Enzymes are present only in natural, unprocessed foods. Heating, cooking, canning, pasteurization, and processing destroy enzymes. Temperatures over 122° F are lethal to enzymes. This means that when you cook your fruits, vegetables or other foods, all enzymes are permanently destroyed.<íåèTherefore, if you want to benefit from the powerful effect of enzymes on your health, you have to eat your foods in their natural, raw state. You may say that you can’t eat all foods jaw, they would be unpalatable. Unpalatable, yes! I am glad you brought it up! Perhaps this is the only really dependable guiding rule as to which foods were intended by the Creator to be eaten by humans. All fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, honey, etc. are actually more delicious and palatable raw than cooked. And, of course, all raw foods are much easier to digest than cooked foods—provided your digestive system is not totally degenerated and diseased by the prolonged use of cooked and devitalized foods.<íåèIn order to give your digestive system time to rebuild itself and adjust to the new diet, it would be best to make a gradual transition from predominantly cooked and processed foods to raw foods. Start by adding more and more raw foods to your menu, and gradually arrive at the point where at least two-thirds of all your food is in a raw state. This is not difficult to achieve, since all fruits, vegetables, berries, milk and nuts, and most grains and seeds can be eaten raw. <íåèWild animals, who in their wild state eat only raw natural foods, do not become sick. When the same animals are kept in zoos and fed cooked food, they suddenly develop the same diseases which civilized man suffers from: cancer, tuberculosis, rheumatic diseases, etc. Very often the captive animals in zoos become sterile. Zoos today are learning to apply this knowledge by feeding animals raw foods and keeping them healthy.<íåèThere is no doubt that the day man learned how to cook his food he brought upon himself disease and premature death. “Primitive” man lived on raw fruits, nuts, berries, honey, and raw milk. He used ancient methods of preserving by fermentation. The word enzyme comes from the Greek enzymos, which means ferment or leaven. Man used enzymes, or ferments, to make sour milk and cheese. He fermented bread and made it rise with the help of enzymes. He preserved vegetables by the enzymatic process of “pickling” them, or making sauerkraut, sour pickles, etc. All these foods are storehouses of enzymes. Man knew no disease and lived to a great age, as we are told in mythology and in the Bible. Even today, Eskimos and many tribes of Africa and Central America who eat practically all their food raw, do not suffer from the diseases of civilized man, who largely exists on cooked food. Cooking destroys not only enzymes, but also vitamins, and changes proteins and fats to a form more difficult to digest.<íåèNow you can see why the young lady I was telling you about in the beginning of this chapter, who was dying from the inability of her organs to digest food, was saved by the raw food diet. The enzymatic system of this girl was paralyzed and out of order. Her stomach glands were not producing the enzymes necessary for the digestion of food. The foods her doctor was giving her were all well-cooked and totally void of enzymes. Naturally they stayed in her stomach undigested. When she received a dish of raw fruits, raw goat milk, and raw honey, foods containing all the enzymes necessary for their own digestion, these foods were, in fact, capable of digesting themselves! Both honey and raw fruits require virtually no digestion. Honey and fruit juices are absorbed directly to the blood stream “without digestion” due to their predigested form. And goat milk is now known to be a highly concentrated source of enzymes!

*29/58/2*

Since not every one can travel to clinics for fasting, I have described earlier in this chapter how you can undertake fasting on your own in your own home. If you like to try a European Grape Cure, by all means feel free and safe to do it.

Here’s how you take a Grape Cure. First, start the treatment with two or three days of fasting, to prepare the system for the change of diet. Then, eat absolutely nothing but grapes for two weeks. The first day, eat only a few for breakfast, a few more for lunch and a couple of ounces for dinner. The second day, eat two or three ounces for each meal. On the third day, increase the portions again. From the fourth and the fifth days on you can eat as many grapes as you desire, within reason, of course, consuming not more than three to four pounds a day. Drink pure water only if and when thirsty.

Here are a few points to remember:

Eat grapes whole, seeds, skins and all.

Eat them very slowly, chew well; chew skins thoroughly.

Seedless varieties are excellent; otherwise chew seeds too. Swallow some, but not all of the seeds.

Grapes must be 100 percent ripe.

When completing a Grape Cure, follow the instructions for breaking a juice fast given earlier in this chapter.

Try to get organically grown grapes from orchards which never use poisonous insecticides or chemical fertilizers. If you use ordinary super-market grapes, wash them carefully to remove traces of insecticides.

