Rawgosia, I average about 90% raw. I have found that it is not necessary for me to be 100% to have a balanced and healthy body with very few pathogens floating around in my blood. Hwever, I believe being totally raw is definitely ideal. It is just that I have not put in the effort to do so ALL of the time. I have fasted many times also with great success.

As for my education, I have a Master's Degree in music education an taught for many years. My other interests are reading anything I can get my hands on, gardening, nutrition, sewing and quilting. My favorite TV show is 24!!!!! American Idol is second. I have 2 grown, married boys and a 15 year old daughter. My husband of 29 years has NEVER been interested in any of this stuff! Yet he is definetly a keeper!!!!

That was probably more that you ever wanted to know, but thanks for asking. I went to you website so I know a bit about you. Thanks!

Mtnkathy, thanks so much! (I love music too.) I like to know about people a little more than their views. What interests me in particular is understanding how their views where formed.

Oh, I would like to say that if it is the alkaline body that prevents one from getting sick, then I have good reasons to believe that my body is alkaline, cause I do not get sick. At the beginning of my raw food journey I still did. My diet has changed since then. Me loves fruit (my diet: high-fruit, low-fat, greens as desired; I am driven by my instincts and eat food I love).


Gosia


RawGosia channel
RawGosia streams

Jose,

I agree that providing a biologically appropriate diet is a key factor in healing the body. Diet is not the only condition for good health. We've seen a person like Tom Billing eating a "healthy" diet (its hard to know what he really ate as he never gave sample menus), yet he doesn't thrive. I've shared what I've seen in other raw foodists not thriving with an excellent raw diet.

In addition to providing biologically appropriate foods, humans need biologically appropriate environment, rest time, play time, social interactions, mental, emotional and spiritual balance and poise.

While I agree with the statement about acidic versus alkaline internal environments, what is necessary is biologically appropriate balance of the minerals in the human body. Certainly becoming too alkaline is just as unhealthy as being too acidic. But even under ideal pH conditions, expose a human to a toxin like dioxin, and they are going to get sick and die. I would argue that correct pH is not sufficient for good health. When Tom Billings was 80 pounds, I doubt he had an acidic body. Or take a person who is too acidic, and feed them baking soda until their blood pH is ideal. This doesn't mean that they will magically be healthy when they have an ideal blood pH.

I view that bacteria and parasites are not the cause of disease, but symptoms of an already sick body. With my experience in my all raw body, I no longer fear bacteria because I see how well my body heals from injury. When I injure myself in the tropics, my cuts and wounds heal quickly there without infection that is common among the tourists.

What I experience with my new found immunity to disease is a sense of freedom. I am not longer worried about contracting social or communicable diseases. At some point I felt the fear of getting AIDS from sharing love and affection with women, which put some anxiety into getting involved with new people. Nowadays those fears are gone as I experience that germs and viruses don't cause disease. Disease is no longer a mystery to me. When I exceed my limitations in terms of not getting enough rest or working too much or becoming too stressed, I feel the effects on my health and if I let it go long enough, I start to get symptoms. But I can restore balance into my body by paying attention to the healthful habits and where I am straying from them, and excellent health always returns.

The other freedom I experience is that I no longer view the human body as frail and weak and needing modern technology and science to survive. The frailty and weakness I saw in others and experienced in myself was a result of my unnatural lifestyle, and as I brought my diet and my lifestyle habits into a biologically appropriate practices, my weakness and frailty disappeared.

Right, diet isn't everything and in Pasteur's day Dr. Bechamp already figured that one out: diet and toxins- those are the 2 causes of disease. We have to account for both.

And I know, there are also genetically inherited diseases, but that's a whole other topic.

I don't think diet is everything but it (along with excercise) is A LOT. The only other thing is peace of mind and that is probably the hardest thing to achieve. Peace of mind can come with all sorts of things -hell it can even come with wealth. Which is why the rich live forever and age better. Diet and excercise, however, are the things you can do most about, easily.

