 chapter you will learn
how to eat to maximize your nutrient absorption and tooth remineralization. In the last chapter you
learned that fat-soluble vitamins are essential to remineralize decayed teeth. Now you will learn how
to increase the minerals and the fat-soluble nutrient content of your diet. You are going to learn how
to replace processed foods with whole foods, and learn ways to prepare food that will help ensure its
optimal nutrient absorption.
Cavities in our teeth appear for a reason. And people with cavities have frequent food habits that
create cavities. The problem is most people do not know which foods cause the cavities, so it seems
like cavities strike them out of nowhere. Even within the framework of the entrenched bacterial theory
of tooth decay, the dental establishment acknowledges that the root of tooth decay lies in what foods
are eaten. The convenient difference between what conventional dentistry focuses on and what we are
looking at here is that dentistry points to foods your bacteria might be feeding off of, rather than to
what foods you are feeding your bacteria. Tooth decay comes from eating foods that are harmful to
your body. So tooth decay is a specific biological reaction to a set of environmental factors. It is not a
random or mistaken occurrence. This chapter will illustrate what these harmful foods are. Many of us
typically consume as a staple certain foods that harm our teeth, without knowing it. Pay particular
attention to your consistent food habits since one or more of them may be the cause of your misery.
Sometimes just removing the tooth-decay- promoting foods will make decayed soft teeth hard as stone
again.The Town without a Toothache
Hereford, Texas became known as the “Town without a Toothache” in 1942 due to the
pioneering work of dentist George Heard and author of
Man Versus Toothache
. Dr. Heard explains
the town’s secret:
After a newcomer has lived in Hereford a few years, provided he had drunk lots of raw
whole milk, he develops resistance to tooth decay. Even the tooth cavities which he brings
with him when he comes to Hereford will be glazed over, if he has drunk raw milk.
For years I made inquiry of my patients as to their milk habits. Almost invariably I found
that the possessor of a mouth full of sound teeth had been a consistent milk drinker from
early childhood. A surprisingly large number liked either buttermilk, clabber or both. The
significant fact is that the milk those patients drank came from cows that had grazed on
native grass in Deaf Smith County pastures. In winter, as a rule, the cows had grazed on
green wheat.
1a
My fellow dentists heard me out of respectful attention. One dentist Dr. Young remarked:
“If all our patients adhered to Dr. Heard's ideas, we would be minus patients.”
2a
There are not words to explain the supreme value of raw grass-fed milk in all its forms. High
quality raw milk will substantially contribute to your health and well-being, and to your children’s
health and well-being. Milk is very high in the minerals calcium and phosphorus which we know we
need for strong teeth and bones. Four cups (one quart) of milk provides about one gram of calcium
and one gram of phosphorus per day. This is a significant portion of your daily requirements of the
minerals you need for healthy teeth and bones. The fat portion of the milk, the cream, contains small
amounts of valuable fat-soluble vitamins like A and D, as well as vitamin C. When pasturing cows
eat rapidly growing grass in the time of rapid growth after it rains, there will be moderate amounts of
bone hardening Activator X in the milk. It is worth noting that the soils of Deaf Smith County, Texas
were extremely high in the mineral phosphorous.
Dr. Heard’s years of observations show that people drinking one quart (four cups) of excellent
grass-fed milk per day will be immune to cavities. He also advised to take some of the milk in
different forms such as: buttermilk, clabber, cottage cheese, kefir, and yogurt. Several ancient
Ayurvedic texts, more than 2,000 years old, describe using milk, yes, raw grass-fed milk, as a cure
for literally hundreds of ailments. The most particularly healing milk to the body was identified as
buttermilk. Since all milk was cultured in those days (the refrigerator was not yet invented) this
would of course be non-pasteurized cultured buttermilk. Milk’s healing power lies in its nutrient
density and the ease with which our body can digest it.
Before the recent invention of refrigerators, milk was drunk either immediately after milking,
known as sweet milk, or it naturally began to sour and was transformed into cheese or yogurt.
Probiotics are vital to our health and good digestion. Many forms of soured milk are excellent for
obtaining these detoxifying and vitamin-creating bacteria. Having healthy teeth is a result of more than
just eating well; it is about absorbing food well. An essential aspect of nutrient absorption is having a
diet rich in probiotic, live foods. In addition to a wide spectrum of probiotic bacteria, different forms
of soured milk including yogurt contain highly absorbable forms of calcium. Soured milk is also low
in milk sugar, known as lactose. Dr. Heard’s observation that people who are immune to cavities
consume a significant amount of soured milk reveals a vital but little known way to create immunity to
tooth decay.Let’s review some of the life-affirming forms of raw milk.
Clabber
is a strong soured yogurt-like milk product produced by allowing milk to sit out in a jar
at room temperature.
Kefir
 (pronounced
keh-FEER
 )is produced when milk sits in a jar with kefir grains. This is a
symbiotic matrix colony of bacteria and yeast that resemble a cauliflower. Kefir grains can be
obtained online, or from friends. At room temperature the kefir grains consume milk sugars and
transform raw milk into a potent nutrient-rich cultured beverage. It can be drunk plain or in smoothies.
Kefir seeds our intestines with milk-digesting bacteria and aids in cleansing and detoxification of the
body. Regular consumption of kefir will increase your vitality and longevity by filling you up with
more than 60 probiotic yeasts and bacteria, not to mention the highly digestible forms of minerals in
the kefir milk.
Whey
is the light yellowish liquid that remains when milk solids are removed from cultured
milk. You may have seen it on the top (or at the bottom) of your yogurt container. After milk sours, the
liquid portion of the milk can be separated from the solids, leaving you with curds and whey. Whey is
an ancient health remedy because of how easy it is to absorb and digest along with its vast probiotic
contents. Whey can be obtained from yogurt if you do not have access to raw milk.
Butter milk
 is the liquid that is left over from the process of churning butter. It has a refreshing
sweet and sour taste, and will aid your overall health.
Suggested Dairy Intake
2-4 cups of raw dairy per day. Make sure to regularly include any or all of these probiotic
milks: kefir, yogurt, clabber, whey and buttermilk.
Dentist George Heard’s message for the people:
Reader, would you like to have my formula for building sound teeth in one line? Well, then,
here it is: Drink plenty of pure raw milk every day.
3a
These excellent results were enjoyed by Deaf Smith residents because the cows pastured on
Texas’s native grasses grown on mineral-rich soil and grazed green wheat in the winter time.
Deceptive Labeling
Milk laws are backwards these days. Milk laws are controlled at the state level, so the law may
be different in your state. Dairy products that are sold in larger chain stores labeled as kefir,
buttermilk, cottage cheese, or cream cheese are in fact counterfeit. Because of the laws, real kefir,
buttermilk, and cream cheese are banned from our stores. Instead, the products you see have a
specific strain of culture added to the milk or cream to create these products. The natural, old-
fashioned way to make these products is through natural fermentation without adding enzymes. Store
products do not benefit from the natural culturing process and are dramatically inferior. Usually the
taste is completely different from what the real food, not available in stores, actually tastes like.
Equally, the health benefits from the store-bought products will not be the same, with the possible
exception of some superior brands of yogurt.
The problem with store-bought dairy is not just in the culturing process, but also in the quality of
the original milk used. Most milk labeled as organic comes from cows that are not raised naturally.
Dairy cows, even from supposedly organic dairies, are often confined, and deprived of their natural
diet of grasses. Instead, they are fed grains and other inexpensive fodder, including waste grains fromdistilleries which are not a part of the cow’s natural diet. The result of this large scale, profit-driven
production is that the grain-fed milk lacks wholesome life-sustaining nutrients. In general people do
not do well on grain-fed milk; it is too sweet and nutrient poor. Unless labeled otherwise, you can
assume that store-bought milk is completely grain fed, even the organic varieties. Although the ideal
of organic milk is that it comes from pasture-fed,


 resolve completely over time, suggesting that they are based on temporary neuronal dysfunction rather than cell death as seen in severe head injury.
146 Neuronal dysfunction can occur due to cere -
bral hypoperfusion, ionic shifts, altered metabolism, impaired synaptic connectivity, or changes in neurotransmission, such as diffuse axonal injury.
147
Repeated concussions, even mild blows to the head from contact sports, can cause
cumulative pathology on the brain. Successive concussions can have devastating consequences, including progressive decline of memory and cognition, depression, suicidal behavior, poor impulse control, aggressiveness, and, eventually, dementia.
148
The metabolic cascade following this type of injury has been studied extensively
in animal models as well as humans.149,150 This metabolic cascade immediately after
biomechanical injury to the brain consists of a sudden release of neurotransmitters involving excitatory transmitters, such as glutamate binding to the NMDA recep -
tor, which leads to further neuronal depolarization with the efflux of potassium and
influx of calcium into brain cells.
149 These ionic shifts lead to acute and subacute
changes in cellular physiology, diminished cerebral perfusion, and brain cell energy
crisis, making the brain less able to respond adequately to a second injury and poten -
tially leading to longer-lasting deficits.151The head strikes a
hard obje ct cr eating
a concussion -type
injury
FIGURE 8.4  Rapid acceleration–deceleration of the brain created by the head striking a
moving or fixed object.156 Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO) in Trauma and Disease
Unfortunately, studies targeting the metabolic cascade have failed to produce a
viable treatment option given the rapid onset and the shortness of time in reach -
ing a concussed patient in time to stop this cascade from progressing. One option,
however, is to keep a rapidly acting, safe, and effective agent such as DMSO near the sports facility where games are played and have someone present when players come in contact with each other that can administer DMSO intravenously if it is determined that intervention must be applied.
Some studies have shown that cerebral blood flow decreases immediately follow -
ing a concussion, and the amount of time cerebral perfusion remains lowered and seems to depend on the severity of the injury.
152,153
Due to their lack of structural damage, concussion is also referred to as MTBI.
More commonly, athletes present with a brief alteration of consciousness, headache, and amnesia and require careful examination and observation before returning to competition. The diagnosis of MTBI is based on subjective findings and subtle changes in mental status.
The diagnosis of concussion is largely based on the clinical examination, yet
certain imaging studies can be considered, such as computed tomography or mag -
netic resonance imaging (MRI), especially if an intracranial bleed is suspected. MTBI requiring urgent neurosurgical attention should be ruled out.
