It's Only Natural
Chapter XlV
Specific Nutritional Therapy
Almost all our patients take vitamins, and when we give a patient
a specific nutritional remedy, he automatically assumes we are giving him
vitamins. This is only partially true, and it has been difficult to explain
that although vitamins and minerals are useful, they make up only a small
part of the nutritional elements needed and used by us in preventing and
treating imbalances.
The first so-called vitamins were discovered by Casimir Funk more than
fifty years ago. Since then, many other vital food factors have been discovered
and isolated, and new information about the usefulness of these compounds
is being disclosed constantly. There is, however, a tendency in orthodox
medicine to compartmentalize these factors and to align each one with a
specific symptom pattern. For example, if you have scurvy, you need vitamin
C; beriberi, vitamin B.; and if you have pellagra, you need vitamin B2
and niacin. It is difficult for physicians trained in drug therapy to realize
that a combination of small deficiencies of various elements may also cause
problems that can't be so easily categorized. The unfortunate assumption
among many of the medical profession is that if these frank deficiencies
are absent, the person is nutritionally healthy and doesn't need added
diet supplementation.
On the other hand, various health lecturers and self-styled nutritional
experts have carried the use of vitamins and minerals to a ridiculous extreme
in the opposite direction. Some of these well-meaning people saturate those
who seek their aid with vitamin after vitamin and mineral after mineral
in ever-spiraling amounts, until there is barely room left in their digestive
tracts for food.
The wise natural healer looks with skepticism on both of these views; experience
has taught him the fallacies that they both exhibit. The basic tenets on
which human nutrition is based, and that are adhered to at our Healing
Centers, may be stated by three simple axioms.
1. God, or Nature, if you will, desires the health
and fecundity of all the world. Therefore, along with the creation of man
and the other creatures were provided, in reasonably available forms, foods
and other nutritional factors that would help sustain this creation in
a state of optimal functioning. Every animal intuitively lives by this
law, and, barring predators or natural catastrophes, usually lives its
life out with a minimum of the "diseases" that affect mankind.
Man doesn't live by such a natural law, however, and is able to alter the
selection, amount and composition of the nutrients he takes into his body.
If one does not believe in an all-wise Creator and instead is a devotee
of the Darwinian theory of evolution, the conclusions are approximately
the same. In order for an organism to exist and to prosper, it must have
available to it all the elements that are best adapted for its growth and
functioning. If this doesn't occur, either one of two things will take
place. The organism will die out or it will adapt its system to fit the
elements that are supplied. Because man is an organism that has survived
for some time, we must have around us all the elements necessary for our
optimum health and survival. If we don't use them properly, this is our
fault, not that of evolution or the all-wise Creator.
2. The complexity of the chemical processes in our body is so great and
the delicacy of their balancing mechanisms so fine that it is, at least
at this time in our development of science, utterly impossible for the
scientist or physician to fully understand or control these processes for
their own purposes. Any attempt to do so, except in emergencies, can often
be fraught with severe and unpredictable consequences.
The compositions of natural foods, herbs, and other products of nature
are also equally complex to meet the needs of the body's complementary
complexity. These two, having developed and matured together are fit companions
for one another. It is only through this complex and yet complementary
structure of man and his God given food supply that a proper nutritional
sustenance for man is possible.
Even our most advanced scientists have no real idea of all these complexities
in both man and natural foods. If this tenet is accepted-and to me its
truth is self evident-one can readily see that any attempt to add to or
detract from the composition of natural foodstuffs will alter their complimentary
effect on the functioning of the human body and bring about disorders and
imbalances too enormous and intricate to understand. Many of us feel that
man's attempt to make these changes is the major cause of many of our acute
and chronic diseases.
3. The purpose of the natural healer is to preserve the normal functioning
of man's body. He should in no way introduce into this body any substance
that has the capability of altering this delicate balance unless he is
assured he knows the full consequences of its action and the long-term
effects.
