 of parent organisations across
the world keen to share information and help each other. I know a lot of
parents who would spend hours on the phone to comfort and help another parent in the same situation. Treating autism is not an easy task. It takes
years of continuous effort and commitment. But, being a parent myself, I
can tell you that it is one of the most rewarding experiences on Earth! In
this book I would like to share with you what I strongly believe to be the
appropriate treatment for an autistic child.
Information on nutrition is not included into the curriculum of western
medical schools and consequently doctors have very little idea about the
value of nutrition in the treatment of disease. Yet appropriate nutrition is a
corner-stone of any successful treatment for any chronic disease Autism
and other learning disabilities are no exception. There are many popular
misconceptions in this area, which have to be clarified.
Autism used to be a diagnosis considered hopeless. With all the know
ledge we have today it is very far from that. And we are still learning every
day. Children diagnosed today are much more fortunate than children
diagnosed ten years ago (if the word fortunate can be used at all), because
their parents have so much more information available to them to start
helping their child immediately. Ten years ago we did not know half of what
we know today. Parents of newly diagnosed children now have no time to
despair - there is too much learning to do! I think, that is very positive. The
learning rollercoaster, your child will take you through, will change your
life forever. Who knows, it may open new horizons and opportunities for
you, as it has done for so many people.
So, let's keep learning! INTRODUCTION
This book has evolved over a period of three years when I worked with
hundreds of children in my clinic. Initially the book was planned to be
about autism as the majority of children who came to see me were indeed
autistic. However, the more children I saw the more it became clear that we
have other epidemics emerging. Attention deficit disorder with hyperactiv-
ity and without it (ADHD/ADD), dyspraxia, dyslexia, various behavioural
and learning problems, allergies, asthma, eczema - all have reached epi
demic proportions. But more than that these seemingly unrelated condi
tions overlap with each other. After years of working with the children in
my clinic I hardly met one child who presented with just one of the above
conditions. Every child has two, three or more of these health problems at
once. For example, a child would present with allergies; at the same time
the parents would describe a couple of asthmatic episodes and eczema
and then would talk about their child's extreme clumsiness (dyspraxia) and
learning problems. A large percent of allergic and asthmatic children are
dyspraxic and hyperactive to various degrees. Many of them have prob
lems with concentration and attention span, which affect their learning
ability. There is an approximate 50% overlap between dyslexia and dys-
praxia and a 30 50% overlap between ADHD and dyslexia. Children who
suffer severe eczema in infancy quite often develop autistic features later
in life. Autism and ADHD overlap with every one of the above-mentioned
conditions. Apart from being hyperactive many autistic children have
severe allergies, asthma, eczema, dyspraxia and dyslexia. ism
THE OVERLAPPING PICTURE
As we can see, modern medicine has created all these separate diagnostic
boxes to fit our children in. But the modern child does not fit into any one
of them; the modern child fits into this rather lumpy picture.
Why are all these conditions related? What underlying problem are we
missing in our children which makes them susceptible to asthma, eczema,
allergies, dyspraxia, dyslexia, behavioural problems, ADHD and autism in
different combinations? Why when they become teenagers, do many of
these children fall prey to substance abuse? Why do many of these children
grow up to become diagnosed with schizophrenia, depression, bipolar dis
order and other psychological and psychiatric problems?
To answer all these questions we have to look at one factor, which unites
all these patients in a clinical setting. This factor is the state of their diges
tive system. I have yet to meet a child with autism, ADHD/ADD, asthma,
eczema, allergies, dyspraxia or dyslexia, who has not got digestive abnor
malities. In many cases they are severe enough for the parents to start talk
ing about them first. In some cases the parents may not mention their
child's digestive system, yet when asked direct questions would describe a
plethora of gut problems. But what have digestive abnormalities got to do
with autism, hyperactivity, inability to learn, mood and behaviour prob
lems? According to recent research and clinical experience - a lot! In fact it
appears that the child's digestive system holds the key to the child's mental
development. The underlying disorder, which can manifest itself in INTRODUCTION 7
different children with different combinations of symptoms, resides in the
gut! Rather than trying to fit a child with autistic tendencies, asthma,
eczema and hyperactivity or a child with dyspraxia, dyslexia and allergies
into any particular diagnostic box we need to have a name for the under
lying disorder, which originates in the gut and manifests itself as any
combination of the above conditions.
Here I propose a name: Gut And Psychology Syndrome  or GAP
Syndrome. Children with GAP Syndrome often fall into the gap - the gap in
our medical knowledge. As a result they do not receive appropriate treat
ment. In the following chapters we are going to talk in detail about what
the GAP Syndrome means, how it develops and how to treat it.
Apart from childhood learning disabilities: autism, ADHD/ADD,
dyslexia, dyspraxia and various learning and behavioural problems, there
is another group of conditions which fit into the GAP Syndrome. These
conditions are schizophrenia, depression, manic depression or bipolar dis
order and obsessive compulsive disorder. The father of modern psychiatry
French psychiatrist Phillipe Pinel (1745-1828), after working with mental
patients for many years, concluded in 1807: "The primary seat of insanity
generally is in the region of the stomach and intestines." And yet, the last
thing a modern psychiatrist would pay attention to is the patient's diges
tive system! We will discuss the scientific and clinical evidence pointing in
the direction of gut-brain connection in schizophrenic patients.
It is beyond the scope of this book to look at other psychiatric condi
tions. Hopefully, future clinical experience and research will shed light on
how many of them may belong to Gut And Psychology Syndrome. Here
we will concentrate on the conditions which receive the diagnostic labels
of Autistic Spectrum Disorder, ADHD/ADD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia and
Schizophrenia. This book may also be useful for patients who are
diagnosed with allergies, including asthma and eczema. PART ONE:
WHAT IS GOING ON?
1. ALL DISEASES
BEGIN IN THE GUT
Hippocrates, 460-370 BC
GAPS children and adults have digestive problems, sometimes quite
severe. Colic, bloating, flatulence, diarrhoea, constipation, feeding difficul
ties and malnourishment, all to various degrees, are a typical part of
autism, schizophrenia and other GAPS conditions. Doctors often explain
these symptoms as a result of patient's "funny" feeding habits and are not
inclined to investigate them.
Whether we look at a child or an adult with GAPS, in the majority of
cases digestive problems start at weaning time or times when breast milk
gets replaced with formula milk and other foods get introduced. In many
cases parents clearly remember that the diarrhoea or constipation started
in the second year, but thinking back would recall that their child had colic,
vomiting (reflux) or other digestive symptoms in the first year as well. In
cases of GAPS adults it is important to speak to the parents of the patient (if
possible) in order to collect a detailed medical history starting from birth.
In those cases where an adult did not have a history of gut problems from
childhood the digestive problems would start later in life due to some
health-damaging event.
The second year of life is the time when many GAPS children start devel
oping fussy eating habits, refusing a whole lot of foodstuffs and limiting
their diet to a handful of foods, usually starchy and sweet: breakfast cere
als, crisps, chips, popcorn, cakes, biscuits, sweets, bananas, bread, rice,
sweet yoghurts. Most of these children would refuse to have vegetables,
fruit (apart from bananas), meats, fish and eggs. About 60-70% of the autis
tic children I have seen in my clinic would have an extremely limited diet,
consisting sometimes of two or three items. It is quite rare to meet an autis
tic child who is not fussy with food. Other GAPS children may not be as extreme as autistic children but the majority of them also limit their diets
in the same typical fashion.
It is