154 Computerized
tomography and MRI are usually without significant findings in MTBI. Functional magnetic resonance images and positron emission tomographic scans have been used in concussion research but serve no role in the clinical management of concussion.
155
Neuropsychological testing is also very sensitive in the evaluation of brain injuries
in athletes and may become more clinically useful in the future. Neuropsychological testing may demonstrate areas of deficiencies; however, results may be difficult to interpret because of confounding factors.
156
Complications following MTBI such as second impact syndrome have been
known to occur, and when this happens, a rapid and effective treatment to counteract the pathologic cascade that follows may be life-saving.
The search for an effective and safe concussion treatment when prevention does
not work is higher now than ever before. A better understanding of the detrimental molecular and cellular effects caused by a concussion is the key to finding a safe, rapid, and effective treatment.
Treatment strategies focused on managing the neuroinflammatory responses
to concussion may prove to be a tangible target since it is hypothesized that these delayed secondary effects may be the primary source of long-term neural damage. There are promising data to suggest that manipulating neuroinflammation can be used as treatment strategies to manage the long-term deficits produced by a concus -
sive injury.
151
However, the use of general anti-inflammatory drugs such as nonsteroidal anti-
inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) will not serve as a magic bullet  for this type of injury.
Rather, it seems that a tailored drug that targets the inflammatory and metabolic
cascade that follow a concussion when given at particular temporal intervals will
likely be useful in treating the complexity of the inflammatory response to concus -
sion. DMSO, an efficient anti-inflammatory agent, may become a treatment of choice as we review its properties as a neuroprotective agent.157 DMSO in Basic Neuroprotection
DMSO IN BRAIN CONCUSSION
DMSO may be an ideal agent to treat the metabolic cascade that often follows the
rapid acceleration and decelerations of brain concussions.155,157
Glutamate is an amino acid in the brain that functions as the principal excit -
atory neuronal neurotransmitter. During excitatory neurotransmission in the healthy CNS, glutamate is briefly released at a high concentration into the extra -
cellular space where normal physiological levels are maintained by reuptake of glutamate through neuronal or glial glutamate transporters. When excessive extracellular glutamate accumulates in the synaptic space after brain traumatic injury, it causes a significant increase in Ca
2+ influx into neurons, thereby trig -
gering neuronal excitotoxicity. Traumatic injury to neurons can produce disas -
trous results when the excessive release of intracellular glutamate concentrations overload the synaptic space. Moreover, many glutamate-induced CNS neurode -
generative disorders, such as epilepsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, brain isch -
emia, and traumatic brain injury, are reported to associate with the dysfunction of glutamate excitotoxicity.
158
When primary hippocampal cell cultures exposed to toxic levels of glutamate
were given DMSO at clinical doses, DMSO was shown to suppress, in a rapidly reversible manner, excessive calcium influx into cells and channel opening of the ionotropic receptor channels NMDA and AMPA, which are known to be activated by glutamate during brain trauma due to the development of oxidative or metabolic stress.
54
Moreover, this excitotoxic  process by glutamate, which can damage or kill neu-
rons, was reported to be blocked by DMSO.54
The treatment of brain edema after MTBI presents a challenge for many clini -
cians. Considerable animal and human studies indicate that DMSO can quickly lower edema and ICP following severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).
41,43–45,61,159
These findings suggest that DMSO at lower doses than those used for severe, closed head injury may be beneficial to mild brain trauma. This concussion is supported by the pharmacological properties of DMSO, including its antiedema property, its potent diuretic action, its anti-inflammatory properties, and its increase of cere -
bral perfusion.
160 Moreover, its blocking effect of excessive glutamate, sodium, and
calcium entry into cells and efflux of potassium ( Figure 8.3) that can induce cyto -
toxicity demonstrates that it can therapeutically target the biochemical cascade described in animal and human brain following MTBI (concussions) or severe TBI.
50,51,54
DMSO COMBINED WITH A GLYCOLYTIC INTERMEDIATE
Because brain injury can lead to an impairment of mitochondrial oxidative phos -
phorylation with the loss of ATP as well as to the formation of cytotoxic free radicals,
de la Torre and his group161 reasoned that combining DMSO with an intermediate
of anaerobic glycolytic metabolism, fructose-1,6-diphosphate (FDP), might be more
useful than either drug alone in preventing the neuronal and energy compromise associated with severe, concussive head injury in a mouse model.
161158 Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO) in Trauma and Disease
FDP is an intermediate of anaerobic glycolytic metabolism and has been shown to
restore the activity of the Embden–Meyerhof pathway and oxidative phosphorylation
when administered during prolonged hypoperfusion states.162 FDP can also inhibit
oxygen-free radicals, stimulate anaerobic glycolysis, and increase the production of ATP, the main energy fuel of cells and neurons.
163 It is this activity by FDP that may
limit injury to the brain following ischemic-hypoxia.163
The combination of DMSO + FDP to treat experimental brain trauma in mice thus
seemed a reasonable option to prevent or restore loss of ATP in ischemic brain cells while simultaneously reducing progressive cerebral edema caused by the injury.
161
Consequently, it was believed that FDP would act primarily to protect ischemic brain tissue from energy substrate depletion, a common outcome after brain trauma, while DMSO would act to stabilize cell membranes from excess free radical formation and abnormal Ca
+ entry into cells while reducing ICP by improving CBF.160
Both FDP and DMSO have each been reported to be useful when administered in
head injury42,45,61,163 or cerebral ischemia in animals or humans.159,163,164 FDP has been
shown to prevent the ischemic-induced loss of ATP and accumulation of intracellu -
lar Ca2+ in experimental animals, possibly by stimulating glycolysis while inhibiting
gluconeogenesis.164 The administration of FDP during brain ischemia would seem to
be particularly useful, since it readily crosses the blood–brain barrier (arias) and can yield twice as many moles of ATP as glucose.
164
In an


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 ideas. His philosophy ordained that the intangible vital
force that maintains life and governs good health was the
province of religion rather than of the newly self-aware
“science” of medicine. To the new medical establishment,
inching its way forward toward scientifically sound medical
practices, “supernatural” concepts such as the vital force
were a reminder of the ignorance and superstition that were
part and parcel of older healing practices.
 Even before Descartes’ theories, the rational approach
to scientific and medical exploration was beginning to reap
rewards. Slowly, medical understanding of bodily functions
was gaining ground. William Harvey (1578–1657) made a
detailed study of the heart and circulation, proving for the
first time that, contrary to Galenic thought, the heart
pumped blood around the body. Published in 1628,
his study is a classic example of the revolution in
medical science.
 Since Harvey’s time, science has had astounding
success in revealing how the body works on a
biochemical level and in distinguishing different
disease processes. However, by comparison it has
been altogether less successful in developing
effective medical treatments for the relief and
cure of diseases.
The Gap in the Scientific Approach
In hindsight, it seems as if the new science
of medicine could only be born in separation
from the traditional arts of healing, with which it
had always been intertwined. As a result, even though
traditional medicine has generally lacked scientific explanation,
it has frequently been far ahead of medical science in the
way it has been applied therapeutically. In American Indian
Medicine  (University of Oklahoma Press, 1970), Virgil Vogel provides a good example of “ignorant” folk medicine
outstripping scientific understanding in therapeutic application:
 “During the bitter cold winter of 1535–6, the three ships
of Jacques Cartier were frozen fast in the fathom-deep ice of
the St Lawrence River near the site of Montreal. Isolated by
four feet of snow, the company of 110 men subsisted on
the fare stored in the holds of their ships. Soon scurvy was
so rampant among them that by mid-March, 25 men had
died and the others, ‘only three or foure excepted,’ were
so ill that hope for their recovery was abandoned. As the
crisis deepened Cartier had the good fortune to encounter
once again the local Indian chief, Domagaia, who had cured
himself of the same disease with ‘the juice and sappe of a
certain tree’. The Indian women gathered branches of the
magical tree, ‘boiling the bark and leaves for a decoction,
and placing the dregs upon the legs.’ All those so treated
rapidly recovered their health, and the Frenchmen
marvelled at the curative skill of the natives.”
 Naturally, the Native Americans had not heard of vitamin C
deficiency, which causes scurvy, nor would they have been able
to explain in rational terms why the treatment worked. Indeed,
it was not until 1753 that James Lind (1716–1794), a British
naval surgeon, inspired partly by Cartier’s account, published
A Treatise of the Scurvy, which showed conclusively that the
disease could be prevented by eating fresh greens, vegetables,
and fruit, and was caused by their lack in the diet. James Lind’s
work is a marvellous example of what can be achieved by
combining a systematic and scientific approach with traditional
herbal knowledge.The symbol for “om” —
life force—is used by
followers of the Indian
practice of Ayurveda
as a focus for meditation.
US_018-027_Early_Origins_To_The_19_Century.indd   25 26/02/16   4:42 pm
26
The developmen T of herbal medicineIsolating Chemicals
The discovery of the medicinal value of foxglove (Digitalis
purpurea, p. 202) is another case where traditional herbal knowledge led to a major advance in medicine. Dr. William
Withering (1741–1799), a conventionally trained
doctor with a long interest in medicinal plants,
started to investigate foxglove after encountering
a family recipe for curing dropsy (water
retention). He found that in some regions of
England, foxglove was traditionally used to
treat this condition, which is often one of
the indications of a failing heart. In 1785,
he published Account of the Foxglove,
documenting dozens of carefully
recorded case histories, and showing
how foxglove’s powerful (and
potentially dangerous) active
constituents, now known as cardiac
glycosides, made it a valuable plant
medicine for dropsy. Cardiac
glycosides remain in common
use to the present day. Y et
despite this clearcut example
of the possibilities inherent
in a marriage of herbal
medicine and scientific
method, conventional
medicine was to take
another path in the
19th century.