As for medicine, I think modern medicine is a good thing EXCEPT it has been taken too far by the capitalist forces in this world. It is hard to separate what is necessary and what will keep pharmaceutical companies afloat. But I think if we are good with our diet, we don't need to EVER see a doctor till our old ages. And I never ever take pills. If I have a headache or when I had my wisdom tooth removed, I just drank water and went to bed. I am lucky in that I have a European mentality. The amount of medication in the States scares me. I am hardly surprised Anna Nicole Smith had a mini pharmacy in her hotel room when she died because I know Americans who have the same lack of concern regarding medicine.

Hey everyone, thanks very much for all your input, I really appreciate it and wan't expecting such a response! I would like to add to what I wrote originally, that, from the emotional/spiritual point of view, changing the physical and scientific way I look at disease and good health has been a very empowering experience for me, which no doubt also contributes to good health. The firm knowledge that good health is within our grasp and not dependent on some pharmaceutical lab or surgical procedure. This knowledge in itself already brings good health I find.

Hey arugula,

thanks for your thoughts. I'm actually a little surprised that you seem to be rather sceptical of the powerful healing intelligence the body seems to posses if treated right. About the links you provide, I have to raise some objections:

About the "wild animals get fungal infections", I quote from the bbc article you link:

"The American bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) is native to the central and eastern US and parts of Canada. The UK colony was probably derived from animals kept as pets that escaped or were released."

So these animals were not in fact wild or living as they ought to or in their appropriate environment. It's like when you try to grow mango trees in north-east England, it just doesn't work.

The particular case which you raise, that of amphibians, is actually rather interesting since thay are considered to be "environmental pollution markers" by scientists, ie the incidence of disease gives a good indication of how toxic an environment is. This fact fits in well with my contention that diet and environment play a central role in morbidity and fatality.

Global amphibians in deep trouble

Scientists believe the world's amphibians are facing an unprecedented onslaught of environmental threats.

Naturalists describe the creatures as sensitive indicators of the health of the wider environment.

The scientists say 43% of all amphibians are declining, 27% are stable, under 1% are increasing, and the status of the rest is unknown.

They describe amphibians as "the canaries in the coal mine", as their highly permeable skins are very sensitive to environmental changes, including in water and air quality.

Russell Mittermeier, president of Conservation International, said: "Amphibians are one of Nature's best indicators of overall environmental health.

"Their catastrophic decline serves as a warning that we are in a period of significant environmental degradation."

From [news.bbc.co.uk].

<<Genetics plays an important role in some cases, like the resistance that people with sickle cell anemia have for certain types of malaria. There is strength in diversity. >>

I seem to recall reading various estimates from scientists that of all the deaths attributed to the various diseases of the modern age, only a small minority, like 10-20% have a significant role played by genetics. I personally think this is an overestimate. Also, more importantly, diet is crucial in the expression of genes, so even if someone does have dodgy genes, there is no need to express them through a bad diet/environment situation.

<<In the Ross Bras rat cancer studies that examined protein intakes, there was am inverted U-shaped curve for protein intake: either too much or not enough slowed down the rate of cancers. Too little: the cancers didn't get enough protein. Too much: the cancers didn't get enough of everything else. Just right: the cancers grew most rapidly.

In AR Robinson's squamous cell carcinoma paper, even the raw vegan Wigmore diet rats got cancers.

Eating right provides powerful protection, but it isn't infallible. Our bodies are far too complicated for that, and they break down. The single biggest risk factor for cancer is old age.>>

Starting from the last point, of course the longer one lives, the more chances they have of losing vitality. However, I linked an interesting article a few weeks ago to the huge increase in childhood cancers the western world has experienced in the last 30-50 years, which, viewed from the appropriate perspective, would give good reason to beleive that the diet/environment factors are of huge importance.

About the other papers, I would say that lab rats are not leading their natural lives or diets, so we should not expect to learn about good health from those types of experiments. I can't imagine rats drinking wheatgrass juice in the wild..

About the protein intakes, and for any other nutrient, I would agree that there is certainly a balance to be reached where the body reaches the optimal potential for good health. I'm in no way saying this good health is perfect, nothing in Nature is, but it will be very very good.

