, the cost of participating in a maximally effective life extension prog ram
will escalate. However, those who can afford chemically enhanced functioning will enjoy certain side -benefits. Their productive,
enjoyable life spans may measure well over a century, perhaps approaching two centuries or more. Some of these substances
greatly improve intelligence so they will become brighter and have faster reaction times. With more time to accumulate more
wisdom and experience than "short livers" these folks will become wiser, too. They will have more time to compound their
investment a ssets and thus will become far more wealthy. They will become an obvious and recognizable aristocracy. This new
upper class will immediately recognize each other on the street because they will look entirely different than the short -lived poorer
folk and w ill probably run the political economic system. And this new aristocratic society I see coming may be far more pleasant than the one dominated by the oligarchy we now have
covertly running things. For with greater age and experience does really come gr eater wisdom. I have long felt that the biggest
problem with Earth is that we did not live long enough. As George Bernard Shaw quipped when he was 90 (he lived to 96), "here  I
am, 90 years old, just getting out of my adolescence and getting some sense, and  my body is falling apart as fast as it can." Vitamin Program For The Sick
    No matter which way you look at it or how well insured you may be against it, being sick is expensive (not to mention what it
does to one's quality of life), and by far the best thing to do is to prevent it from happening in the first place. However, most people
do not do anything about their health until forced to by some painful condition. If you are already sick there are a number o f
supplements you can take which have the potential to shorten the duration and severity of the illness, and hopefully p revent a
recurrence. The sicker you are, the more supplements you will require; as health is regained, the dosage and variety of substances can be
reduced. In chronic illness, megadoses of many nutrients are usually beneficial. Any sick adult should b egin a life extension
vitamin program unless they are highly allergic to so many things already that they can not tolerate many kinds of vitamins a s
well. In addition to the life extension program, vitamin C should be taken by the chronically ill at a dose  from 10 to 25 grams
daily, depending on the severity of the condition. Many people want to know whether or not they should take their regular food supplements during a fast. On a water fast most
supplements in a hard tablet form will not be broken dow n at all, and often can be seen floating by in the colonic viewing tube
looking exactly like it did when you swallowed it. This waste can be avoided by crushing or chewing (yuck) the tablets, befor e
swallowing. Encapsulated vitamins usually are absorbed, b ut if you want to make sure, open the capsule and dump it in the back of
your mouth before swallowing with water. Powdered vitamins are well absorbed. On a water fast the body is much more sensitive to any substance introduced, so as a general rule it  is not a good idea to take
more than one half your regular dose of food supplements. Most fasters do fine without any supplements. Many people get an
upset stomach from supplements on an empty stomach, and these people should not take any during a water f ast unless they
develop symptoms of mineral deficiencies (usually a pre -existing condition) such as leg cramps and tremors, these symptoms
necessitate powdered or well -chewed -up mineral supplement. Minerals don't taste too bad to chew, just chalky. The same suggestions regarding dosage of supplements for a water fast are also true for a juice fast or vegetable broth fast. O n a
raw food cleansing diet the full dose of supplements should be taken with meals. There exists an enormous body of data abou t vitamins; books and magazine articles are always touting some new product or
explaining the uses of an old one. If you want to know more about using ordinary vitamins you'll find leads in the bibliograp hy to
guide your reading. However, there is one "old " vitamin and a few newer and relatively unknown life extending substances that are
so useful and important to handling illness that I would like to tell you more about them. Vitamin C is not a newly discovered vitamin, but was one of the first ever id entified. If you are one of those people that just hate
taking vitamins, and you were for some reason willing to take only one, vitamin C would be your best choice. Vitamin C would be
the clear winner because it helps enormously with any infection and in i nvaluable in tissue healing and rebuilding collagen. If I
was going on a long trip and didn't want to pack a lot of weight, my first choice would be to insure three to six grams of vi tamin C
for daily use when I was healthy (I'd take the optimum dose –ten g rams a day –if weight were no limitation). I'd also carry enough
extra C to really beef up my intake when dealing with an unexpected acute illness or accident. When traveling to far away places, exposed to a whole new batch of organisms, frequently hav ing difficulty finding healthy
foods, going through time zones, losing nights of sleep, it is easy to become enervated enough to catch a local cold or flu. If I have
brought lots of extra vitamin C with me I know that my immune system will be able to conqu er just about anything –as long as I
also stop eating and can take an enema. I also like to have vitamin C as a part of my first aid kit because if I experience a
laceration, a sprain, broken bone, or a burn, I can increase my internal intake as well as app ly it liberally directly on the damaged
skin surface. Vitamin C can be put directly in the eye in a dilute solution with distilled water for infections and injuries,  in the ear
for ear infections, and in the nose for sinus infections. If you are using the acid form of C (ascorbic acid) and it smarts too much,
make a more dilute solution, or switch to the alkaline form of C (calcium ascorbate) which can be used as a much more
concentrated solution without a stinging sensation. Applied directly on the skin C in solution makes a very effective substitute for
sun screen. It doesn't filter out ultraviolet, it beefs up the skin to better deal with the insult. I believe vitamin C can deal with a raging infection such as pneumonia as well or better than antibiot ics. But to do that, C is
going to have to be administered at the maximum dose the body can process. This is easily discoverable by a 'bowel tolerance test'
which basically means you keep taking two or three grams of C each hour, (preferably in the powdere d, most rapidly assimilable
form) until you get a runny stool (the trots). The loose stool happens when there is so much C entering the small intestine t hat it is
not all absorbed, but is instead, passed through to the large intestine. At that point cut ba ck just enough that the stool is only a little
loose, not runny. At this dose, your blood stream will be as saturated by vitamin C as you can achieve by oral ingestion. It can make an important difference which type of vitamin C is taken because many people are unable to tolerate the acid form
of C beyond 8 or 10 grams a day, but they can achieve a therapeutic dose without discomfort with the alkaline (buffered) vita min
C products such as calcium ascorbate, sodium ascorbate, or magnesium -potassium asco rbates. Vitamin C also speeds up the healing of internal tissues and damaged connective tissue. Damaged internal tissues might includ e
stomach ulcers (use the alkaline form of vitamin C only), bladder and kidney infections (acid form usually best), ar thritic disorders
with damage to joints and connective tissue (alkaline form usually best). Sports injuries heal up a lot faster with a therape utic dose
of vitamin C. As medicine, vitamin C should be taken at the rate of one or two grams every two hours (d epending on the severity
of the condition), spaced out to avoid unnecessary losses in the urine which happens if it were taken ten grams at a time. If  you
regularly use the acid form of vitamin C powder, which is the cheapest, be sure to use a straw and di ssolve it in water or juice so
that the acid does not dissolve the enamel on your teeth over time. And this is as good a point as any to mention that just like broccoli is not broccoli, a vitamin is not necessarily a vitamin. Vitamins are made by chemi cal and pharmaceutical companies. To make this confusion even more interesting, the business names
that appear on vitamin bottles are not the real manufacturers. Bronson's Pharmaceuticals is a distributor and marketer, not a
manufacturer. The same is true of every vitamin company I know of. These companies buy bulk product by the barrel or sack; then
encapsulate, blend and roll pills, bottle and label, advertise and make profit. The point of all this is that some actual vit amin
manufacturers produce very hi gh quality products and others shortcut. Vitamin distributors must make ethical (or unethical)
choices about their suppliers. It is beyond the scope of this book to be a manual for going into the vitamin business. However, there


 retention increases, the bladder becomes more sensitive
and the difficulty of urination increases. Cystitis, inflammation of the lining membrane of the
bladder due to residual urine, caused in turn by retention from prostatic enlargement, is quite
123common in elderly men. Urethritis—inflammation of the lining membrance of the urethra—also
results from the irritation. The membranes, these inner skins that line the bladder and urethra, are mucous membranes and
resemble the membranes lining the nose, mouth and throat. Hence, when these membranes become
inflamed, we have a profuse flow of mucus or what is commonly known as a catarrhal condition. Long and continuous inflammation of the neck of the bladder ends in ulceration with slight
hemorrhage, so that bleeding is sometimes seen, although this is not a common development. Cancer rarely occurs in this condition. When the irritated tissue has hardened it has taken the first
step along the road to cancer. Cancer of the prostate is not an uncommon condition, but it is rare
compared with the number of cases of enlarged prostate that develop. Physicians say that the cause of prostatitis is unknown. We see in it another development out of
wrong life. Excesses in eating and drinking and in sex seem to be the most common causes. Because no attention is given to these phases of the living habits of the sufferer, the condition tends
to grow progressively worse. I recall a conversation I had with a man who suffered with prostatic enlargement but three years
ago. Describing his symptoms to me and the medical treatment he was getting, he added, “I eat like
a horse.” His physician had not instructed him about his eating, but was content to try to palliate
his discomforts with drugs and X-rays. No satisfactory palliation for prostatic disease had been evolved. Operations to remove the
gland or part of it, injections to shrink the gland, and all other treatments that have been tried, have
proved to be highly unsatisfactory. Why? Because there are no treatments that antidote wrong life. The
manner of living that results
in engorgement and enlargement—also called hypertrophy—of the prostate gland cannot be
counteracted by drugs and surgery. It will be necessary to correct the way of life. When enlargement of the prostate and strangury (drop urine) have evolved, with their pain and
regrets, a good surgeon can end the patient’s misery—permanently. Thousands have died as a
result of prostatic operations. Perfect drainage is required for a successful operation on the
prostate gland and this is not possible. For this reason, when a surgeon assures you. “The operation does not amount to anything; you’ll
be up and out in three days,” it would be well to ask him: “Out where?” All too often it is out in
the cemetery. At present the better surgeons do not like to remove the prostate. Walter C. Alvarez, M.D., says
of this: “For myself I would have only one type of operation performed, and that would be the
transurethral, which is perfomed through a ligated tube which is passed down through the urethra. “The only difficulty with this operation is that it requires much skill, and when much prostatic
tissue has been removed, the urologist must be able to operate with speed.”