utathione-S-transferase—in the liver, which is able to remove toxic free radicals from
the blood stream.5 The normal activity of this enzyme is increased by 600-700% by the coffee
enema, hence vastly increased detoxification results. Coffee is also rich in potassium, which helps
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 8 9Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comprevent intestinal cramping by boosting the potassium content of deficient smooth muscles in the
colon.
In 1990 a remarkable study appeared in a peer-reviewed German medical journal under the
title “Experiences with the Use of Dietary Therapy in Surgical Oncology.” Its author, Dr. Peter
Lechner, of the Oncological Outpatient Department, District Hospital, Graz, Austria, reported
on a six-year clinical study of a modified version of the Gerson Therapy followed by a group
of 60 cancer patients who were also receiving orthodox treatment. According to Dr. Lechner,
this greatly reduced version of the Gerson protocol was used as an adjuvant therapy, not as
an alternative to conventional oncological treatments. Moreover, the patients carried out the
nutritional therapy in their homes, which made strict supervision impossible. Even so, at the end
of six years Dr. Lechner was able to report the following results: patients generally suffered
fewer post-operative complications and adverse side effects of radio- and/or chemotherapy,
their need for analgesics and psychotropic drugs was less than that of the controls, existing
liver metastases progressed more slowly, and the patients’ psychological state was good
throughout. The malnutrition-caused cachexia (severe wasting), which normally occurs in
advanced stages of the disease could be prevented or at least greatly delayed in most cases.
One 77-year-old woman patient on the nutritional regime achieved a complete remission
without conventional therapy.6
In the course of the six-year clinical study Dr. Lechner and his colleagues were also able to
justify Dr. Gerson’s use of coffee enemas, by following up independent research by Djerussi (1959)
and Kaufmann (1963). This showed that the two active ingredients of the coffee, Cafestol and
Kahweol, increased up to sevenfold the activity of Glutation-S-Transferase, which, as we know
from the Minnesota research (see above), plays a central role in the elimination of toxins from the
liver. All in all, cautious and restrained though Dr. Lechner’s conclusions are, it is clear from his
report that even a greatly watered-down version of the Gerson Therapy achieves unexpected and
unprecedented good results in the treatment of patients with metastasized malignancies.
The most recent in-depth study of the anti-cancer components of Gerson’s food regime was
written by Carmen Wheatley, Ph.D., a member of the Orthomolecular Oncology Group, U.K.
She became interested in the subject through the experience of her friend, Oxford Professor of
English Literature Michael Gearin-Tosh, who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 1994. His
prognosis was poor: 6-9 months’ survival without any treatment, 1-2 years with “appropriate”
chemotherapy. Professor Gearin-Tosh refused the latter and after considerable searching chose
the Gerson Therapy, boosting it with meditation, acupuncture, and Chinese breathing exercises.
He described the process from diagnosis to his then current state in his brilliant, highly amusing
book, Living Proof—A Medical Mutiny7 (Against expectations, he lived for 11 years and
eventually died of blood poisoning following dental work.)
Watching her friend’s progress, Dr. Carmen Wheatley became intrigued by the fact that Dr.
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 9 0Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comGerson, apparently intuitively, selected foods for his Therapy that have since, some 50 years later,
been shown to have anti-cancer properties. She wrote up her findings in an essay, titled “The Case
of the 0.005% Survivor,” which was peer-reviewed by four eminent physicians, and appeared
as an afterword in Professor Gearin-Tosh’s book. To start with, Dr. Wheatley points out that the
Gerson diet contains several foods in which modern research has identified some key cancer-
fighting components, e.g. flax seed oil with its important contents of Omega-3 fatty acids, fruits
rich in minerals and in bioflavonoids, vegetables of the cruciferous family, namely cauliflower,
cabbages and broccoli, whose anti-cancer properties are borne out by current scientific nutritional
research.
She comments, “ Gerson’s fruit and vegetable diet could be subjected to exhaustive
analysis in the light of modern nutritional oncology research. He didn’t have any of this
scientific knowledge, yet empirically devised a method which ensures that a large range of
these products would be delivered to the cancer patient, intact and in pharmacologically
active doses ” (added emphasis).
In the rest of her study Dr. Wheatley reviews further components of the Gerson Therapy,
from the value of juicing to the importance of coffee enemas and finds all of them scientifically
justified. In conclusion let us quote one of her shrewd comments: “ Conventional medical
methods of treating cancer—chemotherapy, radiation—routinely wipe out an already
depressed immune system and do little to restore it. Yet, as Gerson realized, it is the immune
system which is needed to fight cancer, and therefore building it up should enhance chances
of survival. ”
As time goes on and the lack of success of much of conventional oncology becomes ever
more obvious, research into nutritional therapies is bound to expand and take up its due place in
mainstream medicine. Its findings are bound to confirm again and again that the principles and
practice of the Gerson Therapy are sound and accurate, offering an eminently logical way to heal
disease and maintain health.
References:
1. Cope, F.W. Physiological Chemistry and Physics, V ol.10, No.5. 1978
2. Ibid  V ol.9, No.6, 1977
3. Spain Ward, P. Monograph submitted to the US Office of Technology Assessment, 1988
4. Foster, H.D. International Journal of Biosocial Research, V ol.10, No.1, 1988
5. Sparmins, V.L; Lam, L.K.T; Wattenberg, L.W. Proceedings of the American Association
of Cancer Researchers and the American Society of Clinical Oncology, 22:114, Abstract
453, 1981
6. Lechner, P. Aktuelle Ernaehrungsmedizin, V ol.2, No.5. 1990
7. Wheatley, C. in Living Proof— Medical Mutiny, by Michael Gearin-Tosh, Scribner, 2002
Copyright © Charlotte Gerson, 2007.  All rights reserved.
This material may not be reproduced in any medium, print or electronic without prior written permission from the author.Page 9 1Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comCHAPTER 9
The Gerson Household
Whether a patient is able to spend some time at a Gerson facility or decides to embark on the
therapy at home, the longest part of the healing process—up to two years or more with malignant
disease, much less with other chronic conditions—will have to take place in his or her residence.
For the duration of the treatment the home needs to be turned into a kind of private clinic, where
everything serves the goal of getting well, and nothing is allowed to interfere with that process.
How do we go about that?  Quite simply by bearing in mind that the twin pillars of the Gerson
program are nutrition and detoxification. Since the ill patient suffering from a chronic disease is
both toxic and nutritionally deficient, as a first task the household has to be cleared of all toxic
chemicals and damaging materials or appliances. These are present in vast arrays in most modern
households. Chemical cleansers, gadgets and labor-saving devices emitting harmful radiation or
so-called electro-smog are used daily and taken for granted. It’s only when their dire effects on
the body are understood that we get rid of them.
As the second pillar of the therapy is to provide the patient with hyper-nutrition, a suitably
equipped kitchen is the all-important center where all foods and juices are prepared daily in large
amounts. Let us start by listing the correct equipment for a smoothly running, efficient Gerson
kitchen.
Refrigerator : one very large one or two of average size will be needed to store the large
quantities of organic produce required. A cool, preferably dark, well-ventilated pantry or laundry
room is ideal for storing root vegetables, which don’t need refrigeration.
Juice Machines
As freshly made organic juices are one of the most important healing components of the
Gerson program, they must be of the best possible quality, and therefore it is vital to choose the
most efficient juicer—one that will stand up to constant use over two years or so.
There are plenty of models


;
The Guide To Healthy Eating, 2
nd
 Edition;

The Guide to a Gluten-Free Diet, 2
nd
 Edition;

The Guide to a Dairy-
Free Diet;
 and
The Soy Deception.

Dr. Brownstein’s office is located at:

Center for Holistic Medicine
5821 W. Maple Rd.
Ste. 192
West Bloomfield, MI 48322
248.851.1600
www.drbrownstein.com
www.centerforholisticmedicine.comContents
Preface
Foreword
Chapter 1: Introduction to Iodine
Chapter 2: Iodine Deficiency and Iodized Salt
Chapter 3: Different Forms of Iodine
Chapter 4: Iodine and the Thyroid Gland
Chapter 5: The Oxidation and Organification of Iodine
Chapter 6: Iodine and Autoimmune Thyroid Disease
Chapter 7: The Selenium/Iodine Connection
Chapter 8: Iodine, Breast Cancer, and Fibrocystic Breast Disease
Chapter 9: The Importance of Iodine Before Pregnancy
Chapter 10: Children, ADHD, Autism, and Iodine
Chapter 11: Toxic Halides: Bromide and Fluoride
Chapter 12: Detoxification Questions and Answers
Chapter 13: Iodine Dosage Guidelines
Chapter 14: Case Histories
Chapter 15: Questions and Answers
Chapter 16: Final Thoughts: Overcoming Medical Iodophobia
Appendix
IndexDEDICATION
To the women of my life: Allison, Hailey, and Jessica, with all my love
To physicians not satisfied with the dogma who are willing to search for a new paradigm that promotes
health.
To my staff: Thanks so much for all of your help and encouragement. I appreciate all of your hard work.
And, to my patients. Thank you for being interested in what I am interested in.
Last, but certainly not least. I dedicate this book to my mentor on iodine: Dr. Guy Abraham.PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION
Of all the elements known so far to be essential for human health, iodine is the most misunderstood and the most feared. Yet
iodine is the safest of all the essential trace elements, being the only one that can be administered safely for long periods of time to
large numbers of patients in daily amounts as high as 100,000 times the RDA. However, this safety record only applies to
inorganic nonradioactive forms of iodine. Based on a review of the literature, both forms, iodine and iodide, are needed for
optimal function of every organ and cell of the human body.
1
Some organic iodine-containing drugs, such as amiodarone, are extremely toxic and prescribed by physicians. The severe
side effects of these drugs are blamed on inorganic iodine although studies have clearly demonstrated that it is the whole molecule
that is toxic, not the iodine released from it. A case in point: the thyroid hormones are organic iodine-containing substances. Not a
single physician has attributed the effects of thyroid hormones to inorganic iodine. Why not? They are basically the same forms of
iodine covalently bound to an organic molecule. This author believes that this inconsistency of doublethink is most likely due to
decreased cognition caused by iodine deficiency. Medical iodophobia may have caused more human misery and death than both
world wars combined by
preventing meaningful clinical research in the daily amount of iodine needed for optimal physical and
mental health
2
.
It is of interest that the recommended daily amount of iodine for supplementation by clinicians of previous generations, that is
12.5-37.5 mg in the form of Lugol’s solution, turns out to be the exact range of intake for sufficiency of the whole human body,
based on a recently developed loading test.
3
 Iodine/iodide in the proper amounts resulted in increased urinary excretion of heavy
metals such as lead and mercury; and had a detoxifying effect by increasing excretion of the toxic halides fluoride and bromide.
4
 It
is time to wake up and realize that we are sitting on the shoulders of the giants of past generations who have given us useful
information, which we have discarded in favor of preconceived ideas by self-appointed experts.
This book by Dr. David Brownstein is a welcome departure from the past and a fresh look at facts only, discarding myths and
unfounded concerns about inorganic nonradioactive iodine/iodide. Patients will be grateful to Dr. Brownstein for bringing to light a
simple, safe, inexpensive way of healing many medical conditions.
The ultimate Healer is the Creator of heaven and earth. His guidance has been felt constantly during this project by this
author. May He bless and guide Dr. Brownstein and his patients.
“I the LORD am your healer.”
(Exodus 15:26)
Guy E. Abraham, M.D., FACN.
1
 Abraham, G.E., Flechas, J.D., Hakala, J.C., Orthoiodosupplementation: Iodine sufficiency of the whole human body. The
Original Internist, 9:30-41, 2002.
2
 Abraham, G.E., The Wolff-Chaikoff Effect of Increasing Iodide Intake on the Thyroid. Townsend Letter, 245:100-101,
2003.
3
 Abraham, G.E. The safe and effective implementation or orthoiodosupplementation in medical practice. The Original
Internist, April 2004 (In press).
4
 Abraham, G.E., Iodine Supplementation Markedly Increases Urinary Excretion of Fluoride and Bromide. Townsend Letter,
238:108-109, 2003Preface to the Fourth Edition
(Author’s note: Dr. Abraham died before I began working on the 5
th
 Edition of this book. He was gracious to write a new
Preface for each edition. I am including the last Preface that he wrote for me.)
Less than five years ago, David Brownstein, M.D. introduced to the medical community and to consumers, his book on the
essential element iodine, describing his experience with the orthoiodosupplementation program and the iodine/iodide loading test.
1
 This test is simple, straightforward, and practical.
Since then, he has crisscrossed the continental U.S.A. from East to West and North to South, lecturing on his experience with
inorganic non-radioactive iodine to physicians, other healthcare professionals and consumers. Due mainly to his persistent efforts,
reassuring healthcare professionals that inorganic non-radioactive iodine is safe and effective, there are now thousands of
physicians and other healthcare professionals using the iodine/iodide loading test and implementing orthoiodosupplementation
safely and successfully in their practices. After trying orthoiodosupplementation on themselves and their loved ones, they became
confident that medical iodophobia was not justified for the inorganic, non-radioactive forms of this essential nutrient.
The number of publications presenting new research data on the orthoiodosupplementation program has increased markedly
in this short time. As of December 2008, 23 manuscripts have been published. Dr. Brownstein is the sole author or coauthor in
five of these publications. These publications are available on our website at
Optimox.com
, under Iodine Research.
Dr. Brownstein and I coauthored a publication, reporting the positive effect of vitamin C at 3000 mg/day on a defective
cellular transport system for iodine, emphasizing the importance of a complete nutritional program for best results with
orthoiodosupplementation.
2
 In collaboration with Drs. Brownstein and Flechas, I recently published a procedure for assessing the
saliva/serum ratio of inorganic iodide as an index of the efficiency of the iodine/iodide symporter system.
3
 We have established
normal values and have demonstrated a negative effect of elevated serum bromide on this ratio, suggesting that bromide interferes
with cellular uptake of iodide. Iodine intake in daily amounts from 50 to 75mg iodine in the form of Lugol’s tablet (Iodoral®) had
a positive effect on the saliva/serum iodide ratio and decreased serum bromide.
Abnormalities in the cellular uptake of iodine were reported in breast cancer patients with elevated bromide levels.
4
Organification defects in the utilization of cellular iodide were reported in a subject with fibromyalgia.
5
 Iodine alone at
100mg/day
markedly improved the symptom scores. The addition of high dose vitamin B2 and B3 further improved the overall well-being in
FM patients.
6
The iodine project is now eight years old and strong, but not without enemies. Continued research and publications,
education of physicians and consumers, and more widespread utilization of the orthoiodosupplementation program are the most
effective ways to fight iodophobic bioterrorism and medical iodophobia.
The future of the essential element iodine in medical practice looks very promising. We are rediscovering what our medical
predecessors already knew. To quote Nobel Laureate Albert Szent-Gyorgyi
7
: “When I was a medical student, iodine in the form
of KI was the universal medicine. Nobody knew what it did, but it did something and did something good. We students used to
sum up the situation in this little rhyme…If ye don’t know where, what, and why; prescribe ye then K and I… Our medical
predecessors, possessing very few and crude instruments only,