*21\58\2*

Let me quote from my book, There Is a Cure for Arthritis: The therapeutic value of fasting is based on the following physiological facts:

Autolysis is a known metabolic phenomenon of self-digestion or disintegration of the body’s own tissues.

Therapeutic fasting induces the development of autolysis and directs its physiological effect for constructive healing purposes.

To clarify: when disease takes hold of the body it is usually because of the weakened defensive mechanism and impaired normal functions of the vital organs. Due to continuous neglect in feeding the body properly and failure to observe the other rules of health, the glandular activity and metabolic rate slows down and the eliminative organs lose their efficiency. Many of the toxins and metabolic wastes remain in the body and are deposited in the tissues, causing autointoxication.

Now, we must recognize the fact that the body’s own healing powers are constantly trying to correct any and all defects, disturbances, and damages if given the slightest chance. Such an opportunity for self-regeneration and healing is made possible during the fast.

First, during prolonged fast (after the first three days) the body will burn and digest its own tissues by the process of autolysis, or self-digestion. In its wisdom—and here lies the secret of the extraordinary effectiveness of fasting as curative therapy!—the body will decompose and burn only those substances and tissues which are diseased, damaged, or of lesser importance to the body economy, such as all morbid accumulations, tumors, abscesses, damaged tissues, fat deposits, etc. In fasting, the body metabolizes the most impure or inferior materials. These are consumed and utilized first. The essential tissues of vital organs are spared. Dr. Otto H. F. Buchinger calls fasting a “refuse disposal” or “burning of rubbish.”

Second, the eliminating and cleansing capacity of the eliminative organs—lungs, liver, kidneys, and skin—is increased during fasting, and masses of accumulated metabolic wastes and toxins are quickly expelled. This is evident in the following typical symptoms of fasting: offensive breath, dark urine (concentration of toxins in urine ten times higher than normal [Professor E. G. Schonk]), continuous and generous discharge of feces, skin eruptions, perspiration, catarrhal elimination, etc.

Third, a fast affords a physiological rest to the digestive and protective organs of the body. After fasting, the digestion and utilization of food are greatly improved, which makes the assimilation of all the important nutrients more effective.

Fourth, a fast exerts a normalizing and stabilizing effect on all the physiological, nervous, and mental functions. The nervous system is regenerated; mental powers improved; glandular chemistry and secretions are normalized.

It is easy to see from the above why fasting is such an effective healing measure in the treatment of a great variety of diseases.

Swedish fast marches have certainly proven very dramatically the safety of fasting.

Although fasting is without doubt one of the safest healing agents known to medicine, in the minds of the uninitiated and uninformed it is often associated with the fear of doing harm to the body, or even with the fear of death. Notwithstanding the fact that nobody ever died as a result of a few weeks of intentional fasting, such fears are quite understandable.

The truth is that you can live without food for months! As a matter of fact, you can more easily kill yourself by overeating than by fasting.

*13\58\2*

Here are a few examples of how the preventive approach has helped people in Europe to improve their health and prevent sickness.

At a German bathing spa I met a stout-looking executive, Mr. H.B. He is a director of one of the important industries in Hamburg. About ten years ago his doctors discovered that he had hypertension. After an unsuccessful attempt to control his high blood pressure with drugs, they sent Mr. H.B. to this famous watering spa.

“I have been coming here every summer for a week or two ever since,” Mr. H.B. told me. “My pressure usually goes down to normal during this time and I feel like a new man—twenty years younger. After a winter at my work, my blood pressure rises again, so I come back here, and all these baths, relaxation and good food put me back on my feet again.” Instead of endangering his life with powerful drugs, Mr. H.B. was controlling his blood pressure and restoring his health with three ancient—but not forgotten!—methods of preventive medicine: water cure, diet, and relaxation.

In Sweden, I have witnessed an excellent example of the value of preventive medicine in action. Visiting a dentist who had a family of four children, I was amazed at how healthy the children looked and especially at their beautiful white teeth. Dr. L. explained to me that the whole family was living on the so-called Waerland-diet, a lacto-vegetarian program designed by the Swedish nutritionist and health pioneer, Are Waerland. The children were raised on this program from birth. None of the children have had so much as a single cavity, although the eldest boy was already 17 years old. Knowing that this was a dentist’s family, I inquired if they did lots of tooth brushing.