With all the skill and speed the urologist may be able to exercise, the operation is still mere
palliation. It removes no cause, it restores no health. When cause is untouched it continues to build
more trouble. At one time operations on the prostate gland were more popular than they are now. The loss of
popularity was due to the high death rate which seems to have been about twenty-five percent, and
to the great aftermath of trouble. The man who has an operation for enlargement of the prostate and
survives the operation has not settled his account with nature. Indeed, the resort to surgery almost
guarantees that he shall not be restored to health. A troublesome prostate is the result of continued practice of habits that no self-respecting man
124will continue after he has learned the truth. From the systemic and not merely local effects of these
bad habits, surgery can provide but temporary relief. Prostatic surgery is intended to enable ignorant old men to side-step the results of breaking the
laws of biology in their mental and physical habits. To give up the physical and mental bad habits
that build prostatitis will enable these patients to get well, providing the change of habits takes
place early enough. Advanced prostatitis is a condition that can be completely remedied only in a small percentage
of cases, but those so afflicted can be taught how to live to make their lives more comfortable and
to greatly prolong life. Once the prostate gland has enlarged, there seems to be a strong tendency
for it to enlarge again on slight provocation. Even after it has been brought down to normal size, it
re-enlarges with ease and speed if the patient does not rigidly adhere to a healthful way of life. I have seen prostate glands that were as large as baseballs and nearly as
hard—cases in which a
catheter (an instrument used to draw off urine) had been inserted and used because the passing of
urine was a painful process. The enlargement was reduced to nearly normal size in a week, the
hardness was entirely dissolved, so that urination was normal after proper care was given. Commonly, however, more time than this is required to reduce the prostate. In some cases it does not seem possible to reduce all of the enlargement, but it may be reduced
so that the urine flows freely, all discomforture in the back, hips and legs (and sometimes lumbago
and sciatica, which are not present all the time) are relieved. This is all accomplished by stopping
enervating habits, putting the patient to bed and stopping all food. Men who have prostatic enlargement are forced to get up frequently at night to pass urine. The
irritated bladder will not retain urine in a normal manner. The nightly promenading interferes with
sleep and this results in further eneveration. I have seen these patients who were forced to be up as many as fifteen to twenty times a night. I
have seen them, after a few days of fasting, sleep thirteen hours in a stretch without having to void
urine. Men who had great difficulty in passing urine were able to do so as freely as when they
were boys. In only a small percentage of these cases is this improvement permanent. I have seen numerous
instances in which the enlargement recurred within two or three weeks. Overeating will result in a
speedy re-enlargment of the prostate. Nervous excitement, over-work, sexual excesses, and a
variety of other enervating indulgences will do the same. Tea, coffee, tobacco, alcohol and other
stimulants quickly cause the enlargement to recur. The fast in these cases provides only temporary relief if the way of life is not changed. The
engorgement and enlargement of the prostate gland may be reduced by a fast, but this is not all that
is necessary to the restoration of health. A short fast is certainly inadequate to reduce the prostate
more than a small amount. It will make urination easier and relieve some of the distress, but a few
days afterward the trouble will be as severe as ever, unless radical, sweeping changes in the ways
of life are made. The fast may be used as a means of controlling the enlargement in those cases where it cannot be
permanently eliminated. If indiscretions in eating or in other facets of living have resulted in re-
enlargement of the gland, a fast of one to two days is commonly enough to restore a free urine flow
and relieve the discomfort and difficulty. This may be repeated at intervals as need arises. But no amount of fasting will compensate for
the failure to correct completely the mode of life. If the way of life is not changed, fasting becomes
a mere palliative and, though far less harmful than other forms of palliation, leads the individual to
125depend upon palliation rather than a radical correction of cause. 12631
Gonorrhea
“I have gonorrhea; what shall I do?” The voice came over the telephone from a near-by city. The
caller was advised to fast at once, with rest. “But I have to work, my business requires my attention. I cannot fast. Would it not be better to
take penicillin?”
Penicillin would suppress the symptoms he was told, but they would recur in a brief time. After
a short discussion, he decided to take penicillin. A few days later he called again and triumphantly
announced that he had taken penicillin, this being administered by a local physician, and that his
symptoms had all speedily cleared up. It was an old story, but one that he did not understand. Several more days passed and he called again. “The symptoms have returned,” he said. “What do I do now?”
Again he was advised to fast. Again he said that he could not fast. A fruit diet was urged. He
said he would try it. Eventually, after repeated failures by other methods, he went on a fast and
was soon free of his symptoms with no recurrence. “Failure Against Gonorrhea.” was the significant title of a press release made in December,
1962, by the World Health Organization. The experts on gonorrheal infection of WHO reported
that “in spite” of the widespread employment of penicillin and other “powerful anti-biotics”
complete failure


 my home town of Hereford as "A Town Without a Toothache." Altogether what I saw in the Ca rolina iodine belt confirmed my
theory: whether in Hereford, Charleston, New Orleans, New York or
Los Angeles, if the people only will  eat Nature's food, produced in
completely fertile soil, in ample variety, and will drink plenty of
whole raw milk, produced from fertile pastures, they can avoid
toothache and most other aches that commonly plague mankind. On the other hand, during my leisurely trip through Alabama,
Florida and Georgia that year, I was struck particularly by the inhabitants' lean and hungry look. In that part of the country, though he may eat his fill every day,
the average person is undernourished. The reason for that is plain to be
seen. The soil is thin and worn out. More than one hundred years of
cotton farming have robbed it of nitrogen, and washed most of the
topsoil into the creeks and rivers that carried it down to the sea. On top of that, what foodstuff the people do get from their scant
soil is largely spoiled by refining. Most persons in those parts won't
eat whole wheat grain or bread made of it. They demand white flour, with the grain's most valuable mine rals and vitamins taken out. They
want that flour made into hot bisc uits to eat with butter and syrup. They won't use the outer green leaves on a head of lettuce. They won't
chop a head of cabbage or a bunch of carrots and eat them raw. That is
saying, people back east are very much like people in Texas. I say that people living in the southeast could have as sound teeth
as Dr. Taylor and his staff found in Deaf Smith County, Texas. To
begin with, they might enrich their soil with whatever minerals a
chemist's analysis showed to be lacking—not neglecting to add plenty
of organic matter, whether in the form of manure, compost or plowed
under trash. Next, the people might eat the food crop, just as it came from the
soil—lots of it raw and none of it refined. As evidence I found there convinces me, the South Carolina
iodine belt even today—though some of it has been farmed for almost
300 years—contains all the elements required to build sound bodies,
including sound teeth. Furthermore, I do not doubt there could be sufficient food crops
produced in the completely fertile  soil now to be had—or soil that
could be built up by known methods, using both organic and chemical
fertilizer, to supply our entire popula tion with a proper diet—the same
that has given our Deaf Smith County residents their nearly perfect teeth. Let me add this word of warning: the food stuff thus produced
would be of little value unless the pe ople consumed it partly raw and
completely unrefined. The important fact that dentistry, with its single track mind
overlooks is that poor teeth spell a poorly nourished body. Apparently, my profession is interested primarily in finding a
drug or chemical which applied to the teeth will kill the bug that bores
into the enamel—and so prevent de cay. Of late a great many cities
have been experimenting with fluor ine applied to small children's
teeth or by adding a part or two pe r million to the drinking water. I doubt if the method will work unless at the same time, and
consistently, the children so treated are fed upon a diet, including
whole raw milk, which contains about all the elements of which the
body is made. The children so nourished, I say, will be building sound teeth
along with sound bodies. What counts the most, those children will be
developing sound brains. Build brain cells and with them the capacity
to think, to tell the false from the true—and cultivate the moral
sensibilities—and we will be rearing a generation without
delinquency, a generation immune to the delusions abroad in the
world today. It takes right nutrition to make a man of independent mind, one
who thinks for himself and stands on his own feet. CHAPTER 23. I FIND SUPPORT FOR MY THEORY
 Just as I was leaving Hereford for New York to appear on the
"We the People" broadcast (that was in January, 1948) an old
acquaintance of mine, Louis Smith, who runs a farm a few miles from
Hereford, hailed me and volunteere d a bit of corroborative evidence
on "The Town Without a Toothache." "Dr. Heard, as you know, I have lived here in Deaf Smith county
practically all my life, I have raised a family of five daughters. All of
them are grown up and some have families of their own now. Not one
of them ever had the toothache or a single decayed tooth." What did your girls have to eat as they grew up, Mr. Smith? I
asked him. ''Well, doctor, they ate mostly what we produced on our farm —
green vegetables out of our garden or canned vegetables off the pantry
shelf; fresh beef whenever we k illed a yearling, side meat and ham
from the smokehouse; and, oh yes, we kept cows and the girls always
had all the fresh sweet milk or buttermilk they could drink." That's what did it, Mr. Smith, I told him—especially the milk. The fluorine in our water may have helped a little, but that is not the
whole story, only a small fraction of it. And that is what I am going to
tell the country when I broadcast in New York. But the program
director told me what to say. *
Almost daily during my dental practice, I was reminded that the
average mother knows little about wh at her children eat. The mother
will set a table full of assorted vict uals before them and then will let
each child eat according to his taste. Too frequently it turns out that the children devour white bread
and syrup, jams and jellies, hot bi scuits, cakes and pies. And they
hardly touch the spinach, lettuce, slaw or salad. As they are stuffed on
sweets, the children do not drink milk enough to build strong bones
and sound teeth. For a case in point, one day Mrs. Johnson brought her twin boys,
Tom and Bill, 14 years old, into my office for a check up. After I had looked over their mouths, I remarked: You boys do
not eat the same food. "Oh yes, they do," Mrs. Johnson put in. "Both have eaten at the same table all their lives." Long experience had taught me never to argue with a mother
concerning her child's doings. So I turned to the boys: Bill, do you like
the stuff that Tom eats? "Naw," answered Bill, "I wouldn't eat what
Tom eats." Now, Bill's mouth was healthy, his teeth sound and spotless, his
gums firm. That boy had consumed his share of raw vegetables and
fruit and had always drunk his milk. Maybe he asked for a second