	the	consciousness	created	by
the	brain	disappears	completely.	You	are	no	more.
There	is	a	good	deal	of	cultural	overlap	here	as	one	tradition	feeds	into
another.	The	Muslim	vision	of	eternity	as	a	paradise	garden,	complete	with
the	sexual	attractions	of
houris
	and	exotic	fruits,	owes	its	existence	in	part	to
the	Garden	of	Eden.	Spirit	worlds	are	common	all	over	the	globe.	The	ancient
Greeks	expected	to	meet	the	shades	of	the	departed	across	the	River	Styx	in
Hades,	but	filtered	through	time	and	Christianity,	Hades	became	a	punishing
hell	presided	over	by	Satan	while	the	Greek	place	of	blessed	spirits,	the
Elysian	Fields,	became	heaven.
There	are	invisible	spirit	worlds	found	in	the	ancestor	worship	of	Japan
and	China.	In	a	prehistoric	age	aboriginal	peoples	drifted	from	South	Asia	to
Australia	and	the	islands	of	the	South	Pacific,	bringing
their
	spirit	worlds	with
them.	With	them	also	came	a	kind	of	“dream	time”	that	infused	ordinary	time,
in	which	material	events	could	be	seen	as	depending	upon	spiritual	events.
But	spirit	worlds	didn’t	hold	in	India,	where	the	dominant	belief	gathered
around	three	other	afterlives:	transcendence	(rejoining	the	sea	of
consciousness),	awakening	(discovering	that	one’s	true	nature	is	Atman	or	the
soul),	and	transmigration	(the	eternal	cycle	of	rebirth).
Being	born	in	a	certain	culture,	however,	doesn’t	always	determine	where
your	soul	finds	itself	after	“crossing	over.”	Eternal	life,	it	turns	out,	is	alsovery	personal.
Expanded	Awareness
The	standard	assumption	is	that	no	one	really	knows	what	happens	after	we
die.	But	the	rishis	asked	the	question,	Why	don’t	we	expect	to	know?	Instead
of	being	unknowable,	perhaps	the	afterlife	is	something	we	haven’t	looked	at
hard	enough.	And	if	so,	why	not?
For	one	thing,	the	mind	is	addicted	to	repetition.	We	pursue	the	same
desires	today	that	we	had	yesterday.	Even	our	thoughts	today	are	generally
about	90%	the	same	as	the	thoughts	we	had	yesterday,	according	to	some
studies.	Habit	rules	our	actions;	a	fixed	roster	of	likes	and	dislikes	governs
our	taste.	If	you	are	afraid	of	being	poor	today,	it’s	likely	that	you’ve	had	that
same	fear	since	childhood.	If	you	think	about	losing	five	pounds,	it’s	likely
that	this	reflects	a	bodily	obsession	that	goes	back	years.	On	the	positive	side
psychologists	point	out	that	the	pursuit	of	pleasure	and	the	avoidance	of	pain
motivate	us	every	day,	and	generally	to	good	effect.	We’re	reassured	by	what
we	know.	In	fact,	the	Vedic	rishis	declare	that	habit	is	what	makes	a	person
feel	real.	(In	the	business	world,	when	someone	suddenly	loses	his	job,	the
loss	can	be	psychologically	devastating—not	to	mention	that	a	sudden	layoff
greatly	increases	a	person’s	risk	for	heart	attack,	cancer,	and	stroke.)
At	the	same	time	that	it	reassures	us,	repetition	has	a	deadening	effect.	By
keeping	out	what’s	new,	it	forces	reality	into	the	straitjacket	of	the	old.	Each
of	us	lives	behind	a	wall,	beyond	which	lies	the	infinite	potential	of	the
unknown.	Only	the	smallest	gates	are	built	into	the	wall,	and	we	stand	guard
at	these,	allowing	one	experience	to	enter	but	excluding	another,	calling	this
experience	good	and	that	one	evil.	As	long	as	we	keep	on	taking	in	reality	so
selectively,	freedom	is	a	remote	possibility.
In	this	regard	death	is	a	great	gift,	because	it	throws	open	all	the	doors	and
windows.	Dying	forces	us	outside	the	wall.	Instead	of	seeing	the	familiar
things	we’ve	assiduously	collected	and	labeled	as	reality,	we	must	start	over.
However,	the	rishis	assert	that	we	don’t	enter	the	Akashic	field	empty-handed.
Whatever	our	dream	is	right	now,
that	dream	continues
.	Consciousness	is	tied
by	thousands	of	threads	to	old	memories,	habits,	preferences,	and
relationships.
Whenever	someone	really	presses	the	issue	of	what	happens	after	we	die,
my	response	comes	in	the	form	of	a	question:	“Who	are	you?”	You	have	to
know	where	you	are	right	now,	in	order	to	know	where	you	will	be	tomorrow,
and	the	afterlife	is	just	a	special	kind	of	tomorrow.
Here	are	the	things	necessary	to	knowing	“Who	am	I?”:
1.
What	is	your	story?
	Your	story	is	more	than	just	a	list	of	the	events	inyour	life.	It’s	about	your	self-image,	how	you	see	yourself,	what	shaped	your
mind,	which	memories	imprinted	themselves	on	you.	Taken	altogether,	your
story	tells	you	where	you	are	in	the	cycle	of	life.
2.
What	are	your	expectations?
	Expectations	are	seeds.	Once	planted,
they	manifest	into	those	things	we	gain	from	life,	or	lose.	When	you	become
aware	of	your	own	expectations,	you	discover	the	unspoken	limits	you	have
set	on	yourself.	There	is	a	huge	difference	between	those	who	expect	great
things	and	those	who	don’t.
3.
What	is	your	purpose?
	This	is	the	meaning	you	are	trying	to	find.
Purpose	runs	deeper	than	the	superficial	things	we	hope	to	get,	which	mostly
center	on	money,	possessions,	status,	and	comfort.	If	you	know	your	purpose,
you	know	the	deeper	project	to	which	your	life	is	dedicated.
4.
What	is	your	destination?
	This	is	about	fulfillment.	Human	goals	are
endless;	they	unfold,	not	like	a	road	that	has	an	end	but	like	a	river	that	flows
to	join	the	sea,	merging	with	ever	larger	possibilities.	If	you	know	your
destination,	you	can	envision	your	highest	fulfillment.
5.
What	is	your	path?
	Having	identified	your	purpose	and	your
destination,	there	must	be	a	way	to	get	there.	“Path”	has	been	adopted	as	a
spiritual	term,	but	in	fact	everyone,	spiritual	or	not,	follows	certain	ways	to
get	where	they	want	to	go.
6.
Who	are	your	adversaries?
	Forward	motion	is	never	without	obstacles.
On	your	path	you	will	find	yourself	blocked.	At	times	the	adversary	is
external,	but	if	you	examine	yourself	deeply,	you	will	find	it	is	always	internal
as	well.
7.
Who	are	your	allies?
	We	all	bring	others	with	us	on	our	journey.	Just	as
your	adversaries	did,	you	may	identify	these	allies	as	external,	but	they	only
reflect	your	own	inner	strength,	just	as	an	opponent	reflects	your	inner
vulnerability.
None	of	these	questions	asks	anything	about	the	afterlife.	They	don’t
touch	on	your	beliefs	about	heaven	and	hell	or	about	your	soul.	That’s
because	what