You later write that

<<Such people are more likely to die at
younger ages from communicable diseases and the
diseases of poverty: respiratory infections, HIV/AIDS,
diarrheal diseases, tuberculosis, malaria, etc. These
all have a definite microbial basis. (whereas only
certain types of cancers have a microbial basis). By
microbial, I mean at least one of these: prokaryotes,
eukaryotes, fungi, viruses, and helminths. >>

I thought it is pretty clear that the only people dying from these diseases were pretty much the malnourished (ie bad inner environment) and/or those living in dirty degraded places (ie bad outer invironment).

By the way, have you come across Peter Duesberg before and his view on the HIV/AIDS relation? Might be worth having a look [www.duesberg.com].

Btw, I really do appreciate your comments and this chance for a fruitful discussion.

I will post more as soon as I have some more time, there are lots of interesting things to talk about here!

Cheers,
J





Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/11/2007 10:34PM by Jose.

Hey arugula, read this presentation by Duesberg on HIV/AIDS and tell me what you think [www.duesberg.com]. I recommend everyone else to read it too, very interesting stuff. In tune with the raw foods inspired inner terrain theory, and exposing the modern medical industry.

Cheers,
J





Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/11/2007 10:56PM by Jose.

Jose,
I've been reading more on Dr. Bechamp, about the research he and another doctor did in the 1860's when they discovered microzymas and realized it was these which are actually the elemental particles of all living things, and indestructible no less. He found them still alive even in fossilized 11 million year old limestone.

Microzymas, according to their findings, both create living beings and also break them down.

I can't believe all this AWESOME science I'm reading about, and how much of an idiot Pasteur was, not to mention a complete fraud.

This is the stuff my biology classes should've consisted of, I am so fascinated to have stumbled upon all these answers! REAL science!

Neeeaaatttt

Laurie Masters on another forum gave some pointers where you can read more about the Pasteur germ theory debate.

--------------------
Louis Pasteur

Janet, you can Google Pasteur terrain Bernard, and you will find many Web sites where the story of Pasteur's recanting germ theory is told. It's well documented in many books.

The story is told and referred to multiple times in Ross Horne's Health & Survival in the 21st Century, available free online at [www.soilandhealth.org]. Here's a brief excerpt:

Quote

Many intelligent doctors, after realizing the absurdity of allopathic medical methods, have abandoned their old beliefs in medicines and drugs and become medical heretics, which of course brings them disfavor in orthodox medical circles and no chance to present their newfound beliefs in professional journals. Therefore many such experienced doctors write books* to present their information direct to the populace. Two such doctors are Hans Selye, author of The Stress of Life, and Reino Virtonen, author of Claude Bernard and Experimental Medicine. These books are mentioned here because they both quote Louis Pasteur, father of the Germ Theory of Disease, who, just before his death in 1895, said to his friend Professor Renon: "Bernard was right, the germ is nothing, the milieu is everything. "

And another tidbit...

Quote

Beriberi is a disease characterized by weakness, nervous disorders, a swollen liver, weight loss, paralysis and impaired heart action. Until well into the 20th Century beriberi caused untold loss of life mainly in Asia and the East Indies, where rice forms the basis of the traditional diet. In 1878 Pasteur had announced his germ theory of disease, and so convincingly did he present it that it quickly found acceptance in the French Academy of Science and in a short time became part of established medical dogma around the world. From this time on, medical research became almost entirely directed into identifying which germ caused which disease so that a vaccine could be manufactured to defeat the germ and cure the disease. It was at this very time the Dutch government was concerned about the enormous death toll from beriberi in their colonies, and the Japanese navy was likewise concerned about the heavy losses of seamen from the same cause, and great efforts were being made to identify the germ responsible. However, in Java in 1887 it was discovered by a young physician, Christiaan Eijkman, that beriberi was not caused by a germ at all but by a diet deficiency correctable by eating unpolished rice instead of polished rice, and in Japan at the same time a naval physician, Kanehiro Takaki, made the same discovery. The problem of beriberi was solved, except for one thing--nobody took any notice because the medical establishment decreed a germ was responsible and a germ must be found.

Another good book I read is called The Curse of Louis Pasteur: Why Medicine Is Not Healing A Diseased World. You might be able to find it at a library. There's one currently available on eBay for under $14 total, including shipping.