Laboratory versus
Nature
From the early 19th
century, the chemical
laboratory began to
regularly supplant Mother
Nature as the source
of medicines. In 1803,
narcotic alkaloids were
isolated from the opium
poppy (Papaver somniferum,
p. 244). A year later, inulin was
extracted from elecampane
(Inula helenium, p. 107). In 1838,
salicylic acid, a chemical forerunner
of aspirin, was isolated from white
willow bark (Salix alba, p. 129), and
was first synthesized in the laboratory
in 1860. From this point on, herbal medicine and biomedicine were to take separate paths. Aspirin, an entirely new chemical formulation, was  first developed in Germany in 1899. But this was still an  early step. For the time being, the influence of the universities, medical schools, and laboratories of Europe would remain limited, and herbal medicine would prevail  as the predominant form of treatment for most people around the world.
New Frontiers, New Herbal Medicines
Wherever Europeans settled during the great migrations of the 18th and 19th centuries—North America, South America, southern Africa, or Australia—much of the European medicine familiar from home was either unavailable or prohibitively expensive. Settlers came to learn that native peoples were a wellspring of information about the medicinal virtues of indigenous plants. For example, European settlers in southern Africa learned about the diuretic properties of buchu (Barosma betulina, p. 71) from native peoples; and Australian settlers came to understand the remarkable antiseptic properties of tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia, p. 112) from observing the medicinal practices of the Aborigines. Mexican herbal medicine as it exists today is a blend of Aztec, Mayan, and Spanish herbs and practices.
 In North America, native herbalists were particularly
adept at healing external wounds and bites—being superior in many respects to their European counterparts in this area of medicine. This is not surprising, given the range of highly Opium poppy, native to Asia, yields a resin that has long been smoked for its narcotic
effect. The main active constituent, morphine, was first isolated in the laboratory in  1803 and is used to relieve pain.
In the 18th century, the physician William Withering documented foxglove’s ability to restore a failing heart.
US_018-027_Early_Origins_To_The_19_Century.indd   26 26/02/16   4:42 pm27 Early Origins t O th E 19th C Enturyeffective medicinal plants Native Americans had
discovered—including well-known herbs such as echinacea
(Echinacea spp., p. 92), goldenseal ( Hydrastis canadensis,
p. 105), and lobelia ( Lobelia inflata, p. 110).
 European settlers learned much from observing native
practices. Over the course of the 19th and early 20th centuries,
as pioneers moved west across the frontier territory, new
plants were constantly being added to the official record
of healing herbs. In addition to the three species mentioned
above, about 170 native plants were listed in The Pharmacopeia
of the United States.
Samuel Thomson & his Followers
Lobelia was one of the key herbs, along with cayenne
(Capsicum frutescens, p. 74), advocated by Samuel Thomson
(1769–1843), an unorthodox herbal practitioner who believed
that all illness resulted from cold. His simple approach was
entirely at odds with the conventional practices of his time
(see North America, p. 50). Thomson’s methods were often
very effective and were well suited to the needs of people
living in frontier territory. His system of medicine—in many
ways an early form of naturopathy, in which ill health is
treated with naturally grown food, sunlight, fresh air, and
natural medicines—became extraordinarily popular, with
millions of people across North America following his
methods. Thomson’s success waned as other
more sophisticated herbal approaches were
developed—those of the Eclectics and
Physiomedicalists, for example—in the
fertile medical world of 19th-century
America, which also saw the


uents  American ginseng contains
steroidal saponins, including panaquilon.
History & Folklore  Native American peoples
may have considered this herb a means to increase
female fertility. From the mid-18th century, the collection of the herb for export to China became a virtual goldrush, with so many Native Americans out harvesting American ginseng that settlers reported finding villages almost deserted. The Ojibwa people always planted a seed to replace  the herb, but this was not universal practice. American ginseng became rare toward the end
of the 19th century.
Medicinal Actions & Uses  The action of
American ginseng is presumed to be similar to,  but milder than, that of its Chinese cousin, ginseng  (P. ginseng, p. 118). American ginseng increases the ability to tolerate stress of all kinds. In traditional Chinese medicine, American ginseng is employed as a yin tonic, treating weakness, fever, wheezing, and coughs.
Related Species  See ginseng, nototginseng
(P. notoginseng, preceding entry), and Siberian
ginseng (Eleutherococcus senticosus, p. 94).
Caution  Do not take American ginseng
during pregnancy.Chiefly employed as a mild pain reliever and as a treatment for irritable coughs, red poppy also helps reduce nervous overactivity. The herb may be used in the treatment of insomnia, general irritability, coughs—especially paroxysmal coughs—and asthma, and is generally given as a syrup.
Related Species  See also opium poppy
(P. somniferum, following entry), Mexican poppy
(Argemone mexicana, p. 171), and California poppy
(Eschscholzia californica, p. 207).
 QCautions  Use only under professional
supervision. All parts of red poppy except the seeds are potentially toxic if eaten.
Papaver somniferum
(Papaveraceae)
Opium Poppy
Description  Thick-stemmed annual growing
to about 3 ft (1 m). Has many dull green leaves,
solitary pink, purple or white flowers, and globe-shaped seed capsules.
Habitat & Cultivation  Native to western
Asia, opium poppy is now cultivated commercially around the world as the source of morphine and codeine, and as an illegal crop for the production of opium and heroin. During the summer, the seed capsules are cut and the white latex that exudes is gathered the next day and dried.
Part Used  Latex.
Constituents  Opium poppy contains more
than 40 opium alkaloids, including morphine  (up to 20%), narcotine (about 5%), codeine
(about 1%), and papaverine (about 1%). It also contains meconic acid, albumin, mucilage, sugars, resin, and wax. Many of the opium poppy’s
alkaloids have a well-established therapeutic
action. Morphine is one of the most powerful analgesics of all, used extensively in conventional medicine to relieve pain, especially in terminal illness. Codeine is a milder analgesic used for headaches and other pain, and in the symptomatic treatment of diarrhea. Opium’s strongly addictive nature is well established.
History & Folklore  Cultivated for its
medicinal properties for at least 4,000 years,
the opium poppy was introduced to Greece about 3,000 years ago, and from there spread throughout Europe. It was unknown in China
until the 7th century ce, and in Japan until the 15th century. It is mentioned in the Assyrian herbals (c. 1700 bce), and the Greek physician Dioscorides (40–90 ce) wrote that “a decoction of the leaves and flowerheads if drunk and bathed on the head is unrivaled in inducing sleep. The mashed heads, mixed with flour, make a useful plaster in inflammations and St. Anthony’s fire [erysipelas, a bacterial infection of the skin].”Medicinal Actions & Uses  Opium (the
dried latex) is a potent narcotic, analgesic, and antispasmodic, and has been taken to relieve pain of various kinds. In all the main herbal traditions it is regarded as a powerfully “cold” remedy, reducing physical function and sedating or suppressing nervous activity, pain, and coughs. In view of its addictive nature, opium is mainly used after other less powerful analgesics have failed to bring relief. It is also an effective remedy for acute diarrhea and severe coughs. Pharmaceutical drugs produced from opium poppy include morphine and codeine.
Research  Much research has been done,
confirming most of the uses of opium poppy  listed above.
Related Species  See also red poppy
(P. rhoeas, preceding entry), Mexican poppy
(Argemone mexicana, p. 171), and California
poppy ( Eschscholzia californica, p. 207).
 QCautions  Use opium poppy only under
professional supervision. It is subject to legal restrictions in most countries.
Opium poppy’s seed
capsules contain a
latex that is the source
of morphine.Papaver rhoeas (Papaveraceae)
Red Poppy
Description  Delicate hairy-stemmed annual
growing to 3 ft (90 cm). Has basal rosette of
lance-shaped leaves and deeply incised stem
leaves, 4-petaled red flowers with black anthers, and small rounded seed capsules.
Habitat & Cultivation  Red poppy is native
to Europe, North Africa, and temperate regions of Asia, and is naturalized in North and South America. It thrives on cultivated land and on
road verges. The flowers are picked in summer.
Parts Used  Flowers.
Constituents  Red poppy contains alkaloids
(including papaverine, rhoeadine, isorhoeadine, and many others), meconic acid, mekocyanin, mucilage, and tannin. The alkaloids are similar to those in the opium poppy (P. somniferum, see following entry), but are much milder.
History & Folklore  According to Agnus
Castus, writing in the 14th century, “If a man hawe ony peyne aboutyn his eyne or if a man hawe a mygreyn tak this herb and stamp it and nedle it with oyle de olywe and anoynt ther-with the forhed and it schal amende the syth and slake
the peyne and distroye the mygreyn.”
Medicinal Actions & Uses  Red poppy
flowers are mildly analgesic and sedative, and
have long been used in European herbal medicine, particularly for ailments in children and the elderly. Flowerhead
US_224-245_Jasmine_Harmala.indd   244 26/02/16   12:47 pm245 Other medicinal plantsPeganum harmala
Parietaria officinalis syn. P. diffusa
(Urticaceae)
Pellitory-of-the-Wall
Description  Annual growing to 28 in (70 cm).
Has deep green leaves, greenish flowers, and small
dark seeds.
Habitat & Cultivation  Native to Europe,
this plant is commonplace in southern countries,
where it is found on walls and in dry stony sites.
It is gathered in summer when in flower.
Parts Used  Aerial parts.
Constituents  Pellitory-of-the-wall contains
flavonoids and tannins.
History & Folklore  For more than 2,000
years, pellitory-of-the-wall has been valued as a
diuretic, as a soother of chronic coughs, and as
a balm for wounds and burns.
Medicinal Actions & Uses  Pellitory-of-the
wall is chiefly employed as a diuretic, demulcent,
and stone-preventing herb. In European herbal
medicine, it is regarded as having a restorative
action on the kidneys, supporting and strengthening
their function. It has been prescribed for conditions
such as nephritis, pyelitis (inflammation of the
kidney), kidney stones, renal colic (pain caused
by kidney stones), cystitis, and edema (fluid
retention). It is also occasionally taken as a laxative.
Caution  Do not take if suffering from hay fever
or other allergies.Medicinal Actions & Uses  Guarana’s
medicinal uses are similar to those of coffee
(Coffea arabica, p. 192)—it is taken for headache
and migraine, for mild depression, and to boost
energy levels. The problems that apply to long-
term or excessive consumption of coffee also
apply to guarana—both stimulate over the short
term but tend to inhibit the body’s restorative
processes over the longer term. In view of
guarana’s high tannin content, long-term use
is even less advisable, because tannins impair
the intestines’ ability to absorb nutrients.