glassfull. By contrast, Tom's mouth was red and congested. His gums were
puffy and easy to bleed. Tom was a heavy meat-eater and liked lots of gravy on his bread and potatoes. That boy sniffed at his spinach or
turnip greens, pushed aside his salad or raw tomatoes. As I told him, Tom is breeding for himself a nice case of
pyorrhea. If he didn't change his eating habits, he would be coming
back before he was an old man, for a set of false teeth. In my practice I have noticed that and informed thoughtful
parents generally were more interest ed in seeing that their children got
plenty of proteins, starch, sugar and fat in their daily diet. Their home
demonstration agent had instructed them concerning the calories that supply energy and the elements which build bone, muscle, blood,
brain and nerves. But I say that a diet can contain all those elements and still be
deficient enough to cause bodily ills or to induce tooth decay. Perhaps
the children's food lacks certain essential minerals and vitamins: iron,
magnesium, iodine, fluorine; vitamin A, B, C, D or G; thiamin,
riboflavin, niacin or folic acid. To be available to the human body, I say, those minerals must be
organic and colloidal. They have to be supplied through plants which
have taken them up from the so il and processed them—or through
animals that have fed on those plants—that is, in the form of meat, milk, butter and eggs. Then, if the fo od is not supplied in its natural,
unadulterated and unrefined state, a considerable portion of the
essential mineral and vitamin content is lost. For those reasons, I always advise d my patients: It is better to
consume your wheat ground up hulls and all, without the bran or
shorts taken out. Better bake potatoes with the jackets on and eat them
whole. Do not throw away the outer leaves of mustard, spinach or
lettuce. For it is the husks, peeling and outside leaves that store up the
most minerals and vitamins. All my research and all the au thorities I have investigated
together have about convinced me that cooked meats of all kinds are undesirable foods. CHAPTER 24. I TRY OUT MY THEORY ON A PATIENT
 Some years back I had the opportunity to test out my theory
concerning the curative value of the right


practice enough repetitions to maintain this figure. For example, after a few
weeks Marc should be able to maintain 80 paces by just doing 3  repetitions
of paces each day. An example of Marc’ s progress is as follows:
W eek 1: 32 paces
W eek 2: 37 paces
W eek 3: 49 paces
W eek 4: 58 paces
W eek 5: 70 paces
W eek 6: 81 paces
W eek 7: 83 paces
W eek 8: 79 paces
W eek 9: 82 paces
W eek 10: 85 paces
Marc’ s p rogress on the number of paces that he can hold his breath for
will also  depend  on his everyda y breathing. If he does not breathe through
his nose, or regularly takes big breaths during the day, then h is progress
with increasing the number of p aces while holding his breath will be a lot
slower. Therefo re, in addition t o practicing the paces, it is vital to ensure
nasal an d quiet breathing during  the day. T o help with this, Ma rc’ s parents
can gen tly encourage him to breathe quietly any time the y hear his
breathing. An added incentive fo r his parents to continue with the exercises
is that Marc will have silent breathing during eating, not finding itnecessary to gulp lar ge breaths through his mouth while having a mouth full
of food.A p p e n d i x
U p p e r  L i m i t s  a n d  S a f e t y  o f  B r e a t h
H o l d i n g
W hen you  hold your breath, you p revent oxygen from entering into your
lungs and excess carbon dioxide from been expelled. During a maximum
breath hold, the partial pressure  of oxygen decreases in the blood, which
causes the body to conserve any  available oxygen for the heart and brain by
constricting the blood vessels th at supply nonessential or gans. For example,
your arms and legs may feel cold as the blood vessels close an d the body
diverts blood away from them. Another ef fect is bradycardia, w hich is the
slowing of the heart, causing p eripheral blood vessels to constrict, blood
pressure to increase, and the spleen to contract, resulting in the “diving
response.” The diving response is experienced by all air -breathing
vertebrates and is an automatic  response to a drop in oxygen supply. It is
what all ows babies and young children to instinctively hold their breath
when underwate r, and is generally more pronounced in adults w ho regularly
practice breath holding. During b reath h olding, the arterial partial pressure of oxygen d ecreases
from its normal level (100 mmHg) while carbon dioxide increas es to above
its n ormal level (40 mmHg). Breaking point, or the point at which an
individual must  release a breath hold, is when oxygen decreases to 62
mmHg and carbon dioxide is 54  mmHg. While it is extre mely dif ficult for
adults to  hold their breath to the point of fainting, it has been estimated that
consciousness is lost when the oxygen drops to below 27 mmHg and carbon
dioxide increase s to between 9 0 and 120 mmHg. The body uses built-insafety m echanisms such as the diving response and fainting to  ensure that
we do not deprive the brain of oxygen for too long, as doing so can result in
brain injury. The breath-hold  exercises described in this book are absolutely safe so
long as they are practiced within tolerable limits. However, individuals with
high blood pressure, cardiac conditions, type 1 diabetes, or any other
serious health concern should no t practice holding their breath e ither during
rest or while exercising. T o simu late high-altitude traini ng, it is necessary to hold your breath
until you feel a relatively stron g air hunger. At the same time, there is no
point in overdoi ng it. It is important to recover your breathing w ithin 2 to 3
breaths. Before practicing breath holding during intense ex ercise, it is
advisable to first achieve a BOL T score of at least 20 seconds. Until then,
gentler breath-hold exercises during rest and mild to moderate activity can
help you to improve your BOL T score to 20 seconds or more. Although breath-hold training increases tolerance of carbon dioxide, it
is in teresting to note that it do es not blunt the brain’ s safety reaction to
oxygen deprivation. This is where deliberate breath-hold exercises dif fer
vastly fr om the physiological co ndition of sleep apnea, where the breath is
held unintentionally during sleep, sometimes leading to severe health
problems. If these frightening results are a side ef fect of breath holding, it
may be supposed that intentio nal breath holding might have the same
ef fects, but studies of elite breat h holders have found the results  to be quite
the oppo site. Research by Ivancev and colleagues looked at the breath-
holding ability and carbon dioxide sensitivity of breath-hold divers, whose
sport potentially puts them at risk of severe oxygen deprivation. W ith
repeated practic e, these divers are able to sustain very long breath holds,
inducing a severe drop in oxyge n without causing brain injury o r blackouts. A further study by Joulia and colleagues showed that divers displayed a
more pronounce d diving response, less of a decrease in oxygen  saturation,
and greater blood flow. Stages of Br eath HoldingA breath hold can be distinguished by three stages of air shortage ranging
from easy to moderate to strong. In the first stage  there is no stimulus by the breathing muscles to  resume
breathing because carbon dioxid e has not yet reached threshold limits. This
is known as an easy air shortage. The second stage is a moder ate air shortage. As the breath hold
lengthens, carbon dioxide continues to increase in the blood until the
concentration reaches your threshold, stimulating the breathing muscles to
contract or jerk in an attempt to  draw air in. The longer the breath is held,
the more frequent are the contractions of the breathing muscles as the body
attempts to draw air into the lungs. The thir d stage is when the desi re to breathe becomes so strong that the
individual must resume breathing. This is known as a strong air shortage. •  Easy air shortage: no sensation to breathe. •   M oderate air s hortage: from the first involuntary contraction of
the breathing muscles until contractions become frequent. •   Stron g air shortage: ur ge to breathe is strong, leading to
termination of the breath hold. Influences on Length of Br eath-Hold T ime
The three factors that determ ine the length of breath-hold time are:
metabolic rate, tolerance to asp hyxia (decreased oxygen levels ), and total
body gas storage in lungs, blood, and tissues. Metabolic rate can be reduced through relaxation before and during the
breath hold, whereas tolerance  to asphyxia is improved by practicing
regular breath holds. Other activities that influence breath-hold time are:
•  Distraction
•  Whether the breath hold follows an inhalation or exhalation
•  Whether the athlete hyperventilates before the breath holdHolding the breath following a n inhalation results in a longer  breath-
hold tim e since carbon dioxide is diluted in a lar ger volume of air, meaning
the brain’ s receptors to carbon dioxide are not activated as quickly. Breath-hold time increases if you take a number of big breaths
immediately prior to holding your breath, but this ef fect is especially
dangerous when practiced by swimmers. T aking big breaths immediately
before a  swim will significantly  reduce carbon dioxide in the blood but has
little ef f ect on increasing oxygen stores. Because the brain’ s signal to
resume breathin g is depleted by this technique, oxygen levels can drop to
very low  levels before the swimmer feels the need to breathe. T his situation
can result in the  swimmer losing consciousness underwater an d in worst-
case scenarios can cause death by drowning. The U.S. Navy Seals website
warns against this dangerous practice:
Important Alert:  It has come to our attention that many
men pre paring for Special Operations Forces training are
practicing breat h holding underwater, and there have been
several cases of drowning and near drowning recently. Please do not practice br eath holding (under water)
without pr ofessional supervision.N o t e s
1. The Oxygen Paradox
22      When levels of carbon dioxi de: Cheung S.  Advanced Envir onmental
Exer cise Physiology. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics; 2009. 26      “ The carbon  dioxide pressure”: Bohr C, Hasselbalch K, K rogh A. Concerning a biologically important relationship—the influence  of the
carbon d ioxide content of blood on its oxygen binding. Skand Ar ch
Physiol  1904;16:401–12; www
.udel.edu/


 youth, my mother had been a concert pianist; now she had such large
arthritic knobs on all of her knuckles that her hands had become claws. Thoughthere was still that very same fine upright in the cabin that I had learned to play asa child, she had long since given up the piano. Her knees also had large arthriticknobs; this proud woman with a straight back and long, flowing strides was bentover, limping along with a cane. She was also 30 pounds overweight and herblood pressure was a very dangerous 210 over 140, just asking for a stroke. Instead of a welcoming feast, the usual greeting offered to a loved one who
has not been seen for a few years, I immediately started her on a juice fast. I gaveher freshly prepared carrot juice (one quart daily) mixed with wheat grass juice(three ounces daily) plus daily colonics. She had no previous experience withthese techniques but she gamely accepted everything I threw her way because sheknew I was doing it because I loved her and wanted to see her in bettercondition. She also received a daily full body massage with particular attention tothe hand and knees, stimulating the circulation to the area and speeding theremoval of wastes. Every night her hands and knees were wrapped in warmcastor oil compresses held in place with old sheeting. I did not use any vitamins or food supplements in her case. I did give her
flavorful herbal teas made of peppermint and chamomile because she needed thecomfort of a hot cupa; but these teas were in no way medicinal except for hermorale. After three weeks on this program, Grannybelle, as I and my daughters called
