Fasting for Health

Front matter

PORTRAIT OF THE AUTHOR

Copyright 1923 By MACFADDEN PUBLICATIONS, INC. New York City In the United States and Great Britain

Preface

F is the most powerful of all remedial measures.

It is an entirely natural method of renovating the body.

And it is as old as the human race.

Doctors will tell you that diseases begin in the stomach—a definite admission from them that disease is absorbed from the alimentary canal, of which the stomach is an important unit. And it is poisons—absorbed by the digestive system—which cause disease. How then, are we to rid the system of the foreign elements, toxins, poisons? Fasting solves this problem!

When the civilized world is made familiar with the information presented in this book nine-tenths of the doctoring and attendant dosing, operating, and untold misery, will be avoided. Fasting has accomplished, and will continue to accomplish wonders.

In this work the entire subject is presented in a new and understandable form, with a thorough review of the startling history of scientific research into Nature’s own cure—fasting. Each step of the fast from its inception to breaking, and care to be taken of the body following the fast, are fully and carefully explained. It is a compendium that none who contemplate fast cures should fail to read carefully. In these pages will be found the individual advice your own case requires.

More than forty years have elapsed since the author’s interest was first aroused in fasting. The first occasion I seriously used it was when I fell victim to pneumonia.

Exercise was a “cure-all” for me at that time. I depended mostly upon a large amount of physical effort—walking, running and gymnasium work—when physical difficulties appeared, though I might moderate my diet somewhat.

And so it was, on noting symptoms connected with this attack of pneumonia, I tried to exercise them away. I was able, to a certain extent, to arrest the development of the disease, but dangerous and painful symptoms still remained.

I had no faith in medical methods, and it was then I decided to give previous conclusions of fasting, arrived at after some very interesting studies and investigations, a fair trial. The result was astonishing.

I noted a slight improvement after the first day. A greater improvement the second, and on the fifth day every symptom of pneumonia had disappeared. This was the first practical example in my own experiences of the extraordinary value of fasting in the cure of acute disease.

One of the first factors definitely influencing me in favor of fasting was my observations of animal life. Every animal, when sick, will refuse to eat. It loses appetite. Food has no attraction for it. It fasts until it is well—a sure cure governed by its instincts.

We, the superior animals, have tried to replace our instinct with intelligence. Frequently, it will be admitted, our intelligence and the intelligence of our advisers have proven defective, and often we endure serious penalties for our applied false reasoning.

Since my first experiment I have personally fasted on numerous occasions, and long since it has ceased to be a novelty or experiment. Thousands of cases have been observed since I first became interested. During a period of several years my time was occupied in the sanitarium business, and hundreds of fasting cases were under my direct supervision. Fasts ranging from one to ninety days were conducted, and in nearly every case benefits resulted. I know of no case in which the rules were carefully observed that harmful results were recorded.

In the case of the ninety-day fast there was a weight reduction of seventy-five pounds. The faster weighed three hundred pounds when he began, and two hundred and twenty-five pounds when he finished his fast.

It is important to remember, in consideration of this subject, that one should be able to see physical danger far ahead on the road of life; and that while fasting is of value as a means of remedying and curing acute and chronic ailments it is of still greater value as a means of avoiding disease. I still fast—on an average of thirty to forty days every year. These fasts range in duration from one to ten or twelve days. If I were more careful in my eating doubtless I could avoid the necessity of such a strict regime; but when eating in accordance with civilized customs and social observances it is difficult to restrict one’s appetite and fasting is absolutely necessary if occasional illnesses are to be avoided.

There is a popular but wholly erroneous idea that the faster grows gradually weaker. This is far from the fact. In most instances, for a time, the faster actually becomes stronger.

I have used feats of strength to impress my audiences with the advantages of physical culture during many lecture and exhibition tours. One of these was “chinning” myself with one finger of either hand. On several occasions when I was scheduled to lecture, after having been busy with other activities for a considerable period, I would discover that I was unable to perform this feat of strength. After a two or three day fast I could easily perform it. Many athletes have registered similar conclusions after experiences of this nature.

The most profitable fast I ever took was recorded in Physical Culture Magazine nearly twenty-five years ago. I had over-worked my eyes to such an extent that I was nearly blind. I stopped work entirely. After a vaca- tion my impaired eyesight showed a slight improvement. I was not satisfied, however, it may readily be understood, and concluded to take a seven day fast—absolute in every detail excepting water. As I intended to make use of this fast for editorial purposes for the benefit of others, I watched and recorded the symptoms associated therewith closely.