By the way, everyone, the Ross Horne book is a GREAT book about everything we talk about here. Many people tell me they just can't put it down!

Laurie
--------------------

Jose, I don't have time now to address all your points (I will try tomorrow) but these two--

<I linked an interesting article a few weeks ago to the huge increase in childhood cancers the western world has experienced in the last 30-50 years, which, viewed from the appropriate perspective, would give good reason to beleive that the diet/environment factors are of huge importance.>

My thoughts are

-they did exist, but were not diagnosed
-a lot of genetically weak people who would otherwise die too young or in childbirth are now living to adulthood and reproducing thanks to modern medicine and other technologies.
-a lot of people are delaying pregnancy these days, but the strongest and healthiest baby is probably from the younger mothers age 21 or so--this seems to be an important factor for the people who reach age 100.

<About the other papers, I would say that lab rats are not leading their natural lives or diets, so we should not expect to learn about good health from those types of experiments.>

I don't agree (although I am against animal testing for cruelty reasons). They still use rodents for experiments for at least 4 reasons:

1. They provide a fairly uniform homogeneous population, with very limited genetic variability. This would not be possible with humans. There are many particular strains available with some more appropriate for certain types of experiments. This is really important because they can isolate only one factor: diet, in this case, and see the effects of that one thing. I felt the Robinson paper was a good one for some reasons (everything the same but diet), and not so good for others (did not control for kcals, did not control for most micro- or macronutrients).

An interesting counterpoint is Austad's "failed" kcal restriction studies in wild mice. But if you read the papers, you see that the ad lib wild mice are already restricted compared to ad lib lab mice, and that restricting them to lab mouse CR levels (40%) from their already comparatively restricted ad lib levels kills many of them at young ages because they are really starving to death. In short, I don't think these are valid studies for dismissing CR effects in wild animals that are generally genetically more robust and likewise I don't think this is a reason to dismiss lab animal studies just because their lives aren't natural. They are still pretty close to us and we can learn from them. That is not to say that I think they should be continued.

2. They have short lives so that results can be obtained quickly.

3. They can't cheat.

4. They are "close enough" to us to provide meaningful results in many cases. At any rate they usually serve as a testing grounds before additional experiments on humans take place.

Regarding alternative theories about protection from disease, I don't have much use for them. I think that there is a tendency for people here to have this Rosseauan ideal about a perfect life in perfect heath from raw wild plant foods but it's not everything. Certainly the best we can do is to eat right, get exercise, be productive, surround ourselves with uplifting people, and to add something good to this world and take away something bad. But all that isn't going to provide 100% protection 100% of the time. It is an idea that sells well to a vulnerable populace, though!

Here's an old post I saved that Zsuzsa wrote years ago about how disease forms in the body.

------------------
The Disease Process

By Zsuzsa

Here is how the process of disease works. I hope you will find it helpful.

Conventional medicine, and even "alternative" medicine, teaches us that "disease" is exogenic, meaning its source is outside of us, it is some tiny unseen organism that invades our body and harms us. Actually, this is not the case at all. Bacteria and viruses are present at the site of inflammation, sometimes called "infection", and so they are blamed as the causative agents for the condition, which medicine considers dangerous, when in reality they are innocent bystanders.

All "disease" is in reality endogenic, meaning it is caused by the body. It is a condition instituted by the body, to rid itself of toxic matter and to heal itself. Bacteria are allies in this process, they are the garbage collectors in the body, they eat up the wastes which would poison us to death otherwise, and that is the reason that the body allows them to live in the body, because their presence in our bodies is symbiotic and vital. Viruses are simply parts of dead cells, they happen to be the DNA strands of bodily cells that have died, and are passed out with other bodily wastes.

"Disease" is actually the process that the body uses to heal and cleanse itself, protect itself. Disease takes the form of any of 7 identifiable stages, and more than one of these can be manifested in the body at any time, though all disease is systemic, meaning the entire body is involved. Some of these stages we would not even think of as disease, yet they are all part of the progressive remedial process.