her, had no unsightly knobs remaining on either her knuckles or knees and shecould walk and move her fingers without pain within a normal range of movement. The big payoff for me besides seeing her look so wonderful (20 years youngerand 20 pounds lighter) was to hear her sit down and treat us to a Beethovenrecital. And her blood pressure was 130 over 90. Breast Cancer
I have worked with many young women with breast cancer; so many in fact,
that their faces and cases tend to blur. But whenever I think about them, Kellyinevitably comes to mind because we became such good friends. Like me, Kellywas an independent-minded back country Canuck. At the age 26, she received amedical diagnosis of breast cancer. Kelly had already permitted a lumpectomyand biopsy, but had studied the statistical outcomes and did not want to treat herillness with radical mastectomy, radiation and chemotherapy because she knewher odds of long-term survival without radical medical treatment were equal to orbetter than allowing the doctors to do everything possible. Nor did she want tolose even one of her breasts. She knew how useful her breasts were because shehad already suckled one child, not to mention their contribution to one’s own self-image as a whole person. I admired Kelly’s unusual independent-mindednessbecause she comes from a country where universal health coverage is in place;her insurance would have paid all the costs had she been willing to acceptconventional medicine, but Canadian national health insurance does not coveralternative therapy. Kelly stayed with me for nearly two months as a residential faster, because she
needed to be far from the distractions of a troubled family life. With financialsupport from her parents and child-care from her friends she was able to taketime out to give the recovery of health top priority in her life without worryingabout whether her small son was being well cared for. This peace of mind wasalso very important to her recovery. Analysis with biokinesiology showed a pervasively weak immune system,
including a weak thymus gland, spleen, and an overloaded lymphatic system. Herliver was weak, but not as weak as it might have been, because she had becomea vegetarian, and had been working on her health in a haphazard fashion for a fewyears. Kelly’s body also showed weaknesses in pancreatic and adrenal functionas well as a toxic colon. Most immediately worrisome to her, biokinesiologytesting showed several over-strong testing lumpy areas in the breasts and over-strong testing lumpy lymph nodes in the armpits. Cancerous tumors always testoverly strong
Kelly’s earlier life-style had contributed to her condition in several ways. She
had worked for years in a forestry tree nursery handling seedling trees treatedwith highly toxic chemicals. She had worked as a cook in a logging camp forseveral seasons, eating too much meat and greasy food. And she had also spentthe usual number of adolescent and young adult years deeply involved inrecreational drug use and the bad diet that went with it. Kelly started right in on a rigorous water fast that lasted for one entire month. She had a colonic every day, plus body work including reflexology, holding andmassage of neurolymphatic and neurovascular points, and stimulation ofacupuncture points related to weak organ systems and general massage tostimulate overall circulation and lymphatic drainage. She took protomorphogensto help rebuild her weakened organs; she took ten grams of vitamin C every dayand a half-dose of Life Extension vitamin mix in assimilable powdered form; shedrank herbal teas of echinacea and fenugreek seeds and several ounces of freshlysqueezed wheat grass juice every day. Twice each day she made poultices out ofclay and the pulp left over from making her wheat grass juice, filled an old brawith this mixture and pressed it to her breast for several hours until the clay dried. Shortly, I will explain all the measures in some detail. These physical therapies were accompanied by counseling sessions dealing
with some severe and long-unresolved problems, response patterns and
relationships that triggered her present illness. Her son’s father (Kelly’s ex) was
suppressive and highly intimidating. Fearful of him, Kelly seemed unable tosuccessfully extricate herself from the relationship due to the ongoing contactwhich revolved over visitation and care of their son. But Kelly had grit. Whilefasting, she confronted these tough issues in her life and unflinchingly made thenecessary decisions. When she returned to Canada she absolutely decided,without any nagging doubts, reservations or qualifications, to make any changesnecessary to ensure her survival. Only after having made these hard choices couldshe heal. I one respect, Kelly was a highly unusual faster. Throughout the entire month
on water, Kelly took daily long walks, frequently stopping to lie down and rest inthe sun on the way. She would climb to or from the top of a very large and steephill nearby. She never missed a day, rain or shine. At the end of her month on water Kelly’s remaining breast lumps had
disappeared, the lymphatic system and immune system tested strong, as well asthe liver, pancreas, adrenals, and large intestine. No areas tested overly strong. She broke the fast with the same discipline she had conducted it, on carrot
juice, a cup every two hours. After three days on juice she began a raw food dietwith small servings of greens and sprouts well chewed, interspersed at two hourintervals with fresh juicy fruits. After about ten days on “rabbit food,” she easedinto avocados, cooked vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains and then wenthome. As I write this, it is eight years since Kelly’s long fast. She still comes to see
me every few years to check out her diet and just say hello. She has had twomore children by a new, and thoroughly wonderful husband and suckled themboth for two years each; her peaceful rural life centers around this new, happyfamily and the big, Organic garden she grows. She religiously takes her LifeExtension vitamins and keeps her dietary and life-style indiscretions small andinfrequent. She is probably going to live a long, time. I consider Kelly’s cluster of organ weaknesses very typical of all cancers
regardless of type or location, as well as being typical of AIDS and other criticalinfections by organisms that usually reside in the human body without causingtrouble (called “opportunistic”). All these diseases are varieties of immune systemfailure. All of these conditions present a similar pattern of immune systemweaknesses. They all center around what I call the “deadly triangle,” comprisedof a weak thymus gland, weak spleen, and a weak liver. The thymus and spleenform the core of the body’s immune system. The weak liver contributes to a highlytoxic system that further weakens the immune system. To top it off, people withcancer invariably have a poor ability to digest cooked protein (animal orvegetable) (usually from a weak pancreas unable to make enough digestiveenzymes) and eat too much of it, giving them a very toxic colon, and anoverloaded lymphatic system. Whenever I analyze someone with this pattern, especially the entire deadly
triangle, I let the person know that if I had those particular weaknesses I wouldconsider my survival to be at immediate risk I’d consider it an emergency situationdemanding vigorous attention. It does not matter if they don’t yet have a tumor, orfibroid, or opportunistic infection; if they don’t already have something of thatnature they soon will. Here’s yet another example of why I disapprove of diagnosis. By giving the
condition a name like “lymphoma” or “melanoma”, “chronic fatigue syndrome”“Epstein-Barr syndrome” or “AIDS,” “systemic yeast infection”, “hepatitis” orwhat have, people think the doctor then understands their disease. But the doctorrarely understands that all these seemingly different diseases are essentially thesame disease—a toxic body with a dysfunctional immune system. What isrelevant is that a person with the deadly triangle must strengthen


’re seeking. This is a
universe of attraction and energy. You can’t have a desire to attract a mate
who’s confident, generous, nonjudgmental, and gentle, and expect that
desire to be manifested if you’re thinking and acting in nonconfident,
selfish, judgmental, or arrogant ways—which is why most people don’t
attract the right people at the right time. Almost 30 years ago, I wanted to attract a publisher into my life for my
book, Your Erroneous Zones. This publisher would have to be
understanding, since I was an unknown writer at the time, and would have
to be a risk taker, willing to let go of any doubts about me. My literary agent arranged a meeting with an executive editor, whom I’ll
refer to as George, at a large New York publishing house. As I sat down to
talk with him, it was obvious to me that he was personally distraught. I
asked him what was troubling him, and we proceeded to spend the next
three to four hours talking about a devastating personal matter that had just
transpired the night before. George’s wife had told him that she was going
to seek a divorce, and he felt as though he’d been blindsided by this news. I
let go of my own desires to talk about getting my book published and
became what it was that I was seeking: an understanding, confident, risk-taking person. By being that very thing and detaching from my ego-
dominated desires, I was able to help George out that afternoon, which I’ve
never forgotten. I left George’s office that day without even discussing my book proposal. When I told my literary agent this story, he was convinced that I’d blown
my one opportunity with a major publishing house by not making a strong
pitch for my book. The following day, George called my agent, telling him,
”I really don’t even know what Dyer’s book proposal entails, but I want that
man as one of our authors.”
At the time, I didn’t realize what was happening. Now, with a quarter
century of living in this world of spiritual inquiry, I see it quite clearly. The
right people will show up precisely when you need them and when you’re
able to match up. You must be that which you desire. When you are what
you desire, you attract it by radiating it outward. You have this ability to
match up with the power of intention and fulfill your intention to attract
ideal people and divine relationships. Attracting Spiritual Partnerships
There’s no point whatsoever in an unloving man or woman bemoaning
their inability to find a partner. They’re doomed to endless frustration
because they don’t recognize the perfect match when it appears. That loving
person could be right there, right now, and their resistance doesn’t allow
them to see it. The unloving person continues to blame bad luck or a series
of external factors for their not having a loving relationship. Love can only be attracted by and returned by love. The best advice I can
give for attracting and maintaining spiritual partnerships, as I’ve been
emphasizing in this chapter, is to be what it is that you’re seeking. Most
relationships that fail to sustain themselves are based on one or both of the
partners feeling as if their freedom has been compromised in some way. Spiritual partnerships, on the other hand, are never about making another
person feel inferior or ignored in any way. The term spiritual partnership
simply means that the energy that holds the two of you together is in close
harmony with the Source energy of intention.This means that an allowing philosophy flows through the partnership,
and you need never fear that your freedom to fulfill your own inner
knowing about your purpose is questioned. It’s as if each person has
whispered silently to the other, You are Source energy in a physical body,
and the better you feel, the more of this loving, kind, beautiful, receptive,
abundant, expanding, and creative energy is flowing through you. I respect
this Source energy, and I share it with you as well. When either of us feels
downhearted, there’s less of this energy of intention flowing. We must
always remember that nothing is disallowed by the universal mind. Whatever is not allowing us to be happy is being disallowed by us. I’m
committed to staying in this energy field of intention and watching myself
whenever I slip. It’s that very Source that brought us together, and I’ll work
to stay in harmony with it. This kind of inner commitment is what Goethe
was speaking about in that opening quotation. It allows providence to move
and helps things to occur, “which no man could have dreamed would come
his way.”