At that time I, too, had the impression that one’s strength greatly decreased while fasting. I determined to try to raise a fifty-pound dumbbell over my head at the conclusion of the fast, for the purpose, bear in mind, of proving strength is not seriously impaired by fasting. Now read what happened—

I went to the gymnasium every day and exercised for half an hour or an hour, and finished the exercise period by testing my strength with heavy dumbbells.

On the fourth day of my fast hunger bothered me so seriously that I went out of my office with a definite determination to eat a square meal in the nearest restaurant I could find. After a few minutes in the open air I gained control of my hunger, and decided to go to the gymnasium and take my exercises. At the conclusion of this exercise my appetite had disappeared!

This result will astound the average individual, but it will often be noticed during a fast that you need very badly. Exercise, instead of increasing your appetite while fasting, will eliminate it. Exercise tends to bring about normal conditions, and when normal conditions mean “no appetite” the appetite will disappear.

As previously stated, I tested my strength each day during this fast and on the sixth day I found my strength had decreased very little, if any, and I was able to raise—not a fifty pound, but a hundred pound dumbbell over my head with one hand. But that is not all. Photographers were on hand to take my photograph as I raised this one hundred pound dumbbell on the seventh day at the end of my fast. The photographers were over-anxious and it was necessary for me to lift this heavy dumbbell several times to give them opportunity to secure dependable photographs.

And not to forget the original purpose of this fast—there was a remarkable improvement in the strength of my eyes. And this despite the dire predictions of optometrists and the damaging effect of editorial activity on the eyes. At the age of fifty-five my eyes are still strong. And I have never worn glasses!

I am presenting these personal experiences to prove that I “take my own medicine.” And I have been taking it for more than forty years. I owe my unusual health and strength, maintained throughout this period, largely to my knowledge of fasting.

During my business activities in the last twenty-five years I cannot recall a single day’s absence due to illness. This is all due to my ability to look ahead—to avoid disease by cleansing the body with fasting. I exercise, diet, use hydrotherapy and various other measures, but fasting is the most valuable of all these remedial measures.

No effort has been spared to make this book complete in every detail. Many medical and editorial writers have aided in its preparation, and it is sent forth with the hope that it will add to the health and life of every reader.

Chapter 1

F, as defined and defended in this book, is a scientific method of curing disease, by causing the patient to abstain—for a longer or shorter period of time, as the case may be—from all solid and liquid food, with the single exception of water, which should always be allowed. It is a therapeutic measure, a curative agent, and is quite a different thing from starvation—which deprives the bodily tissues of nutriment which they require. The difference between these two states (fasting and starvation) is very important to understand, and I shall take occasion, several times in this book, to point out and emphasize the distinction between them.

In order that the patient (or student) may understand the fundamentals of this method of treatment, it must be explained just why fasting may be expected to cure certain diseases; and, further, precisely what disease is—for unless the true nature of disease be understood, the value of the fasting cure cannot be appreciated nor understood.

The common idea of disease is that it is something which can be “caught,” which “attacks” a patient, and which has to be “expelled,” as though it were an entity or a thing in itself. Generally speaking, disease is not a thing at all; it is a condition. There is a cause for every disease, manifested in a variety of “symptoms.” These symptoms are too often mistaken for the disease itself. We are apt to think of the complex of symptoms as the disease, whereas they are only its outward manifestations. They are the expressions of the inner thing or condition, and “curing,” suppressing, or removing them will not cure the disease, their cause. Such a method merely removes or masks effects. What we must do is to discover and remove the cause; and when that is done the symptoms will disappear of themselves.

Food, when taken into the body, replaces broken-down tissue, maintains bodily heat, and according to accepted teachings, maintains to a great extent the vital energies of the body. There should be a justly balanced proportion between the income and the outgo of our food supply—this being determined by the amount of food eaten, on the one hand, and the amount of exercise and general activity on the other. The more activity, the greater is the amount of food required, and vice versa. Most of us know this.

Few realize, however, that we are in the habit of eating far more food than is necessary to maintain the body in a state of health, and to replenish those tissues which have been broken down as a result of the body’s activities. It is true that the body can transform and get rid of, without great injury, a considerable amount of food over the quantity which we really need; but this by no means proves that the extra food is necessary; and common observation shows us that a far less quantity of food is actually required by the body, to maintain it in a state of physiological balance and proper health.