The body is healing and cleansing all the time, no matter what. The continual self-cleaning and self-healing is vital to life, and the body does it as thoroughly as it possibly can. The body has a homestasis, and equilibrium--if the toxins coming in can be eliminated smoothly and easily, the body does its cleansing and healing without needing to do anything further. But when the influx of toxins into the body is greater than ordinary elimination can sufficiently get rid of, the body then institutes a condition of extraordinary elimination. These are the 7 stages of disease--the body's extraordinary elimination takes the form of whichever, in the body's infinite wisdom, it knows is necessary at that point to rid itself of the toxic overload.

When the body is continuously overloaded with toxins, as most of our bodies have been, the toxic load of the body is so much more than it can ordinarily eliminate, it needs to go further and further up the line--each of these 7 stages is what the body must resort to in order to try to deal with and rid itself of the increasing toxic load which would otherwise kill it. So in the process of the body's having to take more and more dramatic actions to prevent its destruction from toxic load, the body must move up the 7 stages.

Conversely, in cleansing and healing, the body must move back in reverse through the 7 stages. This is called "re-tracing". The body moves back through the different stages, when given the chance, until it is clean and healed.

The first 4 stages are increasingly acute, the final 3 stages are degenerative or chronic. Chronic, degenerative conditions must move back through the acute stages on their way to healing.

We can see, for example how little children, who being so young have not accumulated as many toxins yet, and whose bodies are strong and vital, have such acute inflammations--the more acute the symptoms, the more it shows the body's vitality in attempting to throw off the toxic matter. They have acute cleansing and healing often and very persistently, when given the SAD diet. Eventually, as the child grows and toxic load increases and continues, the body begins to be so overloaded with toxins that it must resort to ever-further, ever-later stages of the disease process. The toxic drugs used to suppress symptoms, as well as to kill the valuable bacteria in the body, are also major sources of toxins which the body has to go to ever-later stages of disease to deal with.

But remember that all stages of the disease process are remedial, they are all instituted by the body, they are all the body's desperate attempt to rid itself of toxins in order to survive and heal itself.

Here, briefly, are the 7 stages:

1. Enervation. This is truly the first stage, the first sign that we have that the body is overloaded. The body feels tired, feels dragging around, feels less than vital. The body's communication system, electrical system, is the nerves. All of the body's activities, whether internal or external, are directed and coordinated via the nerves. When the body is tired, the neural system's functioning is impaired, and therefore all of the body's activities are slowed and less efficient. This results in smooth, normal cleansing and healing being impaired and slowed, and there is a back up in eliminating toxins, and so the body seeks to repair it. It therefore makes us feel tired, so that we will rest, so that the body can be re-charged to function normally again.

2. Toxemia. This would be where one might feel polluted, or just "bone tired", exhausted, very cold and achy, where someone might "feel a cold coming on", or "feel a flu coming on". These are all sign that the body must have rest and sleep and be kept warm, right away. Even before I'd ever heard of any of this, I'd noticed that every time I got a "flu", it was preceded by this kind of experience. I discovered that I could avert the full blown "flu" if, as soon as I got this feeling, I took a nice long hot bath, and went straight to bed and slept. That's toxemia.

3. Irritation. This is the stage where the body is getting overloaded with toxins to the point where it is must urgently get rid of them or take drastic action, and the body eliminates it in various sites extraordinarily--it may be through the sinuses, in the form of sneezing, or through the skin, in the form of a rash or itch, for example. We might also see increased mucus secretion, as mucus is a transport medium for toxins, out of the body.

4. Inflammation. This is full blown, acute cleansing, from "mild" to very acute, depending on the body's needs and according to its wisdom of what will save its life. Remember that all "disease" is the solution, the life-saving process, instituted by the body, to rid itself of the toxins, which are in reality urgently threatening the body's vitality, and in fact its very life. Inflammation includes "colds", "flu", "allergies", bladder "infection", kidney "infection", sinusitis, rhinitis, appendicitis, pancreatitis, arthritis, bursitis, thyroiditis, and any other kind of "-itis", or any other condition where the body has inflammation or "infection". It is all inflammation, there is no such thing as "infection". In inflammation, the body "inflames" an organ, or the site of an injury, wherever it is deemed necessary--it fills the site with blood, lots of activity, heat--fever is REMEDIAL, the body steps up the heat to help the healing and cleansing, fever is never harmful, and the bacteria population increase to gobble up the dead cells and toxins that are being eliminated. There is stepped up activity at the site of inflammation--there is heat at the site, everything is fast, the body is frantically and dramatically working to rid itself of toxins, cells live and die quickly. It is also systemic, all healing involves the whole body, and the fever which is the body temperature elevated throughout the whole body, is vital as a part of the healing and cleansing process.