If we take these three tenets and apply them to the use of vitamins and
minerals, we can arrive at some interesting conclusions. From its very
inception, orthodox medicine has attempted to force upon the human body,
by every available route, all types of compounds that might alter body
activity. Only in rare instances did the practitioner concern himself with
the full consequences of what these substances might do to the highly intricate
biochemical reactions taking place by the millions every second within
the body.
When examined in this light, we see that vitamins can fall into the same
category as that of any of the other medicinal substances. They are less
toxic than most drugs, but they can alter the body's chemical reactions
for the worse if not used with great care and discretion. Nutritional agents
never appear alone in nature but always in complex organic structures.
When we take this separate vitamin and that individual mineral, we are
deviating far from nature and are entering a field that is best left to
those with great knowledge and vast clinical experience.
Vitamins Versus Specific Nutritional
Products
At our Healing Research Center believe the balance of the various nutritional
factors present in foods is just as important as the specific compounds
themselves. This complex chemical structure in food is of such an intricacy
that no scientist can now, or in the foreseeable future, construct a formula
that would duplicate those of nature.
The make-up of this complex chemical structure has been investigated by
many authorities. I personally believe the work of my dear friend H. C.
Webber is most helpful in explaining the difference between ordinary chemical
compounds and natural compounds. According to Webber's hypothesis, the
plant is able to draw the various mineral elements from the soil and through
chemical processes inherent in its structure is then able to combine them
with other chemical substances derived from the air and soil in such a
way as to form a complex chemical molecule-Webber calls it a nutritional
colloid (a colloid is a large molecule, usually protein, that won't diffuse
through a semipermeable membrane). This complex nutritional colloid may
be likened to a miniature architectural masterpiece created out of toothpicks.
It is beautiful and aesthetic but very fragile. The human digestive and
metabolic systems can take these complex colloidal structures and utilize
them readily in the intricate body chemical reactions.
In this way, nature has designed a process by which each kingdom in creation
is necessary and helpful to every other
kingdom. The plant draws from air, water and soil the necessary basic elements
to produce a complex bio-matrix that is to be used by all forms of animal
life for the proper maintenance and growth of their own protoplasmic substance.
When the animal dies, this protoplasm is returned to the earth, where it
breaks down into its basic mineral substances, from which the plant may
again draw to produce the complex colloidal structure necessary for future
generations of animal life. As long as this chain is unbroken, all forms
of life live fairly well together, but when this pattern is altered, disease
and death (Due to a breaking of natural law) are visited on all the various
participants in this life cycle.
A common difficulty encountered in the proper continuance of this life
cycle is based on the fact that the colloidal elements of plant structure
are very fragile. Once a plant is picked, the colloids usually break down
into simpler non-colloidal compounds fairly soon. Much of the wilting of
a plant is brought about by this process. Webber believed that once the
colloidal element begins to break down, the compounds composing it once
again return to their crystal or crystalloid form. In other words, this
complex structure would lose the organization that the plant had so industriously
constructed.
Webber hypothesized that when this occurs, the chemical substances are
still present but have been reduced to such a form that if ingested they
can be the cause of many diseases heretofore unexplained. For his work,
this investigator devised many methods for ascertaining whether a compound
is colloidal or whether it has returned to its crystalloid state. Through
these methods of testing, it was possible to discover that many of our
highly regarded nutritional compounds are actually less effective than
we imagine and they could with extended use prove harmful. He also found
that certain processes of manufacture are able to preserve the colloid
state of the basic nutritional substance so that it is possible to produce
nutritional compounds that retain this most desirable chemical structure.
Webber's theories make it possible to explain many phenomena for which
orthodox science has no ready answers. The work of Dr. Francis Marion Pottenger
of California, for instance, is readily explained by the colloid crystalloid
theories. Pottenger, for his work with tuberculosis, wanted to do some
tests on animals, and he decided to raise a great many cats for this purpose.
He set up the necessary pens and other paraphernalia and purchased enough
dry animal food from his local feed store to raise the cats. His cats did
not proliferate, however. In addition, the kittens that were born had a
variety of defects very similar to those of his human patients.