In all disease conditions particularly, nature clearly indicates that food is not required, since the appetite is lost and an aversion to food is noted—amounting in some cases to actual loathing of the thought of food. This means that nature has seen to it that the instincts of the body are right, and many observations have shown that food eaten at such times does not nourish nor maintain bodily energies at a higher pitch; but, on the contrary, tends to lower them and actually feeds and prolongs disease! And the more food that is eaten, the more the disease is fed, while the patient may actually continue to waste away and lose flesh and strength, in spite of the quantity of food eaten—or really on account of it!

A useful picture to keep in mind is that of a sponge which, when it is squeezed out, is capable of absorbing a certain quantity of water in which it is immersed. If, on the other hand, the sponge is already full of water, it will not soak up any more and the excess simply drips away when the sponge is lifted out of the water.

The body may be compared to the sponge, and the food supplied to it may be compared to the water. If the body is under-nourished for a certain length of time, it will greedily absorb any nutriment which may be floating about in the fluids within it. If, however, there is constantly present within the body an excess quantity of easily assimilated material from the food eaten, the body will absorb but a certain amount and consequently the excess is not utilized nor properly eliminated.

There is invariably a certain bodily cause, then, behind these symptoms with the symptoms appearing merely as the outward evidences of things unseen. Further, these symptoms are, in the majority of cases, purely prognostic of a curative effort on the part of Nature to rid the physical system of impurities. The symptoms—the “disease,” as we commonly call it—are themselves the curative processes in actual operation. In other words, disease is a process of cure!

This conception as to the nature of disease is an entirely new one to the average person. When he is told that disease is itself a curative process, he can hardly believe it—and too frequently will not believe it; yet it is a fact! Disease is a process of purification! It is a remedial action! It is a vital struggle to over- come obstructions and to keep the channels of circulation (of body fluids) free. It expels through the skin and by way of the kidneys, bowels, liver and lungs, the accumulated effete material as fast as it can, and if these organs and channels become choked and blocked, then trouble results! We note a set of pathological symptoms, which we term “disease.” As a matter of fact, they are the benevolent endeavors on the part of Nature to right a wrong—and what we term the disease is the process of cure taking place before our eyes.

Nearly all diseases, then, are remedial and curative.

In the same way that a broken bone is healed by the curative powers of Nature, so also are other diseases cured. In the case of the broken bone, all we can do is to “set” it, and Nature will do the rest. And that same Power which heals the broken bone will also heal a cold in the head, or diabetes, or rheumatism, or any other diseased state, if given a chance to do so,—if Nature is helped instead of hindered in her restorative efforts.

There is a fundamental unity and oneness of disease. Broadly speaking, disease is one it is one fundamentally, but with different phases or manifestations. The effete, poisonous material within the body is the real cause of disease, regardless of its outward appearance or showing; the various methods of its elimination constitute the various so-called “diseases.” This basic, corrupt material—the real cause of the disease (which we do not name)—might thus be the same in nearly all cases; but, owing to the different processes of elimination, and the different symptoms which arise in consequence, it is mistaken for so many different diseases—with hundreds of names—of great variety.

It follows from all this that, except in rare instances, there is no such thing as a purely “local disease.” What we know as such is but the local betrayal of a general internal condition. The blood and the nervous system unite the body into one whole; and, this being so, it is obvious that we should treat the body as a whole, and not only locally, if we desire to dislodge and cast out the real cause of the disturbance. This treatment consists of purifying the blood stream, restoring the organs to a normal state of functioning, and upbuilding the health generally. When this is done, the local manifestations of the general condition will vanish.

Now, the speediest method of doing this is to eliminate what various poisons, toxins and impurities there may be in the body; and, in order to do so, the organs of elimination are encouraged to perform their duties more thoroughly and more rapidly than they do habitually, and without interference. The skin, the liver, the kidneys, the bowels, the lungs,—these are urged to greater effort, in order to throw off the load of impurities within the body. At the same time, care is taken that no more matter is taken into the body which needs expulsion—that is, no more food material is administered, for, in such cases, it constitutes further choking and blocking material.

In time of disease food is no longer a support; but, on the other hand, it is a positive danger, and when given at such times does not nourish the patient but poisons him. It is only when the body is functioning normally that food is utilized properly; and when the body is ill or diseased, food substance is not digested, but, as a poison, retards the progress of cure. Fasting is the only method by means of which the body is cleared of its corruption, inasmuch as fasting permits the effete material already contained to be disposed of, and at the same time allows no introduction of new material into the body.

