasn’t the first p erson to die by violence. Skeletons
of fema les from fourteen thousand years ago in Mexico display
broken bones and other woun ds, indicating that they had suffered
physical injuries consistent with abuse, rather than accidents.
Somewhere between metareality and human reality, bad  things
happen. For millennia, the blame has been ascribed to sin or
human failing in general. I’m  ascribing it to the divided self, where
peace a nd viol ence were given separate compartments. P rojected
outward, they  became institutions of war—armies, w eapons
makers, armorers—and institutions of peace—law courts, codes of
justice, religions that depicted a God of mercy.
Societies learned to live with the contradiction. Rome saw itself
as the great harbinger of peace in the world and, yet, in
conquering th e territories of modern-day Spain, Brita in, and
Germany, Julius Caesar led campaigns of unspeakable ba rbarity.
In one village he ordered the  hands of every adult male cut off; all
told, his conquest of Gaul took as many as two million lives. The
Romans celebrated Caesar (offering him the title of emperor
before he was assassinated i n the Senate), but a popula r sayingexposes a deeper truth: Homo homini lupus, “Man is wolf to
man.” We have not seemingly evolved past this brutal wisdom,
since th e United States is both a global peacekeeper and the
world’s largest arms dealer.
Being tr apped in the divided self isn’t the whole story, however.
If we examine the Iceman with new eyes, from the perspective of
consciousness, we recognize that something immense was
happening in  human history. Anthropologists refer to the
“cognitive explosion” or “intelligence explosion” that hurtled
Stone A ge hum ans forward. One cannot deny the evidence offered
by the complexity of the Iceman’s tools, weapons, diet, and
clothing. It took new and ing enious thinking for early humans to
arrive at such sophisticated mental activity.
To explain the cognitive explosion, various arguments point to
the higher brain and genetic s, or milestones like the disc overy of
fire, which brought early humans closer together, making
collective thinking possible. As usual, scientists rely on the
physical evidence. However, I think the real story lies  in the
expansion of awareness, w hich occurred before the physical
evidence appe ared. Consider what kind of awareness it took to
make th e first bow and arrow. Given nothing but a forest and a
single sharp stone blade, could you invent the bow and arrow?
A s tartling series of YouTube videos, titled “Prim itive
Technology,” shows how it might be done. A single barefoot man
in shorts cuts down a small tree by hacking at it with a  chunky
rock, sharpened on one side into a blade. He splits the wood using
the same blade until he has a three-foot-long piece that h e tapers
at e ach end un til it is limber— this is the bow, which gets notched
at both  ends to hold the string. The string comes from  peeled
green bark from a sapling. A llowing the sapling bark to dry and
twisting it twice, the string is attached to the bow. For arr ows, the
man uses a t hin sapling, and by peeling away the b ark and
scraping down the wood, he fashions a long, thin shaft.
At this point o ur primitive craftsman needs feathers to make
the arro w fly straight; these are the only artifacts not related to a
single stone blade. Using the back feathers of a chicken, the
craftsman narrows them dow n, then smooths the edges with the
tip of a stick h eated red hot in a fire. Having assembled b ow andarrow ( along w ith a quiver m ade of bark to carry the arrows), the
craftsman prov ed the viability of his weapon by firing a n arrow
into a six-inch tree ten yards away with deadly accuracy.
It’s hard to des cribe how astonishing this process seems when
first viewed, but, on reflection, a modern craftsman duplicating
the efforts of a  hunter over f orty thousand years ago is c heating.
He already knows what a b ow and arrow look like and what
they’re for. The first maker of a bow and arrow worked w ith pure
ingenuity and a sense of discovery. What did it take to in vent the
first bow and arrow? It t ook expanded awareness, and, in
particular, it took some features of awareness possessed  only by
Homo sapiens, as follows: The bow-and-arrow maker had to
conceive of what he wanted to do and then figure out how to do it.
He no doubt experimented and tested various options, just as
Thomas Edison  tested different substances for the filament of the
electric light bulb before he hit upon tungsten. Moreove r, as he
began to craft his weapon, th e bow-and-arrow maker had to focus
his atte ntion and keep his mind on what he was doing. If
distracted, he had to remember his task and return to it.
Each of these mental facu lties—attention, intention, focus,
curiosity, diligence—are not thoughts. They are the foundation of
thoughts, like invisible brick and mortar. Without them, nothing
can be fabricated (an altern ative name for our species i s Homo
faber, man the maker). Learning what consciousness was capable
of lies at the h eart of human evolution. The multiple dim ensions
we grew  into are dimensions in awareness, which aren’t the same
as physical dimensions in space.
This is the r ight place to specify the difference bet ween
consciousness and mind. It needn’t be abstract. Mind is the
activity of thought. Consciousness is the field of pure awareness.
In a n analogy from ancient India, consciousness is the ocean,
mind is the wa ves that play across the ocean’s surface. O nce you
grasp the difference, a radi cal insight dawns. Mind only came
about because consciousness started to move within itself. The
field o f pure awareness b egan to vibrate, and from those
vibrations, consciousness acquired the familiar mental
attainments th at it took to make a bow and arrow (