“Never,” was Dr. L.’s answer. “I do not believe in toothbrushing. They rinse their teeth after meals, occasionally use toothpicks, and finish the meal with raw fruits or vegetables.” Needless to say, white sugar, white bread, and candies can never be found in this prevention-conscious family.

Russian and German reconditioning centers have demonstrated that diseases and physical deterioration can be prevented on a large scale by proper preventive means. Millions of people, perhaps as many as eight to ten million people in these two countries alone, visit spas and reconditioning centers each year, where their health is rebuilt and future illnesses prevented by programs of exercise, diet, and mental relaxation. Thousands of potential heart attacks are prevented in these centers. In one of the German cardiac centers I met a group of 60- to 80-year-old men who have been serious heart cases for 10 to 20 years. They visit this center for six weeks each year, and they told me that their condition is improved colossally during the six weeks of Spa treatment. “These mineral waters keep me alive,” an 84-year-old man, who has been coming here for the last 15 years, told me.

In the United States, we are basically cure-minded, and preventive medicine, in the sense described above, is a largely unknown occurrence here. While German industries send their executives to reconditioning health centers regularly, our economic system, with its chronic unemployment, does not favor the preventive approach. An executive who succumbs in his high-pressure job to a heart attack can be easily replaced. The rampant growth of heart diseases in the United States can be at least in part due to our neglect to take advantage of the European experience with the preventive cardiac programs.

We are still a great nation, with unmatched technological competence and a great capacity for scientific advancement. But if our economic, diplomatic, and military strength is not matched and backed up by the physical and moral stamina of our people, we may find the wheels of destiny turning to our disadvantage. Human history shows that decay from within in the form of physical and moral degeneration has brought about the fall of great nations. It is disheartening to witness the catastrophic health degeneration of our nation, when the scientific knowledge of how to build and guard health and prevent sickness is available.

A U.S. senator, concerned with the health of American people, once said that we are spending about $50 billion a year on health. I would like to make an important correction: virtually all of this money is spent on disease, not on health. If the American government would start spending money on health and the prevention of disease, the trend toward the rapid deterioration of the health of this nation would soon be reversed.

*5\58\2*

Inflammation of the eye is quite a common complaint in a household. Someone gets poked in the eye with a twig, or a bit of tree sap accidently gets in the eye. Sometimes it is a common stye or dry eyes. The fluid moistening the membrane of the eye is reduced and when a person sleeps the eyes become very painful from being closed with no lubrication.

Take a raw potato, grate it finely and squeeze out the juice. Dip some cotton wadding or a thin soft rag in this and place over the eye as shown in the picture.

A lady came to visit me once who had not slept all night because of a very painful swollen right eye. She was suffering great pain and her face was very swollen. Half an hour after placing a potato poultice over the eye she was sound asleep. After four hours the swelling had gone down and the eye was very much improved.

Case Histories

Case No. 1.

A young lad had a large, angry-looking pimple on the underside of his arm. It was very painful and appeared to have a large, hard area surrounding it. A potato poultice was wrapped around it and left in place overnight. In the morning it looked larger and seemed to be developing into a boil. During the day we put on it a poultice made of slippery elm powder, mixed into a paste with a little water. That night another potato poultice was applied after it had been bathed for about an hour in alternating hot and cold water. This program was continued for two days after which it looked as if the boil were ready to burst. However, no pressure was applied; instead, another potato poultice was applied on the third night. In the morning, the boil burst of its own accord and poured forth all its rottenness in one discharge. Some small pimples still showed around the head but came to nothing. The young man had been cleaning drains, and it is possible that he picked up a bacterial infection. But the powerful action of the raw potato drew it to a central point where it could be discharged by the body in one big effort.

Case No. 2.

A lady was out mowing the lawn when a knotted clump of grass and debris struck her on the sole of the foot and broke the skin. It seemed to be a very minor accident, but somehow the wound became poisoned, and a very swollen and inflamed foot resulted. In addition to this she was due to leave on a long trip in just two days.

Resorting to natural methods, we put the foot into a potato poultice overnight. In the morning a very shrivelled-looking foot withdrew itself from the wet, mushy poultice. But in spite of the sorry sight it presented, the inflammation was gone, and the swelling had almost disappeared. We then put the foot in a home-made steambath, using a chair, kettle, and blanket. (See page 65.) That night another potato poultice was applied, and in the morning the foot was so much improved that she was able to begin her long trip. A week later, she developed a sore spot on her hand. Again, a potato poultice was administered overnight. In the morning when the poultice was removed, a cactus thistle popped out from the sore area, and that problem was over, too.