Soon this difficulty in raising cats began to stimulate the scientist's
research-oriented mind more than the original project he had planned for
them. After a couple of dismal generations of cats, Pottenger began to
experiment with their diet. Some of the cats were given fresh liver and
meat along with their dry cat food. Others were given nothing but fresh
liver and meat and some were kept exclusively on the dry food.
The cats on the completely raw diet grew strong and healthy, producing
offspring without congenital defects. Those on the mixed diet were almost
as healthy and produced equally viable offspring. Those kept on the dry
food diet, which although not raw, supposedly contained all the known food
factors necessary for animal growth, continued to deteriorate until they
were no longer capable of reproducing.
This new research work grew so fascinating to Pottenger that he continued
with it for some time to check out various other factors. He even experimented
with the waste products from the various animal groups and he found that
when he fertilized soil with the excrement of the cats eating completely
raw food and those eating the half raw food, seeds planted in this soil
grew to healthy and luxuriant plants, whereas seeds planted in soil fertilized
by excrement from the cats eating the dry food grew very meagerly and the
plants were afflicted with several diseases.
From Webber's theory, we can see that animals who graze on grass containing
the colloidal nutritional structure will then build a similar colloidal
structure into their own body tissues. If these body tissues are in turn
fed, without the destructive effects of heating, to other animals, they
in turn will benefit from these nutritionally viable substances. From Pottenger's
research work, we can surmise that where approximately half the food taken
into the body consists of the colloidal compounds, the body is able to
function nearly as well as if the diet were totally raw. On the other hand,
when such colloidal intake is low, the life force rapidly withers and the
body becomes subject to many diseases.
As we have seen from Pottenger's work, this colloidal structure can be
broken down by heat. Light and time also break it down. If plant or flesh
food is allowed to remain unused for some time, the colloidal structure
will retrogress to its crystalloid structure.
Some compounds, however, are well-protected from such deterioration. Nuts
have a fairly long life, and various grains, as long as their tough outer
covering is not broken, retain their colloidal structure for hundreds and
even thousands of years. Once this outer covering is broken, however, their
colloidal structure deteriorates rapidly. For this reason, many knowledgeable
authorities recommend that whole-grain flour be used within ten days of
grinding.
From my own experience, I believe taste is intimately connected with the
colloidal structure of food and that while a food still has its natural
succulent taste, the colloidal structure is probably intact. On the other
hand, when this taste is gone, it is possible that the food has lost much
of its nutritional value, and its colloidal compounds have once again retrogressed
to the unorganized crystalloid structure.
For the natural therapist who understands the colloid crystalloid theory
of nutrition, there is only one proper way to produce a dietary supplement.
First, find a natural source high in the particular element or compound
of interest. Collect this source at the height of its colloidal composition
and process it in such a way that the essential colloidal compounds are
concentrated to the greatest possible degree without in any way disturbing
their fragile structure. The finished product then must be packaged to
assure this colloidal composition through the expected life of the product.
There is great difficulty in fulfilling the requirements I have suggested.
But such products can be made and are being used by natural therapists
everywhere. It is to these compounds I refer when I speak of specific nutritional
therapy. Most vitamin and mineral products sold in drug stores and health
food stores don't conform to these requirements, and although perhaps not
basically toxic, they nevertheless are unnatural compounds and have inherent
in their structure the ability to imbalance the functioning of the human
body. Because of these vital differences, we recommend that patients don't
attempt to substitute the specific nutritional products we prescribe with
similar ones from the drug or health food store. Although some of the basic
ingredients might be similar, the complex colloidal structure would not
be the same and the results we had hoped for wouldn't be forthcoming. To
help those who insist on choosing their own supplements, I shall make some
specific comments on those generally available.
Specific Nutritional Entities
Some vitamin and mineral factors are more dangerous than others. Some,
while basically nontoxic, are capable of causing systemic imbalances that
aren't yet completely understood.
Vitamins
Vitamin A
Vitamin A has recently been restricted in its dosage levels by the FDA.
I believe this decision to be wise. Vitamin A can be misused and will cause,
in an over dosage, an imbalance that produces symptoms almost identical
to those of a deficiency. Higher dosages may be useful in treating some
ailments, and as such are usually supplied from fish-liver oil or lemon
grass extract. There are other sources, but these usually don't enable
the high unit dosage to be produced that is favored by many physicians.