Nevertheless, guarana is a useful short-term
remedy for boosting energy, or for treating
a tension headache that cannot be treated
with rest. Guarana’s astringency also treats
chronic diarrhea.
Related Species  P. yoco, native to the Colombian
Amazon, is used by indigenous


ication,
95
wet clothing, drafts,
97
Expert supervision,
22–23
,
26
,
52
,
54
,
63–67
,
80
,
83
,
85
 (See Fasting)
Fasts and fasting,
41–42
,
46
,
57–58
,
59
accomplishments,
29
,
30
,
39
,
71–72
,
75–77
animals,
18
 (See Animals)
assimilation/excretion, simultaneous,
37–38
basis for,
17
,
21
breaking,
63–67
 (See Breaking the Fast)
children (See Children)
contraindicated,
51
,
95
,
128
crisis,
56
death during
43
,
44–45
dehydration,
24
,
25
,
31
,
57
,
60–61
temperature of water,
61
,
85
developments,
53
,
54–57
comfort,
23–24
,
26
,
54
diarrhea,
57
discomfort,
23–24
,
54–55
,
56–57
,
62
feeling of strength,
40
,
41
,
56
feeling of weakness,
40
,
56
fever symptoms,
55
muscle atrophy,
31
nausea and vomiting,
56–57
151pasty mouth, tongue,
55
urine,
39
,
55
,
130
,
131
weakness,
42
weight loss,
23
,
25
,
30–31
,
56
disease (See Diseases)
duration,
28
,
29
,
31
,
42
,
52
,
53
,
54
,
64
,
79–80
,
106
effective,
21
,
36
,
37
,
45–46
,
49
,
71
,
72
,
76–77
,
80
,
90
,
94
,
95
,
102
,
119
,
120
,
163
exercise,
25
,
41
,
42
,
60
,
66
expert supervision,
22–23
,
26
,
31
,
42
,
51
,
52
,
53
,
58
,
61
,
63–67
,
80
,
83
,
85
,
95
,
112
,
132
fasting is,
17
,
18
,
21
,
22
,
25
,
26
,
46
,
58–60
,
71
,
92
fasting is not,
17
,
30
,
45
,
46
,
48
,
49
,
58
,
92
,
126
,
147
,
150
fat utilized,
30
,
38
,
162
,
163
fatty cells, a storage place,
38
,
72
fear,
51
,
59
,
81
gastric irritation,
32
,
34
,
93
heroic case,
19–21
history of,
18–19
how?
complete rest,
28
,
59–60
,
127
,
128
no interruptions,
58
no treatments,
60–61
hunger,
32
disappearance,
32
reappearance,
63
,
64
where felt,
32
individualized,
49–50
,
80
,
101
,
105
,
106
ineffectual,
39
,
45
,
51
,
72
,
80
,
119
,
161
,
165
infants and young children
81–85
insane patients,
93
instinctive (See Animals, Infants, Insane)
interruptions,
53
,
54
,
55
,
64
long fasts,
53
,
106
,
132
misunderstood,
13
,
56
,
70
muscle atrophy,
31
nature at work,
109
absorption, of infections,
94
autolysis,
29
,
37
,
162
 (See Autolysis)
economy,
29
,
30
emphasis changed,
28
,
58
,
94
nine basic steps
preparation,
52
,
59
rest,
59
,
60
,
129
152activity,
60
warmth,
60
water,
60
,
61
bathing,
61
sunbathing,
61
,
62
purges,
62
suffering,
62
opposition,
21
,
52
,
58
,
94
plants and food scarcity,
27
preventive,
50
,
76
,
91
,
93
,
141
rally and relapse,
41
reasons for
four reasons,
35–36
,
71–72
,
80
physical,
19
,
23
,
30–31
political,
18
,
76
religious,
17
,
18
,
19
role,
21
,
46
,
49
,
54
,
75
,
76
safe,
23
,
24
,
25
,
51
,
53
,
167
short fasts,
50
,
51
,
53
,
54
,
64
,
80
,
106
,
122
when?
49
,
50
,
84
,
92
,
98
where?
51
,
52
Fear,
105
,
118
,
156
Feeding plan,
65–67
Fermentation,
84
,
85
Feverishness,
83
Flores, Ralph,
26
,
28
Food and Feeding,
50
,
67–70
,
77–79
,
81–83
acute disease into chronicity,
50
,
91–92
after fasting,
65–70
carbohydrates,
80
,
127
cooked food,
69
dangers of,
89
dying patient,
44
food vs. nutrition,
77–79
forced feeding,
50
,
90
fragmented,
68–69
fruits,
82
hydrocarbons,
69
minerals,
30
,
69
not a palliative,
117
overeating,
67
,
70
,
77
,
80
processed,
68
-70,
80
153proteins,
68
,
69
,
70
,
79–80
,
110
raw foods,
68
,
69
,
80
refined,
68
,
69–70
synthetic,
68
underfeeding,
29
vegetables,
66
,
68–69
,
82
vitamins,
30
,
70
,
82
Frigidity,
21
Fruit,
65–66
,
69
,
82
Fungation (Cancer),
116
Funk,
77
Gallstones, (Cholelithiasis),
157
cause,
157
,
158
fasting,
159
surgery,
159
,
160
Gastric Acidity,
118
Gastric irritation,
118
Gastric juices (HCL and Pepsin),
114
,
115
Gastric ulcer,
115
 (See Peptic ulcer)
Gastritis,
83
,
84
,
94
,
134
Gastrocolic reflex,
65
Gastroenterostomy,
118
Gastrointestinal putrefaction,
111
Gastrourinary tract,
94
Genitourinary disease,
144
Glaucoma,
46
Glycogen,
28
Gonorrhea,
148
cleanliness,
148–150
fasting,
148
,
150
good behavior,
149
water, internally and externally,
150
Gourmandizing,
67
Gout,
111
Graham, Sylvester,
37
Gross. Robert,
47
Gruel,
50
Habit,
68
devitalizing,
80
Hay Fever,
94
,
122
,
123
,
124
Headache,
32
,
55
,
120
154Healing,
47
,
48
,
49
,
60
,
140
broken bones,
47
histogenesis,
48
spontaneous,
45
,
48


 of sexuality the very opposite of th at intended by nature as.the main
agent in humanization.
This suggestion, that wrong foods can account for the
pathology of sex, would find confirmation in the ancient belief that foods had aphrodisiac properties, an aphrodisiac being defined as a substance able to stimulate and titillate the lower sex emotions. Aphrodisiac foods are indeed those which have the highest amount of the extractives giving rise to the purines and amines.

9. Need or Greed

Besides the protein excesses involved in a so called'mixed' dietary,
the Industrial Revolution, entailing profound changes in the world
production of food and in food habits, has led to an excessive eating
of calorie foods, while some of the more minute requirements of the
mind and body have gone in short supply, resulting in the
malnutrition of abundance. This disturbing greed for the grosser
items of foods, proteins and calories, has been achieved at the
expense of the poorer, primary producers, making the greed of the
so called best-fed nations a planetary affront.
Gluttony is never possible in nature, for food is never so
plentiful as to permit a continual overeating. Occasional orgies may
occur, the result of a lucky find, bu t they are inevitably interspersed
by longer periods of scarcity. The only overfed animals are the pets of overfed people. The bodies of all animals are better adapted to scarcity than to abundance, which is what one would expect, given
the geological and climatic restlessness of the earth. As food
supplies become more scarce, reserves are mobilized, the body becomes more sparse, more active, and clutter vanishes. One finds people in the poorer parts of the world existing in apparent health, skinny but very active and smiling, on much less than the authorities consider should bring about starvation. While living on such low
levels is to be deplored, it does show that the human body is
remarkably well adapted to advers ity, in fact thrives on it. Some
degree of it, at least occasionally, may be indispensable for health, for the body seems to have beco me adapted to profit from such
periods in order to get rid of ol d stock, of accumulated wastes, the
means also of resharpening the senses and the efficiency of
functioning, taking in the sl ack and repairing damage.
The sense of well-being, of elation and purification which
follows a period of abstinence from food shows that this is natural, biologically beneficial. Such benefits may not be immediately
apparent in the chronically overfed or the diseased, for in them the
respite from abuse is taken advantage of by the body for a massive, and often disturbing broom sweeping. But even then, persistence is rewarded by a remarkable quickenin g of all the faculties, by a sense
of reawakening and rejuvenation and a simple joyfulness which
most people have not known since childhood. Scents and colours,
feelings and tastes long lost are magically revived, and simple
pleasures, which seemed boring to the surfeited mind and body, return with a pristine intensity. The humanizing sensitivities are particularly revived, bringing a bout an awareness of harmony and
beauty in things and creatures previously neglected.
It is remarkable to observe how the reactivity of the body as a
whole is heightened. Long established chronic ailments may disappear overnight, and blights that have haunted and humiliated for years, itches and bodily odours, vanish as with a magician's wand. This is not surprising, for contrary to the usual assumption that even a temporary abstinence is dangerous, the body is designed
for it and thoroughly enjoys it. The common supposition that even a skipped meal is a calamity boosts the common gluttony. It is not
found among the simpler peasantries. Hard work and thrift ensure
lithe bodies and alert minds into old age. There are still such examples surviving, peasants setting out for a long hard day's work
with no more than a few dried figs or dates, a chunk of coarse bread dipped in olive oil, a garlic or two and an occasional piece of cheese. The Chinese peasants will perform feats of endurance and
labour on what seems to the overfed European diminutive bowls of
rice with scatterings of beans.
The scramble for food originated with the rise of the cities, for
while the peasants could always eke some sustenance from their
land in the worst of times, the cities often starved, as a consequence
of plunder, famine, and pestile nce. When good times came, city
people stuffed themselves, so that overeating became the mark of prosperity and privilege.
As privileged classes arose, ruling the cities and taking over the
land, with power over supplies, glu ttony became their habit, while
the masses often knew hunger. The situation grew worse with the
rise in power of the city states in  the Middle Ages, and very much
worse with the Industrial Revolution. Its initial impact brought such disorder that starvation often overtook the cities.