There is an instinct to fast when one is ill, and it is practically universal, for all animals share this instinct, and will actually refuse food at such times. Does not this prove to us that eating is prohibited by Nature—that our instinct is right, and that we should actually fast when indisposed? It is only our perverted instincts and false reasoning and erroneous medical teaching which prevent us from seeing this and acting upon it.

The true nature of disease should thus be apparent. Since it is an effort of the body to throw off worn-out and discarded and mal-assimilated material, it should be aided and helped, rather than thwarted and perverted. Nature is the only curative agent—it is Nature alone which cures or which can cure, and we cannot force her—though we can protect, encourage and aid her by giving her full authority! All curative, expulsive effort must come from within, and its effectiveness depends upon the amount of the patient’s vitality. It is the vis medicatrix naturæ which cures, and that alone.

The function of the hygienic physician, therefore, should be to direct this renovative and restorative effort, and not to prevent it. This direction can be effected by various hygienic measures such as water packs, compresses, baths, etc.,—the circulation being balanced at the same time. Fasting, by relieving congestion in the internal organs—by drawing the blood away from these organs and allowing it to circulate more freely and readily throughout the periphery of the body—assists in balancing the circulation, and restoring the normal condition.

There are, normally, but two ways in which impure material can enter the system; through the lungs, by breathing impure air, and through the stomach, in swallowing improper food and drink, or in taking too much of it. In no other way are impurities normally introduced into the system—(though it must not be forgotten that the administration of drugs constitutes a very frequent and general source of body pollution). From this it would seem that the obvious thing to do, to prevent this material from entering the body, would be, on the one hand, to breathe pure clean air, and, on the other, to fast. These measures, coupled with cleansing and purifying methods, will eliminate the cause of any diseased condition which may happen to be present (if there is not too great organic destruction), and thus effect the cure.

The average mode of living—of gorging on several times the amount of food the system requires for all its numerous functions; of using stimulants which whip up fatigued organs to the point of exhaustion; of using foods and yielding to dissipations that consume and waste the energies of the body; of whipping into submission the organs which make any attempts to right conditions; of removing certain offending organs and structures which have carried the fight too far for the comfort of the patient, this removal placing added demands on some other organs; and of postponing the adoption of any truly remedial measures until some parts of the anatomy have become pathologic—this manner of living has made it absolutely essential that there be rest of the body, if health is to be attained.

And it must not be understood that sleep and mere muscular relaxation constitute complete rest. Sleep alone suffices for these external muscles; but how about the organs themselves—the organs that have been obliged to overwork day after day, month after month, and year after year? It is indisputable that they cannot be rested by being doped with depressants—by some drugs which merely reduce their functional activity—and especially so long as the mode of living is continued uninterruptedly. And it is equally certain that they cannot be rested if they are obliged to continue work throughout the hours of sleep and muscular relaxation, in order to “catch up” with their work and keep pace with the requirements demanded of them.

It should be as simple as the a-b-c’s that what these organs and body structures and tissues require is rest—an absolute rest such as can be secured only by the fast! Such a procedure as a protracted fast gives them their one opportunity to disgorge the overwhelming excess food material to be relieved of the re- sulting congestion and to secure rest; to recuperate from their exhaustion from overwork and constant action and reaction in attempting to respond to every impulse and every influence; for the cells of these structures to rid themselves of their dead and dying fellow-cells, (which add to their depression by the toxins produced, as well as increase their obligations), and to give a chance for new cells to take their places. Also, the brain and nervous system are rested, and the whole internal muscular, nervous, and glandular systems have a chance to recuperate. All this the fast accomplishes or allows. It is truly the most valuable kind of a recess or intermission for the best employees you have—the cells and organs which take care of your nourishment and health constantly—as much as you will permit them to!

It is a common experience that the brain becomes more active and that thinking is facilitated. Furthermore, if fasting were instituted at the very inception of an illness, and systematically carried out, the “disease” would be rendered practically inert at once.