Vitamin A from fish-liver oils is at least obtained from a natural source
and it carries with it some of the other natural factors, such as vitamin
D and vitamin F, that help control vitamin A toxicity. Whether the colloidal
form is preserved depends on the processing methods used. If the lower
potencies are used, little harm will come from vitamin A, although we recommend
it in proper conjunction with other elements.
The lemon grass extract of vitamin A, although helpful in those without
sufficient bile to properly assimilate the oil soluble form, is generally
more toxic and should be used with greater care.
Beta Carotene
Beta Carotene is a precursor of Vitamin A. Many investigators find that
it is better accepted in some patients than is regular Vitamin A. We have
found the special liquid sublingual form to be very useful. Since it does
not need to go through the liver, this form of Vitamin A can be given to
patients who normally cannot accept high doses of this vitamin. We have
had some very satisfying success with several cases of Sojourn's Disease
(A condition producing very dry eyes) treated with sublingual Beta Carotene.
The B Complex Vitamins
Vitamin B1 (thiamine) is used both orally and by injection in high dosage
for its tonic effects. Unfortunately, such dosages cause relative deficiencies
of the other B vitamins, and in time the general body balance is made worse
by the overuse of this vitamin.
Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) is usually not as misused as thiamine and is rapidly
eliminated by the kidneys. Thus, an over dosage of riboflavin causes the
urine to become a bright canary yellow.
Vitamin B3 (niacin) is used by many physicians as a drug. It produces certain
physiologic effects on the body such as peripheral blood vessel dilation
and a decrease in cholesterol levels. Recently, it has been shown to prevent
"blood sludging." It is also used by some psychiatrists in schizophrenia.
Niacin has also been called the "anti-pellagra vitamin." Some
researchers believe that many of its drug effects may actually be due to
its ability to correct subclinical pellagra that may have been diagnosed
as other diseases. Niacin is toxic in overdosage and its use, except in
moderate amounts, should be supervised by a physician acquainted with its
peculiarities.
Niacinamide (the amine of niacin) is relatively nontoxic and has the same
nutritional effects as niacin, but it doesn't have the drug effects.
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride) is generally considered a relatively
innocuous compound. However, its use for some time in amounts of 50 to
150 mg. or more a day tends to cause relative deficiencies of some other
elements, particularly magnesium.
Vitamin B12 can only be produced by natural means, and it is thus nontoxic
in the oral form. I don't know of any relative deficiencies caused by its
use. There is some evidence that the sublingual form may help in the treatment
and prevention of mouth ulcers (canker sores).
Vitamin C
Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) has a relatively low toxicity and, as far as
we can ascertain, doesn't upset the body chemical balances even in large
amounts. Still, we at the Healing Research Center recommend a colloidal
form for general supplementation, and we use the more concentrated crystalline
compounds only for emergencies when heroic amounts may prove useful. For
this latter use it seems to matter little whether the vitamin C is pure
ascorbic acid or that extracted from rose hips or acerola berries. Many
people cannot take the acid form of Vitamin C and for these we recommend
the buffered form. There are many of these, some good and some not so good.
Be sure to ask your Center physician for his recommendation.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D has been a nutritional football ever since it was first discovered.
The most commonly used form, even in the health food field, is still the
synthetic or D2 form. This is usually produced by irradiating ergosterol.
Whenever a supplement lists its vitamin D as irradiated ergosterol (D2),
the product is synthetic. Not only is vitamin D2 synthetic, but also it
isn't the same as the natural product structurally and is therefore foreign
to the body. The natural product is vitamin D3, which is generally obtained
from fish-liver oils.
Vitamin D, especially D2, even in dosages just slightly above normal, can
be highly toxic to some people. Having personally treated several cases
of vitamin D toxicosis, I believe the FDA was not remiss in controlling
the high-dosage sales.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E, next to vitamin C, is probably the most glamorous of all the
food elements and one of the most controversial. If properly manufactured,
it is possible to retain the colloidal structure of the vitamin E complex,
but it is very easy for this structure to collapse where careful controls
are not used. Vitamin E can be a variable nutritional substance but in
order to obtain a good therapeutic product, not only the form of vitamin
E must be considered but also the specific manufacturer.