Case No. 3.

In cases of bruising, the potato poultice is valuable. A young lady had entered into a local tennis competition and had won the privilege of competing on the State level.

However, in the local finals she had accidently bent her thumb back rather badly. If it were not healed in three days, she would not be able to play in the State games. Someone suggested that she put a potato poultice on it. At first, she scoffed at this idea, but her mother pointed out that she had nothing to lose if it did not work but much to gain if it did. So why not try it? (This is a good piece of logic to remember when working with poultices!) Finally, the girl agreed. The result? She played in the State competition.

Case No. 4.

Another gentleman was on a camping trip. While erecting a tent, he twisted his ankle. Because the pain was not severe, he did not think too much more about it. He continued working around and getting things fixed for the night. When he finally sat down, he noticed that his ankle had become swollen. It was becoming painful, and he thought that he had better do something about it. It was not convenient to treat it with hot and cold water, so a potato poultice was applied. He had a good night’s sleep, and in the morning when he removed the poultice, he was amazed to see that his foot was badly discoloured, For a moment, he wondered at the extra damage the poultice seemed to have caused; but, he then realized that in twisting his ankle, he had probably broken the small blood vessels found in the tissues of the foot. This had caused them to bleed, causing the foot to swell. Then, the potato had drawn the blood to the surface allowing the swelling to go down. That day, he was able to walk with a limp. After a couple more potato poultices, he was walking as well as he had before the accident and marvelling at the power of the potato to draw from deep within the tissues the cause of his discomfort.

Another very valuable poulticing material is the onion. There are good reasons for this, as the following will show. The onion is a very sensitive organism and absorbs all morbid matter which comes its way. Furthermore, its oils and essences have a very stimulating effect on human tissues.

For poulticing purposes, the onion is sometimes used raw and at other times cooked. Following is a listing of the many applications of onion and/or garlic as a poulticing aid for various problems.

For suppurating (pus-producing) tumours, roast an onion, split it and apply it directly to the tumour. If the poultice cannot be placed directly on the sore, make a cradle of wire or plastic mesh and place the poultice over the affected area. The cradle must be as close as possible without touching or causing discomfort. For treating a jammed finger or toe, pour one tablespoon of any cooking oil over two large, grated, raw onions and wrap as a poultice around the injured member. (It should be noted that elsewhere in this book hot and cold treatments are also recommended for this and they are better for this type of injury. However, there may be situations where the hot and cold is not very practical, and where the onion or garlic treatment may be more feasible. For this reason, it is good to know of this alternative.) The onion or garlic poultice will relieve the pressure and pain in a few minutes and facilitate the healing of the injury. The removal of callouses can be effected by cutting an onion in half and steeping it in strong wine vinegar. Leave this steeping for three hours. The onion halves are then securely bound to the callouses just before retiring at night and allowed to remain until morning. In the morning, the top layers of the callouses will have been found to have softened and can be easily removed. Repeat the treatment each night until the callous is totally gone. A slice of lemon tied to the callous will soften it in the same way.

Young children often have problems with sore ears. A cold in the head or a chill from cold wind or swimming in the water will set up an ache in the ear. Take an onion and cut it in half. Half-cook this in the oven or in a steamer, but keep the onion out of water. Subject it only to heat so it softens. Put it in a cloth and tie over the ear. In a few minutes the heat and fumes from the onion will cause the pain to ease and the child will sleep through the night. Sometimes a few drops of raw onion juice dropped into the ear will help, but usually it is only necessary to use the warm onion tied over the ear.

Drinking the water in which onions have been boiled will aid in the removal of excess fluid from the system and is also very good in cases of inflammation of the bowels. Raw onion juice rubbed between the toes will sometimes cure athlete’s foot. Also, warts have been known to diminish and eventually disappear with the persistent application of onion or garlic juice and salt. Castor oil or the flower of the mullen plant is sometimes effective on warts.