The reasons for the fasting cure should thus be apparent. Fasting prevents the introduc- tion into the diseased body of any new material calling for excretion or elimination; it permits a balancing of the circulation—absolutely essential to good health; it allows the various eliminating organs to dispose of the effete material in the system, and to oxidize or burn up useless matter which has accumulated in the body, like ashes in a grate. Fasting purifies and cleanses the body, and at the same time, in effect, adds to its actual vital strength, by removing toxic material which is poisoning and weakening the nerves of the body and the cells of the various organs. In all these ways fasting benefits; and, as we shall see later on, it is probably the most powerful remedial agent known to any one.

Just here is it necessary to reply to an objection which will doubtless arise. One may ask: “That is all very well, but is it not harmful thus to absorb living tissues of the body, and lower the strength and resistance of the body in this manner? May we not injure the body by drawing upon it thus—allowing it to feed upon itself—instead of supplying it with the accustomed food?”

That objection can be raised only by those who do not understand the actual processes at work, and the fact that, at such times, the body does not draw upon its own valuable tissues for a long period of time, but rather upon the most useless material and waste, and only when these have been utilized and discarded are the more useful and vital tissues and organs drawn upon; and those essential to life are not drawn upon until the process has been extended beyond the therapeutic fast into starvation.

When a fast is begun, the first things which are oxidized and eliminated by the body are those useless materials which are floating about within it in the form of mal-assimilated food material and the waste which is blocking and choking the small blood vessels and congesting the lymph vessels. In other words, the very things which we wish to eliminate from the system are those which Nature actually disposes of first of all—the very excess materials which are actually causing the diseased condition! It is most important to bear in mind this fact, for it is upon the proper understanding of it that the whole fasting cure is based.

After this material has been eliminated, the useless, fatty tissue of the body is next drawn upon, and this is very largely utilized for the bodily nutrition before any other tissues or organs are called upon. And it is a remarkable fact that even in cases of death from starvation (which of course is a very different thing from therapeutic fasting) the nerve centers are practically not drawn upon at all, so that they maintain their weight intact and their complete functional activity.

The following table, giving the estimated losses that occur in cases of death from starvation, is taken from Yeo’s “Physiology,” and may be considered as fairly representative of the varying losses which occur at such times:

This table is most significant, inasmuch as it shows to us most conclusively that the least important tissues of the body are drawn upon first and in larger amounts when food is withheld, and the more important tissues later and to a less extent; and it shows us also that it is physiologically impossible to starve to death until a “skeleton condition” has been reached,—that is to say, a condition in which practically all the tissues of the body have been used for food material. Death is impossible before such a condition has been brought about.

And it is very important again to point out just here for the sake of emphasis that fasting and starvation are two entirely different things. Whereas fasting is beneficial and rids the body of disease, starvation is detrimental and if continued long enough ends in death. The difference between these two processes is fundamental, and the distinction between them should be carefully borne in mind when discussing the fasting cure. Let us try to make plain precisely in what this distinction consists.

When food is withheld, the body begins to live upon itself—oxidizing and eliminating, as before explained, the most useless materials first. Now, we are none of us in perfect health. If we were, we should be in perfect condition, and the mere fact that a long course of “training,” is necessary to place the body in a state of vigorous health shows us that we are far from being in this perfect condition. Nature sees to it that certain signals or warnings are given, which indicate the length of time required in order to eliminate this useless and disease-producing material. During the time required for this process, hunger invariably leaves, the tongue becomes coated, the breath foul, and the body exerts itself in every way possible to dispose of the excess of mal-assimilated material within it. This effort on the part of Nature is continued for a longer or shorter period of time, necessitated by the actual condition of the patient undertaking the fast. In some cases only a few days may be needed; in other cases several weeks may be necessary in order to effect a thorough, physiological “house-cleaning.”

When this condition has been brought about and the body has been thoroughly cleansed and inwardly purified, Nature indicates that such is the case by a series of unmistakable symptoms. Natural hunger returns, the tongue clears, the breath again becomes sweet, the pulse and temperature again rise to normal, etc., as indicated more fully in the chapter dealing with “How to Break the ‘Finish’ Fast.” The point to emphasize here is that hunger returns only when the fast is naturally terminated, and not until that time. This is a signal that food is then required, and if it is not given at that time, then actual starvation begins.

We are now in a position to indicate briefly the exact difference between fasting and starvation: Fasting begins with the omission of the first meal and ends with the return of natural hunger. Starvation, on the contrary, only begins with the return of natural hunger and ends with death. While the first is beneficial and curative, the second is detrimental and ultimately destructive to the body. No one has ever advocated starvation, but let me repeat again that the proper application of fasting is one of the most potent methods of cure which we possess.