	taught,	through
experience,	that	disease	is	a	“normal”	part	of	the	aging	process.	Diseased	people
are	typically	seen	as	the	helpless	victims	of	an	inevitable	and	“natural”	process.
Especially	when	the	symptoms	of	disease	develop	suddenly,	people	feel
surprised	and	victimized.	Yet,	the	two	causes	were	there	all	the	time,	gradually
wearing	down	cellular	competence	and	creating	an	opportunity	for	disease	to
“strike.”
As	part	of	the	body’s	normal	maintenance	and	repair	process,	old	cells	are
constantly	being	replaced	with	new	ones.	If	new	cells	are	not	built	with	proper
raw	materials,	they	will	be	unhealthy	and	weak.	Such	cells	are	unable	to	perform
their	normal	tasks,	including	routine	repairs,	and	will	be	vulnerable	to	sickness
and	injury.	Ultimately,	the	body’s	self-regulation	systems	will	break	down.
Because	of	the	poor	diets	and	the	toxic	environment	in	our	society,	cells	are
often	deficient	and	toxic	when	first	created,	becoming	progressively	more	so
over	time.	This	situation	is	precarious,	with	a	large	number	of	cells	either
malfunctioning	or	functioning	at	a	borderline	level.	Similar	to	walking	a
tightrope,	falling	off	is	easy.	Any	number	of	stressful	factors	can	affect	a	person
adversely	who	is	already	deficient	and	toxic,	be	it	a	stressful	event,	a	pathogenic
organism,	a	night	out	on	the	town,	a	physical	injury	or	even	a	lengthy	airplane
flight.	Almost	any	challenge	to	a	compromised	system	can	be	the	straw	that
breaks	the	overburdened	camel’s	back.
Though	painful	to	acknowledge,	disease	sufferers	invariably	(if	unknowingly)
have	made	poor	choices	leading	to	illness.	In	the	case	of	sick	children,	the
parents	have	made	the	poor	choices.
We	are	not	taught	that	we	have	the	ability	to	and,	in	fact,	need	to	consistently
make	meaningful	choices	about	our	health.	Instead,	when	we	become	sick	we
look	to	something	outside	of	ourselves	to	explain	our	“misfortune.”	We	look	for
some	obvious	circumstance	that	can	explain	why	we	are	sick.	Do	these	excuses
sound	familiar?	“I	walked	outside	in	the	cold	air	and	.	.	.”	or	“So	and	so	was
coughing	and	sneezing	near	me	at	work	and	.	.	.”	or	“Everybody	at	little	Ricky’sschool	is	sick,	it’s	no	wonder	that	.	.	.”	or	“Obesity	runs	in	my	family	.	.	.”	We
are	accustomed	to	ill	health	as	something	that	mysteriously	lands	on	us.	We	fail
to	see	our	own	role	regarding	its	development.	When	invited	to	consider	illness
as	the	result	of	our	poor	choices,	usually	we	reject	such	a	notion.
By	placing	the
blame	for	sickness	on	excuses,	we	relieve	ourselves	of	responsibility.
However,	accepting	responsibility	for	our	health	can	be	enormously
empowering.	The	overall	competence	of	cells—	determined	by	relative	levels	of
deficiency	and	toxicity—are	the	sole	determinants	of	health.	Learn	how	to
embrace	health	and	avoid	illness	by	educating	yourself	in	how	to	make	healthful
choices	that	lower	your	levels	of	deficiency	and	toxicity	and	promote	your
cellular	health.
In	Which	Direction	Is	Your	Health	Moving?
Some	of	the	time	we	are	sick,	and	most	of	the	time	we	are	well.	This
variability	in	our	individual	health	is	almost	exclusively	the	result	of	the	choices
we	make.	In	this	fluctuation,	sickness	is	not	the	absolute	opposite	of	health.
Health	and	sickness	are	not	fixed	concepts	and	they	cannot	be	defined	in	black-
and-white	terms.	Instead,	consider	your	health	as	a	constantly	changing
continuum.	Consider	the	balance	between	sickness	and	health	as	a	scale,	with
optimal	health	at	one	end,	and	death	at	the	other.	Somewhere	in	between	is	a
diagnosable	disease.	As	life	progresses,	your	position	on	the	scale	shifts,	moving
back	and	forth	all	the	time.	At	any	time,	it	is	worthwhile	to	ask:	Where	am	I	on
this	scale?	In	which	direction	on	this	scale	am	I	moving?
The	Health	and	Performance	Scale	shown	on	the	next	page	is	simple	but
effective,	serving	to	illustrate	the	relationship	between	sickness	and	health.	In
considering	this	diagram,	remember	our	definitions	of	health	and	disease.
Optimal	health	(on	the	far	right)	is	that	theoretical	state	in	which	every	cell	is
functioning	optimally	and	you	are	absolutely	as	healthy	as	your	genetic	capacity
allows.	This	condition	is	called
homeostasis
—when	the	body	is	perfectly	in
balance	and	continually	is	fine-tuning	itself	to	maintain	that	balance.	Very	few
Americans	are	at	this	end	of	the	scale,	but	we	should	strive	toward	this	goal.
Between	optimal	health	and	death	is	diagnosable	disease.	In	this	state,	cellular
malfunction	is	occurring	on	such	a	large	scale	that	the	symptoms	of	a	medically
defined	disease	are	produced.	On	the	far	left	of	the	scale	is	death—where	all
cells	have	ceased	to	function.
The	Health	and	Performance	Scale©2002
Beyond	Health
Tragically,	more	than	three	out	of	four	Americans	have	medically	significant
cellular	malfunction—a	diagnosable	disease	of	some	kind.	The	overwhelming
majority	of	us	are	somewhere	between	diagnosable	disease	and	death!
Think	about	your	personal	health	equation,	your	position	on	this	Health	and
Performance	Scale.	Do	you	have	a	diagnosable	disease?	If	so,	you	are	located
between	disease	and	death.	Even	without	having	a	diagnosable	disease,	your
health	may	be	far	from	optimal.	Fortunately,	your	position	on	this	continuum	is
not	static;	it	can	change	depending	on	your	choices.
No	matter	your	age	or	your	current	state	of	health,	you	have	the	power	to
change	the	direction	in	which	you	are	going	and	how	rapidly	you	move	on	the
Health	and	Performance	Scale.	I	learned	this	firsthand,	in	making	powerful	life-
saving	choices,	after	it	was	declared	a	medical	certainty	that	I	would	die.	I
learned	it	again	years	later,	after	witnessing	the	illness	and	extraordinary
recovery	of	an	elderly	woman.
A	family	called	me	to	ask	for	help	with	their	bedridden	and	senile	mother.
This	woman	was	ninety-four	years	old	and	unable	to	get	out	of	bed;	sometimes
she	recognized	her	family	and	knew	where	she	was,	at	other	times	she	did	not.
Her	children	loved	her	very	much	and	did	not	want	to	place	her	in	a	nursing
home,	yet	the	burden	of	her	care	had	become	too	much	for	them.	With	nowhere
else	to	turn,	they	asked	if	there	was	anything	I	could	recommend.	My	reply	was,
“Probably	not.”	Given	the	woman’s	debilitated	condition,	I	assumed	that	her
health	had	deteriorated	beyond	repair.	At	a	certain	point,	enough	cellular
machinery	has	been	damaged	that	sufficient	repairs	can	no	longer	be	made.
Though	I	was	pessimistic	about	the	likelihood	of	any	improvement,	the	family
asked	for	my	advice	anyway