As a result of this background of general scarcity, the demand
for food, and ever more food, was the pivot of all the movements of
emancipation which began actively in  the seventeenth century. This
demand was eventually met by the agricultural revolution, the use
of chemical fertilizers, the importation of foreign foods in exchange for industrial products and the refining of cereals, which enabled prolonged storage and easy trans portation. Food production was
thus geared to quantity rather than quality.
A century ago, every reasonable person would have praised the
measures taken by the authorities and the industrialists, and blessed the scientists who were increasingly responsible for processed natural foodstuffs, increasing their size and yield, introducing preservation, colouring, conditioners and a soaring list of chemicals.
But in a rising spiral of disaster, the arrogant interferences with
nature have become apparent in the recent decades, in a planetary ecological collapse.
Excessive applications of chemical fertilizers, with insufficient
or absent organic contributions, have led to a breakdown of some of
the world's most fertile soils, calling for ever higher applications in
a desperate attempt to keep up the yield, and ending in disasters like the American Dust Bowl. More recently it has been found that excess nitrate fertilizers are accumulated in food plants, and, when eaten, are converted to the highly cancerous nitrosamides. The overspill of nitrates into rivers a nd lakes, encouraging the prolific
growth of toxic blue-green algae,  has sterilized many waters with
once abundant fish life.
Mineral nitrates are manufactured into proteins by plants, the
source of all animal protein. Too much nitrate abnormally stimulates plant growth, just as too much protein abnormally
stimulates the growth-rate and size of animals. Superficially, this
increase in growth and body size seems nothing but good, although
the loss of taste of the overgrown  vegetables, and the diseases which have increased as human stature has increased in the last decades in
the most prosperous countries, should have warned that something was wrong.
In the stampede for quantity, a basic biological principle has
been forgotten, namely, that any pl ant or animal has a specific size
and weight, written down in its gene tic constitution, the result of a
long evolution. Only within this range of size is optimal efficiency or health possible. Insufficiency or excess are bound to levy a physiological price. In the course of evolution, insufficiency has
occurred frequently enough for animals to become equipped with
guidelines of reaction, in restlessness and hunger—plants, alas, cannot move. But excess has been so rare, that neither plants nor animals have any defences against it.  Fed to excess, they get bigger
and bigger, the physiological tax increasing proportionately. As the
yield and the size of plants have been artificially stimulated, so the
plant disease and the plant parasites have increased, calling for an ever increasing array of the most poisonous chemicals in an attempt to control the scourge. In animals and men, the excessive stimulation of growth has also been attended by an increasing
recourse to drugs of one kind or another.
Just as over-fed rats get bigger and suffer increasingly from
heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, liver disease, so do humans. Athletes appear particularly prone to certain diseases, and their life-span is less than average, not b ecause of the physical strain they
subject themselves to—the body thrives on that—but because of
their thoroughly abnormal and excessive feeding.
It is undeniable that chronic malnutrition since the Dark Ages
in Europe, led to a stunting of the population. The over-fed
privileged classes were probably oversized, a factor no doubt in their often brutal domination of the masses. While it is difficult to
define the specific range of the human species—racial difference are
important—it is in all likelihood significantly less than the size attained by the so called 'best fed'  nations, which has increased for a
century as the quantity of animal foods increased in the diet.
Plant breeding has been size and calorie conscious. Foods new
to the West, high in calories like the potato, and sugar, joined in the
rush for quantity, much helped by a cheapening of flour by refining,
with the result that, by the clo se of the nineteenth century, the
masses in the industrial countries not only ate to their full, but had become gluttons, overeating daily.
The evil of the new abundance in calorie foods lies in the
excessive provision of calories without a sufficiency of the other
essentials,


and a hot cup of your freshly made chicken stock. Fish stock
To make a good fish stock you need bones, fins, skins and heads of the fish,
not the meat. So buy your fish whole, cut the meat off to cook as a separate
meal and use the rest of the fish to make your fish stock. Your fishmonger
can do all the trimming for you. Put the heads, bones, fins and skin of the
fish into a large pan, add 8-10 pepper corns and fill the pan with water.
Bring up to boil, reduce the heat to a minimum and simmer for i-i7 2 hours.
Add salt to taste at the end of cooking. Take the fish out and sieve the stock.
Take the meat off the fish skeleton to use for soup making.
The basic soup recipe
To make a soup bring some of your home-made meat stock to the boil, add
chopped or sliced vegetables and simmer for another 20-25 minutes. You
can choose any combination of available vegetables: onion, cabbage,
carrot, broccoli, cauliflower, pumpkin, courgettes, marrow, squash, leeks,
etc. If you are planning to blend your soup, then you can cut vegetables
roughly into any size pieces. If you prefer to have your soup without blend
ing, then make sure that you cut or dice your vegetables into nice small
pieces before cooking. If your meat stock was made with lamb, pork or
beef you can add a handful of dried French or Italian mushrooms for a
wonderful flavour. It is customary to crush the dried mushrooms by
hand before adding to the soup. At the end of cooking add 1-2 table spoon
fuls of chopped garlic, bring to the boil and turn the heat off. Blend with
a soup blender until smooth unless you planned to have it without
blending.
You can serve your soup with any combination of the following:
• some chopped parsley, coriander or dill
• hard-boiled egg cut into pieces
• a spoonful of your home-made goat's yoghurt or creme fraiche
• cooked meat cut into small pieces
• red onion cut into very small pieces
• spring onion cut into small pieces
• a spoonful of cooked and ground liver
From this basic recipe you can improvise and develop your own recipes.
Here I will just provide a few ideas. A spring nettle soup
i'L I of home-made meat stock
large bunch of spring nettles
2 tablespoons of dried French of Italian mushrooms
1 medium onion
1 medium carrot
2 courgettes or 7, of a marrow or squash
4 eggs, hard boiled
Young shoots of stinging nettles appearing in spring are full of wonderful
nourishment. They are high in iron, magnesium, copper, zinc, vitamin C,
carotenoids and other useful substances. For this recipe collect a large
bunch of spring nettles. You will have to wear gloves and a long-sleeved
shirt to do this. Rinse the nettles and shake the excess water off. Using scis
sors cut the leaves and tender shoots of the nettles into small pieces dis
carding the hard stems. Reserve for the recipe.
Cut the marrow, squash or courgettes into small cubes, thinly slice the
carrot and chop the onion. Bring the home-made meat stock to a boil. Add
all the vegetables and the French or Italian dried mushrooms, crumbling
them with your hands before adding to the meat stock. Simmer under a
tight lid for 15-20 minutes. Add your prepared nettles, mix and immedi
ately take off the heat. Serve with 1-2 tablespoons of hard-boiled egg cut
into small pieces and a spoonful of home-made yoghurt (if well tolerated).
Russian Borsch
tit I of home-made meat stock
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 medium carrot finely sliced
'U of medium-size white cabbage finely sliced
2 medium-size beetroots or4 small beetroots raw or cooked
3 cloves of garlic
1 finely chopped tomato
If the beetroot is cooked (in water, not in vinegar):
Bring the meat stock to boil and add the onion, carrot and cabbage. Cover
and simmer for 20 minutes. In the meantime slice the cooked beetroots
into long thin strips. Add into the soup, mix well and simmer for another 5
minutes. Take off the heat. Crush the 3 cloves of garlic and add to the soup together with the chopped tomato. Serve with a large spoon of creme
fraiche or home-made yoghurt (if well tolerated) and some chopped pars
ley and/or a thick slice of hard-boiled egg.
If the beetroot is raw:
Wash and peel the beetroot. Slice into long thin strips by hand or using
your food processor. Bring the meat stock to boil and add the beetroot.
Simmer for 10-15 minutes, then add the rest of the vegetables (onion, carrot
and cabbage). Simmer for further 20 minutes or until the cabbage is
cooked. Take off the heat. Crush the 3 cloves of garlic and add to the soup
together with the chopped tomato. Serve with a large spoon of creme
fraiche or home-made yoghurt (if well tolerated), some chopped parsley
and/or a thick slice of hard-boiled egg.
Fish soup
11 of home-made fish stock
1 large onion finely chopped
1 carrot thinly sliced
1 courgette or an equivalent amount of marrow or squash, cut into small cubes
Bring the fish stock to boil and add the onion, carrot and squash, marrow
or courgettes. Simmer under a lid for 10-15 minutes and take off the heat.
Add the cooked fish meat which you took off the bones when you made the
fish stock. Serve with a spoonful of home-made yoghurt (if well tolerated)
and/or with a hard-boiled egg (sliced or chopped).
If there is no meat left on the bones you can use the meat (skinless and
boneless) of any available fish. Cut the meat into small cubes and add into
the boiling fish stock at the same time as vegetables.
Meatball soup
400 g of minced meat (mixture of pork and beef is best)
1 large onion finely chopped
1 large carrot thinly sliced
1 cup winter squash or courgette cut into small cubes
1 cup of finely chopped cabbage (optional)
2 tablespoons of chopped garlic
In a pan bring 2 litres of water up to boil. Add salt and cayenne pepper to
taste. With your hands shape meatballs about 2 cm in diameter and add them,
one at a time, into the boiling water. Cover and simmer on low heat for 30
minutes. Add all the vegetables apart from garlic, cover and simmer for
another 20 minutes. Add the garlic and switch the heat off. Let it sit for 5-10
minutes then add 2-3 tablespoons of sauerkraut. Serve with a spoonful of
home-made yoghurt and finely chopped dill.
lite beautiful winter squash soup
tiL I of home-made meat stock (turkey or chicken stock work
best for this recipe)
1 leak, washed and sliced
broccoli, 3-4 medium sized rosettes
1 medium-size carrot, sliced
Va of a medium size buttercup squash ora'h of butternut
squash or any winter squash with sweet orange flesh
3 garlic cloves peeled
Peel and de-seed the squash, cut it into chunks. Wash and cut into pieces
all the vegetables. Put them into your soup pan, add the meat stock and
bring to boil. Reduce the heat to a minimum, cover with the lid and simmer
for about 30 minutes. Blend with a soup blender. If your family is at the
stage of tolerating home-made goat's yoghurt, then add lh a cup into the
soup. Serve warm. It is particularly soothing if the child has a tummy ache
or diarrhoea.