An onion compress is excellent for the removal of chest complaints such as bronchitis, influenza, colds, and asthma. Simply grate or mush the raw onion, spread over a cloth and then lay it over the chest, or bind it around the neck. During the night the patient’s inhalation of the fumes will disturb and suffocate the germs or viruses in the system and will stimulate the respiratory system to good effect. We have used this often and have always obtained good results. When the lungs have become congested with phlegm, mix honey and onion juice together and drink. This will break up and remove the congestion and ease the breathing. The French remedy for croup is onions. Cut them into thin slices, place into a bowl in layers, sprinkling each with a layer of sugar. This will soon yield a syrup, of which a teaspoon should be taken about every fifteen minutes until relief is obtained. Also for croup, crush a piece of garlic and combine with a little olive oil. If you do not have garlic, try onions. Smear this on the soles of the feet and cover with a cotton sock. Watch the child for the next two hours as this will definitely loosen up the phlegm, and the child may need assistance to get rid of it. When the chest is cleared, the child will sleep the remainder of the night quite peacefully. The same remedy can be used on adults when a persistent cough annoyingly prevents sleep.

*35\62\2*

Materials needed:

A good supply of hot water and a good suply of ice water.

Containers suitable for the immersing of the injured part into each of the above, if the part injured is immersible. If it is not, then fomentations must be used and this will require fomentation cloths.

The hot water should be as hot as the patient can possibly tolerate, which will be considerably hotter than he thinks. The secret of the effectiveness of this treatment lies in the extreme between the hot and cold. This extreme must be as great as possible.

If using fomentation cloths, the use of a large pressure cooker is extremely useful in getting the heat required without the danger of burning the patient from water left in the cloth. Fold the fomentation cloth into an oblong piece and roll it into a neat ball. Place it on top of a small stand which has been placed in the pressure cooker to keep it out of the water. Usually two rolls are steamed at a time. After the pressure has been raised, remove the lid and take one cloth out. Wrap it in a good layer of towelling and apply to the injury.

Method:

Apply the heat first. Initially the temperature of the hot water will not be as hot as it will be later because the patient will gradually build up a tolerance for hotter water. The attendant should be aware of this and increase temperature as tolerated. After two or three minutes in the hot, plunge the Injured part into the ice water, or replace the fomentation with an ice pack, as the case may be. This should be of a shorter duration than the immersion in the hot, usually Listing from thirty to sixty seconds. No arbitrary time periods .ire laid down. If the patient finds the heat unbearable, let him plunge into the ice water earlier. It will not be difficult to yet the feel of how long each portion of the treatment should last, but as a general guide it should be approximately three to four minutes in the hot, and thirty to sixty seconds in the cold. Continue the treatment until full relief is obtained from the pain.

The sooner the treatment is begun, the sooner the results. And conversely, the longer the delay, the more time It requires to obtain relief. The treatment should be started as soon as possible after the injury happens.

This is what the treatment will accomplish: The heat expands and softens the tissues, enlarges the blood vessels, and warms the blood, enabling it to flow more easily. This helps to ease the traffic jam and build-up of painful pressure. The cold, in turn, quickly contracts the tissues and helps to force the blood on its way. Thus, in effect, a secondary pump (other than the heart) has been installed at the site of the trouble. A build-up of blood is prevented; there is no de-oxygenation, swelling, or pain, and no resultant black and blueness.

When congestion is thus prevented and the continuous flow of blood assured, the healing process begins at once. Blood is a powerful healer and, if unencumbered, will do its work with surprising speed. Of course, its ability to heal depends upon its own condition. The freer it is from toxins, the more fully charged with oxygen, and the richer it is in nutrients, the speedier the recovery will be. Consequently, as was mentioned earlier, a person living on a healthful diet in a fresh air environment, with adequate exercise, will get much better results than those who have not given themselves these advantages. The latter class will have to stay with the treatment much longer than the former, but in both cases, success may be achieved.

NOTE:

There is a device which lends much more convenience to the carrying out of heat treatments. This is the Battle Creek Electric Thermophore. It may be obtained from Battle Creek Equipment, 307 West Jackson Street, Battle Creek, Michigan, 49016, U.S.A.

*26\62\2*

Case 1.

A friend came to spend some time with us and to offer his services in the painting of one of our large buildings. He had only a limited time for this work. To make matters worse, the paint he ordered was delayed and did not arrive until three days before the deadline. You can imagine what great sacrifice of physical laws was made to get the job done on time. When all the vital energies had been used and the job was finished, the body protested. This took the form of influenza. There was no fever but a lack of vitality and body heat. At the onset it was felt that a good sauna would help revitalize the body forces, stimulate the circulation, and enable nourishment to reach the cells in double-quick time. The perspiration would help to eliminate any poisons absorbed from the paint or produced from the exhaustion of the organs. It was a dejected, miserable, and cold patient who entered the steam tent and lay there for almost half an hour. His body heated up to possibly two or three degrees above normal. At the end he poured a bucket of cold water (60 degrees) over his whole body, rubbed dry, and quickly dressed. A hot drink was taken, into which had been dissolved eight 500 mg. tablets of vitamin C, 4 tablets of Ferr Phos, and 4 of Mag Phos. It is regrettable that we do not have a picture to show you the transformation. Not one hour more did that man spend in bed. He was well able to be up enjoying the rest of his time spent with us. He did not, of course, begin work immediately, remembering that rest is necessary to the body in recovering its vital energy. But he was able to enjoy a few days with us in the sunshine and fresh air before returning to the city and his work.