7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 117/250    While these investigations were planned and carried out primarily to obtain data on the condition
of the native races in contact with modern white civilization, wherever possible, data were obtained
on the whites also. In a school for whites on Thursday Island, fifty children were examined with
regard to their dental arches, but an embarrassing situation was encountered with regard to the
sensitiveness of the whites in the matter of having their children examined for dental caries. Figures
were obtained for the facial development which reveal that, out of the fifty children examined, 64
per cent had irregularities of facial and dental arch development. In the upper half of Fig. 62, will
be seen a group of children photographed in the native school, and in the lower a group of white
girls photographed at the white school. The difference in their facial development is readily seen.
The son of the white teacher (Fig. 66, left) had marked under development of his face. The white
population lived largely on canned food.
FIG. 62. School children from the two groups on Thursday
Island. Note the beautifully proportioned faces of the
natives, and the pinched nostrils and marked disturbance in
proportions of the faces of the whites. The dental arches of
the natives are broad, while many of the whites have very
crowded teeth. The parents and children of the natives used
native foods while the parents and children of the whites
used the modern imported foods of commerce.
7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 118/250    Hammond Island adloins Thursday Island sufficiently close by to be easily reached in small
boats. Accordingly, the people of this island have access to the stores of the white settlement on
Thursday Island. Unlike Thursday Island, Hammond Island is quite fertile. Of twenty-seven
individuals, all of native stock, 16.5 per cent of their 732 teeth had been attacked by dental caries,
and 40 per cent of the individuals showed some deformity of the dental arches. After examining the
children at the mission school, I inquired whether there were not families on the island that were
living entirely isolated from contact with modern influences. I was taken to the far side of the island
to an isolated family. This family had continued to live on their own resources. They were raising
vegetables including bananas, pumpkins, and pawpaws. In the cases of the three girls in the family,
one with a child five months of age, only six of their eighty-four teeth had been attacked by tooth
decay, or 7.1 per cent, as compared with 16.5 per cent for the entire group on this island. These
three girls all had normally developed dental arches and normal features. Three of the girls are
shown in Fig. 63. We inquired about the mother and were told that she was out fishing,
notwithstanding the fact that the sea was quite rough. While we were there, she came in with two
fish (Fig. 63). Here was one of the principal secrets of their happiness and success in life. The
Catholic priest who had charge of the mission on this island told me that this family practically
never asked for assistance of any kind, and was always in a position to help others. They were
happy and well nourished. It is important to note that the progressive degeneration in facial form
which occurred in many of the families on the other islands was not found in this family.
FIG. 63. These pictures tell an interesting story. The
grandmother shown in the lower right knew the importance
of sea food for her children and grandchildren and did the
fishing herself. Note the beautiful teeth and well formed
faces of her daughters.
    The incidence of dental caries ranged from 20.6 per cent of all of the teeth examined for the
various age groups on Badu Island to 0.7 per cent, on Murray Island. A group of individuals from
this island will be seen in Fig. 64. Note the remarkable width of the dental arches. Note also in this
connection that the natives of this island are conscious of the superior food of their locality and
wish that their people were not required to purchase food from the government store. The island is
situated on the Barrier Reef and has an abundant supply of small fish. The swarms of fish are often
so dense that the natives throw a spear with several prongs into the school of fish and when the
spear is drawn back, there are several fish on it. This condition provides abundant food for sharks
many of which could be seen surrounding the schools of small fish. Encircling the group, they
dashed in, mouths open and gorged themselves with the mass of fish from the water. It seemed
quite remarkable that the people were willing to go into the water to spear the fish within the zone7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 119/250frequently approached by the sharks, but I was told by the natives that when the fish are so
abundant the sharks never attack human beings. One of the natives rowed me in his canoe to a
point where I could photograph the sharks at close range. To show his disdain for the shark, he
had no hesitancy in standing up in the end of the canoe and hurling his spear into the side of the
monster. The spear was immediately thrown out by the shark, which had not been frightened
sufficiently to make it leave the scene of action. The sharks in my pictures were swimming so close
to the shore that the upper part of the tail was forced out of the water, also the back fin, in order to
clear the bottom. It was a great revelation to watch the movement of the tail. Instead of swinging it
from side to side like other fish, with which I was familiar, the shark would rotate its tail half or
three quarters of a turn in a motion like that of a propeller of a boat, then reverse the motion for the
return trip. By a sudden increase of speed in this motion, the shark could dart ahead at a rapid
rate, corral the small fish by encircling them, and finally make a dash through the school with its
mouth open. Hundreds of the small fish, in order to escape, dart out of the water into the air. This
exposes them to the birds, a flock of which follows the sharks when they are feeding on the fish.
The birds dive down at the time they see the shark making his raid and catch the small fish as they
dart out of the water. It is by the birds of prey that the native fishermen from their lookout locate
the schools of fish. While there is a difference of opinion as to whether some species of shark will
attack human beings, we saw one pearl diver who bore enormous scars received from the jaws of
a shark.
FIG. 64. Natives on the islands of the Great Barrier Reef. The
dental arches here teach a high degree of excellence.
    The procedure on one island is to snare the sharks by calling them by means of special sounds
made by clapping together two large half shells on the surface of the water. This attracts the shark,
and then the men one at a time go into the water with a sharp stick with which they guard
themselves against attack. A noose made of rope of coconut fiber is slipped over the shark's head
and over the back fin. It is then allowed to tire out and is brought to shore. It was not unusual in a
good season for the shark fishers to bring in three or four in a night's fishing. The strength of the
native swimmers is almost beyond belief. The pearling boats are frequently in great danger of being
dashed to pieces on a coral reef, since in those waters gales of fifty miles an hour are frequent. We
experienced some such gales. On one occasion, when a pearling boat was wrecked some distance
from an exposed rock, one strong swimmer rescued and helped two dozen of the crew to the
rock, and was himself rescued after being in the water continuously for thirty-two hours. The
pearling boats feed their crew largely on commercial provisions. When the men have been
continuously on the boats for one or two years, or often when they have been at sea using this
food for six months, they have rampant tooth decay. When the cavities approach or reach the pulp7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 120/250chambers the pain produced in the teeth by the high pressure in deep water produces such agony
that they often have to give up pearling.
    Physical characteristics of all these residents of the Torres Strait Islands, regardless of their tribal
group, were, sturdy development throughout their bodies, broad dental arches, and for all of those
who had always lived only on their native food, a close proximity to one hundred per cent
immunity to dental caries. These men are natural mariners. They do not hesitate to make long trips
even in rough seas in their homemade crafts. They have an uncanny skill in determining the location
of invisible coral reefs. They relate the height of the swell as it rolls over the reef to particular color
tones in the water, all of which were too vague for me to see even when they were pointed out.
    Among the inhabitants of the Torres