reat-great-grandmother slipped in the mud and fell right
on top of him. Well, they looked at each other, started laughing, and it was
love at first sight. The rest is history.
In other words, if the dinosaur hadn’ t walked there millions of years
ago, and if the Mayaimi tribe hadn’ t settled there, and if the Spaniards
hadn’ t built a town there, and if it hadn’ t been raining that day, and if
grandpa hadn’ t fallen down drunk at the exact spot where grandma slipped
in the mud—you’re not here, and neither are a lot of other things. Every
single thing is the result of every single thing that ever happened throughout
time and space. Y ou’re not the doer; you are the experiencer of reality.
If this is true, and it is, then it’s pretty silly to think, “It took 13.8
billion years for this moment to get here, and every single thing had to
happen exactly as it did—but I don’t like it.” That’ s funny. It’s like saying
that you don’ t like that Saturn has rings.
Now do you see why we took the time to explore where what’ s in front
of you came from? It has nothing to do with you; it is the result of trillions
of factors that caused it to be the way it is. This is our first encounter of
what surrender and acceptance really mean. You don’t surrender the outside
world—you totally accept it. What you surrender is your personal, made-up
judgment of it. If you were asked whether it’s okay with you that Saturn has
rings, you would probably look very puzzled and say, “What’ s it got to do
with me? That’ s a crazy questi on.” The truth is every single thing is that
way. It has nothing to do with you. It has to do with the forces that caused it
to be the way it is, and those forces stretch back billions of years. The total
acceptance of this truth is surren der. You must let go of the part of you that
thinks it has the right to like and dislike the result of billions of years of
interactions. Surrender is letting go of the part of you that is not living the
truth. That is true surrender.
Eventually, you will come to realize that the moment in front of you is
a very holy thing. Our scientific exploration of where that moment came
from is actually  very spiritual. Quantum physicists are exploring how the
entire universe is emanating from an omnipresent, undif ferentiated field of
energy—the quantum field. They are showing us how everythin g is made of
light. That used to be a strictly spiritual concept. Our scientists are our
priests. They are teaching us how the underlying force of creation created
creation. Science shows us that every moment before us is worthy of greatrespect. A spiritual person unde rstands these truths, ingrains them into their
being, and lives their life accordingly.
If it took 13.8 billion years for the moment in front of you to get there,
and it took 13.8 billion years for you to end up in front of that moment,
every moment is indeed a matc h made in heaven. Nobody else is standing
there experiencing exactly what  you’re experiencing. Truth is, no one ever
did, and no one ever will. That exact moment will never be here again. All
moments just keep passing through time and space. You are being given a
unique show that took billions of years to create—it’ s right in front of you,
and you’re complaining about it. We all think we have very good reasons to
complain. The intention of this journey we are on together is to take away
those reasons, whatever they are.
The mom ent in front of you is a gift from creation. There are shapes,
colors, and sounds. There are people and lots of things to do. It’s not that
way on Mars, nor on any place we have seen thus far in studies of the
universe. But we don’t live our lives with a constant sense of awe and
appreciation. That’ s why these discussions about cosmology and quantum
physics are spiritual. They are taking away your right to make everything
personal when it’s not personal. Your consciousness may be aware of the
moment in front of you, but you did not create that moment. You are simply
being given this wonderful opportunity to experience a moment in creation.
It took billions of years to get here—be sure you don’ t miss it.
People make such a big deal out of science versus God, as if the two
are at odds with each other. The real problem is that people don’t truly
believe in either. If you believed that science explains the creation of all
things, you would live your life with the constant awareness that everything
you are interacting with is emanating from the quantum field, pulling itself
together into atoms and molecu les, then appearing as the form before you.
You would not like it or dislike it; you would be in awe of it. Likewise, if
you really believed God was the creator of all things, you would live in awe
and appreciation of the marvel of the Divine Creation. You would not like it
or dislike it; you would be blown away that it even exists.
You live in a world where a seed falls on the ground, and it has a built-
in chemist that knows how to break down the molecules of dirt and water,
mix them  with sunlight, and combine those substances into a cornstalk or a
tree. You’re taught that this “intelligent chemist” is the complex DNA
molecule. Wher e did this amazing molecular structure come from? All itselements were forged in the stars and then naturally got pulled together into
the DNA structure by the four fundamental forces (gravity,
electromagnetism, and the strong and weak nuclear forces). Human
intelligence had nothing to do with the creation of DNA, yet DNA is
responsible for all the plant and animal life on Earth. We live in a world that
is so perfect it should constant ly blow our minds. But we are so lost in
making it all personal that we miss both the greatness of science and the
greatness of God.
We began this exploration by asking what it’s like for you in there. You
know you’re in there—what is the nature of the experiences you’re having?
To answer this, we explored the origin and nature  of the outside world in
which you live. Hopefully, you have more respect and apprec iation for it
right now. That moment in front of you is special. You might want to
practice appreciating it and notice the ef fect that has on your life.
Next we’re going to work with the mind and its thoughts, then the heart
and its emotion s. They don’t come in through your senses, but they are
certainly things you experience. As we comb through each layer, it’s going
to become easier and easier to let go—to accept and surrender. Remember,
you are not surrendering life; you are surrendering your resistance to life.
We can use the term mindfulness to mean that you are always conscious of
what is really going on around you and inside you. Y ou’re not just conscious
of the appearance of things but also their true nature: where they come from,
why they are the way they are, and what it took for them to manifest before
you. Mindfulness is a natural, effortless process once you let go of personal
distractions. Instead of thinking that the moment in front of you has to be a
certain way, you start thinking that it’s pretty awesome the way it is. In fact,
it’s amazing that it even exists.
From now on, everywhere you look and everything you interact with,
be sure to say, “Thank you.” And be sure to pay tribute to the stars. They are
not just romanti c things twinkling in the night sky. They are the furnaces of
the universe. They have created  everything for you. Can you thank them?
Can you appreci ate this truth, and understand that you didn’ t do anything to
deserve the trees, the oceans, and the sky? You don’t even know where You
came from. You’re just in there experiencing this amazing gift unfolding
before you. This is spirituality—coming into harmony with r eality, instead of
your personal self.PART III:
The MindChapter 11.
Empty Mind
As a conscious being, you are aware of the world coming in through your
senses. But your awareness is not limited to that outside world. You also
have inner experiences. Sometim es when the world comes in, it makes you
feel good. Other times, it make s you feel bad. Since the outside world is
really just structures of atoms, why does it have that inner effect on you?
How could a bunch of atoms get you all jumbled up inside? What’s going
on?
You are capable of experiencing three distinct things: the outside
world, the mind, and the emotio ns. Now that we have deeply examined the
nature of the outside world, let’s start our journey into understanding the
second object of consciousness:  the mind. What is mind? We all know what
mind is. We’re in here, and we experience it every day of our lives. In the
simplest sense, mind is a place in which thoughts exist. We have thoughts
all the time: “Why is he driving so slow? I’m going to be late


unking. He raises the issue of the “hard problem,” a phrase
coined by philosopher David  Chalmers, which poses the riddle of
why human beings have subjectivity—in other words, the world
“in here.”
True to his fait h in reason, lo gic, and science, Pinker says that
what goes on i n the subjective domain (i.e., thoughts, sen sations,
images, and emotions), along with the behavior we exhibit based
on subj ective events, are “obvious Darwinian adaptations. With
advances in evolutionary psychology more and more of our
conscious experiences are being explained in this way, including
our in tellectual obsessions, moral emotions, and a esthetic
reactions.”
In other words, the mind can be logically explained—or
explained away—by the same Darwinian drive that shaped every
living creature: survival of the fittest. The possibility that Homo
sapiens  i s a consciousness-based spe cies isn’t touched on, and one
imagines Pinke r would laugh it away. He isn’t someone I  want to
single o ut for special criticism—Pinker’s argument is p art of a
much la rger tre nd in science—but saying that humankind feels the
difference between right and wrong (a moral emotion), craves the
truth (an intellectual obsession), and loves beauty (an aesthetic
reaction) because those things were survival traits is seriously
misguided. By refusing even to take consciousness se riously,
Pinker returns  us to being higher mammals who happened to
become consci ous in order to  get an advantage in finding food and
gaining mating rights.
Some pure Darwinians stop there, but Pinker realizes that
consciousness needs a slightly more credible explanation, because
the hard problem doesn’t as k how humans became conscious; it
asks wh at consciousness is. Again not singling Pinker out for
blame, he joins many other “ apostles of scientism,” as one of his
critics called them, by saying two things: (1) Consciousness is
probably an illusion created by complex brain activity, and (2) the
whole issue is basically irrelevant.*
To hold  that the entire subj ective world is an illusion shows
how blind the dogma of r ationality has become. Citing thephilosopher Daniel Dennett, one of the strongest consciousness
deniers, Pinke r is impressed by Dennett’s view that “there is no
hard pr oblem of consciousne ss: it is a confusion arising from the
bad habit of a homunculus  seated in a theater inside the skull.
This is the disembodied experiencer.” The word homunculus
means a small human being, and it has various meanings in
science and philosophy. Supporters of the view that consciousness
is an illusion like to say that  people mistakenly believe there is a
“little me,” or an individual s elf, inside us. Dennett dismisses the
self as an illusory artifact of the whirling, teeming brain. Pinker
can’t bring himself to go that far, but many neuroscientist s do. In
a se nse they m ust, because if the brain creates the mind, then the
notion of the self can’t be anything but another product of brain
activity. If every self is a delusion, then why should we believe a
scientist (i.e., a self) when he tries to debunk the self? Wou ldn’t we
be taki ng the word of an  illusion? The whole argument is
hopelessly illogical.
B e h i n d  t h e  M a s k
Many people consider science  a liberating force, and it is. But it
has also served to block the  way to the absolute freedom that
metahuman holds out. Claiming that consciousness is an illusion
or i rrelevant or just Darwin ian evolution at work in th e brain
shows h ow far working scientists of integrity and intelligence are
willing to go to adopt the role of deniers. The deepest iron y is that
quantum phys ics, which peered behind the mask of the physical
world a  centur y ago, gave rise  to generations of physicists who feel
that consciousness isn’t worth bothering about.
There have been moments of  going back to the future, though.
The em inent Russian-American physicist Andrej Linde made
important contributions to “inflation theory,” which deals with the
first stages of the infant uni verse when it was smaller than the
period at the end of a sent ence. Later on, he became an early
supporter of the “multiverse,” which posits that there areinnumerable other universes beyond ours—the current estimate
runs to 10500 different universes, or 10 followed by 500 zeroes.
In a 1998 paper titled, with characteristically swe eping
ambition, “Un iverse, Life, Consciousness,” Linde not s o subtly
sabotages the accepted world view of modern physics. “According
to standard materialistic doctrine,” he asserts, “consciousness…
plays a secondary, subservient role, being considered just a
function of matter and a to ol for the description of the truly
existing material world.”
One envisions  heads nodding in the audience as Linde  says
this, wi th no hint of the con trarian thinking that is to co me. He
continues:
But let us remember that our knowledge of the world
begins not with matter but w ith perceptions. I know for
sure that my pain exists, my “green” exists, and my
“sweet” exists. I do not need any proof of their existence,
because these events are a part of me; everything else is
a theory.
This last statement, “everything else is a theory,” indicates that
something str ange is afoot, and the radical nature of that
something begins to build. Linde notes that in the scientific model,
perceptions ar e subject to the laws of Nature, like everyth ing else
in the universe:
This mo del of [a] material world obeying laws of physics
is so successful that soon we  forget about our starting
point and say that matter is the only reality, and
perceptions ar e only helpful for its description….But in
fact we are sub stituting [the] reality of our feelings by a
successfully wo rking theory of an independently existing
material world.
Linde’s audience was probably squirming by this point, because
he had  spotted that the wo rld “out there” is a substitute for
perceptions, which rightfully should be considered the startingpoint for any model of reality. After all, as he declares, science isn’t
needed to prove that green is green and sweet is sweet. It can’t
offer such proof; only subjective experience validates the most
basic perceptions.
Only perceptio n, without a doubt, is real. In other words, Linde
was turning the tables on a worldview that puts matter f irst and
consciousness second. He goes on, “And the [materialistic] theory
is so successfu l that we alm ost never think about its limitations
until we must address some  really deep issues, which do not fit
into our model of reality.”
Linde’s version  of a deep issue would focus on the precise
nature of how creation came about in terms of big bangs, other
universes, subatomic particles, and so on. But when he speculates
that co nsciousness is unavoidable in reaching an an swer—a
realization the quantum pioneers had reached long ago—this is
likely t o be a bridge too far. Science today is at i ts most
materialistic, thanks to the surging success of technology. Linde
breaks ranks, but he still remains locked in the technicalities of a
professional physicist. Yet he has joined Stephen Hawking and
others in realizing that science, however advanced, does not
describe reality. Linde goes even further. To quote from an online
article, “Consciousness and the New Paradigm,” by Adrian David
Nelson,
Linde…has urg ed his colleagues to remain open-minded
toward a fundamental pla ce for consciousness in
quantum mechanics. “Avoiding the concept of
consciousness in quantum co smology,” he warns, “may
lead to an artificial narrowing of our outlook.”
If you unpack Linde’s seemingly mild warning, he’s implying
that the universe cannot exist without consciousness. Nelson goes
on,
Linde is also one of several respected physicists who’ve
pointed out that the quantum wave function of theentire universe could not evolve in time without the
introduction of a relative observer.
In a  word, the universe sin ce the big bang could not have
expanded, lead ing in one small corner to life on Earth, without
someone to see it happen (th e “relative observer”). So who is this
mystery obser ver? The religious will say God, but in scientific
terms there are only two possibilities: an infinite cosmic
consciousness or we humans.  In fact, both possibilities merge into
one. Th e universe exists only as humans experience it, and our
ability to experience it comes from infinite or cosmic
consciousness. This merging occurs because the so urce of
consciousness, cosmic and individual, is within us.
I’ve taken this time to venture into some very abstract concepts.
Rationality has built a world of its own. In advanced societies the
average person cannot enter this world without extensive
specialized training. But