One should always refrain from using synthetic vitamin E; these types can
readily be distinguished by the name of the compound. If the name on the
bottle is DL-alpha-tocopherol, the substance is synthetic. The L stands
for levulo (left-turning products under polarized light) forms that don't
occur in nature and are therefore foreign to the body. The natural product
is always designated as D-alpha-tocopherol or dextro-alpha-tocopherol (Right
turning under polarized light).
Even all D-alpha-tocopherols are not the same. Many products are advertised
as a compound of mixed tocopherols, but because D-alpha-tocopherol is the
only one known to be effective, you are paying for compounds of no known
therapeutic value in these products.
The natural D-alpha-tocopherol can also be produced from a variety of rancid
oils. The finished product is still D-alpha tocopherol, or natural vitamin
E, and can be sold as such, but because of changes in its colloidal nature,
it won't necessarily have the same beneficial effects as another similarly
labeled product from a producer of greater integrity.
Thus, great care must be exercised in purchasing vitamin E preparations.
We insist that our patients purchase their Vitamin E from our Centers so
that we know that they are receiving an effective and not a toxic product.
Vitamin F
Vitamin F (unsaturated fatty acids) hasn't yet been synthesized; it is
extracted from various products that are high in linoleic, linolenic or
arachidonic acid. If these products are produced so they retain their natural
molecular structure, their vitamin F content will be effective and useful.
We have two types of vitamin F compounds that we use regularly. One is
in a tablet and the other is in a capsule. The tablet form is best used
to help the distribution of ionizable calcium in the body while the capsule
form is used to help in the treatment of benign prostatic hypertrophy.
The Minerals
Calcium
Calcium is supplied in two basic forms: one is of an acid reaction and
is combined with phosphorus, magnesium, and other elements needed for bone
building; the other is an alkaline or phosphorus-free form that acts as
ionizable calcium in the blood and tissues.
Bone meal is the most common form of acid calcium. Most bone meal, however,
is produced by a process using heat in one of the stages; this usually
breaks down the colloidal integrity. This crystalloid calcium might be
helpful for some conditions, but its lack of proper colloidal structure
may in time increase arthritic deposits and perhaps the atheromatous plaques
that often occur in the blood vessels with age. Bone meal entirely produced
by temperatures below body heat (98.6) is available and it is the only
type recommended by the Beverly Hall Corporation Healing Research Center
for those who need this variety of calcium.
Alkaline calcium-calcium lactate, calcium gluconate-and calcium derived
from eggshells are useful in many disorders. Leg cramps, muscle twitching,
and many nervous disorders are often improved by its use. Its assimilation
is helped by being taken on an empty stomach and is most effective in combination
with vitamin F (see above). Used in relative moderation it seems to precipitate
no adverse reactions. Dolomite a popular mixed mineral product, can't be
recommended here. Being a mineral product, it is crystalloid, not colloid
and it seems to increase adverse calcium buildup in the tissues.
Iron
I think there's enough iron sold in pills in a year in this country to
build a battleship. Most of it is inorganic-iron sulfate being the most
common form-and much of this non-colloid iron passes out through the stool
in its elemental form.
Much has been written in health magazines about the fact that taking iron
and vitamin E together negates the value of each. This is true in regard
to inorganic iron compounds. Vitamin E helps detoxify this abnormal substance
and is therefore not free for other purposes. However, natural iron and
vitamin E are often found together in foods and they are well-utilized
in the colloid form. Here again, as with all colloidal complexes, there
is little fear that it won't be properly assimilated whenever ingested.
One of the best ways to get iron is from green leafy vegetables as fresh
as possible, but for those with a real problem many good forms of colloidal
iron are available. We have a liquid that combines a colloidal iron with
B vitamins that is well tolerated and very effective.