; an uncomfort ably hot or painful sensation in the upper
abdomen often indicates aggrav ated Pitta; chest congestion, cough, or a cold
points to aggravated Kapha.This does not mean that the first symptoms of imbalance always show up
in these sites. An imbalance of Vata may disclose itself as lower -back pain or
menstrual cramps (you will note, though, that these symptoms still focus
attention on the lower torso, in the region of the colon). Since every dosha is
present in all parts of the body, Vata imbalance can also migrate and show up
as a headache, muscle cramp, asthma, or any of dozens of other symptoms.
Viewing illness as a problem of dosha imbalance makes prevention much
more specific, since you know your body type’ s particular strengths and
weaknesses. These tend to be permanent, or at least long-lasting. It is a rare
Vata person who has escaped insomnia his entire life, and Kapha types learn
early that they convert calories into body fat extremely easily. But what is
really important is the knowledge that all sickness can be prevented, not by
meticulously adjusting Vata, Pitta, and Kapha one at a time, but by balancing
the whole system using the doshas as your guide.Each dosha has a principal location or  seat.
BALANCE IS DYNAMIC—THE 25 GUNAS
Because they are intimately connected, the three doshas move together;
even when you think you are working on just one, the others will respond,
too. If you eat a bowl of hot chili, Pitta, the hot dosha, goes up, while the
cold doshas, Vata and Kapha, go down. A drink of cold water brings Pitta
down again, but it raises Vata and Kapha. They can be brought down byeating a little fennel seed, but that raises Pitta once more, and so on. The
doshas are connected endlessly, in the ebb and flow typical of living things.
Vata stands out in capital letters (see below) because it changes first and
drags the other two with it. This means that balancing the doshas is not like
balancing the scales of justice until things are equal. It is more like adjusting
the flow of images on a TV set, as we mentioned. In other words, the doshas
are balanced when they are in dynamic equilibrium. Change and permanence
must be allowed interplay. To help achieve this state, Ayurveda describes
certain enduring qualities evident throughout nature. There are twenty-five
of these gunas, or fundamental qualities:
These gunas are consistent in nature, whether you are speak ing of the
world at large or the human body in particular. The heart is quick and
moving—it contains Vata. Digestion and metabolism generat e heat—they
express Pitta. The mucous membranes are sticky and soft—they express
Kapha.
THE DOSHAS AND THEIR QUALITIES
The twenty-five qualities, or gunas, are the source of all the characteristics
we associate with each body type. Below are some of the leadin g qualities of
Vata, Pitta, and Kapha, along with a few of the typical charac teristics they
produce.
VATA
Vata dosha is notably:
Cold, leading to cold hands and feet, dislike of cold climates.Moving, giving good or bad circulation, depending on how well balanced
this dosha is—hypertension is related to excess Vata, as are irregular heart
rhythms, muscle spasms, and backaches. A nervous, darting glance is a sign
of imbalanced V ata.
Quick, leadin g to many related characteristics: ability to pick up new
information quickly, which is also quickly forgotten; poor long-term
memory; good imagination but frightening dreams; restless activity; acting
on impulse; mood swings; racing, scatter ed thoughts; and fast speech.
Dry, leading to dry skin, dry or dull hair, dull eyes, and scant or moderate
sweat. Skin may chap and crack easily and be subject to psoriasis or
eczema.
Rough, leading to r ough skin and coarse-textur ed hair.
PITT A
Pitta dosha is notably:
Hot, leading to warm, flushed skin, any kind of inflammation or overactive
metabolism, hot sensations in stomach, liver, intestines, and so on. Pittas are
usually fond of cold food and drinks, which offset their own heat.
Sharp, leading to a sharp mind but also sharp speech; the same quality can
turn into excess acidity in the body and oversecr etion of stomach acids.
Moist, which may show up as profuse perspiration—hot, sweaty palms are
typically Pitta. Being hot and moist gives Pittas an aversio n to humid
summer weather.
Sour-smelling, giving rise to bad breath, sour body odor, or bad-smelling
urine and feces if excess Pitta is pr esent.
KAPHA
Kapha dosha is notably:Heavy. Any heavy disorder suggests Kapha imbalance, whether it is obesity,
heavy digestion, or a heavy, oppr essive kind of depr ession.
Sweet, leading to weig ht gain or diabetes if too much sweetness is added to
the body.
Steady, which makes Kapha types self-contained. Bodily processes do not
swing to extremes; Kapha’ s steady natur e also has to do with not needing
outside stimulati on as much as Pitta or Vata. Their bodies remain unaffected
by changes that would thr ow other body types out of balance.
Soft, leading to a wide variety of characteristics, such as soft skin and hair,
soft manners, a soft look in the eyes, and an undemanding approach to
situations.
Slow, as expressed in the typically slow, fluid movements of Kapha people,
along with slow speech and deliberate thinking.
Dry, hot, and heavy are three good markers for the doshas. Whe n anything
becomes dry, Vata increases, whether it is a dry climate, the dry wind of
autumn, or dry food (popcorn, crackers, dried prunes). If your skin or sinuses
get too dry, then Vata is on the rise and probably going out of balance.
Anything hot increases Pitta. A hot day in July, a hot bath, and “hot”
emotions like anger or sexual passion share this quality. If you feel burning
sensations anywhere in your body (stomach, intestines, rectum) or your skin
becomes inflamed, Pitta is rising. Pitta is not as subtle or penetra ting as Vata;
it is aggressive and sharp.
Anything that becomes heavy increases Kapha. Gaining weight, feeling
heavy inside, or a heavy, overc ast day will all cause more Kapha dosha to
come out. If your sleep become s much heavier than usual or makes you feel
groggy instead of refreshed, then likely too much Kapha is to blame. Of all
the doshas, Kapha is the steadiest, the closest to material form.
From the Ayurvedic standpoint,  the body’ s systems exist to balance these
twenty-five gunas. All of us have to make our way through a world thatbalances hot and cold, heavy and light, rough and smooth conditions. Warm
air mass es pursue cold arctic fronts, droughts succeed floods, high tides
replace low. The play of nature is the play of these things. Ayurveda says that
we ourselves are a balanced ecology, perfectly matched to the one outside us
—we too move through contrasts that make us feel light or heavy, hot or
cold, steady or unsteady, smooth or rough.
As you begin to consider the gunas associated with a particu lar dosha,
their dynamic balance becomes more complex. Life grows more interesting,
but at the same time, remaining  in balance is more of a challe nge. This is
how nature sharpens our individuality and fine-tunes our senses. For
example, Pitta is moist as well as hot, so muggy summer conditi ons are more
challenging to Pitta people than is dry heat. Typically, a Pitta type can stand
the desert better than the tropics. But there is a deeper significance than that.
More than twenty thousand years ago, prehistoric men crossed the land
bridge that then connected Alaska and northern Asia, migrating through
every region from the Arctic north to Tierra del Fuego, almost touching the
Antarctic. The same gene pool produced Eskimos (who live almost solely on
whale blubber, seals, and fish), Mexican Indians (who live on corn and
beans), and Amazonian Indians (who live on the animals and plants of the
tropical rain forest). The DNA  in all these people is nearly identical; the
same cells, organs, enzymes, and hormones are at work. But each people has
attuned itself to a different environment—their inner ecology has learned to
adapt to the outer one. One fascinating fact about Eskimos, the Indians of
northern Mexico, and the Indians of the Amazon basin is that none of these
groups has any heart disease to speak of.
This represents almost a miracl e of natural adaptation, for none of these
people achieved their diet by thinking about it— they ate what was available
to them and relied on their bodies to strike the proper balance. Until very
recently, thinking about a diet of whale blubber would give a nutritionist
shudd