Meat jelly
pig trotters (2-4)
1 large carrot
garlic
salt and black peppercorns
Put pig trotters into a large pan, fill it up with water, add salt and a tea
spoon of black peppercorns. Bring up to boil, reduce heat to a minimum,
cover with a lid and let it simmer for 3 hours.
In the meantime cook a large carrot by steaming, cool it down and cut
into thin slices. You can cut it into decorative slices if you have the tools for
doing that.
When the meat stock is ready take the pig trotters out and pour the stock through a sieve into a separate pan. Let the trotters cool down completely.
Take all the meats (including the skin and other soft tissues) from the pig
trotters, completely stripping the bones. Cut the meat into small pieces.
In a large deep tray lay the pieces of meat, the carrot pieces and thin slices
of garlic. You can add more or less garlic to your family's taste. Pour the meat
stock to fill the tray to 3L Place it in the refrigerator for the jelly to set. You can
also set this jelly in different jelly shapes and dishes as individual servings.
This dish is wonderful to have on a hot summer's day. It contains a lot of
nourishing substances, including gelatine, glucosamine, glycoproteins,
phospholipids and others and is


 needed. High triglycerides indicate the
risk of atherosclerosis or CAD. Mild-to-moderate levels advise of biliary obstruction, diabetes,
kidney disease, endocrinopathies, or too much consumption of alcohol. Decreased levels are rare
but may show malnutrition or a betalipoproteinemia.
Note: On the Gerson diet, flare-ups and healing reactions are shown by elevated tri-
glycerides.
The Serum Protein Electrophoresis Laboratory Test
The major blood proteins of the body, albumin and four globulins, are measured in an electric
field by separating them into patterns according to size, shape, and electric charge at pH 8.6.
Comprising more than 50 the serum creatinine level (see the test description which immediately
follows).
With normal values ranging from 8 to 20 mg/dL, the BUN test helps to evaluate kidney
function, aids in the diagnosis of kidney illness, and assesses the body’s hydration. An elevated
BUN happens in reduced renal blood flow from dehydration, renal disease, urinary tract
obstruction, and ‘increased protein catabolism as in burns. Depressed BUN levels occur in severe
liver damage, malnutrition, and overhydration.
Note: Due to  initial decreased dietary protein intake, a person following the Gerson Therapy
will likely show a slightly reduced level of BUN.
The Serum Creatinine Laboratory Test
Providing a more sensitive measure of kidney damage than the BUN, the serum creatinine
laboratory test is a quantitative analysis of the nonprotein end product of metabolism, creatinine.
Kidney impairment is virtually the only cause of creatinine elevation in the blood; therefore,
creatinine levels are directly related to the glomerular filtration rate. They assess renal glomerular
function and screen for kidney damage.
Creatinine concentration in males normally ranges from 0.8 to 1.2 mg/dL; in females it ranges
from 0.6 to 0.9 mg/dL. Elevation of serum creatinine means that serious renal disease is present
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 188Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comwith 50 percent damaged nephrons as in gigantism and acromegaly. Interfering factors are too
much absorption of ascorbic acid, barbiturates, diuretics, and sulfobromophthalein. Also, athletes
may have above-average creatinine levels, even with normal kidney function.
The Serum Uric Acid Laboratory Test
Used mainly to detect gout, the serum uric acid laboratory test measures levels of uric acid,
a metabolite of purine in the blood. Glomerular filtration and tubular secretion gets rid of uric
acid, but it’s less soluble at a pH of 7.4 or lower which occurs in certain diseases such as gout,
excessive cellular generation and destruction as in leukemia, and kidney dysfunction.
Uric acid concentrations in men range from 4.3 to 8 mg/dL; in women they range from 2.3
to 6 mg/dL. Although elevated levels of serum uric acid don’t correlate with severity of disease,
they do rise in congestive heart failure, glycogen storage disease, acute infectious diseases
such as infectious mononucleosis, hemolytic anemia, sickle cell anemia, hemoglobinopathies,
polycythemia, leukemia, lymphoma, metastatic malignancy, and psoriasis. Depressed uric acid
levels indicate defective acute hepatic atrophy or tubular absorption as in Wilson’s disease and
Fanconi’s syndrome.
Drug factors interfering in the serum uric acid laboratory test include loop diuretics,
ethambutol, vincristine, pyrazinamide, thiazides, and low doses of salicylates which elevate
blood levels. Also, starvation, a high-purine diet, stress, and alcohol abuse raise uric acid. When
uric acid is measured by the colorimetric method, false elevations come from acetaminophen,
ascorbic acid, levodopa, and phenacetin. Decreased uric acid is caused by high doses of aspirin,
Coumadin, clofibrate, cinchophen, adrenocorticotropic hormone, and phenothiazines.
The Glucose, Fasting Blood Sugar
(FBS) L ABORATORY  TEST
Following a 12- to 14-hour fast, the glucose, fasting blood sugar (FBS) laboratory test
measures glucose metabolism as required in diabetes mellitus. In the fasting state, blood glucose
levels decrease, stimulating release of the hormone glucagon. Glucagon then raises plasma
glucose by accelerating glycogenolysis, stimulating glyconeogenesis, and inhibiting glycogen
synthesis. Normally, secretion of insulin checks this rise in glucose levels. In diabetes, absence or
deficiency of insulin allows persistently high glucose levels.
Normal ranges for fasting blood glucose on the FBS laboratory test after an eight- to twelve-
hour fast are:
 ▪  fasting serum, 70 to 100 mg/dL;
 ▪  fasting whole blood, 60 to 100 mg/dL;
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 189Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.com  ▪  nonfasting whole blood, 85 to 125 mg/dL in persons over age 50, and 70 to 115 mg/dL
    in persons under age 50.
These laboratory readings help to screen for diabetes mellitus and other disorders of glucose
metabolism. They also monitor drug or dietary therapy for diabetics, insulin requirements for
uncontrolled diabetics, and known or suspected hypoglycemics.
Fasting blood glucose levels of 140 to 150 mg/dL or higher obtained on two or more occasions
are diagnostic of diabetes mellitus. Nonfasting levels that exceed 200 mg/dL also show diabetes.
The elevated blood glucose may come from pancreatitis, hyperthyroidism, pheochromocytoma,
chronic hepatic disease, brain trauma, chronic illness, chronic malnutrition, eclampsia, anoxia,
and convulsive disorders as well.
Depressed blood glucose occurs from hyperinsulinism, insulinoma, von Gierke’s disease,
functional or reactive hypoglycemia, hypothyroidism, adrenal insufficiency, congenital adrenal
hyperplasia, hypopituitarism, islet cell carcinoma of the pancreas, hepatic necrosis, and glycogen
storage disease.
The Serum Iron And Total Iron- Binding Capacity Laboratory Test
Two separate blood tests conducted with buffering and coloring reagents measure (1) the
amount of iron bound to the glycoprotein transferrin and (2) the plasma’s total iron-binding
capacity (TIBC) if all the transferrin were saturated with iron. The percentage of saturation is
obtained by dividing the serum iron result by the TIBC, which reveals the actual amount of
saturated transferrin. Normal transferrin is 30 percent saturated. Thus, the two tests (a) estimate
total iron storage, (b) diagnose hemochromatosis, (c) distinguish between iron deficiency anemia
and chronic disease anemia, and (d) evaluate a person’s nutritional status.
Normal serum iron and TIBC values have been determined to be:
                                     Serum Iron  TIBC (mcg/dL)   Saturation (mcg/dL)
Men:    70 to 150      300 to 400           20 to 50
Women:    80 to 150      350 to 450             20 to 50
In iron deficiency, serum iron falls and TIBC increases to decrease the saturation. With
chronic inflammation as in rheumatoid arthritis, serum iron is low in the presence of adequate
body stores, but TIBC remains unchanged or drops to preserve normal saturation. Iron overload
does not alter serum levels until relatively late in the pathology, but serum iron increases and
TIBC remains the same to increase the saturation.
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 190Healing the Gerson Way—Defeating Cancer and Other Chronic Diseases
www.thegersonway.comThe Erythrocyte (Red Blood Cell, RBC) Count
Traditionally counted by hand with a hemacytometer, red blood cells (RBCs) are now
commonly counted with electronic devices, which provide faster, more accurate results. This
erythrocyte count does not provide qualitative information about the RBCs’ hemoglobin content,
but it does tell mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH).
Thus, the erythrocyte blood count offers indices for RBC size and hemoglobin content and
supports other hematologic tests in diagnosing anemia and polycythemia.
Depending on age, sex, sample, and geographic location, normal RBC values in adult males
range from 4.


 does not treat any underlying cause of a thyroid illness. I believe that radioactive iodine
should be the last choice in treating any thyroid disorder.
Betty was given an iodine-loading test with 50mg of iodine/iodide (Iodoral
®
). Her initial iodine-loading test showed a
very low iodine excretion with a 35% excretion measured (normal >90%). Betty’s initial thyroid ultrasound showed an
enlarged thyroid gland with a total volume of 13.1ml. She also had large nodules in both the right and left lobes of the
thyroid gland.
Betty was placed on 50mg/day of iodine/iodide (Iodoral
®
). Betty was also treated with vitamin C, unrefined sea salt
(Celtic Sea Salt
®
) and magnesium. The vitamin C can function as an antioxidant and can help support the body’s
detoxification pathways. Celtic Sea Salt
®
 can supply the body with chloride which aids in detoxifying toxic halides
(bromide and fluoride). Celtic Sea Salt
®
 is also a good source of minerals. Magnesium is a relaxing agent for the body
and can help prevent hyperthyroid symptoms caused by a detoxification of toxic halides.
After two months of taking 50mg/day of iodine/iodide (Iodoral
®
), Betty felt much better. Her energy improved and
she felt that her brain fog had resolved. A repeat thyroid ultrasound showed the size of the thyroid gland decreased to
10.3ml—a 22% decline. In addition, all of the nodules were noted to be smaller from the previous ultrasound. Betty’s
thyroid levels were unchanged from taking 50mg of iodine.