	such	as	ozone	in	urban	air	and	chlorine	in	tap	water
—that	create	oxidative	damage	to	our	bodies.	You	likely	have	heard	reports
about	antioxidants	(such	as	vitamins	A,	C	and	E)	and	how	they	protect	us	against
free	radical	damage.
Free	radicals	damage	our	cells	just	like	rust	corrodes	metal.	Free	radicals	have
unpaired	electrons.	Electrons,	which	travel	in	pairs,	are	charged	particles
orbiting	around	the	nucleus	of	atoms.	An	unpaired	electron	aggressively	seeks	a
mate,	trying	to	“grab”	an	electron	from	something	else,	perhaps	a	molecule	that
is	performing	an	important	job	in	one	of	your	cell	membranes.	Once	the	electron
is	grabbed,	that	molecule	can	no	longer	perform	its	job	properly;	furthermore,
the	molecule	now	becomes	a	free	radical	itself,	aggressively	seeking	its	own
electron	mate.	The	subsequent	chain	reaction	can	result	in	serious	cellular
damage	commonly	associated	with	aging	and	disease,	unless	the	body’s	tissues
are	rich	with	antioxidants	that	can	stop	hazardous	chain	reactions	as	soon	as	they
begin.
Free	radicals	are	naturally	produced	as	we	metabolize	oxygen.	Free-radical
chain	reactions	are	constantly	being	produced	and	stopped	inside	your	body.
Cells	were	designed	to	cope	with	these	reactions,	but	not	of	the	magnitude	that	is
present	today.	For	example,	chlorine,	a	highly	oxidizing	gas	put	in	municipal	tap
water,	can	easily	damage	our	skin	and	lungs.	Taking	a	shower	in	chlorinated
water	is	like	stepping	into	a	chlorine	gas	chamber—a	health	hazard	of	which
most	people	are	totally	unaware.	We	can	make	choices	to	protect	our	cells,	but
first	we	need	to	know	the	source	of	the	damage.
Today,	we	expose	ourselves	to	free-radical	damage	from	chemicals	to	which
our	biological	ancestors	were	never	exposed.	Our	modern	environment	is	filled
with	substances	that	cause	free	radicals	to	form,	such	as	ozone,	chlorine,
pesticides,	tobacco	smoke,	petroleum	byproducts,	synthetic	perfume	and	many
others.	We	need	more	antioxidant	protection	than	ever,	because	we	are	exposed
to	so	many	more	free	radicals.	The	problem	is	that	the	need	for	antioxidant
nutrients	is	up	while	the	supply	in	our	diet	is	down.
To	avoid	the	weak	and	rusty	body—to	slow	the	aging	process	and	keep
disease	at	bay—the	sensible	solution	is	to	stop	the	free-radical	damage.	The
necessities	are	simple:	a	diet	rich	in	antioxidant	nutrients	along	with	antioxidant
supplements,	and	clean	food,	water	and	air.	None	of	these	ideas	are	new,	but
what	people	don’t	understand	is	why	they	are	important.	If	you	allow	free
radicals	to	damage	your	cells—to	allow	them	to	become	weak	and	rusty—your
body	ages	faster	and	becomes	vulnerable	to	disease.Salt	Is	Often	at	Fault
To	be	healthy,	the	nutrients	in	cells	must	be	in	proper	balance.	Upsetting	the
natural	balance	of	chemicals	inside	a	cell	causes	the	cell	to	malfunction,	which	is
what	is	happening	to	the	balance	of	sodium	and	potassium	in	our	cells.	Over	the
past	one	hundred	years,	our	diets	have	changed	dramatically,	increasing	the
amount	of	sodium	and	decreasing	the	amount	of	potassium	in	our	diet,	thus
reversing	the	natural	balance.	Modern	food	manufacturers	add	lots	of	salt
(sodium	chloride)	to	their	products,	while	modern	diets	do	not	include	enough
potassium-rich	foods	such	as	fresh	fruits,	vegetables,	whole	grains	and	legumes.
When	our	genes	were	evolving,	human	diets	contained	little	sodium	and	a	lot	of
potassium.	For	example,	eating	an	apple	provides	only	1	mg	of	sodium,	but	310
mg	of	potassium.	Eating	a	piece	of	modern	apple	pie	provides	110	mg	of	sodium
and	only	80	mg	of	potassium,	a	drastic	change.
Salt-rich	diets	force	excess	sodium	into	cells,	disturbing	the	normal	and
healthy	sodium/potassium	balance.	Among	other	problems,	excess	sodium
interferes	with	cellular	energy	production,	causing	fatigue.	Sodium	attaches
itself	strongly	to	water	molecules,	so	when	more	sodium	goes	into	the	cells,	so
does	more	water.	Water	retention	elevates	blood	pressure	and	causes	weight
gain.	Dietary	salt	contributes	to	an	increased	incidence	of	cancer	and	metastasis,
cardiac	disease,	stroke,	kidney	disease,	bronchial	problems	and	kidney	stones.
By	avoiding	processed	and	packaged	foods,	most	of	our	excess	dietary	sodium
can	be	eliminated.
An	Important	Litmus	Test
Healthy	cells	must	have	the	correct	pH.	In	addition	to	the	dangerous
imbalance	of	sodium	and	potassium,	our	modern	lifestyles	and	diets	have
detrimental	effects	on	another	critical	balance:	the	pH	of	our	cells.	Commercials
commonly	tout	“pH	balanced”	shampoos	for	our	hair,	and	most	of	us	remember
the	litmus	paper	tests	from	our	chemistry	sets	or	grade-school	experiments—
those	tiny	sheets	of	paper	that	turn	pink	or	blue	based	on	pH.	Cells	must
maintain	proper	pH	balance,	and	our	food	choices	affect	that	balance.
The	pH	is	a	measurement	of	acidity	or	alkalinity.	On	the	pH	scale,	7	is
neutral;	0	to	7	is	acidic,	and	7	to	14	is	alkaline.	The	normal	pH	inside	of	a	cell	is
about	7.4,	which	is	slightly	alkaline.	Maintaining	normal	pH	in	the	fluid	inside
the	cell	as	well	as	in	other	body	fluids	is	critical	for	keeping	body	systems
functioning	normally.	Most	of	the	chemical	reactions	in	the	body,	including	the
production	of	energy,	occur	most	efficiently	in	an	alkaline	environment.	The
enzymes	involved	in	these	reactions	are	pH	sensitive	and	only	function	within	anarrow	pH	range;	pH	level	affects	other	vital	operations,	such	as	the	transport	of
substances	through	cell	membranes.	You	can	monitor	your	acid/alkaline	levels
by	using	pH	paper	(see	appendix	C).
Modern	diets	often	cause	cellular	pH	to	drop	below	7.0,	into	the	acidic	range.
(Cells	also	can	become	too	alkaline,	but	excessive	acidity	is	most	common.)	A
cell	that	becomes	too	acidic	is	said	to	have	intracellular	acidosis.	Acidosis,	an
extremely	serious	condition,	is	one	of	the	common	factors	present	in	many
manifestations	of	disease.	The	more	acidic	a	cell	becomes,	the	more	impaired	its
function.	At	very	high	acidic	levels,	the	cell	will	die.	Herman	Aihara,	author	of
Acid	and	Alkaline,
says	that	“one	of	the	important	causes	of	cancer—	and	other
degenerative	diseases—is	the	cumulative	effect	of	the	acidic	condition	of	body
fluid.”
How	do	cells	become	too	acidic?	Different	foods	have	different	effects	on	our
pH.	Ideally,	we	should	consume	only