You’re already connected to those you want in your life—so act like
it. Mystically speaking, there’s no difference between you and another
person. A weird concept, perhaps, but nevertheless valid. This explains why
you can’t hurt another person without hurting yourself, nor can you help
another person without helping yourself. You share the same Source energy
with everyone, and consequently, you must begin to think and act in a way
that reflects your awareness of this principle. When you feel the need to
have the right person show up, begin to change your inner dialogue to
reflect this awareness. Rather than saying, I wish this person would show up
because I need to get out of this rut, activate a thought that reflects your
connection, such as: I know the right person will be arriving in divine order
at precisely the perfect time. Now you’ll act on this inner thought. You’ll be thinking from the end, and
anticipating this arrival. Your anticipation will make you alert. You’ve
revised your energy level to the same receptivity as the power of intention
that intends everything and everyone here. When you reach these higher
energy levels, you access higher information. Your intuition clicks in, andyou can feel the presence of the person or people you want in your life. Now you act on that intuition with a deep sense of knowing that you’re on
track. You’re acting in accordance with this new awareness. You become a
co-creator. New insight becomes activated within you as well. You’re
looking at the face of the Creator, and you see yourself co-creating. You
know whom to call, where to look, when to trust, and what to do. You’re
being guided to connect to that which you’re bringing forth. If a friendship or partnership requires the submission of your higher
original nature and dignity, it’s simply wrong. When you truly know what it
is to love, as you’re loved by your Source, you won’t experience the kind of
pain you did in the past when your love was unnoticed or rejected. It will,
instead, be similar to how a friend described her experience of choosing to
leave a relationship: “My heart was broken, but it felt like it was stuck in
the open position. I felt love flowing toward this person who couldn’t love
me the way I wanted to be loved, even as I left that relationship to seek the
love I felt inside of me. It was strange to feel the pain of my broken heart,
and at the same time feel its openness. I kept thinking, My heart’s broken,
but it’s broken open. I shifted to an entirely new level of loving and being
loved. The relationship I’d dreamed of having manifested 18 months later!”
You are love. You emanated from pure love. You’re connected to this
Source of love at all times. Think this way, feel this way, and you’ll soon
act this way. And all that you think, feel, and do will be reciprocated in
exactly the same fashion. Believe it or not, this principle of the right person
showing up has been in place forever. It’s only your ego that’s kept you
from seeing it clearly. It’s all unfolding in divine order. By now you should be affirming that
everyone you need for this journey of yours will show up, and that they’ll
be perfect in every way for whatever needs you have at this time. Furthermore, they’ll arrive at precisely the right moment. In this intelligent
system that you’re a part of, everything arrives from the field of intention
where the infinite, invisible life force flows through everyone and
everything. This includes you, and everyone else as well. Trust in thisinvisible life force and the all-creating mind that intends everything into
existence. I suggest that you do a quick review, and note all of the people who’ve
shown up as characters in this play called your life. It has all been perfect. Your ex-spouse showed up at just the right time—when you needed to
create those children you love so much. The father who walked out on you
so that you could learn self-reliance left right on time. The lover who
abandoned you was a part of this perfection. The lover who stayed with you
was also taking his or her cues from Source. The good times, the struggles,
the tears, the abuse—all of it involved people coming into your life and then
leaving. And all of your tears will not and cannot wash out one word of it. This is your past, and whatever your energy level at the time, whatever
your needs, whatever your station in life, you attracted the right people and
events to you. You may feel that they didn’t show up when you needed
them, that in fact, you were alone and no one showed up at all, but I urge
you to see it from the perspective of all of life


-I
doubt we’d be so lucky this time! The terrible reaction that does take place when you touch poison ivy
or poison oak is because of the irritating oil in the plant called urushiol. This oil will stick to just about anything, so if your towel or clothes brush
past a plant and you touch it before washing it, you can get a rash. The
rash is not contagious, but can be spread if you touch something else
before the urushiol has been washed off of your hands/skin/clothes.Poison Ivy & Poison Oak
-Urushiol will penetrate the skin,
sinking into the lower layers of the
dermis and wreaking havoc. If you
know you touched the plant, wash
the affected area ASAP with cold
water. Cold water is important-
warm or hot water will open up
your pores, which is like laying out
the welcome mat for urushiol. -The rash, assuming it is not
unusually severe; will clear on its
own within a week or two. -Because it is an allergic
response, some people will
have a more violent reaction to
poison ivy or poison oak, while a
small percentage of people are
completely immune to it. -An ounce of prevention is worth
a pound of cure here. If you are
in an area with poison ivy or
poison oak, be aware of not only
yourself, but of your pets as well! A dog that runs past poison ivy
can easily spread the oil onto your
skin the next time you reach down
for a well-intended pat on the
back. 201Copyright 2014 everydayroots.comTips & TroubleshootingBentonite clay is an incredible substance, particularly when it comes to anything that is irritating your skin. Not
only does it soothe your painful rash, but it can help dry it out if you have blisters. It also acts as a natural shield
against urushiol-in fact; it is the base of an OTC topical medication targeted as a shield against exposure to the
dreadful oil. It will also actively draw oil out of your skin-hence why it is used as a face mask for people with oily
skin.Bentonite Clay
-1 tablespoon of bentonite clay
-Fresh water1. Mix a little fresh water with the dry bentonite clay until a paste forms. 2. Spread thinly over rash to soothe it. Y ou can reapply this as often as
needed, but for the best effects rinse off the old layer first. 202Copyright 2014 everydayroots.com Poison Ivy & Poison OakY ou will need… DirectionsBaking soda can help heal, soothe, and dry your rash. Toss in a handful of dried oats as well-they will make the
water silky and soothing.Baking Soda Bath
-1 cup of baking soda
-1 cup of dried oats
-Cheesecloth (optional)1. Fill a bathtub with warm water. When it’s halfway full, add 1 cup each of
baking soda and oats. 2. Soak for as long as needed for relief. To keep the oats from clogging
up your drain, try wrapping them in a piece of cheesecloth and tying it
off. 203Copyright 2014 everydayroots.com Poison Ivy & Poison OakY ou will need… DirectionsNothing is worse than being driven crazy by an itch you can’t scratch! I would say that part of the healing
process of the rash is possibly the most brutal, but it’s important you don’t scratch to reduce the risk of infection,
and potential scarring. When you have healing scabs or blisters, spritz a little of this on to relieve the itch. The
eucalyptus can help with inflammation and creates a cooling sensation. The witch hazel will also help with
inflammation and itching, as well as drying out any open blisters. It has been commonly used to treat chicken
pox because it gives such great relief. Anti-Itch Spray
-1 tablespoon any liquid oil
-A small spray bottle -Witch
hazel
-1 tablespoon of any liquid oil
-5 drops eucalyptus essential
oil1. Fill your spray bottle almost full, leaving room to add the oils. Once
you’ve added them secure the top of the bottle and shake well. Spray
directly onto rash for relief. 204Copyright 2014 everydayroots.com Poison Ivy & Poison OakY ou will need… DirectionsSummer is a glorious time and people revel in it, but as with all things
good, there must be some kind of bad. In this case, it’s sunburn. Too much time spent in the sun results in your skin being totally
bombarded with UV rays. When our skin is exposed to these rays, it
ups its production of melanin, the pigment that gives our skin its color. This is why you get tan-all the extra pigment acts as a shield for the
deeper layers of skin, and subsequently make your skin appear darker. Genetically, people with fair skin will always produce less melanin, and
thus will be more likely to burn. They simply don’t have enough of a
shield. The opposite holds true for people with darker skin. I used to burn. A lot. I am not fair skinned by any means, but I was
getting treated for acne and that made me extremely susceptible to
burning. I spent more nights than I care to remember lying in bed with a
fan pointed at me, slathered in aloe. Prevention is the best thing you can do here, but if you end up burned
anyways, don’t despair at a long and painful healing time-the remedy is
probably just in your kitchen.Sunburn
-The first thing you probably want
to do is hop in a cold bath or
shower-don’t. That cold is going
to make your pores seal off as
they try to trap heat-the last thing
you want with sunburn. The best
temperature is tepid, or lukewarm,
water. Cucumber Lotion
-If you’re in a pinch, a chilled
mashed up cucumber will work as
well! 205Copyright 2014 everydayroots.comTips & TroubleshootingOne of the easiest and quickest ways to bring about relief is in the form of a cucumber. Not only does the
plain old coolness of it work, but it also has analgesic (pain-killing) properties. The addition of sage adds to the
cooling sensation, and helps with circulation, helping skin heal faster. The aloe vera gel is simply unbeatable
when it comes to soothing burned skin.Cucumber Lotion
-1/2 cup fresh sage leaves
-1 fresh, crisp, cucumber
-Sieve and cheesecloth
-A pestle
-Boiling water
-Glass jar
-Aloe vera gel 1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. 2. Take your sage leaves and place them in a heat safe bowl. Just barely
cover with boiling water, and leave to steep for 20 minutes. 3. While the sage steeps, grate a fresh cucumber and place in
cheesecloth lined sieve. 4. Place the sieve over a bowl-NOT the one with sage-and use a pestle
(or something similar) to push the cucumber through the cheesecloth,