 to stop. I
immediately started feeling better and realized
that I wanted  no more chemo, even at the risk of
dying.
In December  I visited Lancaster again. My time
there was wonderful; some special herbs had
come in for me, and I was given a primordial
sound technique to use at home. At the end of
December, another bone scan showed no change.
This conﬁrmed my belief that chemo was
superﬁcial. I conti nued my technique s, and when
I returned in March, three months later, the bone
scan showed that all but one tiny pocket was
gone.
The radiologist smiled and said he didn’t know
how this could have happened without chemo. He
hugged me, and when I left, he said, “This will
make history.” My family doctor called the
radiologist for a full interpretation of the scans;he got oﬀ the phone and told me that I was almost
completely recovered.
As I got the news, I couldn’t stop the tears from
welling up. I wondered how I could  have ever
doubted this result. Touched by love and nature’s
perfection, I had one quiet, soft desire, to go sit
again against the earth, surrounded by peace in a
celebration of spring ﬂowers, and to enjoy all that
has happened and all that I am.
In closing, I have to add that I am realistic; I
understand the typical Western approach to this
event. I also know that there are great
possibilities here. All the truths of my expe rience
somehow add up to one truth, but when I think
I’ve grasped it, it slips away. It leaves me feeling
humble and rather silly for trying to take apart
the wholeness. But I am very, very peaceful and
comfortable, having been assured again and
again that the wholeness is perfection.
Eleanor has come a very long way. Last year she was in
the worst category for surviving her disease; now many
authorities like Dr. Ikemi would consider her case a
spontaneous regression. Her general health is good; there
is no sign of the body wasting away. Eight months after
undergoing the last chemotherapy, her bone cancer has
dwindled until there is only one small shadow on her X
rays, and this has not deﬁnitely proven to be cancerous.
Her blood chemistry, which became abnormal as the result
of active disease, has now returned to the normal range—
this is much stronger proof than the X rays that Eleanor is
getting well.
I have no fear for her now, even if she had to begin her
battle again. Eleanor is beyond battles—she radiates the
peacefulness she writes about, and spending time with hermakes me feel happy and secure, all the more because I
understand how rare her peace is. From the despair of
disease she has discover ed joy. At the moment when the
memory of health returned, it brought her enough power to
last a lifetime.
EXPANDING THE TOPIC
The simple deﬁnition of quantum healing given in this
chapter is that quantum healing brings peace. I believe this
is still true, perhaps more than ever. At the time I was
writing, inﬂammation hadn’t been connected to cancer,
heart disease, and a host of lifestyle disorders.
Inﬂammation is a mystifying phenomenon, because it’s
needed as a crucial part of the healing system (bringing
extra blood to the disea sed or injured area, triggering a
cascade of complex chemical interactions at the site) while
in its most acute state, such as the inﬂammation that
occurs during severe burns, it can be fatal.
The most troubling kind of inﬂammation is chronic and
low level, which is one reason it took medical science so
long to identify it as a culprit. But the internal war I wrote
about is chronic, too, whether we are speaking of
inﬂammation, stress, or imbalances that lie below the level
of producing  symptoms. (In my view, inﬂamed emotions are
likely to be just as damaging to cells.) Western medicine is
catching up with Ayurveda in this regard. Thousands of
years ago Ayurvedic physicians focused on subtle
imbalances that pushed the body out of its natural balance
and ease.
Saying that your body needs to be aligned with Nature
sounds very nonmedic al. It’s more like homespun
philosophy. In the ﬁfteen years I practiced endocrinology
before lookin g into meditation and alternative therapies, Iwould have shrugged oﬀ this piece of advice. Thirty years
later, it resonates very deeply. I see the human body as
having cosm ic implicatio ns. It is the interface between a
single individ ual and Nature as a whole. In the early part of
the twentieth century a poor boy from India named Jiddu
Krishnamurti was scooped up by spiritually minded
Westerners and for a time declared to be the next “world
teacher” after Buddha and Jesus.
Krishnamurti’s life story is fascinating, because although
he renounced the grandiose title being foisted upon him, he
seems to have been some one Jeﬀery Wright would  place in
Location 4, where consciousness becomes free of
boundaries. At the very end of his long life—he died in
1986, at age ninety—Krishnamurti became a public ﬁgure
for a second time. Now he was a white-ha ired ﬁgure of
wisdom, an image that ﬁt a little awkwardly. He was too
tart and impatient, too rational and inquisitive, to be
anyone’s idea of a comforting, otherworldly guru.
You can see a YouTube video* from Madras, India, in
1980 where a very frail but alert Krishnamurti is asked a
written question. “You often switch over from mind to
brain. Is there any diﬀere nce between them?”
Krishnamurti’s reply begins with an apology. If he used the
words mind  and brain  interc hangeably, it was a slip of the
tongue. He muses for a second before answering the
question with a question. “Is the mind something
untouched by the brain? Is the mind not the result of time,
while the brain is?”
In a nutshell  he has described the mystery of time and
the timeless. As creatures  of the brain, human beings live
in the realm of time, and yet our minds keep returning to
the timeless. Quantum physics oﬀers one lens for
examining how spacetime came about, but ultim ately, the
investigations of science run into a contradiction. The
brain, in trying to examine the quantum ﬁeld, is itself aquantum phenomenon. Every atom in the brain is reducible
to a quivering vibration in the quantum ﬁeld, and each
wave vanishes into multi dimensional Hilbert space, whose
existence is purely mathematical.
In other words, relying on a quantum object to explain
quantum reality is like asking a robot to build itself from
scattered parts lying around the ﬂoor. You have to have a
plan—instructions, a blueprint, a conception—for the robot
to follow before it can do anything. If someone produced a
robot that could build itself from scratch, the machine
would be a hoax or a delusion. Somewhere behind the
physical apparatus, a mind must set the agenda. The same
is true of the brain. It is just a thing in a world of things,
with no privileged position. The atoms in your cerebral
cortex aren’t  smarter than the atoms in a lump of sugar or
in the dust picked up by a vacuum cleaner, because atoms
aren’t smart to begin with. Only mind is.
It’s not hard to grasp that a robot can’t build itself from
scratch without instructions, but the human brain doesn’t
come with a manual, and we witness it doing all kinds of
things on its own, like a player piano that produces the
inﬁnite variety of music without anyone touching the keys.
For this reason, neuroscience will continue to be
materialistic for quite a while longer; it’s much easier to
take apart a player piano than to explain the invisible
pianist.
Krishnamurti, like the ancient Vedic sages, found a way
beyond the duality of mind and brain. It begins with self-
awareness. If you look at how your brain is operating, he
says, you’ll see what a narrow groove your thinking follows
and how mechanical it is. Our education and careers, the
perspective of science and engineering, our mem ories—all
contribute to conditioning our thoughts. (In a wry aside,
Krishnamurti remarks that neuroscience is beginning to
view all of life as conditioned by the brain, “which  we havebeen talking about endlessly.” He spent decades trying to
get his listeners to break away from the conditioning of the
brain, but few understood what he meant.)
“A thought is a material process. There is nothing sacred
about thought,” Krishnamurti points out. When you go to a
temple, when you project a happy future, when you
entertain idealistic hopes, all