5. Ulceration. This is the first stage of degenerative or chronic disease. The body's toxic load must be eliminated, so the body takes the dramatic action of destroying the cells of the different layers of skin or membrane and tissue below, in order to make an opening through which the body can push out toxins. These are like little volcanoes, and include what we call ulcers, but also things like canker sores, cold sores, pimples, acne, "herpes", various chronic skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and I think some of what are referred to as STD's.

6. Induration. This is tumor formation, which is at this stage considered "benign". The body is so overloaded with toxins that it cannot get rid of fast enough to keep it from killing the body, through any of the previous stages, so it begins to make soft or eventually hard cases in which to store the toxins, to keep it out of the bloodstream and the vital organs. The body often puts these tumors in the places which are the least important to its immediate survival, such as the reproductive organs, but they can occur anywhere in the body that the body in its infinite wisdom needs to put them.

7. Cancer. Cancer is not the fearsome killer people are taught to believe it is. It is simply another stage of the body's ability to heal and cleanse us, the final attempt, quite dramatic. The body's cells, probably specialized phagocytic cells, are used by the body to ingest the toxins, which are saturating the body and so totally exceeding the body's capacity to eliminate them fast enough, that the body must resort to sacrificing large numbers of cells to ingest and contain the toxins in order to keep them out of the vital organs and the blood, in an attempt on the part of the body to continue to carry on life in spite of the toxins. It is said, having been observed, by even mainstream science, that when inflammation or irritation have gone on too long at a site, it becomes cancer--they are observing some of the stages of the disease process. Disease never harms the body. Cancer, like any other stage of disease, is remedial. Death does not come from disease, rather disease is what the body uses to save it from death. Death comes from continuing to increase the toxic load, by ingestion of toxins and subjecting the body to toxins, including the huge toxic and enervating overload from drugs and chemo, and such. After cancer, the body has no more defenses left. It is the final stage in which the body can still struggle against the toxic overload.

The problem is not "disease". The problem is toxins, poisons. Disease is the solution.

When we cooperate with the body, in whichever stage the body is struggling to cleanse and heal itself, the body can decrease its toxic load, move back through the stages of disease, and ultimately recover full health.

How do we cooperate with the body? The first thing is to stop ingesting toxins, as thoroughly as possible. Drugs of any kind indluding "natural" ones, cooked food, herbs, irritants, food that is incompatible with the body. And inimical practices, anything that enervates the body, such as stress, overwork, medical procedures, anything that weakens or compromises the body including diets, yes enemas too.

We need to provide the conditions under which the body can function without impediment, and which provide the raw materials of life. This includes our optimal diet of fresh raw fruits, leafy veggies, nuts and seeds, as close to the form as they come in Nature as possible. This also includes sunshine, constant fresh air, keeping the body warm enough, plenty of rest and especially sleep, as much as the body may desire.

We need to fast, meaning total rest, eyes closed, water only, when the body gives us acute symptoms and takes away our hunger. It is only at these times that one should fast, and only for as long as the body dictates--only until the return of hunger. This is vital for the body to be able to accomplish its extraordinary healing and cleansing efficiently and quickly, and must be done. There is no substitute for this. Usually the extraordinary healing is accomplished quickly, though occasionally the body may need to do it longer. It is always recommended that fasting be done under the supervision of a competent practitioner, particularly if one has extremely acute symptoms, and if the fast is of any duration. And it's important for anyone to know as much as possible about fasting before undertaking it, especially "Fasting Can Save Your Life" and "The Science and Fine Art of Fasting", both by Herbert Shelton, and widely available, including on amazon.com.