releasing its juice. 5. Strain your sage leaves, and then mix the infused water with the
cucumber juice, now adding in the aloe vera gel. Bottle, refrigerate, and
apply as needed as often as you’d like. Use it within 1 ½ weeks. 206Copyright 2014 everydayroots.com SunburnY ou will need… DirectionsThis cream contains several ingredients, including water, witch hazel, aloe vera gel, mint leaves, and baking
soda, all of which relieve sunburn for various reasons. Aloe is an obvious go-to, while water works as a good
medium for the cream. The witch hazel contains properties (resin, procyanadins, and flavonoids specifically)
that help lessen inflammation, and in turn lessen the pain caused by it. The menthol in mint creates a cooling
sensation, and baking soda also helps with inflammation while fighting off infection (in case you have scratched
at it.) Y ou can experiment by adding or subtracting other helpful ingredients to find out what works best for you.DIY Burn Cream
-1 tablespoon of witch hazel
-2 tablespoons of aloe vera gel
-2 ¼ teaspoons of baking soda
or cornstarch
-1-2 cups of fresh mint leaves,
or 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint
oil
-2 tablespoons fresh, clean,
water 1. If you are using peppermint leaves, place them in a pot and add just
enough water to cover them. Bring the water to a boil and then simmer
for 1 hour before straining. Use this water in place of the fresh water
called for in the ingredients. 2. Stir the cornstarch or baking soda into your water, making sure it is
cool if you are using infused. 3. Place all of your ingredients in a food processor and blend until
thoroughly incorporated. 4. Transfer to a glass jar or similar container with a tight fitting lid, and
store in the refrigerator for 24 hours to let the cream fully infuse. Y ou
can then apply as needed. Making some ahead of time and keeping it in
the refrigerator ensures that you will always have a handy cream to heal
any sunburn you get during the hot summer months. This will


 under·
standing structural and functional mechanism s of tis·
sues. When a DC potential is applied between two plati
num electrodes in a living tissue, several effects can be
noticed. The quantity of charge transported between
the electrodes can be determined as the product of
Activation of VICC 173 current and time, expressed in coulombs (amp-sec). Thus, a current of one rnA over 24 hours gives 86
coulombs and is equivalent with 10 rnA over 2.4
hours. Current per unit· time can be increased by
increasing the vohage between the electrodes. If the
total quantity of current transported is held constant,
differences of electrode potential may lead to differ·
ences in quality of material in the tissue. Such effects
can be explained by the fact that different materiab
possess different specific energy levels of ionization. Moreover, different materials possess different molec
ular and ionic adsorption characteristics, which each
vary with electrode potential, actual concentrations
and the properties of the tissue matrix. The covering
of an electrode by adsorbed molecules is characteristic
for all materials and solutes. In this way different
electrode potentials can be expected to affect the com
petitive adsorption s of different molecules and there
fore the qualitative composition on the electrode sur
faces and in the supporting media between the elec
trodes. Increasing voltage will increase the speed of ioniza
tion of tissue (see also Chapter XVII) and enhance the
effects of polarization. Gas fonnation, for instance,
will be more extensive and produce more pressure
effects when electrode potentials arc large rather than
small, under conditions of equivalent total charge
transport. Experimental demonstration of these effects
is described in Chapter IX in the studies of pressure
changes and electrical induction of transport of water
in cotton wool and lung tissue. Gas formed at the electrodes may interfere with
conductivit y. Heat may also be liberated at relatively
high voltages, leading to evaporation of water and
coagulation of protein. Furtbermore, the catalyzing
action of the material of an electrode will vary with
varying electrolyte composition. A number of different factors in tissue influence the
effects of different electrode voltages at equal total
amounts of transported charge. Blood circulation, con
vection, diffusion, regional changes in conductivity,
matrix effects, buffering by fluids, etc., will each af
fect ionic transports. These influences may be evident
already from the fact that the circulation of blood and
lymph will in varying degree supply and remove mate
rial in the electric field. The total effect of these factors
per unit time relates also to the current density in the
electric field. ln this way a variable biologic influence
of qualitative and quantitative changes can be estab
lished between the electrodes. When anodic and cathodic reactions develop in a
tissue, secondary effects can also be expected. For
example, ionization product; in the electric field
should interfere indirectly with zeta potentials of cells
and modify the transmembranous ionic transports of
individual cells. Experimental support for these as-
174 Activation of VICC sumptions will also be presented in terms of the behav
iour of blood and fat cells (Chapter XVI). Our immediate interest now will turn to some gross
morphologic expressions of the functions of the postu
lated biologically closed electric circuit, as simulated
by leading electric current between electrodes in tis
sues. A. Materials and methods
Initial experiments could not be performed easily in
the lung because of the technical difficulties connected
with direct visual inspection of this organ in vivo. Because the actual problems appear to be of a general
biologic character, the easily accessible mesentety and
omentum of dogs were used in a series of 20 experi
ments. In this way it was hoped that some additional
direct evidence might be obtained for the existence of
the proposed VICC. ln these studies platinum elec
trodes were used. Control experiments were also performed in kidneys
and lungs of dogs. In these experiments as well as in
the experiment$ on mesenteric tissue, Evans blue dye
or a radiographic intravascular contrast medium (Urn
gratin~, 50%) was injected intravenously or intraarter
ially at the same time as direct current was applied
between the electrodes. Dogs were anaesthetized with intravenous sodium
pentobarbital. A radiopaque plastic catheter (internal diameter, 1.5
mm) was introduced via a femoral artety or vein and
placed in the aorta or inferior vena cava with its tip at
the approximate level of the diaphragm. A platinum
string was introduced through the catheter and used as
one electrode at the tip. A midline incision was made in lhe abdomen and a
piece of mesentery or omentum carefully pulled out
through the incision and placed on a glass plate for
support. Another platinum electrode was then placed
against the mesentery. In other experiments both elec
trodes were placed against the mesentery. A DC potential difference was then applied between
the platinum electrodes. The potential was obtained
by means of a,-oltage generaror in series with a mil
liampere meter of high accuracy. Voltage differences between 100 mV and 10 V were
tested. When morphologically visible changes were
produced, the experiments could be checked or modi
lied rc~tedly in the same animal with a fresh piece of
mesentery. The vessels and other tissues of the mesentery were
inspected at different magnifications with an operating
microscope. Photographs were taken of the mesenteric
electrode and surrounding tissues. The mesentery un
der and around the electrode was excised at the end of the experiments and fixed in formalin on a glass slide
before fuation. Staining was usually performed with
haematoxylin and eosin before microscopy. B. Charging and discharging
of tissue
When 100 mV DC voltage was applied between one
electrode resting against the mesentery and one elec
trode in the aorta or vena cava, one to several mi
croamperes could be observed to pass between the
electrodes. The current increased continuous ly, ftrst
slowly and then more rapidly. After a wbile the Oow of
current decreased or became interrupted, usually from
gas produced at the electrodes. In this way the tissue became electrically charged,
as shown in Chapter VI (Fig. VI: 13). When the exter
nal power source was then disconnected and the two
terminals short-circuite d over a microampere meter,
such a charged "biologic battery" was found to dis
charge. Similar discharge from a carcinoma and granu
loma, spontaneous ly polarized, is shown in the pa
tients in Figs. VI: II and 12. C. Diapedetic bleedings
Diapedetic extravasation of red blood cells is one of
the early visible changes around the electropositive
electrode. This extravasation can be seen in Fig. XIV: I as many sites of bleeding along small arterial
branches after the application of DC current in small
quantity (1.0 pA, 30 min, 1.0 V). This voltage repre
sents the potential difference actually measured be
tween the electrodes. Focal arterial contractions a.nd
associated intraarterial thromboses also interrupt the
blood stream in many places. Sometimes these blood
clots were seen washing away, resulting in temporary
restoration of circulation through the artery. Diapede
tic bleedings were also observed, but to a much lesser
extent, around the electronega tive mesenteric elec
trode. The normal transcapillary openings between blood
and extravascular spaces, which contain water and
electrolytes, may be considered as leaking junctions. When an electric potential is applied across capillaries
some of them appear to open further, as shown by the
transcapillary passage of red blood cells. After a while the diapedetic blood as well as the
thrombosed blood in the vessels becomes brown. White foam (Fig. XIV: 2) produced by gas then devel
ops around the electropositive electrode against the
mesentery. The surrounding brown dots represent
diapedetic blood. Fig. XIV: I. Effecrs of elec~ric curren< in small quan<iry (1.0
pA, 30 min, 1.0 V), passed berween aorta (carhode) and me
scnrery (anode) of an anaesrherized dog. (a) In vivo phoromi·
crograph shows diapedetic bleedings as irregular dots around
rhe plarinum anode. (b) Local diapedetic bleeding. Narrow
empty arteriocapillaries, wide venocapillaries with granulo·
cytes. Haematoxylin -eosin stain. Fig. XIV: 2. Foam of oxygen and chlorine gas develops at
the electropositive electrode againsr dog mesentery. Diape
detic blood appears as brown dots in the mesentery near the
clccrrodc. Electrode size 4x


 now  our  earnest  Heart  Call. See. He comes. A Great  blazing  Being. To awaken  and  help  us all. His Love  is so Great  in Its Power,
His own  Heart  enfolds  us in Flame;
And  His  Glorious  Cosmic  Light  Rays