body examined was, for more or less lengthy periods before death, free from drug dosage, offering for examination tissues
unaffected by recent artificial chemical stimulus or destructive change from similar cause.

Human progress has ever been associated with constant discovery, and it would show not only deficiency in judgment but ac tual
mental incapacity to decry the achievements of earnest and conscientious seekers after truth among men of medicine. The autho r,
however, differs from these scientists in a number of respects, principally because she has always been of the opinion that  the
outstanding need of humanity is public health education; and, while she has indicated that medicine is finally awake to this need,
too many of its practitioners still are devoted to pathological rather than to physiological investigation. Heretofore t he day book of
the family physician consisted of a record of visits to households for the treatment of measles, scarlet fever, diphtheria, t yphoid
fever, or malaria. The man was educated to treat disease and knew little of preventive measures, sanitation, hygiene, or diet, nor
did his medical curriculum provide such knowledge. Too long has the medical doctor studied disease and death to the exclusion  of
health and life. Hence again it is stated that, while the facts presented in the text are intended primar ily for lay intelligence, yet,
since they are in all instances corroborated, earnest investigation should follow on the part of those men of science who are  not
bound by prejudice to reject every cult not sanctioned by the traditions and doctrines of their  own system of practice.

Page 2 of  72 The aim of medical investigation for many years has been largely towards the classification of the symptoms of disease and th e
segregation of the micro -organisms discovered in its presence. Because of this the medical physician m ay and often does delay
specific treatment until symptoms develop to a point where what he considers an accurate diagnosis may be made. It is not tho ught
that any intelligent mind will differ with the author when she says that the first things to be consid ered in the sick -room, the first
things that the practitioner of natural therapy considers, are the possibility of recovery and the necessity for prompt and e fficient
action along lines that tend to the eradication of the cause of disease.

The gospel of good health is based upon the principles of prevention of disease, and there will be found in the introduction to the
second edition of this work, published in 1908, these words: "No one knows better than the thinking member of the medical
profession that the time is at hand when prevention rather than cure will be the keynote of therapeutics." That this prophecy, for
such it has proved, is in part realized, is shown in the trend of thought in every recent article on the subject of medical p rogress in
autho ritative professional publications. The family physician now is urged to educate his patients and his community in preventive
measures, and so to place himself towards his clientele that his chief service will be one of keeping them well rather than o ne of
curing them when ill. This means that medicine, while still recognizing the specialist, also recognizes that the family physi cian as a
class must form the foundation of all true health service, and that he must maintain most intimate relations with those for whom his
guidance is required.

This is exactly what the practitioners of natural therapy have been doing for the past half century and more. For they have e ver
contended that true perception of cause and effect is the mother of the physician, and tha t in this understanding there can exist no
doubt as to remedy. In other words, not man but nature is the doctor, and nature indicates her curative processes in the exis ting
state of disease. And they who follow nature in her physical law further contend th at whatever information they acquire of the
procedure through which natural curative processes are carried on shall freely be given to their patients, so that in the fut ure the
latter may in great measure be relieved of dependency upon professional guidanc e.