Update on Betty’s case: Betty is still taking iodine and still doing well. On physical exam, her thyroid continues to
decrease in size.
New (5
th
 Edition) update on Betty’s case: Betty continues to supplement with iodine. Betty’s follow-up thyroid
ultrasound is now read as normal. When I told her I was writing a new edition to this book, she said, “Make sure you put
in there how much better I am feeling.”
Before the usage of iodine/iodide in milligram doses, it was rare to see thyroid nodules and a hypertrophied thyroid gland
shrink in size. Now it is common in my practice. Only with the proper dose of iodine/iodide (in mg doses) have I found thyroid
nodules to recede.David is a 48-year-old health club owner. David was diagnosed with thyroid cancer ten years ago and had a
thyroidectomy followed by chemotherapy. He was placed on Synthroid
®
 and had his dose of Synthroid
®
 titrated until his
thyroid levels showed a euthyroid state. However, after the surgery, David gained 50 pounds of weight and never felt the
same. “I exercised all the time and I couldn’t lose an ounce. It did not matter whether I ate or not. I kept telling my
doctors that I did not feel right—I was always tired and I couldn’t think straight,” he said. When I saw David, his
physical exam showed a slight edematous feeling around the lower neck in the area of his thyroidectomy. David claimed,
“I always told my doctor that I felt something around my neck. They kept telling me that nothing was there since I had
my thyroid removed.” An iodine-loading test showed David was extremely low in iodine—he had one of the lowest
loading tests that I have seen--0.3% excretion (normal >90%). David was also found to be excreting large amounts of
the toxic halide bromide (see figure on next page). Bromide is a toxic element and no bromide should be present in the
body. David was started on
50mg of iodine/iodide (Iodoral
®
), and his iodine and bromide levels were reevaluated at 1
day and 30 days. His results are seen in the figure below. Due to the large amounts of bromide, David was treated with a
holistic regimen designed to support his detoxification pathways. This included vitamin C, unrefined salt (Celtic Sea
Salt
®
),
and liver support. Two months later he reported, “My brain fog cleared and I began to lose weight for the first
time since the surgery. It is a miracle.” Also, the edema around the lower neck resolved and David no longer felt as if his
neck was being squeezed.

Case History David: Iodide/Bromide Levels Before and After Iodine Supplementation

Update on David’s case: David is still taking iodine. His bromide levels have now started to decline. All swelling of
the thyroid gland is gone.
New (5
th
 Edition) update on David’s case: David continues to feel well. He recently stated at a routine office visit, “I
am still amazed at how much better I feel with iodine. I can’t understand why more doctors aren’t prescribing it.”
Iodine deficiency is associated with hypertrophy of the thyroid gland as well as hyperplasia of the thyroid gland. Oftentimes,
when there is iodine deficiency present, the physical exam will reveal an edematous feeling in the thyroid area of the neck, often
like there are “cotton balls” surrounding the thyroid gland. Patients will often report to me that they have a swollen feeling of the
thyroid gland. Most times, when iodine deficiency is rectified, the edematous feeling will resolve. The treatment for thyroid cancer
must include identifying and treating the underlying cause(s) of the illness. The conventional approach to thyroid cancer relies on
the use of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. However, thyroid cancer does not develop because of a deficiency of thyroid
surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy. A treatment can only be effective if it treats the underlying cause of the condition. Research
has shown that iodine can induce apoptosis (programmed cell death) of thyroid cancer cells.
1
As stated previously, there is no doubt that iodine deficiency plays a large role in the development of thyroid cancer (as well
as other cancers). Only with rectifying iodine deficiency, coupled with a comprehensive treatment plan that emphasizes
optimizing
the function of the immune system, will people be able to prevent and overcome these serious disorders.
Janice, a 52-year-old nurse (my nurse) was complaining of intermittent fatigue and muscle aches. At the beginning of
our work day, I could tell how Janice was feeling by the way she walked down the hall. If she was feeling well, she had a
bounce in her step. If she was feeling down, she would have a slight slouch to her body and slowness in her step. Usually
by the end of a busy day, Janice would be extremely fatigued and complain of muscle and joint pain. “Sometimes my feet
and legs would just be killing me by the end of the day,” she said. Janice was very sensitive to all medications and
supplements. She frequently took children’s doses of items because she had such a sensitive system. She did not want to
do an iodine loading test because she feared taking the loading dose of iodine—50mg. I elected to therapeutically treather with 12.5mg of iodine/iodide (Iodoral
®
). Immediately, she felt better. “All of my pain was gone in three days. After
two weeks, my energy zoomed higher. I was no longer aching at the end of the work day; I felt great,” she claimed. After
four weeks of taking 12.5mg Iodoral
®
/day, she developed mild palpitations. I told her to stop the iodine and the
palpitations subsided one day later. Janice was instructed to take 12.5mg Iodoral
®
 three days per week. In addition, she
was placed on a vitamin and mineral regimen. Janice did well for the next five months until one day at
work I saw her
limping down the hall. I asked her why she was limping and she told me, “I feel terrible. Everything aches and my feet
are killing me.” When I asked her if she was taking the iodine, she told me that she quit it one week ago. Incredulously, I
asked her “why?” She told me that she thought she had enough in her body. After a few terse comments, I instructed her
to resume the iodine dose. By the time Janice had taken her third iodine dose, all of her symptoms again resolved.
Update on Janice’s case: Janice never misses an iodine dose now. “I learned my lesson. It truly made a huge
difference in my life. I know I would not feel well without it,” she said.
Shirley, at 69-years-old, is very sensitive to medications and supplements. She also happens to be my mother-in-law.
Shirley was on 6.25mg/day of iodine/iodide (Iodoral
®
) to help treat many hypothyroid symptoms including cold
extremities, hair loss, dry skin, and fatigue. All of her symptoms improved significantly with the iodine supplementation.
Furthermore, she was able to stop taking thyroid hormone due to the positive effects of the iodine. Approximately four
months after starting the iodine regimen, Shirley developed palpitations. Now, having your mother-in-law develop
palpitations is not a good thing. The palpitations ceased after two days without


annot	fully	reconcile	us	with	the
inevitability	of	death.	It	can	only	lead	the	way	to	finding	personal	comfort	on
your	own.	You	and	I	are	unique	people	and	therefore	very	different.	I	may	be
consoled	by	a	vision	of	eternity	that	is	foreign	or	even	frightening	to	you.	I
may	mourn	my	aging	body	more	than	you,	or	less.	We	each	have	our	own
personal	view	of	God.	Yet	we	are	bound	together	in	the	field	of
consciousness,	and	we	do	the	same	work	there.
We	need	to	see	that	we	are	all	entangled	in	the	same	reality.	Isolation	has
been	outmoded	on	every	front,	from	ecology	to	the	Internet.	We	need	to
remember	our	common	source.	The	human	spirit	is	degraded	when	we
confine	ourselves	to	the	span	of	a	lifetime	and	the	enclosure	of	a	physical
body.	We	are	mind	and	spirit	first,	and	that	places	our	home	beyond	the	stars.
Knowing	that	I	will	return	to	the	field	one	day	to	find	my	source	provides
me	with	immeasurable	confidence	in	the	purpose	of	life.	As	fervently	as	any
devout	believer,	I	have	faith	in	this	vision.	My	faith	is	renewed	every	time	I
have	a	moment	of	witnessing,	in	which	I	can	touch	the	silence	of	my	own
being.	Then	I	lose	all	fear	of	death—indeed,	I	touch	death	right	now,	and
gladly.	Tagore	said	it	so	movingly:
When	I	was	born	and	saw	the	light
I	was	no	stranger	in	this	world
Something	inscrutable,	shapeless,	and	without	words
Appeared	in	the	form	of	my	mother
.
So	when	I	die,	the	same	unknown	will	appear	again
As	ever	known	to	me
,
And	because	I	love	this	life
I	will	love	death	as	well
.Without	death	there	can	be	no	present	moment,	for	the	last	moment	has	to
die	to	make	the	next	one	possible.	There	can	be	no
present
	love,	for	the	last
emotion	has	to	die	to	make	a	new	one	possible.	There	can	be	no	present	life,
for	the	old	cells	in	my	body	have	to	die	to	make	new	tissue	possible.	This	is
the	miracle	of	creation,	which	in	every	second	is	one	thing:	life	and	death
joined	in	an	eternal	dance.	It	would	be	a	catastrophe	to	exclude	death	from	the
dance.	That	would	guarantee	a	universe	with	no	chance	for	renewal.
Fortunately,	creation	wasn’t	set	up	that	way.	We	live	in	an	endlessly	re-
created	universe.	On	the	other	side	of	our	fears	and	doubts,	our	deepest	prayer
should	not	be	for	life,	which	we	have	in	abundance.	It	should	be	a	prayer	to
lead	the	cosmic	dance,	for	then	the	angels	and	gods	themselves	will	have
someone	to	follow.E
PILOGUE
M
AHA
	S
AMADHI
THE	MONSOON	RAINS
	swept	down	from	the	mountain	overnight.	Ramana	could
hear	it	in	his	sleep	like	warm	dull	thunder	on	the	roof,	or	the	knocking	of	the
gods.	It	was	loud	enough	to	make	him	restless	but	not	to	wake	him	up
completely.	He	had	dim	thoughts	of	closing	the	window	by	his	bed.	He
remembered	the	small	hole	in	the	roof	that	needed	a	bucket	underneath	to
catch	the	drip.	Yet	for	some	reason	he	couldn’t	feel	rain	splashing	from	the
windowsill	and	heard	no	dripping	sound.
Strange
,	he	thought	drowsily.
The	dull	thunder	continued,	hour	after	hour.	Too	many	hours.	Ramana
opened	his	eyes,	flicking	his	gaze	to	the	windowsill	and	the	place	under	the
hole	in	the	roof.	Both	were	dry.	Where	was	the	water?	Why	was	it	still
thundering?
Then	he	knew.	It
was
	the	gods	knocking.	Death	had	come	like	the
monsoons,	the	season	of	year	Ramana	loved	the	best.	He	wasn’t	surprised	that
he	could	still	feel	his	body	or	that	the	room	was	intact.	His	old	master,	who
had	died	sixty	years	ago,	told	him	how	things	would	be.	Sixty	years?	Could
that	be	right?	Suddenly	Ramana	couldn’t	remember	how	old	he	was	himself.