Further information about the process and stages of disease can also be found in "Toxemia Explained", the classic by John Tilden, M.D., as well as in the works of eminent writers on Hygiene such as Herbert Shelton, T.C. Fry, Virginia Vetrano, to name a few.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/14/2007 03:21AM by Bryan.

Priceless, Bryan. Thanks!

Thanks others for sharing the interesting stuff too. I feel I would like to find some time to study it all, hopefully some time soon.

Gosia


RawGosia channel
RawGosia streams



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/14/2007 03:36AM by rawgosia.

Yes, thanks! This is wonderful information which I will ingest soon!

Thanks all!

The disease process that Zsuzsa writes about is a concise explanation of how the consequences of our lifestyles results in the lack of ease or dis-ease in our bodies. But don't accept her word for this process. Each of us has experienced disease in our lifetime. For whatever stage of disease it was that you experienced, whether it was some sort of inflammation (an -itis disease) or the flu, did you experience the various stages from stage 1 to whatever stage you experienced? Does what she describe about the disease process match your own personal experience? If you have healed from some chronic disease, does what she describe as how to get healthy, the elimination of toxins, getting rest, reducing stress, etc, match what you did to become healthy?

When I was hit with my healing crisis after going to a low fat raw diet, I had understood the principles involved with disease and the detoxification process. When I experienced the acute fatigue, I was excited that this symptom arose, because I felt it was an opportunity for my body to heal.

In my pre-raw days, when I would experience one of the earlier stages of disease, of course I sought to suppress it. For the enervation of stage 1, I took coffee and other stimulants. As toxins started to leave my body through my skin via rashes, warts, psoriasis, fungus, etc, I sought ways to suppress symptoms. And as I was successful in each suppressive attempt, I just made myself a little sicker. I gained weight, didn't have much energy, etc.

Here is what Dr Vetrano has to say about a healing crisis. Such crises are a cause for celebration, as the body has acquired enough energy and health to embark on a deeper cleansing and healing of the body.

------------------

DON'T BE FOOLED BY A CRISIS
by Dr. V. V. Vetrano
vvvetrano@rionet.cc.

People often develop a crisis after having been supplying all of the physiological needs of life, such as sunshine, rest and sleep, emotional poise, etc. and eating all uncooked foods for several months. During the first two to three weeks they may feel so lousy and let down that they wonder how people can say they feel so much better on the regimen. It is like the drug addict who abruptly ceases taking his favorite drug. The full effects of having been on a detrimental and unnatural high for years is making itself known by extreme bodily discomfort. Eating unnatural and injurious "foods," condiments and other poisonous substances are also addictive and one can expect to feel tired and lethargic when quitting hurtful things. The body has to readjust to the more healthful regimen. In the beginning there may be a few light eliminating crises. Then the Health Seeker begins feeling better and better and they begin to think that this is it. They feel great and think that the elimination of stored toxins is all over.

But, don't let that fool you. Remember, that there is a state called "enervation,"--- a state of lowered nerve force as well as a weakened physical state because of activities that exhaust the entire body. You may be feeling great but you can still be so enervated from your past life style that your body is unable to eliminate all the toxins or heal every organ in a short time. It has a lot more work to do, but you may be unaware of it. Your organism must recover some extra nerve energy to carry out further healing processes. Also, the entire organism is chronically fatigued and may have detrimental changes in certain vital organs, needing repair. Therefore, more work needs to be done and it can not all be done at once. The body concentrates on one or only a few areas at a time.

Frequently, after about a year on the strict Hygienic program, the Health Seeker will suddenly develop a strong eliminating and healing crisis. Living in harmony with the laws of life permits the body to regain nerve energy as well as physical and organ functioning capacity. That is why it can now create a strong healing crisis. When a powerful crisis happens some people have a panic attack. They thought they were getting well and now they are much worse. "What is wrong?" These strong crises are not detoxification and should not be called such because it is instituted by the organism itself and not with some medication to nullify another poison in the system. Healing is taking place as well. The Hygienic crisis is not just a matter of the elimination of toxins.