The upbuilding and the maintenance of the human body lie wholly with its individual possessor, and he should be cognizant of its
parts and of the conserving tasks which they perform to the uttermost degree of knowledge. Ignorance in these respects is a
universal fault resulting from the custom of depending upon others for specialized information. The message contained in the
pages that follow, if rightly perceived and executed, in large degree substitutes for a state of blind dependence upon unharm onized
fact and theory one of reliance upon self and natural law.

LINDA BURFIELD HAZZARD
Wilderness Heights,
Olalla, Wash.

PART ONE : HISTORICAL

CHAPTER I
THE PIONEERS OF THERAPEUTIC FASTING IN AMERICA

DR. TANNER'S FORTY DAY FASTS:
FASTING EXPERIEN CES OF DR. E. H. DEWEY:
BRIEF ACCOUNT OF DR. HAZZARD'S WORK FOR THIRTY YEARS

IN THIS chapter the author proposes to speak of her personal acquaintance and friendship with those two pioneers in the cause  of
natural therapy whose names and deeds stand for th as do none other by reason of their intellectuality, their courage, and their
ability to grasp the fundamental truths which more or less accidentally were revealed to each of them approximately at the sa me
time. The chapter also purposes a short resume of the contribution of the author to therapeutic fasting and of the difficulties and
persecution to which she has been subjected.

It is now about half a century since the newspapers of this country were filled with articles dealing with Dr. Henry S. Tann er and
his claim that he had gone without food for forty -two days. One of my purposes in writing this chapter is to dissipate the fiction
that the fasts that Dr. Tanner undertook were made in order to attract notorietyófor the mere sake of advertisement Th ey were not.
Naturally these fasts attracted attention, and such periods of abstention from food still would attract attention were they b rought to
public notice. But Dr. Tanner had another object in view, and it is best expressed in his own words as conta ined in a personal letter
dated December 28, 1911.

He says: "I really believe that I am entitled to be called the father of therapeutic fasting in this country, for away back i n 1877 I had
given up hopes of ever regaining what might be called normal heal th. I was then in Minneapolis in the practice of my profession,
and, after a strenuous time with a patient critically ill, I virtually collapsed. I was at such a low ebb physically and ment ally at the
time that I did not care whether I lived or died, and I  determined that, since my drugs gave me no relief, I would starve myself to
death ere I again would suffer the physical misery that had been mine for months preceding. I accordingly told Dr. Moyer, my
Page 3 of  72 consulting companion, that I would not again eat food until I was dead or recovered in health." It will be remembered that Dr.
Tanner was a fully accredited doctor of medicine.

The facts as recorded are these. On the 15th of July, 1877, Dr. Henry S Tanner was called in consultation with Dr. A. Moyer o f
Minn eapolis, Minnesota, to attend a critical case that detained them late into the night. The next day Dr. Tanner felt ill and di d not
leave his room. During the day he drank some milk, as he did on the day following. But this was the last food taken by him un til
August 29th following, a period of forty -two days. Both Dr. Tanner and Dr. Moyer concurred in the opinion that from the
viewpoint of medical diagnostics the symptoms in the case were those of low gastric fever. During "treatment" Dr. Tanner
occupied a room in the home of Dr. Moyer, and he was not at any time confined to his bed. He took during the entire forty -two
days of abstinence nothing but water into his stomach, but of this he drank freely when thirsty.

At the end of ten days of fasting the symp toms of his disorder disappeared; he gained in strength, and in every way showed
physical and mental improvement. Dr. Moyer, however, frequently remonstrated with Dr. Tanner for pursuing what he, Dr. Moyer,
believed to be a suicidal course, but Dr. Tanner persisted, and we have in the small volume, Forty Days Without Food, a record of
the full fast from Dr. Moyer's pen. The latter says, after detailing the daily experiences of his "patient" for forty days:

"The case continued until I became alarmed, and I  strenuously urged Dr. Tanner to allay his gastric irritation by taking milk, which
he finally consented to do. The next forenoon --that of the forty -second day of fasting --he ate a cracker and drank some lemonade,
but this his stomach rejected." In the lig ht of more recent knowledge of the therapeutics of fasting this experience was to be
expected. But later on the same day Dr. Tanner went downtown, and, coming home within half an hour, said to Dr. Moyer, "Well,
Doctor, I think I have finished affairs for g ood. I not only have taken a pint of milk, but have eaten five pears and half a good -sized
watermelon. "