Case 2.

Another gentleman was experiencing symptoms resembling asthma and was finding it difficult to breathe. He knew no way to get relief except to take drugs. He had already taken a course of drugs. When these were finished, he was troubled by the problem again. He did not want to continue with the drugs and sought help in building up his body and removing the cause of the problem.

When he came in for counsel, we thought it best to put him in the steam-tent. This proved to be a good move. Within ten minutes he was breathing normally. His body was warmed and comforted by the heat, and the tense muscles relaxed. After an hour in the tent he was sponged down with cool water and a gentle full-body massage was given. During the next three days hot towels were put on his back and chest for 20 minute intervals every four hours. At the conclusion of each heat application, the skin was rubbed with olive oil to protect it. This loosened the mucous in his lungs, and it came away freely. The congestion thus removed, he was able to resume his daily duties again as a builder.

Arthritics will benefit from the steam-tent treatment. It loosens and relaxes the skin enabling it to throw off accumulated uric acid which causes pain and suffering. Many arthritics have availed themselves of this treatment and found relief from pain. An even simpler form of a steam tent is to place an umbrella over the patient’s head with the bottom end of the umbrella handle beside his chest. Place a chair beside the middle of the bed. Cover the umbrella, patient, and chair with a sheet.

The source of steam is placed on the chair. Where electricity is not available, place a bowl of hot water on the chair. Preheat a flat iron or a brick and put it in the water. Be sure to tie a strong piece of string or rope to the heated object so you can remove it without getting burnt. If necessary, flap the sheet to agitate and distribute the heated air. Where electricity is available, an electric kettle may be placed on the chair. It will most likely need to be switched off from time to time to prevent overheating and even scalding. This system aids in the relief of sinus trouble.

Even the bath tub can be used for this purpose. A wooden covering is made to go over the tub in which the patient may lie while the steam is piped in. In all treatments involving steam, the patient should be attended.

Commercial models are available in the form of a circular cabinet in which the patient sits. In the seat is an electric element. This gives a dry sauna.

Less expensive is the chair steam tent as illustrated here. The patient simply sits on the chair with a blanket draped around him as loosely as possible to allow space for the steam to circulate. The electric kettle is positioned on the floor, the blanket is dropped over it so that the steam emanating from the spout will rise around the body. The picture shows the corner of the blanket lifted so that the position of the kettle can be clearly seen.

There is one disadvantage to this system. It is difficult to keep the head cool. Furthermore the patient may experience dizziness or a sense of weakness initiating a strong desire to lie down. Therefore, this system is suitable only when the patient feels strong enough to sit up.

*15\62\2*

A fever is a condition of the body in which there is a more or less marked rise of the temperature above the normal range. It can be present with quite a range of ailments, such as: colds, flu, infections, childhood diseases, cancer, and just plain indigestion. It may also appear without any recognized sickness. The elevated temperature is so widely common that it will, I am sure, be familiar to most readers of this book.

The rational treatment of fever requires, first, an understanding of what causes it and what its purpose is. Through some means, such as an infection, a virus, a letdown in dietary habits, or over-fatigue caused by intemperance in work, the body resistance is lowered, and a toxic condition develops either in a localized point or throughout the body generally. Nature’s inbuilt healing powers respond at once. They set to work to eliminate the toxins by generating heat to burn them up. Thus, fever is an evidence that the body is hard at work and needs our assistance. This recognition is well expressed in the following words: “Give me a chance to create fever and I will cure any disease.” This is what the great physician, Parmenides, said over 2,000 years ago.