 when the tide is out. Some groups used large quantities of
the species called abalone on the West Coast of America and paua in New Zealand. In Fig. 74
(upper), a man, his wife and child are shown. The father is holding an abalone; the little girl is
holding a mollusk found only in New Zealand, the toharoa; the mother is holding a plate of edible
kelp which these people use abundantly, as do many sea bordering races. Maori boys enjoy a
species of grubs which they seek with great eagerness and prize highly. The primitive Maori use
large quantities of fern root which grows abundantly and is very nutritious.
FIG. 74. Native Maori demonstrating some of the accessory
essentials obtained from the sea. These include certain sea
weeds and an assortment of shell fish. It is much easier for
the moderns to exchange their labor for the palate tickling
devitalized foods of commerce than to obtain the native
foods of land and sea.
7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 129/250    Probably few primitive races have developed calisthenics and systematic physical exercise to so
high a point as the primitive Maori. On arising early in the morning, the chief of the village starts
singing a song which is accompanied by a rhythmic dance. This is taken up not only by the
members of his household, but by all in the adjoining households until the entire village is swaying in
unison to the same tempo. This has a remarkably beneficial effect in not only developing deep
breathing, but in developing the muscles of the body, particularly those of the abdomen, with the
result that these people maintain excellent figures to old age.
    Sir Arbuthnot Lane (2)  said of this practice the following:
    As to daily exercise, it is shown here that every person capable of movement can benefit by it,
and I am certain that the only natural and really beneficial system of exercise is that developed
through long ages by the New Zealand Maori and their race-brothers in other lands.
   The practical application of their wisdom is discussed in Chapter 21.
    The Maori race developed a knowledge of Nature's laws and adopted a system of living in
harmony with those laws to so high a degree that they were able to build what was reported by
early scientists to be the most physically perfect race living on the face of the earth. They
accomplished this largely through diet and a system of social organization designed to provide a
high degree of perfection in their offspring. To do this they utilized foods from the sea very liberally.
The fact that they were able to maintain an immunity to dental caries so high that only one tooth in
two thousand had been attacked by tooth decay (which is probably as high a degree of immunity
as that of any contemporary race) is a strong argument in favor of their plan of life.
REFERENCES
1. PICKERILL, H. P. The Prevention of Dental Caries and Oral Sepsis. Philadelphia, White,
1914.
2. LANE, A. Preface to Maori Symbolism by Ettie A. Rout. London, Paul Trench, Trubner,
1926.7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 130/250
Key to Route Followed in Peru
 1. Panama  10. Huaura  19. San Rosa
2. Buenaventura  11. Chimbote  20. Cuzco
 3. Manta  12. Santa Island  21. Calca
 4. Guayaquil  13. Chiclayo  22. Manchu Piccu
 5. Talara  14. Eten  23. Huancayo
 6. Trujillo  15. Huaraz  24. Oroya
 7. Callao  16. Arequipa  25. Perene
 8. Lima  17. Lake Titicaca
  9. Huacho  18. Juallanca

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 13
ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS OF PERU7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 131/250IN THE foregoing field studies among primitive races we have been dealing chiefly with living
groups. Since the West Coast of South America has been the home of several ancient cultures, it is
important that they be included with the living remnants of primitive racial stocks, in order to note
the contributions that they may make to the problem of modern degeneration. The relationship
between the Andes Mountain Range and the coast and the sea currents is such that there has been
created a zone, ranging from forty to one hundred miles in width between the coast and the
mountains, which for a distance of over a thousand miles is completely arid. The air currents
drifting westward across South America from the Atlantic carry an abundance of moisture. When
they strike the eastern foothills of the Andes they are projected upward into a region of constant
cold which causes the moisture to be precipitated as rain on the eastern slopes, and as snow on
the eastern Cordillera Range. Hence the name of the eastern range is the White Cordillera, and
that of the western range, which receives little of this rain, is the Black Cordillera. Between these
two ranges is a great plain, which in the rainy season is well watered. The great civilizations of the
past have always utilized water from the melting snow through irrigation ditches with the result that
a vast acreage was put to agricultural uses.
    The Humboldt Current which sweeps northward from the southern ice fields and carries its
chilly water almost to the equator has influenced the development of the West Coast of South
America. The effect of the current on the climate is generally noticeable. One of the conspicuous
results is the presence of a cloud bank which hovers over the coastal area at an altitude of from
one thousand to three thousand feet above sea level for several months of the year. Back from the
coast these clouds rest on the land and constitute a nearly constant fog for extended periods.
When one passes inland from the coast up the mountains he moves from a zone which in winter is
clammy and chilly, into the fog zone, and then suddenly out of it into clear sky and brilliant sunlight.
It is of interest that the capital, Lima, is so situated that it suffers from this unhappy cloud and fog
situation. When Pizarro sent a commission to search out a location for his capital city the natives
commented on the fact that he was selecting a very undesirable location. Either on the coast or
farther inland than Lima the climate is much more favorable, and these were the locations in which
the ancient civilizations have left some very elaborate foundations of fortresses and extended
residential areas. The great expanse of desert extending from the coast to the mountains, with its
great moving sand dunes and with scarcely a sign of green life, is one of the least hospitable
environments that any culture could choose. Notwithstanding this, the entire coast is a succession
of ancient burial mounds in which it is estimated that there are fifteen million mummies in an
excellent state of preservation. The few hundred thousand that have been disturbed by grave
robbers in search of gold and silver, have been left bleaching on the sands. Where had these
people come from and why were they buried here? The answer is to be found in the fact that
probably few locations in the world provided such an inexhaustible supply of food for producing a
good culture as did this area. The lack of present appreciation of this fact is evidenced by the
absence of flourishing modern communities, notwithstanding the almost continuous chain of ancient
walls, fortresses, habitations, and irrigation systems to be found along this coast. The Humboldt
Current coming from the ice fields of the Antarctic carries with it a prodigious quantity of the
chemical food elements that are most effective in the production of a vast population of fish.
Probably no place in the world provides as great an area teeming with marine life. The ancient
cultures appreciated the value of these sea foods and utilized them to the full. They realized also
that certain land plants should be eaten with the sea foods. Accordingly, they constructed great
aqueducts used in transporting the water, sometimes a hundred miles, for the purpose of irrigating
river bottoms which had been collecting the alluvial soil from the Andes through past ages. These
river beds are to be found from twenty to fifty miles apart and many of them are entirely dry except
in the rainy season in the high Andes. In the river bottoms these ancient cultures grew large
quantities of corn, beans, squash, and other plants. These plant foods were gathered, stored, and
eaten with sea foods. The people on the coast had direct communication with the people in the
high plateaus. It is of more than passing interest that some twenty-one of our modern food plants
apparently came from Peru.
    Where there is such a quantity of animal life in the sea in the form of fish one would expect to7/29/13 Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#toc 132/250find the predatory animals that live on fish. One group of these attack the fish from the air and they
constitute the great flock of guanayes, p


 these signals of distress back to
their origin, only one thing was at fault—fundamental imbalanc e that cried
out in dif ferent ways.
Fortunately, treating Vata is a lot simpler than trying to treat five or six
symptoms. In Bobby’ s case, we didn’ t need to resort to medicine, because
the diagnosis itself was enough.  Rather than prescribing medications, which
tend to mask the underlying problem, we suggested that he simply listen to
his body. It was suggested that his body type wasn’ t suited for the work he
was in. He was encouraged to find a job that would make his Vata happy
instead of driving it crazy. Wha tever he did, Bobby was not going to adapt
well to noise, overcrowding, and constant activity because his Vata couldn’ t
tolerate it.
What does Vata actually like? A little more peace and quiet, for one thing.
Bobby might be happier as a prep chef working when the restaurant kitchen
is relatively quiet. Creativity is another thing that imaginative Vata types
thrive on. A job that satisfies this deeper part of their nature will be much
more satisfying in the long run. Once again, cooking might be good for
Bobby, but so might performi ng, designing, or other work where self-
expression is valued. Bobby took our advice. As soon as he quit the
restaurant and got a little rest, his major symptoms disappeared. Within a
few months he moved on to a job in graphic design and has not returned
with any problems.
Making your doshas happy will make you happy. That is the secret to
balancing the whole mind body system. To respect your body type, youhave to trust that its needs are good for you. Telling Bobby to look for a
new job was in line with what his body was already saying. No one can be
happy or healthy in an unbalanced state, because it is just not natural.
AS NA TURE MADE YOU
Like the doshas, your prakruti is double-edged. You can see yourself as
trapped by it, or you can learn from it and benefit from what your system is
trying to tell you. A Pitta nature may predispose you to hostility and a Vata
nature to irritable bowels, but nothing forces you to embrace the stressful
lifestyle that fans Pitta to a flame or drives Vata to exhaustion, bringing out
such problems. Living with your doshas is a perfect example of how to find
freedom within your nature’ s limits.
Because you were born with it, your body type does not change. On the
other hand, the doshas are constantly in flux. Every time you look at a
mountain, eat a potato chip, listen to Mozart, or carry out any thought or
action, your doshas shift. A person whose heart is pounding is having a
strong Vata reaction, no matter  what his basic nature is. Whatever your
prakruti happens to be, try to live all three doshas fully. To be completely
healthy, everyone needs to experience and express the best that can be
derived from each of the doshas—that is what it means to become a
complete person.
The positive psychological traits of each dosha include the following:
Vata— imaginative, sensitive, spontaneous, r esilient, exhilarated
Pitta— intellectual, confident, enterprising, joyous
Kapha— calm, sympathetic, courageous, for giving, loving
Whenever you meet someone  who lives up to all of these qualities,
naturally you are impressed. Such a person has accepted the greatest gift ofnature—perfect balance. Rare as it is, perfect balance is not abnormal; it is
possible for everyone to achieve.
Every body type contains a wide  range of possibilities. Unfortunately, we
all have  a tendency to compa re ourselves to a norm, which generates
feelings of inadequacy when we cannot live up to the standards we feel
everyone must meet. Such conformity is not in nature’ s plan. Take the
following example:
Body weight is a sensitive subject. Everyone wants to maintain an ideal
weight, but millions of people struggle in vain. Critics point out that our
society is obsessed with thinness at any price; women in particular feel
anxious and unworthy if they don’t look as if they just stepped out of the
pages of Vogue. (The current fad for weight training has added a little more
muscle to the desirable female frame, but it has also stripped acceptable
body fat down to near zero.)
Ayurveda would say that the trouble does not lie in our fixation on the
perfect figure but in ignorance about nature’ s underlying design. By nature,
a Vata woman will be thin and a Kapha solid, if not actually heavy. What
gives both types their undeniable attractiveness lies deeper. Vatas are
charming, vivacious, and vibrant—they communicate a natural sense of
exhilaration. Kaphas may not be blessed with light, agile bodies, but they
have their own beauty—they are serene, with large, soft eyes, a graceful
manner, and a full, gently contoured figure. In the eyes of an Ayurvedic
doctor, this is the ideal type, as healthy as it is beautiful. Pittas, who come
closest to our current Western notions of the ideal type physi cally, being
medium in build and well proportioned, also have a quality of self-control
that makes them attractive to others. Each dosha, then, provid es an ideal
that is of equal worth in nature’ s eyes; it should be equal in our eyes, too.
People sometimes think that “balancing the doshas” means trying to get
equal amounts of Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. That is mistaken; you cannot
change the ratio of doshas you were born with. What you can do is find the
balance that is right for each dosha in you. The doshas function on a slidingscale, with too much or too little at either end of the scale and a point of
balance in the middle:
Ayurveda tells you to keep as close to the balance point as you can. This
is not something you have to concentrate on. Your body keeps in balance by
following its normal processes. But since the doshas are so responsive to
your habits, you do need to learn how to stop pulling them out of balance.
It is customary to think mainly in terms of aggravating a dosha rather
than depleting it, because being a Vata, Pitta, or Kapha type indicates that
you already have a good amount of that one dosha. Your aim is not to add
more (aggravate  the dosha), which would lead to imbalance. A Vata person
who has developed weak digestion could be diagnosed as having depleted
Pitta, but for all practical purposes he is treated as having aggravated Vata,
the most likely cause of the problem.
If a dosh a goes out of balance, you would typically notice the following
physical symptoms:
Vata is unbalanced when there is pain, spasms, cramps, chills, or
shakiness.
Pitta is unbalanced when there is inflammation, fever, excessive hunger and
thirst, heartburn, or hot flashes.
Kapha is unbalanced when there is congestion, mucus dischar ge,
heaviness, fluid r etention, lethar gy, or oversleeping.
These simple guidelines can help you when you have unexplained
symptoms of illness (a more detailed description of how to spot imbalances
is given at the end of this chapte r). We should emphasize that guidelines arenot a substitute for medical school; an Ayurvedic physician, like his Western
counterpart, spends a lifetime learning to diagnose disorders of all kinds.
Any dosha can give rise to any symptom. Constipation, a textb ook sign of
Vata imbalance,  can be due to Pitta or Kapha in some cases; this holds true
for every other typical sympto m. If you are seriously ill, you need a
professional opinion about your condition.
When symptoms turn into chronic conditions, diagnoses based  on body
types continue to be useful. Vata, Pitta, and Kapha people tend to be
susceptible to dif ferent disorders, both physical and mental.
Vata types are prone to insomnia, chronic constipation, nervous stomach,
anxiety and depression, muscle spasms or cramps, PMS (premenstrual
syndr ome), irritable bowel, chr onic pain, high blood pr essur e, and arthritis.
Pitta types are prone to rashes, acne, heartburn, peptic ulcers, early
balding and prematur e gray hair, poor eyesight, hostility, self-criticism, and
heart attacks r elated to str ess (T ype A behavior).
Kapha types are prone to obesity, congested sinuses, chest colds, painful
joints, asthma and/or allergies, depression, diabetes, high cholester ol, and
chronic sluggishness in the morning.
This simply outlines the broad shape of things. There is no simple one-to-
one relationship between a disease and a body type. Being a Vata does not
mean that nature has doomed you to get arthritis, nor does being  a Pitta or a
Kapha automatically protect you from it. Illness is individual and depends
on the overall pattern of your life, with body type serving as an important
influence, not a cause.
Also, major disorders such as heart disease