Cut us Free  in Victory's  Name. This  Being  from  the  Great  Great  Silence,
The Divine  Director  so True,
Is Authority  o'er  our  Life  Streams  —
He commands  the  Ascension  too,
For all who  will  give  Obedience
And  adore  the  "Mighty  I AM". He clothes  us in Raiment  of Splendor,
Now  we hold  His  Own  Blessed  Hand. He fires  us too  with  His  Feeling,
Blazing  forth  here,  His  Great  Command-
Each  Word,  a "Cup"  of His  Power,
To help  us accomplish  Life's  Plan. THE  GREAT  GREAT  SILENCE  xxi
Of Wisdom,  He  is the Director,
His Gifts  all the  Powers  of Light,
We enfold  Him  in Love  forever,
And  are  charged  with  His  own  Great  Mightl
He is Friend,  Defender  and  Champion,
Makes  us Victors  by His  Heart's  Love. He is Real. Transcendent. Eternal. He directs  all below  and  above. Great  Beloved  Divine  Director,
God's  Presence  — among  men  He moves. He is Glorious. Supreme. All  Master. The Law  of the  Silence,  He  proves. Come  enter  now  into  His  Wisdom,
Accept  all the  Help  that  He  gives. His Glorious  Light  Rays  are  blazing—
And  through  Them  in us, He now  lives. CONTENTS
DISCOURSE  PAGE
I Los  Angeles,  CA  January  10, 1937. 1
II San  Francisco,  CA  February  13, 1937. 12
III Dallas,  TX  March  2, 1937  21
IV New  York  City,  NY  April  21, 1937  30
V New  York  City,  NY  May  4, 1937  53
VI Philadelphia,  PA  May  23,  1937  61
VII Detroit,  MI June  7, 1937  72
VIII Private  Dictation  June  19,  1937  85
IX Los  Angeles,  CA  July  11, 1937  107
X San  Francisco,  CA  August  1, 1937  121
XI Seattle,  WA  August  11, 1937. 134
XII Seattle,  WA  August  15, 1937. 154
XIII  New  Bedford,  MA  September  18,1937. 160
XIV Boston,  MA  September  30,1937. 180
XV Miami,  FL November  21, 1937. 187
XVI Los  Angeles,  CA  December  22, 1937. 208
XVII  San  Francisco,  CA  February  6, 1938. 228
XVIII  Cleveland,  OH  March  6, 1938  248
XIX Detroit,  MI April  24,  1938  278
XX Denver,  CO  June  19,  1938  306
XXI Oakland,  CA  August  21, 1938. 320
XXII  Seattle,  WA  September  25,1938. 345
XXIII  Washington,  D. C. November  13, 1938. 365
XXIV  Los  Angeles,  CA  January  8, 1939  384
XXV  Chicago,  IL April  16, 1939  409
xxiii "I AM"  DISCOURSES
By THE  GREAT  DIVINE  DIRECTOR
DISCOURSE  I
Los ANGELES,  CALIFORNIA  January  10, J937
In memory  of all the Love  which  has  been  poured  out
to the Host  of Ascended  Masters,  and  in the recognition
which  has been  given  Each  One,  do you  realize,  Precious
Ones  of the Light,  that  is a power  of the activity  of your
attention  which  has  been  required. We  have  been  wait-
ing for that  throuout  the centuries,  to direct  forth  the Cur-
rents  of Energy  which  will  help  you  to hold  your  attention
more  firmly,  not only  upon  your  "I AM  Presence";  but on
the Requirements  for which  you  issue  the Decrees,  that
produce  Happiness  and  Perfection  in your  world. Unless  you  saw,  from  the  Inner  standpoint,  the  enor-
mous  effect  of a body  of the Children  of Light,  as you have
here tonight,  issuing  a Decree  for blessing  all mankind,
you could  not possibly  comprehend  what  it means. Natu-
rally,
you gain  from  That  Decree  which  calls  forth  a Def-
inite  Light  Energy. Notice,  did  you  ever  hear  that  term
before—Light  Energy. I tell you,  We are entering  into  a Greater  Activity  than
you have  ever  known;  and  that  is why,  I call  your  atten-1 2 THE  "7 AM"  DISCOURSES
tion to these  Certain  Expressions  which  We shall  use in the
future;  to give  you  a greater  conviction  and  quicken  into
action,  the Qualities  which  We  have  anchored  within  your
feeling  world,  to produce  Harmony  and  Perfection  for
you. You  will  not  have  the  difficulty  from  New  Year  s
Day on, in holding  firm  to the Light  within  your  feeling,
which  you  have  had  in the past  year. While  it is true,  you
are Beacon  Lights  in the world  of mankind's  creation;  yet,
even  though  That  Light  grows  greater,  you  shall  not  be
affected  by discordant  things. That  Light  will  ere long,  be
strong  enough  in Its Own  Radiance,  as It goes  forth—to
repel  every  discordant  thing  which  attempts  to touch  your
world. Will  you  please  accept  It, as a Powerful  Activity
from  tonight—acting  within  your  world,  your  body,  your
mental  activity. Is it not curious  in the beginning  of This  Activity  of the
Messengers,  quite  a number  of people  thought,  it was  just
another  flash  which  would  be soon  passing  out. Well  you
have  not yet become  quite  well  enough  acquainted  with  the
Ascended  Masters,  to realize  They  do not start  something,
which  They  do not see the way  to finish. So, today,  you  are entering  into  an opportunity  which
will not only  bring  you  Happiness  and  Freedom;  but  will
enable  you  to render  a Service  Transcendent  beyond  even
your  fondest  expectations  now;  and  I say to you,  Beloved
Ones,  never  was  mankind  so favored. You,  today  have
every  opportunity  which  the  Heart  can  desire,  as It is
bursting  Its bonds  and  entering  Its Freedom. Think  how DISCOURSE  III  3
long,  the Heart  has  been  held  in bondage  to the intellect. What  a Service  was  rendered  by Beloved  Saint  Germain,
when  He brought  This  Knowledge  of the "I AM  Presence"
forth  to mankind. In the number  today,  who  are earnestly
applying  the Law  of the "I AM  Presence,"  what  a Service
has been  rendered  to mankind  and  the Earth. I give  My
Gratitude  to you,  the Light  having  expanded  thru  you,
for being  able  to accept  and  apply  This  Knowledge;  which
We are


 stilled. Then,  as This  Pure  Wondrous  Energy
flows  forth  and  out into  your  world,  you  will  find  those
who  hated  you  will  turn  and  love  you;  those  who  opposed
you, will  want  to serve  you  in the Glory  of Life;  because
your  Out-pouring  of Love  has touched  their  world,  refined
it; and  made  it responsive  to the Power  of Life  which  is
Light. Life  is acting  everywhere! Precious  Ones  in this audience  today,  do you understand,
you are but the Individualization  of the One  Great  Life ? If one of you sitting  in this audience,  were  suddenly  to turn
and hate  the rest,  then  those  in the audience  to some  degree
—knowingly  or unknowingly,  would  be affected  by that
feeling  which  was  sent  into  the room,  if they  did not un-
derstand  how  to protect  themselves. Individuals  are doing
this constantly  and believing  they  are not affected  by it; but
too late,  they  realize  they  are their  own  destruction. DON'T  EVER  AGAIN  BLAME  ANY  PERSON,
PLACE  OR CONDITION  FOR  ANYTHING  WHICH
EXISTS  IN YOUR  WORLD! Then,  you  will  be in a po-DISCOURSE  XXII  289
sition  to call the Powers  of your  Presence  forth  to cleanse,
purify  and  set your  world  into  order;  and  have  the Glory,
the Presence,  and  the Perfection  of All Life  acting  in your
world. Think  of it! Never  in the experience  of outer  activity  have
such  things  been  done,  and I just refer  to two or three. The
Great  Victory  you will  understand  by His Name,  is all Vic-
tory implies. His Name  is a Quality,  a Power,  an Authority! When  He has  offered  to charge  the Substance  of Light,
which  is His  Power  of Victory  into  the feeling  world  of
every  honest,  sincere  student;  in the Name  of God,  your
"Mighty  I AM  Presence,"  do you realize  what  that  means
to you! His  Power  is Assistance  for Victory  in your  world
on the side  of Light! The  Mighty  Goddess  of Liberty  has
offered  to charge  your  world  with  Her  Power  of Liberty;
which  is Her  Quality  of Action  to give  you  Assistance. In
My Humble  Efforts,  "I AM"  the Director  of Those  Mighty
Light  Rays,  I offer  to dissolve  and  consume  your  human
creation;  as I find  Individuals  who  are Earnest,  Honest  and
Sincere  in making  their  Application. Where  their  Streams
of Life  make  it possible  for Me to render  that  Service,  I
never  lose  an opportunity  to give  Assistance;  to dissolve
and consume  the remainder  of their  human  discordant
qualities,  which  have  been  drawn  into  the feeling  world. Remember,  everything  in Life  is a Trinity  of Action. Perhaps,  I should  explain  to you why  these  particular  qual-
ities are being  charged  into  the feeling  world  of the students
everywhere. The  demand  for the World  and  our America 290 THE  "I AM99  DISCOURSES
especially,  is Victory  thru  Liberty—in  the acknowledgment
of the Presence  of all Life,  which  is the "Mighty  I AM." America  must  have  Invincible  Protection. It is not a matter
of can it, but America  must  have  It! We are the Power  and
the Authority  by the Full  Co-operation  of the Cosmic  Be-
ings of Light. Then  can  you  tell Me honestly  from  your
Heart,  there  is any human  creation  in the Universe  which
has any Power  to oppose  Our  Authority  of Life ? AWAKEN  TODAY,  BELOVED  ONES,  IN  THE
FULL  FEELING  OF  WHAT  THIS  MEANS. Let  Me
remind  you  again,  that  which  We  refer  to as the Cosmic
Light,  is not just  an Universal  Activity  which  is prevalent
everywhere! The  Cosmic  Light  to which  We  refer,  is a
Consciously  Drawn  and  Projected  Power  of Light  Sub-
stance  into  the Earth;  by the Great  Group  of Ascended
Masters  and  Cosmic  Beings,  from  what  you  have  come  to
know  as the Great  Central  Sun;  which  is the Heart  Focus
of Life  and  Light  to This  System  of Worlds. Now  is the only  time,  It has ever  acted  upon  the Earth
in more  than  two million  years,  because  the need  is so great;
in order  to hold  the unity  in This  System  of Worlds. Your
planet  has become  known—Oh,  let us put it, as a "shadow
planet";  because  of the discord  long  generated  by mankind. Do you  realize  what  it would  mean,  if the Earth  failed  in
its Expansion  of the Light  as required;  in relation  to the
other  planets  of This  System ? You  don't  know  that,  the
intellect  cannot  comprehend  it, but We do! Do you  wonder  why  Beloved  Saint  Germain  wanted  to DISCOURSE  XXII  291
bring  forth  This  Light  to the Earth,  in the last effort  to free
mankind ? Let Me tell you something,  you  could  never  re-
pay Him  in a million  years  for the Service,  which  He has
rendered  to the Earth  and to mankind. Then,  to think  there
are Individuals  in America  so depraved,  as to condemn,
criticize  and  put forth  the vicious  fiendish  false  statement,
that the Messengers  are trying  to replace  Beloved  Jesus  with
Saint  Germain;  trying  to ridicule  the Dictations  of These
Great  Beings  of Light! The  ignorance  and  fiendishness  of
unfortunate  Individuals,  is but a claw  of the sinister  force,