“Fever is one of the body’s own defensive and healing forces, created and sustained for the deliberate purpose of restoring health. The high temperature speeds up metabolism, inhibits growth of the invading virus or bacteria, and literally burns the enemy with heat.” How to Get Well, Paavo Airola, Ph.D., N.D., Health Plus Publishers, Phoenix, Arizona, 1974. Bacterial poisons are often the cause of fever. These poisons irritate several things: 1) the vaso-motor centres (the areas in the medulla of the brain and spinal column that control the constricting and dilating of the blood and lymph vessels), 2) the nerves, 3) the surface blood “vessels, thus driving the blood from the skin, and thereby producing chilliness and greatly reducing heat elimination. In many fevers, oxidative changes and heat production are decreased rather than increased by bacterial poisons and metabolic wastes. These poisons may be introduced from without or from the growth of bacteria within the body itself or upon some of its surfaces. In this situation damage to the body and its organs comes almost wholly from crowding the system with toxins, and not from the abnormal temperature. Unless the fever is very high or much prolonged, there is little to be feared from the fever itself. The fever is not the cause of the disturbance, but only the symptom of it.

Fever is an effective protection and healing measure not only against colds and simple infections, but against such serious diseases as polio and cancer. In biological clinics, overheating therapy, or artificially induced fever, is used effectively in the treatment of acute infectious diseases, arthritis and rheumatic diseases, skin disorder, insomnia, muscular pain and cancer, to name a few conditions. Such giants of medical science as Nobel Prize Winner, Dr. A. Lwoff, Dr. Werner Zabel, and Dr. Josef Issels, recommend the use of fever therapy extensively. A research team under the direction of Dr. David S. Muchles, from Oxford University, recently reported something that ancient physicians and biological doctors knew all along—that fever is effective in combating many diseases, including cancer.

“There are many ways to induce fever. Some doctors use certain vaccines (like BCG) or drugs to create artificial fever. Personally, I prefer a more natural approach. Although fever induced with BCG or drugs can have a beneficial effect by ‘waking up’ and stimulating the body’s natural defensive and immunological mechanism, there is less stress on the body if fever is induced with an overheating bath.” ibid.

These words make it clearer that fever is our friend, designed to do us good. It is a fire burning in the system to consume toxins which would otherwise destroy us. It would seem entirely logical, then, to assume that a fever should simply be left to itself to do its work without any interference. However, it is the nature of fire that only a certain amount of heat can actually do the intended work. The rest of it must be dissipated along controlled channels, or it will become a dangerous destroyer.

When men light fires, they are careful to control them so that they do the intended work and nothing more than that. Likewise, a fever in its generation of heat must be controlled, or it will do harm as well as good. In fact, the harm could be so great that little good, if any, will result.

The body generates the fires of a fever to consume rubbish which has accumulated, usually in a fairly localized area of the system. As the heat does its work, it needs to be drawn away, just as the heat in a cook stove is channelled out through the chimney as fast as it does its work. If the patient is wrapped up in warm blankets or given a hot bath allowing no heat to escape, the fire spreads to healthy tissues and destroys them. This can, in turn, cause the fire to spread further resulting in extensive damage which can lead to permanent brain damage, organ damage, and even death.

Therefore, the very worst thing which can be done is to wrap the patient in warm blankets. It is critically necessary that the heat be drawn off as soon as it has done its work. This principle of drawing off the surplus heat is objected to by some. They argue that this is putting the fever out, and this argument seems to be supported by the speed with which the fever dies. They find it hard to believe that a problem can be cured so quickly. But it must be emphasized that this treatment does not frustrate the fever in its work, but only assists it so that it accomplishes its work with surprising rapidity. Too long have we been accustomed to fevers lasting for days on end when, in fact, they should only last for an hour or two.

I once read the story of a man with fever in a hospital in Broome, Western Australia. Broome is a place where the temperature is generally very high anyway, and when the heat of his fever was added to the discomfort produced by the heat of the sun, he felt as if he were literally on fire. Having come off a foreign pearling boat, he could not speak English. Those caring for him sought to confine him to a hot bed, while he was bent on pouring buckets of cold water over himself, much to the consternation of those who were trying to help him. The fact is, that he was on the right track. Eventually he regained his health, thanks to the cold water he did manage to get, and in spite of the fact that he should have gotten much more.

Two signs that would indicate some form of cold water application in the event of a fever are a full pulse with a flushed face, and hot, dry skin. When we feel the body burning under the touch of our hands, then we use cold water methods. This is a two-fold aid because, while it draws off heat, it stimulates circulation and the production of much-needed red and white blood corpuscles. The white corpuscles must be present to consume the toxic bacteria, and the red must be present to rebuild cells destroyed by the disease. Without these important defences, victory in the struggle would not be won. Fresh oxygen supply is important to the work of the red corpuscles. Therefore, the room in which the patient is cared for must be well ventilated and well lit with sunshine, although it should not be drafty. The patient should be encouraged, as far as possible, to take deep respirations.