other scientists have coauthored posts and blogs with me in
recent years—see the index at Huﬀington P ost.
Deepak Chopra, Menas C. Kafatos, and Co-workers’
Papers
1. Kafatos, Menas, Rudolph E. Tanzi, and Deepak Chopra.
“How Consc iousness Becomes the Physical Unive rse.”
Cosmology  14 (2011): 1318–28,
http://journalofcosmology.com/ Consciousness140.html.
2. Attila Grandpierre, Deepak Chopra, P. Murali
Doraiswamy, Rudolph E. Tanzi, and Menas C. Kafatos.
“A Multidisciplinary Approach to Mind and
Consciousness.” NeuroQuantology  11, no. 4 (2013):
607–17, http://dx.doi.org/ 10.14704/ nq.2013.11.4.703.3. Chopra, Deepak, and Menas C. Kafatos. “From Quanta to
Qualia: How a Paradigm Shift Turns into Science.”
Philosophy Study  4, no. 4 (2014): 287–301,
http://www.davidpublishing.com/ show.html?16636.
4. Kafatos, Menas C. “The Conscious Universe.” In Deepak
Chopra, ed., Brain, Mind, Cosmos: The Nature of Our
Existence and the Universe,  ebook. New York: Deepak
Chopra, c/o Trident Media Group, 2014.
5. Chopra, Deepak, Menas C. Kafatos, and Rudolph E.
Tanzi. “A Consciousness-Based Science: From Quanta
to Qualia.” In Deepak Chopra, ed., Brain, Mind,
Cosmos: The Nature of Our Existence and the Universe.
ebook. New York: Deepak Chopra, c/o Trident Media
Group, 2014.
6. Chopra, Deepak, Murali P. Doraiswamy, Rudolph E.
Tanzi, and Menas C. Kafatos. “Your Brain Is the
Universe.” In Deepak Chopra, ed., Brain, Mind,
Cosmos: The Nature of Our Existence and the Universe.
ebook. New York: Deepak Chopra, c/o Trident Media
Group, 2014.
7. Kafatos, Menas C., and Deepak Chopra. “The Time
Machine of Consciousness, Cosmology of Time,
Quantum Physics of Time Travel.” Cosmology  18
(2014), http://cosmology.com/ Contents18.html.
8. Kak, Subhash, Deepak Chopra, and Menas C. Kafatos.
“Perceived Reality, Quantum Mechanics, and
Consciousness.” Cosmology 18 (2013): 231–45,
http://cosmology.com/ ConsciousTime107.html.
9. Kafatos, Menas C., and Deepak Chopra. “The Nature of
Reality, the Self, Time, Space and Experience.”
Cosmology  18 (2014): 456–60, http://cosmology.com/
ConsciousTime115.html.
10. Grandpierre, Attila, Deepak Chopra, and Menas C.
Kafatos. “The Universal Principle of Biology.”NeuroQuantology  12, no. 3 (2014): 364–73,
http://www.neuroquantology.com/ index.php/ journal/
article/ view/ 747/ 667.
11. Kafatos, Menas C., Gaetan Chevalier, Deepak Chopra,
John J. Hubacher, Subhash Kak, and Neil D. Theise.
“Current Physics Perspe ctives.” Global Advances in
Health and Medicine,  forthcoming.
OceanofPDF.comBESTSELLERS B Y DEEP AK CHOPRA
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 rebuild with ultimate return to normal vigor.

"Here," he continues, "was an object lesson:

"(1) Vital power supported without food.
"(2) Mental an d physical strength increasing with the decline of symptoms.
"(3) A cure without the aid of remedies, and one that was eminently complete in every way.
"(4) No unusual wasting of the body."

In later years, when relating his early experiences in connect ion with fasting in disease, Dr. Dewey, both in conversation and in
writing, dwelt at great length upon the complete reversal of personal opinion and belief which the conditions and the outcome  of
this case produced. He gives in detail in his several books  the results of this change of thought, and the tale is as interesting as is
Page 5 of  72 one of adventure or romance, for it led this man into life -long advocacy and practice of a method diametrically opposed to that for
which he had been trained, and which he had the retofore made his profession. It also brought to him controversy, ridicule, and
persecution.

He who becomes a renegade from an established creed is more than likely to find himself an outcast from the society of believ ers
in that creed. And Dr. Dewey, on ce launched upon a course which he deemed that of the truth, proved no exception to the common
fate. His medical confreres at first dubbed him eccentric --even crazy. And it was not long before his presence in consultation and
in professional assemblage was  no more desired. In fact, the local medical society requested his resignation as a member of its
body. But Dr. Dewey possessed among other sterling qualities, courage, and he never wavered, but sturdily and steadily contin ued
in his chosen path until reco gnition of his discovery and of his teachings was forced, first upon his clientele, and then upon his
colleagues, by the results which his methods obtained.

Dr. Dewey is perhaps best known to the world as the strenuous advocate of the "No Breakfast Plan", and his book with this title
has circled the globe. But his other works, notably The True Science of Living, well bear careful reading, even though in the light
of later and more scientific investigation discovery, his theory and practice of the fast lea ve many things to be supplied.

It is not, however, the purpose of the author to write in criticism of the work of the pioneers in the art and science of phy siatrics,
for it is sufficient that these men first made exposition of present -day natural practic e, later to be developed and elaborated by their
disciples. And it is also to be remembered that, as is the destiny of every pioneer, they proved no exception to the rule, an d were
reviled and persecuted exquisitely by those who should have supported their  investigations, those who should have worked out
with them the possibilities of their discoveries. Intrenched authority invariably escapes ridicule and persecution, since in most
instances it is individually devoid of acumen and initiative, and is smugly content to dwell within the vicious thrall of orthodoxy.

Dr. Dewey was born at Wayland, Pennsylvania, in May, 1839. In the late fifties he entered thc employ of a local druggist, and  he
spent two years dispensing remedies and absorbing pharmaecopoeial lo re. He says for himself that at that time he came into
contact with all kinds of physicians and with all kinds of "isms" in medical practice, and that the prescription counter is a
wonderful revelator of the literary and scientific attainments of the medic al profession, yet it fails to account for the relative degree
of success of men who are without the slightest shade of scientific conception of the action of a remedy or of its indicated need as
revealed by symptoms. He further says that his drugstore exp erience led to a slowly developing conviction that, as an adaptation of
means to an end, the administration of drugs for the cure of disease is one of the most unscientific of human vocations. It i s evident
that this conviction did not then become an entit y in the doctor's mind, for it did not deter him from going. ahead with those studies
that finally brought him to the College of Medicine and Surgery of the University of Michigan. From this college he was gradu ated
in 1864 with a medical degree, and almos t immediately we find him as an acting assistant surgeon in the army of the United States
on duty at a field hospital at Chattanooga, Tennessee. When discharged at the close of the war, the doctor chose Meadville,
Pennsylvania, as his field of labor, and i n the autumn of 1866 he became a general practitioner in that small city, then numbering
about ten thousand souls. Here for eleven years he followed the paths of orthodoxy, still with that slowly developing convict ion
disturbing his professional thought, u ntil, as has been related, in 1877 sudden light was given and his conviction, now confirmed,
became the guiding principle of the remainder of his life.