 stimulate digestive juices, and
a teaspoon of slippery elm powder in warm water before meals can ease
discomfort due to g astro -intestinal inflammations.
Warning:  Candida overgrowth may also cause overproduction of gastric
acid, causing gastric or duodenal ulcers and inflammation of the
intestinal wall. Therefore, observe and experiment to find out if you have
too much or too little gastric acid.
 53
 MICROBIAL SANITA TION
Microbial sanitation or restoring a healthy gastro -intestinal flora is the
next important step. Without this most of our incurable diseases will
indeed remain incurable due to the Leaky Gut Syndrome which wears
down the immune system and lets Candida,  mycoplasmas and other
microbes invade the blood and various organs.
Microbial sanitation consists of a combination of antimicrobial and
especially antifungal remedies, diet, as well as probiotics and prebiotics.
Probiotics are cultures of suitable live m icrobes to repopulate the
intestines, while prebiotics are the food on which these beneficial
microbes grow best.
First you prepare for intestinal sanitation by improving your diet as
outlined in the previous chapters. Then you start with the psyllium -garlic
cleanse but if you find that you cannot tolerate garlic or cannot use it for
social reasons then try hydrogen p eroxide or experiment with other
microbicides to find a suitable replacement. Very good are turmeric paste
and ginger. Preferably use also psyllium and bicarbonate for one to two
weeks before starting the systemic antimicrobial therapy.
When taking high d oses of antimicrobials as recommended in Chapter 5
you may stop or cut back using garlic or hydrogen peroxide but use them
again if gastro -intestinal problems resurface at a later time. An additional
or alternative method of removing microbial overgrowth f rom the gastro -
intestinal tract is with high -dose alkalizing as outlined in Chapter 3 for
advanced cancer.
The Garlic Cleanse
Fresh, raw garlic has powerful antimicrobial and especially fungicidal
properties. Even in a dilution of more than 1:1000 it sti ll kills bacteria and
fungi. When garlic is crushed its enzymes form allicin from the stable
alliin. Allicin has an active oxygen atom that kills microbes by oxidizing
the cell walls. Lactobacilli also tend to kill other microbes with oxygen
(from hydrogen  peroxide), and therefore are less susceptible to garlic
than Candida.  54
 To minimize unpleasant reactions, such as headaches, nausea and
other gastro -intestinal discomfort it is preferable (but not essential)
initially to take the garlic together with a flush before breakfast. Crush or
chop a  large clove of garlic, mix and drin k it with some  water, and
immediately follow this with the refrigerated Epsom salt or magnesium
chloride flush and  more water.
During the following mornings you may use less of the laxative salts or
take a milder laxative instead. Do this for a minimum o f three days, and
in advanced conditions preferably for one to two weeks before starting
with the systemic antimicrobial therapy. With bowel problems it can be
very helpful in addition to swallow a peeled clove of garlic whole at
bedtime with some liquid.
If you cannot take garlic in this way, and also for children, you may put
the crushed or chopped garlic into gelatine capsules. If you cannot take
garlic for other reasons then use chopped or grated ginger, or one of the
other antimicrobial remedies mentioned in the next chapter; similar if you
can use garlic only during the  weekend because of work or social
conditions.
Psyllium Hulls
Psyllium is excellent  and most recommend for long -term use. When
mixed with water psyllium hulls greatly expand to form a jelly. This can
be used as a mild laxative to carry a microbicide through the whole of the
intestinal tract, and it also binds toxic microbial compounds or  endotoxins
and removes them from the body. This can help greatly to reduce
allergies and autoimmune reactions.
However, the effect of psyllium depends on the amount of water in which
it is suspended. If too little water is used it becomes too concentrated  or
sticky and is then constipating. This can be useful in case of diarrhoea,
but for use as a laxative it needs to be taken with plenty of water.
You may continue taking psyllium for most of the time that you are on an
intensive antimicrobial program. If  you are not constipated and have
already  several daily bowel movements then you may even start the 55
 garlic cleanse with  psyllium instead of a flush with laxative salts.
Dissolve a teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate in a large glass of water, add
some chopped garlic, possibly some ground linseed, and finally a
teaspoon of psyllium hulls. Stir and drink immediately, followed by some
more water.
When garlic cannot be used you m ay try a teaspoonful of 3% hydrogen
peroxide mixed with the psyllium drink. If that goes well, double the
amount of hydrogen peroxide the next day, and following that you may
try three teaspoons. Alternatively,  you may add extract of olive leaf or
pau d'ar co, wormwood, or several drops of gum turpentine or of oils of
tea tree, neem tree, oregano or eucalyptus, or any other suitable
fungicide.
If you develop unpleasant symptoms, such as nausea, after taking the
garlic or other microbicides, but the psyllium or a flush is not sufficient to
produce a strong bowel movement within two to three hours then use an
enema or another dose of a strong laxative.
Should you ever need to take a course of antibiotics, chemotherapy or
cortisone -type drugs then take a fungicide during this time as well, e.g.
garlic or high -dose borax, or extract of olive leaf or hydrogen peroxide,
and possibly use probiotics about half  an hour after taking the drugs.
Fresh ginger also has antifungal and antibacterial properties and  is a
good digestive aid. Cayenne is useful in addition. You may use both as
additions to the psyllium drink, or to flavour foods and drinks.
The most eff ective way of cleansing the intestines is the Basic Cleanse
explained in Chapter 6. During the last 5 days the intestines are filled
with soft psyllium that sticks to the intestinal walls, softens hardened
crusts and biofilms in which microbes are hiding. When flushing it all out
the biofilms will be flushed out as well, leaving the intestinal walls clean,
and any remaining Candida and parasites unprotected against follow -up
antimicrobial remedies.
Instead of the whole Basic Cleanse you may just do the las t five days of 56
 psyllium cleansing. This is an essential therapy for serious bowel
problems such as cancer, Crohn's disease and inflammatory bowel
diseases.
Do this Intestinal Sanitation for a minimum of three days but preferably
for one to two weeks before starting the systemic antimicrobial therapy.
Continue taking psyllium with bicarbonate until you feel well again.
Aloe Vera juice
Aloe Vera juice, fresh or even dried, assists in the treatment of infectious
diseases by helping to sanitise the gastr o-intestinal tract. It is excellent
for gastro -intestinal irritation, inflammation, ulcers and Crohn’s Disease.
If there is no improvement, try another brand. Take as much as you can
tolerate without getting diarrhoea. If available, use it fresh from the
garden. Avoid yellow leaves and yellow sap at the base of a leaf as this
is a strong irritant and laxative.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is excellent for controlling intestinal dysbiosis as it is
very effective against Candida and other fungi while less damaging to
our good intestinal bacteria. A healthy immune system routinely
produces hydrogen peroxide to kill microbes. If you continue having
gastro -intestinal problems after using psyllium and garlic, or as an added
insurance have a course of hydro gen peroxide.
You may dilute 35% hydrogen peroxide or  buy 3% or 6% peroxide from
a supermarket or pharmacy. Any stabilizers are usually harmless in the
low concentrations present. Best dilute peroxide for daily use to about
3% by adding 1 part of 35% peroxide to 10 parts of water. One teaspoon
of 3% peroxide is equivalent to about 12 drops of 35% peroxide. Be
careful handling 35% hydrogen peroxide, flush any accidental spills on
clothes or skin immediately with water or immerse in water.
Start taking just a few drops of 3% peroxide in a small glass of water.
Gradually increase to 1 teaspoon or more four times daily before meals
and at bedtime. If you have a reaction temporarily decrease again.  57
 To disguise the strong aftertaste, lick some molass es beforehand to coat
your tongue, swallow quickly and possibly have some coffee or
cinnamon flavoured drink afterwards.
You may continue this for a month or two and then reduce the intake to
only once before breakfast. In addition, use hydrogen peroxide  to