Seventy-five,	eighty?	This	confusion	triggered	a	change.	His	body	began	to
feel	lighter,	as	if	age	were	slipping
away
.	He	was	rising,	the	whole	room	was
rising,	in	fact,	and	the	dull	thunder	began	to	fade.
Ramana	wondered	if	he	was	about	to	disappear,	but	the	world	saved	him
the	trouble	by	disappearing	first.	He	had	never	much	believed	in	the	world,	so
this	didn’t	surprise	him.	For	one	last	moment	he	was	still	in	bed,	looking	out
the	window	at	a	sky	that	turned	from	blue	to	a	soft	white,	and	then	there	was
only	whiteness	and	no	room.	He	looked	down,	and	his	body	was	gone	too.	It
had	slipped	away	so	easily	that	he	was	reminded	of	something	his	master	had
told	him:	“The	body	is	like	a	cloak.	For	the	enlightened,	dying	is	like	letting
the	cloak	fall	to	the	floor.	For	the	unenlightened,	it	is	like	ripping	off	a	cloak
that	is	sewn	on.”
What	would	slip	away	next?	Ramana	could	still	pose	mental	questions,	so
his	mind	hadn’t	left	him.	He	saw	himself	as	a	boy	of	twelve,	when	he	first
met	his	master,	who	lived	in	the	same	forest	retreat	that	became	his	after	the
master	died.	The	old	man	sitting	in	lotus	position	on	a	worn	deerskin	had	said,
“Do	you	want	to	learn	from	me?”	The	boy	nodded.	“Is	it	because	your	parentsthink	it	would	be	a	good	thing?”	The	boy	nodded	again.	Then	the	master
waved	his	hand,	sending	Ramana’s	parents	out	of	the	room.
When	they	were	alone,	the	master	said,	“Come	to	me	when	it’s	your
desire,	not	that	of	your	parents.”
“Why?”	Ramana	asked.	“My	parents	only	want	what’s	good	for	me.”
“That’s	not	enough,”	the	master	replied.	“You	can’t	be	with	me	and
remain	like	ordinary	people.	Ordinary	people	need	the	support	of	family,	or
they	would	die	of	loneliness.	They	need	the	support	of	society,	or	they	would
have	no	friends	or	spouse.	They	need	the	support	of	their	bodies,	or	they
would	starve.	And	most	of	all,	they	need	the	support	of	their	minds,	or	they
would	go	crazy.”
“I	don’t	see	why	you’re	telling	me	this,”	said	the	boy.
“Because	if	you	lose	family,	friends,	your	body,	and	your	mind—all	of
which	you	must—I	don’t	want	you	to	die.	I	want	you	to	be	free.”
The	boy	didn’t	come	back	for	ten	years,	and	even	then	the	master	laughed
and	said	he	had	been	quick	about	it.	“After	what	I	told	you,	most	people
would	stay	away	forever.”	During	his	period	as


 have helped you to realize that there is more to
life than just material experience. Whether the source is scripture, poetry,
music, or a movie, the test is for you to allow yourself to enter into, say, a
Mozart concerto or a ballad by Alicia Keys, and experience transcendence.
Let go and be present in the notes, in the rhythms, in the harmonies. Allow
someone else’s epiphany to reach out and touch you. Such experiences
provide a foretaste of what unity consciousness is like all the time.
FRIDAY
The First and Last Mystery
Begin by silently repeating today’ s theme:
I embody the ﬁeld of inﬁnite possibilities.
I embody the ﬁeld of inﬁnite possibilities.
Royal Yoga begins and ends with the same mystery. One can call it the
mystery of existence, but, to make it more personal, this is the mystery of
“Who am I?” Choosing your identity is up to you. Every action you take is
rooted in who you think you are. If you spend money freely, this reflects a
belief that you are rich (which might or might not be true). String together
the tags and labels that apply to you, and they give a shorthand account of
your identity. “I am Deepak, a doctor born in India, married with a wife and
two children” is a string of labels and tags that apply to me, and I can add
many more, as many as I wish.
People spend their entire lives desiring “good” labels like rich,
powerful, loved, attractive, and young, while hoping that “bad” labels don’t
stick to them, including poor, weak, stupid, dishonest, and unlovable. Thisis how life works in separation. But tags and labels can’t possibly describe
what it means to be fully human, and only a fully human answ er to “Who
am I?” will be truly satisfying.
Royal Yoga teaches that you are the true self—we’ve established that
much so far—but what are the actions of the true self? What can it do that
those other selves cannot?
WHAT YOUR TRUE SELF CAN DO
It can fulﬁll all desires.
It can banish all pain and suffering.
It can give the experience of eternity.
It can show you the reality of boundless Being.
It can be anywhere and everywhere at once.
It can open the way to every state of higher consciousness.
These are absolute statements. There is a quantum leap from fulfilling
one desire and fulfilling all desires, and the same applies when healing one
cause of pain and suffering and healing all pain and suffering. Because it is
absolute, the true self isn’t anything like the other selves you can identify
with. In separation, you exper ience limits and boundaries; you have no
trouble knowing what is “me” and what is “not me.” But all opposites
vanish in unity consciousness. Looking around, you see the light extending
infinitely in all directions, and you ar e the light.
This isn’t a mystical statement. In physics there is a point, known as a
“singularity,” from which the universe springs. The singularity is so small it
cannot be measured, like the period at the end of a sentence reduced to the
vanishing point yet somehow still here. Time and space emer ge from the
singularity; therefore, it is neither here nor there. You can’t locate it now,
before, or after. Trillions of galaxies are contained in it, yet there is no “in”
or “out” when it comes to the singularity itself.
The singularity is literally mind-boggling. The human mind can’t
conceive of the universe being contained in an infinitesimal point (althoughpoets can imagine this, as in William Blake’ s famous lines: “To see a World
in a Grain of Sand / And a Heaven in a Wild Flower / Hold Infinity in the
palm of your hand / And Eternity in an hour”).
Yoga has its own word for a singularity: bindu, which just means
“point.” The bindu  is a point of awareness that contains every possible
experience available to a human being. Like a singularity, the bindu  can’ t be
measured—it is too small to have a dimension in time and space—and yet it
contains an infinity of possibili ties. The best, simplest, and truest way to
know who you are is here. You are a point of awareness from  which all
possibilities flow outward.
With this realization comes the big payof f. The bindu, a mere point of
awareness, is where samyama  operates. Samyama, as we saw, unites
knower, known, and process of knowing. If you can control samyama, you
can have any experience you want. All the stories about supernatural
powers attained by yogis, swamis, and saints are extensions of samyama.
To Patanjali, walking on a sunbeam is as natural as walking through a
meadow. This isn’t something you are asked to believe or not to believe. It
is something you are asked to explore.
Now you know who you are and the purpose of your life, as revealed by
Royal Yoga. You are the creative source of your own reality, and your
purpose is to explore how far your creative powers can take you. Once you
get to the heart of the matter, life has only two phases. The first phase is
spent in separati on, the second phase in unity consciousness. One phase is
fragmentary, the other is whole. The secret of existence, as revealed by
Yoga, is that wholeness is in charge, even when you feel alone, weak,
insignificant, and helpless. Awareness is in charge. Royal Yoga helps you to
live this truth.
Explore this: Your true self is as indestructible as existence itself. Your
creative power is untouched by any event in the outside world. As you
wander through life, the truth about who you are seems to change as the
scenery changes. Birth, death, and everything in between are controlled by
maya, yet maya  is contained by the bindu, a single point from which all ofcreation flows. Illusion may be part of experience, but awaren ess helps us
to see illusion for what it really is, a parlor trick of the ego.
Exercise
Even though unity consciousness may feel as if it were far away, you
can identify your true essence right now. Sit quietly, and when you feel
settled, look around you. Notice what is in front of you, what is to the right,
and what is to the left.
Now close your eyes and see the color blue in your mind. Open your
eyes and look forward. Close your eyes, see the color blue again, then open
your eyes and look to your right. Repeat and look to your left. Did the color
blue move right, left, or center?  No, even as the scenery changed, the color
blue kept still and was motionle ss. It springs from the bindu, the still point
that is your essence.
You can repeat this exercise with any quality you choose. Hum a tune to
yourself. Look right and left. Did the tune move? Look outside the window
as far as you can see, even up to the stars. Did the still point travel outside
you? The bindu  is always here and now. It has no properties. You can’t
assign any quality to it, like hot or cold, high or low, young or old. The
bindu  is your portion of eternity; it is where you stand in infinity. This is the
first and last mystery of existence. The entire teaching of Royal Y oga comes
down to “the still point of the turning world,” as the poet T. S. Eliot put it.
Now you are ready to launch  yourself into the discovery of infinite
possibilities that has always been your birthright.
OceanofPDF.comPART II
By Sarah Platt-Finger
OceanofPDF.comTHE ASANAS
WHAT IS YOGA?
As Deep ak allud ed to earlier, the word yoga  comes from the root word
yuj, meaning to “harness,” “yoke,” or “unite.” Simply put, yoga merges the
disparate parts of the self into one unified state of awareness, allowing us to
live fully in the light. There are many paths to that state of wholeness, and
asana is one limb of the tree that makes up the yogic path. Yoga dates back
more than five thousand years  to India. The ancient teachings of yoga
originate from the Vedas, an ancient Hindu scripture that disseminates the
insights of the rishis, or seers, of India. These spiritually awakened
aspirants interpr eted the wisdom of the universe through Nature and its
elements. According to the rishis, the human body is a vehicle that enables
us to access a greater field of intelligence. The individual spirit is the
microcosm of that intelligence, just like a drop of water is to the ocean.
When a drop of water merges back into the ocean, it loses its form, shape,
and identity. It becomes the ocean. The same is true for individual
consciousness: When the soul, or jiva atman, merges with the ocean of
intelligence, or Brahman, yoga happens.
The Bhagavad Gita, the great Indian epic from the Mahābhārata,
translates yoga  as “skill