to spread  their  poisonous  breath  among  the students. I say to you  Beloved  People  of Detroit,  fiendish  human
Beings  will  pay  the penalty,  as no human  Being  on the
face of This  Earth  can understand;  for the falsehoods  they
have  spread  concerning  the Messengers  and  This  Work—
not the Messengers  so much,  as This  Work,  which  is the
Light  of every  human  Being's  Life. You  watch! The  end
of their  rope  is at hand. Human  Beings  so imbued  with
the fiendishness  and falsehood  as to spread  apparent  opposi-
tion to This  Light,  do it only  to gain  money. They  have
failed,  as all destructive  forces  must  fail! I say that  to every
human  being  who  opposes  This  Light;  because  there  is
nothing  the Messengers  give  forth,  which  is not beautiful
and constructive,  and  for the Freedom  of mankind. It is a
Service  to the Earth  which  has never  been  rendered. If you allow  yourselves  to be affected  by such  false  things,
you will  pay  the penalty;  and  you  will  continue  in your
limitations. I speak  with  Authority! I want  the Blessed  Peo-292 THE  "I AM99  DISCOURSES
pie and Students  to have  their  Freedom;  and  be untouched
by the fiendish  falsehoods  which  are spread. Therefore,
stand  in the Light  of your  "I AM  Presence,"  Beloved  Ones,
and have  your  Freedom! When  human  Beings  allow  destructive  qualities  to pour
forth,  they  must  pay  the penalty;  because  it is the Law  of
their  Life! It is not that  anybody  wishes  anything  upon
them,  but the Law  of their  Life  must


 center begins to send messages to the breathing
muscles to resume breathing. As the breath hold continues, these impulsesincrease in intensity, causing repeated contractions of the diaphragm. This
is somet imes called the “struggle phase.” As the diaphragm continues to
contract through the breath hold, it essentially receives a workout. According to a 2013 study of maximal breath hold in free divers, the
relative intensity of diaphragmatic and inspiratory rib-cage muscle
contractions increases by aroun d 5 and 15 times respectively, from the
beginning to the end of the struggle phase, approaching potentially
fatiguing levels by the time breathing is resumed.42
In 2016,  scienti sts at the Unive rsity of Zagreb, Croatia, ran a study to
determine the effects of hypercapnic-hypoxic training on respiratory muscle
strength among elite swimmers. Those swimmers who were subjected to a
hypercapnic-hypoxic regimen significantly improved the stren gth of their
inspiratory muscles when compared to swimmers who breathed normally. Participants who reduced their breathing improved their inspiratory muscle
strength by 14.9% and expirator y muscle strength by 1.9%. The researchers
noted that voluntary breath holding might have resulted in involuntary
contractions of the breathing muscles, increasing diaphragm thickness.43
The thickness of the diaphragm plays an important role in sporting
performance and endurance. The precise mechanisms by which respiratory muscle training improves
exercise performance have not been fully determined. The positive effects
on endurance may be due to the direct impact on fatigue in the respiratory
muscles. Indirectly, the improved blood flow to working muscles that
comes from more efficient breathing and better oxygenation is also
beneficial. It is also likely that the increased resistance to breat hing during
respiratory muscle training may simply make normal physical exercise feel
easier.44
When the breathing muscles are stronger, they are better able to cope
with more intensive training. This means that more intense exercise is
possible before the metaborefl ex reduces blood flow to the legs. This
ultimately improves performance as well as endurance. The effects of
respiratory muscle training have been shown across a variety of sports,
including rowing,45 sustained heavy-endurance exercise,46 and cycling.47A SIMPLE MEASURE OF DYSFUNCTIONAL
BREA THING
As we’ve seen, breathing pattern disorders are multidimensional, comprised
of a series of biochemical, biomechanical, and psychological components. So, it can be difficult to achieve a definitive diagnosis with any single test. Also, many methods to assess dysfunctional breathing rely too much on
subjective infor mation. As with any dysfunction, the body and mind can
adapt to a certain degree until the problem becomes normali zed, and so
personal experie nce rarely provides clear information. This is perhaps part
of the reason why breathing pattern disorders are so often overlooked in
physical therapy. In 2017, the lack of effective screening was addressed by a research
team led by Dr. Kyle Kiesel, a professor and chair of physical therapy, who
has done extensive research in areas including motor control of the core and
functional movement.2 The result was a simple screening procedure to
enable fitness and healthcare providers to accurately identify disordered
breathing in their patients.2 Kiesel’ s study examined 51 subjects, 27 females
and 24 males, with an average age of 27 years and a BMI of 23.3. Breathing
was assessed in terms of biochemical, biomechanical, and psychological
function. The biochemical  dimension of breathing was evaluated by monitoring
ETCO 2. ETCO 2 is the average amount of CO2 in exhaled air. This is
measured using capnography, which measures the pressure of blood CO2,
because normally the pressure of CO2 in the lungs determines the pressure
of CO 2 in the blood. The normal range of ETCO 2 is betwe en 35 mmHg and
40 mmHg. Less than 35 mmHg suggests the presence of dysfunctional
breathing.21
The biomechanical  dimension was assessed using a test called the Hi-
Lo. This is a visual evaluation during which abdominal expansion and
perceived displacement and functional movement of the upper and lower
rib cage are recorded. The patient lies face up and breathes normally, with
one hand  on the chest and the other on the abdomen. How much  the tummy
and ribs move during a normal breathing cycle is measured.For the psychophysiological  dimension of the experiment, participants
answered questions from the Self-Evaluation of Breathing Symptoms
Questionnair e (SEBQ) and Nijmegen Questionnair e (NQ). The NQ has
been a popular screening tool for the diagnosis of hyperventilat ion for over
30 years. It gives a broad view of symptoms associated with dysfunctional
breathing and asks 16 question s about breathing discomfort. The patient
responds using a numbered scale ranging from “never” (0 points) to “very
often” (4 points). A score of 23 points or more is considered to indicate the
presence of hyperventilation syndrome.48
I am not a fan of the Nijmegen Questionnair e. Its questions neglect
some of the most common signs of breathing pattern disorders. It does not
include frequent sighing or yawning, nasal congestion, fatigue, or
wheezing. While it could be argued that these are omitted because they are
all caused by organic conditions, people with these symptoms generally do
have breathing pattern disorders. On the other hand, the NQ does include
symptoms such as confusion, tingling and stiffness in the fingers, stiffness
in the arms, and tightness aroun d the mouth. In almost 20 years of teaching
exercises to address chronic hyperventilation, I’ve only seen a handful of
people present with those symptoms. Kiesel’ s team failed to find any strong correlation between the 3
measures of disordered breathing.2 This goes some way to explaining why
these common methods of diagnosis are so continually unreliable. Of the
participants, 5 were deemed to have normal breathing, 14 failed at least 1
measure, 20 failed at least 2 of the measures, and 12 failed all 3. Only 10%
of partic ipants who passed all three dimensions of breathing actually had
normal breathing. While the capnometer, Hi-Lo  test, and self-evaluation questionnaires
were found wanting, Kiesel discovered that a simple screening test could
accurately asses s the presence of dysfunctional breathing. The proposed test
consisted of just four question s from the Functional Movement Screen
(FMS) and a breath-hold time of 25 seconds. FMS identifies physical weakness and imbalance. To assess movement
patterns crucial to normal mobility, it uses a straightforward ranking and
grading system of seven functio nal movements. These are deep squat, in-
line lunge, hurdle step, active straight leg raise, shoulder mobility, trunkstability push up, and rotary stability. It pinpoints any functional limitations
and asymmetries that may inhibit the ability to move correc tly or train
without injury. The four questions Kiesel found effective to diagnose
dysfunctional breathing ask whether the patient feels tense, has cold hands
or feet, yawns frequently, or mouth breathes at night. These symptoms are
all common among people with breathing pattern disorders. To accurately measure breath-hold time, each participant was directed to
hold the breath at the end of a standard exhalation. The breath-hold was
measured until the tester noted the subject’ s first involuntary contraction of
the diaphragm or throat muscles.2 This technique  exactly replicates the
BOL T measurement that we use in the Oxygen Advantage. Kiesel’ s team concluded that, if an individual passed the screening
composed of the four questions plus the breath-hold test, there was an 89%
chance that their breathing was not dysfunctional. The test, therefore,
provides an easy way for clinicians to accurately detect DB in their
patients.2 In the same way, the BOL T provides an accurate measure of
functional breathing. By checking your BOL T score and observing what’ s
going on in your body, you can assess your own breathing witho ut the need
for fancy equipment. This puts you in a strong position to tackle the
problem. WHA T DO FUNCTIONAL MOVEMENT SCORES MEAN FOR
PERFORMANCE? Dr. Paul Sly is an Oxygen Advantage Master Instructor in Canada. He has
more than 25 years’ experience as a practicing chiropractor and is an
acupuncture provider, certified in Functional Movement Systems. He sent
me this explanation of functional movement screening and its implications
for functional breathing and performance:
In Functional Movement Systems, there is the Functional Movement
Screen (FMS) and the Selective Functional Movement Assessment
(SFMA). The FMS is a performance enhancement tool, while the
SFMA is the clinical arm, designed to arrive at a diagnosis. I use
both, but as a clinician I use the SFMA a lot. In particular,
“breakouts” of the movement patterns determine whether a specificdysfunction is a Tissue Extensibility Dysfunction (TED) or a
Stability or Motor Control Dysfunction (SMCD). Take the classic standing toe touch. If an individual can’t do
that, there are two possibilities. Either something (typically the
hamstrings) along the posterior chain is too tight (TED) or the