Having more of whatever symptoms the Health Seeker had initially is sometimes more than they can take, because they do not realize that it is really a crisis in the correct usage of the term. It is a turning point or stage of any disease where the individual could get better or worse. Many a time when physicians still made house calls a doctor would sit there and wait to see if the patient would surmount all obstacles and recover or go the other way. It was a tense emotional period for the family and the doctor. That is what a crisis is; the patient either made it or didn't. The Hygienic crisis is a turning point and the patient almost invariably makes it, especially because no medications have been used to suppress symptoms.

This often happens after eight or nine months into the Hygienic regimen. It also often happens a month or two after a complete fast. Recently, I had a client who had ulcerative colitis, with abcesses that became fistulas and drained out close to the anal region. This was so repulsive to him that he really wanted to get well in a hurry. We all do. However, as we all know, no serious disease, especially of the gastrointestinal tract, gets well in a hurry. He did his best for almost a year by supplying all the needs of life, staying with strained juices and nut milks which he tolerated very well. His symptoms slowly got better. Instead of many bloody bowel movements a day he had fewer and fewer and after several months the bloody stools finally stopped and he was well on his way to complete recovery. He could go outdoors or shopping without colonic accidents or the fear of having one.

Then it came!! The Big Crisis!! All of a sudden there were more bowel movements, more mucus in the stools, coupled with gobs of mucus streaming from the fistulas. He was sick and tired of juices and did not want to go back to them because he had been confined to them for so long; and now he was already able to eat solid foods. He just couldn't stomach going back to juices; and that is perfectly understandable. So, he sought care outside of the Hygienic field. Had he been able to fast he would have avoided being so long on juices but many people cannot get away to fast properly. Nevertheless, mucous was also pouring out other parts of the body. And he was in great abdominal pain. He did what most people do, when they have not studied Hygiene long enough. You can't blame them because the crisis fools them and they think they are back where they started instead of almost being at the aspired goal of genuine health. Dr. Herbert M. Shelton has often written about these types of crises. He said that when they come, they not only result in the healing of the primary problem, but the recovery of many other accompanying diseases also occurs with the same crisis.

When a crisis like this hits it is of course best to stop all food and fast through it. It won't be so painful, and it won't last so long. But, if that can't be done, it is of utmost importance that one continue the Hygienic program and not panic and seek care outside of Hygienic sphere. In seeking care from other practitioners, the symptoms will be suppressed with herbs, medical drugs, or with diet or whatever makes the patient "feel" better and helps him think that he is getting well. By suppressing the symptoms whether it be by a different diet, drugs, herbs, supplements, or other means several negative things can happen: (1) the healing itself is suppressed and the good effects which could have been experienced by the individual are lost; (2) the suppressive agents themselves cause a waste of nerve energy and can reinstate the toxic condition of the body; (3) if the suppression of the symptoms is carried on for a significant length of time there will be a return of the symptoms for which the person had struggled so long to get to heal.

A person who initiates the Hygienic regimen should study all avenues of Hygiene deeply so that crises are understood for what they are--a step forward to health and not a step backward. Before doing anything unHygienic the Health Seeker should at least consult a Hygienic doctor first. Then if other means seem best at the time the Hygienic doctor will tell the Health Seeker and refer him/her to someone or suggest what else can be done. Also, this will provide two opinions and the individual can make up his/her mind as to what is best under these circumstances. Under most circumstances it is always best to hang in there with Hygiene rather than to interfere with the bodily functions.

Here are some excellent chapters in Ross Horne's Health & Survival in the 21st Century:

Toxemia and the Diseases of Civilization

Reversing the Diseases of Civilization

hmmmmmm...... VERY INTERESTING.... something to think about.... I shall ponder these posts with great enthusiasm

I esp love the colitis parts, always been so fascinated by colitis, just utterly baffled as to its genesis- it just refused to fit neatly into any plausible medical explanation. But the above - very very interesting, Bryan.

How long has Natural Hygiene been around, anyway? Does it pre-date allopathic medicine?

The Natural Hygiene movement is relatively recent. It started in the early 1800 and found its name by 1850. The first five chapters of Natural Hygiene: Man's Pristine Way Of Life give the background of hygiene's history.