Thenceforth Dr. Dewey was eminently successful in a practice based upon causing his patients to abstai n from food for periods
short or long; upon inaugurating the no -breakfast plan; and upon impressing upon his followers in illness and in health the
beneficent effects of fresh air, pure water, and sunshine. But, as has been indicated, there was much in the  fundamentals of his
method that needed revision, and he was lamentably lacking, as was Dr. Tanner, in perceiving that prompt and efficient auxili ary
hygienic means must constantly be employed while the extreme process of elimination occasioned by a fast i s in progress. He
repudiated the use of the enema or internal bath, and preferred and insisted upon waiting upon the bowels to act "naturally",  as he
termed it. In later years, when the writer enrolled as a student with Dr. Dewey, her own thought led her f irst to suggest and then to
remonstrate upon this and other vital omissions in procedure, and at one time only her friendship for her preceptor prevented  a
break in relations. It was not until a few months before Dr. Dewey died that he partially acknowledg ed his error in these respects
and deplored the fact that he had continually advised against the use of the enema, which he had finally come to recognize as  the
most essential of hygienic accessories connected with a scientifically conducted fast.

The ph ysiology of abstinence from food for the prevention and relief of disease as determined by Dr. Dewey and published to the
world in his books is beyond all doubt correct. But the doctor was much astray in the hygiene necessary to the successful iss ue of
therapeutic fasting. Accepting neither the eliminative assistance of the enema nor that of daily cleansing the surface of the bo dy, he
ignored as well the dietetic requisites, both preparatory and subsequent to the total abstinence interval. And as to diet in  health, the
doctor exhibited the common failing of the medical profession, which then as now seems to consider food merely as fuel for th e
body, with but little regard for its digestibility or its nutritive content.

Dr. Dewey died from paralysis, a cond ition that arose solely from error in personal dietary. He conscientiously observed the "no
breakfast plan," which he advised for others, but food values, food adaptability, food combination, all were ignored in the t wo
daily meals he permitted himself. Me ats and fish, eggs and milk, breads and pastries, with comparatively few vegetables in
Page 6 of  72 combination, and these mostly of the starchier kinds, formed his food supply. What wonder that hardened veins, high blood
pressure, and ultimate paralysis developed!

Dr. Dewey suffered his first stroke of apoplexy on March 28, 1904. For sixteen days he fasted and gradual improvement took
place, so much so, that in several months he again became active in his profession. At that time the author was most desirous  that
the doctor accept her proved conclusions concerning the internal bath and the dietary essential when a fast is broken. But to no
avail, and her warning went for a time unheeded, until untoward symptoms again arising, Dr. Dewey consented to close his
practice and to come to Minneapolis there to be under the care and direction of his erstwhile pupil. He was delayed in departure,
and a second paralytic seizure occurred on December 10, 1904, resulting in his death on the 21st of the same month.

In personal conta ct with Dr. Dewey and in a voluminous correspondence he ever dwelt with great inspiration and broad vision
upon what he called "New Gospel of Health", emphasizing at all times the thought that the lesson he was endeavoring to impart
was one that applied to  every human ill. He said so often that he wanted me clearly to see, as he did, the divine hand in cure
through an evolution in reverse. By this he meant that disease in the structural changes involved is a matter of nature's own  work --
just as clearly as i n those structural changes by which the body was originally developed. And he further added that the cure of
disease is but an analogous process in reverse of its cause. This reasoning is clear and logical, and its conclusions are tr


 in a lot of fluids every 3 to 4 hours for
up to several days or alternatively one very high dose of CDH. Recurrent
bladder infec tions tend to be caused by mycoplasmas and fungi, often
lodging inside the bladder wall. Non -acidified MMS is useful for this, also
DMSO with added Lugol's solution applied over the bladder or 25%
DMSO instilled into the bladder with a catheter.
Candida
The most common symptoms are thrush (oral or vaginal), itching and
skin infections. As a cause of Leaky Gut Syndrome or when invading the
blood,  it devastates the immune system, and causes or aggravates food
allergies, autoimmune diseases, cancer,  schizophrenia, depression,
anxiety, brain -fog, memory impairment, hyperactivity, autism, 62
 menstrual problems, miscarriage, and most other diseases.
Dr Shaw has shown that Candida generates organic acids and other
chemicals that interfere with the metaboli sm:
www.greatplainslaboratory.com/articles -1/2015/11/13/candida -and-
overgrowth -the-problem -bacteria -by-products?r q=Candida
Acetaldehyde causes mainly the mentioned brain and mental problems,
while tartaric acid causes muscle pain and chronic fatigue, and arabinose
cross -linking and vitamin -mineral deficiencies (mainly vitamin B6 and
zinc). For treatment see Overcoming Candida.
All of the remedies in the Antimicrobial Program are also good fungicides.
In addition,  fungi may also be controlled by direct contact with strong
alkalizers, such as sodium or potassium bicarbonate. Bicarbonate
solution is effective for rinsing the mouth, sinuses or vagina, or as packs
over sites of fungal infection and tumours.
Candida in the gastro -intestinal tract and blood can usually be cleared
with intestinal sanitation followed by the antimicrobial program below.
However, it may persist in areas with reduced blood supply, such as
between toes and under nails, and also as vaginal thrush or causing
endometriosis. In this case, fungicides need to  be applied directly to the
problem area. Most effective for vaginal thrush are inserted capsules
filled with borax.
In long -standing and severe conditions Candida tends to protect itself
with biofilms - like a mass of fungal strings covered in slimy or st icky
mucus which cannot normally be penetrated by fungicides. This may be
overcome by high doses of a strong fungicide such as 20 drops of Lugol's
solution, CDH or non -acidified MMS, which may induce diarrhoea and
vomiting of stringy mucus. Topical DMSO is best to eliminate Candida
from inaccessible places, preferably add another fungicide, such as
Lugol's solution.
Frequently, especially with Candidiasis, there is a die -off or Herxheimer
reaction during intestinal sanitation or systemic therapy. You may feel 63
 weak and nauseous. In this case temporarily interrupt or reduce the
intake of antimicrobials but  make special efforts to clean out your bowels.
The Spit Test: At the start of your program do the Spit Test which shows
if you have a fungus pro blem in the mouth. Immediately after rising
before you eat or drink anything, fill a clear glass with water at room
temperature. Spit some saliva into it. Then check for up to an hour what
happens. If Candida is present, you will see any of these:
1. Strings  like legs extending downwards from the saliva floating on top
2. Cloudy saliva accumulating at the bottom of the glass
3. Cloudy bits remaining suspended in the water.
The quicker and stronger the strings grow and the sooner the saliva
sinks, the more Candida i s in the sample. If there are no strings and the
saliva is still floating after one hour the test is negative, Candida may still
be present in other parts of the body. It may be eliminated from the mouth
by swishing diluted Lugol's solution or CDH for seve ral minutes in the
mouth.
Urine therapy
Urine is used in many cultures and  is especially effective against
disorders of the immune system, including infections, allergies,
autoimmune diseases and others. Urine contains antibodies and immune
stimulating factors against all microbes in our body. To switch off an
allergic reaction use urine collected during or after the reaction. Put a few
drops of straight or diluted urine under the tongue and  keep it in the
mouth for a few minutes.
For the Universal Remedy  mix 2 drops of urine and 1 tablespoon of water
in a small (dropper) bottle by shaking for ten seconds with a strong
downwards movement. Whenever you feel sick put several drops under
the tongue every 2 waking hours. Make a new remedy every week,
usually no refrigeration required.
Another meth od is to dilute a spoonful of morning urine with 5 to 10 times
the amount of non -chlorinated water. Shake 20 to 40 times with a sharp 64
 downward stroke. Drink immediately or take a spoonful several times
during the day; keep in the mouth for a while before s wallowing. For more
information, see:  Urine and Urea Therapy.
ANTIMICROBIAL PROGRAM
Systemic antimicrobial therapy involves cleaning the bloodstream, lymph
fluid, and internal organs of pathogenic microbes. With caution even
small children can be treated but do not use high doses during
pregnancy, if in doubt consult a naturopath.
From the wide range of available antimicrobials,  I have made  a selection
of remedies with a good track record in natural medicine especially in
regard to antifungal properties. Unfortunately,  most of them are under
attack by health authorities in various countries, and you just need to go
with those that you can ob tain.
Two good fungicides, mainly for external use, are sodium thiosulphate
and copper salicylate. See Copper and Zin c Salicylates.
Other useful remedies that may be used in addition are propolis, extract
of Neem leaves, and the oils of tea tree, Neem tree, cinnamon,
eucalyptus, lavender, mustard, oregano or thyme. You may ingest 1 or 2
drops of dil uted essential oils four times daily. Also try direct treatment of
affected areas, such as douching, gargling, enemas and skin
applications.
It is advisable to alternate between different remedies in cycles from daily
to weekly and longer. With this rotat ion it is less likely that microbes will
become treatment resistant. Also, if a strain of microbes is resistant to
one of the remedies it may be eliminated with one of the others.
Further, instead of using high doses of any one remedy you may try
moderate  amounts of several different remedies taken at different times
at the same day, and you may also continue taking fresh raw garlic.
However, in the beginning it is preferable for a while to build up to a high
dose of a strong remedy to dislodge or eliminat e microbes protected by
biofilms or in other poorly accessible areas.   65
 Depending on the severity of your symptoms you may continue this
systemic therapy for one to two months, or until you feel that your
microbe -related problems have disappeared or are un der control. Then
you may continue for a much longer time with a reduced maintenance
dose. If symptoms come back at a later time, then just repeat a high -
dose therapy.
The recommended dosages are for average body weight, overweight
individuals may take s omewhat more and underweight individuals or
children somewhat less. These remedies may not be suitable in high
doses during pregnancy, in this case consult a health professional. For
maintenance you may use half the indicated amounts and may have
periodic breaks from therapy to see if microbes remain under control.
It is common to experience occasional bouts of diarrhoea during
antimicrobial therapy. This may be from die -back reactions of Candida
and other microbes, but it may also be from toxins released b y the liver.
Often this can be associated with headaches and intestinal discomfort.
In this case make an attempt to clean the intestinal tract with psyllium,
garlic and lots of water, and also with enemas and possibly colonics. The
quicker you get such irr itating toxic material out of your system the better.
Iodine Therapy
Iodine is an excellent fungicide. It helps to prevent and remove internal
cysts and  is especially important with breast cancer or breast problems
in general. Most commonly used is Lugol's solution. At full -strength it
contains 10% potassium iodide and 5% iodine. Each drop has 6.5 mg of
iodine/iodide.
If you buy a weaker iodine solution then  take more drops than for the
standard solution. Iodoral tablets available in the US have 13 mg
iodine/iodide per tablet. Iosol, an iodine/ammonium iodide remedy, has
1.8 mg of iodine/iodide per drop.
Before starting take a drop to test your reaction. This  may happen when
on thyroid medication, or with goitre