One of the most effective of these cold water methods is the wet sheet pack.

*6\62\2*

There are numerous forms of skin cancer but few are as feared as malignant melonoma, the incidence of which is rapidly increasing in Australia. While it is known to be linked to over-exposure to the sun’s damaging ultra-violet rays, particularly in the early years of life, there are probably other factors involved.

There is almost certainly a genetic predisposition in some families towards developing melanoma and studies are focusing on the genes likely to be responsible.

While fair skinned people of all races can develop melanoma, it is those of Celtic origin, with their fair, red-toned skin, red hair and blue eyes, who are particularly prone. The prevalence of this racial group in a hot, sun-loving country like Australia, may be one reason why our rate of melanoma is twice that of most other countries. This explanation alone, however, may not be sufficient. Nor does the widening hole in the ozone layer above

Australia explain everything. According to a survey conducted by The Age newspaper, the highest rates of melanoma are suffered, not in sunbaked Queensland, but in Victoria, one of the country’s colder states. There may be some truth in the theories linking our high rate of skin cancer with a deficiency of anti-oxidants such as selenium in our soils and diets. Through the chemical contamination and overprocessing of our food, we may be either ingesting substances which increase our sensitivity to light, or killing off substances which might have increased our protection such as Vitamin B6.

All this aside, sun exposure is certainly a trigger for skin cancers of all kinds and is one factor we can control. Do not trust too much to sunscreen preparations. Because they may encourage us to stay out in strong sunlight for extended periods of time without warning signals like sunburn, they may be dangerous in themselves. What is more, little is known about the risks associated with the absorption of these chemicals through the skin over a prolonged period of time. Many people already suffer from allergic reactions to ingredients in sunscreens.

Whenever possible, and it may not always be possible, do without the lotions, opting instead for a patch of shade, a large sunhat which protects both the face and the back of the neck and light, sun-protective clothing. Never sun-bake intentionally. If using sunscreens, the best protection is found in the opaque titanium dioxide or zinc oxide creams (such as the ubiquitous zinc cream). Because they block the sun on the surface of the skin, rather than being absorbed through the pores, allergic reactions to these creams are rare. Unfortunately, they are messy and their use is usually restricted to small exposed areas like the nose, cheeks and lips.

The good news about skin cancers is that they are easily detected early and if removed or burnt off the skin, may not cause further problems.

As with all forms of cancer, be vigilant. Inspect the surface of the skin regularly. If you have a family history of melanoma or have yourself been treated for skin cancer previously, such inspections should be even more frequent. When examining the skin yourself, make sure somebody else looks at the danger zone on the shoulders, back and back of the neck. Any change in the size or colour of moles, new growths or sores which are slow to heal should be shown to a doctor immediately. Waste no time. More often than not, there will be no serious cause for concern, but if melanoma is present, early detection and swift action are crucial to stop the spread of the cancer through the body.

If cancer is diagnosed, refer to the discussion of cancer treatments in this book.

*52\69\2*

Dr Michael Terman from Columbia University originally showed that simulating a summer dawn in the middle of winter could have a salutary effect in people with SAD, helping them to wake up and feel better during the day. He accomplished this by means of a machine that turned the bedroom lights on gradually, as though the shade on the window were becoming gradually brighter as on a sunny morning in the summertime. Since this initial observation, dawn-simulators have become more compact and affordable and have been shown to help people wake up in the morning and have anti-depressant effects in controlled studies. A commonly used version fits easily into the palm of the hand and can be connected to an ordinary bedside lamp. Although not usually sufficient in itself to reverse the symptoms of SAD, a dawn-simulator is an excellent way to get the day off to a brisk start and is a very useful part of the overall programme for managing this condition.

Another innovation to come out of Terman’s department at Columbia is the use of high-dose negative ions – charged air particles emitted from a small device that looks like an air purifier. According to one study, negative ions in high dosages may have anti-depressant effects in SAD patients. More work is warranted, though, before this treatment can be recommended with any degree of confidence. Negative ions are emitted from flowing water under natural circumstances, whereas positive ions are emitted from all sorts of indoor machinery.

*28\75\2*