Iodine
Iodine is necessary for proper body function. The best way to get this
mineral is in food. If sufficient seafood can't be obtained, then it may
be supplemented. The most common supplements are kelp and potassium iodide.
Potassium iodide is an inorganic substance (not colloidal) and is toxic
if used for an extended time. Iodized salt is usually fortified with potassium
iodide and is therefore not recommended.
Kelp has become almost a ritual with some health food devotees. It is not
a particularly good compound, being too high in iodine and sodium chloride
(table salt) to offer the proper balance of trace minerals for which it
is often suggested.
Most patients greatly overdo the use of kelp. If it is kept at a dosage
wherein the daily minimum iodine ration is not exceeded by more than three
or four times, there should be little danger from its use.
I recommend the use of dulse (another seaweed) for mineral supplementation
because I believe this plant is much better balanced in minerals than kelp,
although its "press" has been much poorer. Dulse can be bought
in the dried form and is rather tasty if a couple of inches of it are eaten
each day. Such a dose is more than adequate to take care of many of the
trace mineral needs of the body.
Dr. R.S. Clymer used to recommend the food Irish Moss for its iodine content.
It is still a good food today and most certainly carries the mineral in
the colloidal form.
Magnesium
Within recent years, magnesium has become another of the glamour food elements.
Dr. Clymer wrote of it extensively sixty years ago and most of what he
wrote is being rehashed today. I don't deny that the mineral is important,
but it is difficult to obtain as a supplement in the colloidal form. Most
magnesium compounds sold on the open market contain magnesium oxide, and
they are somewhat laxative (Epsom salts, the well-known cathartic, is magnesium
sulfate). In a properly manufactured bone meal, magnesium should be present
in balance with calcium and phosphorus. In this form, it can be given in
dosages sufficient for most needs. For larger amounts, we recommend the
chelated form of magnesium, because it's very similar to the natural colloidal
structure and is seemingly well-accepted by the body. Since there are newer
and better forms of magnesium being produced steadily, it is best to ask
your Center physician for the latest word on this mineral.
Manganese
Manganese, a trace mineral, has found much use in our practice as a normalizer
of ligament tone. In this capacity, we have used it particularly to strengthen
the ligamentous structures around the sacroiliac (see Chapter III). We
use manganese in a colloidal form that is well-accepted by the body and
only rarely has had adverse effects, even in large dosages. It is combined
with other synergistic agents in the form we use and if you have problems
with adjustments holding please ask your Center physician to tell you about
this product.
Other Trace Minerals
Many years ago, I, like other members of my profession, predicted that
the '70s and the '80s would be the decades of the trace mineral. We thought
that many unexplained diseases would be found to be caused, or at least
aggravated, by trace mineral deficiencies. Researchers now find that many
symptoms can be attributed to an imbalance of these very small but vital
factors. Unfortunately, the structural form of the trace mineral and its
interrelated balance with its fellows are being ignored in this effort
to categorize the individual specific symptomatology.
While work in this area has not proceeded as fast as we had hoped, we still
believe that in time many modern diseases will be traced back to an absence
or deficiency in various trace minerals.
Although specific trace minerals are used in our practice (in the chelated
colloid form), I use them only in severe deficiencies, and I generally
prefer a natural colloidal compound that has these elements in their normally
occurring, minute, but properly balanced, form.
How Vitamins and Other Nutritional
Substances are Produced
Vitamins and minerals can be produced in three ways. First, we have the
synthetically produced compound. Sometimes the molecule of the synthetic
product is identical to that of the natural product, such as vitamin C
(ascorbic acid). Sometimes the synthetic product acts somewhat like the
natural product, but it is structurally different from the natural product.
Vitamin D2, which is synthetic, and vitamin D3, which is the natural product,
are a case in point. The D2 prevents rickets but is not as potent as D3,
and it is more toxic than the natural form.
Second, vitamins can be produced by extracting the natural crystalline
form from food or other organic products in which the desired vitamin may
occur. By the time the proper extraction and crystallization are done,
the resulting product is quite similar to the synthetic product. In fact,
the very name crystalline vitamin indicates that the substance has been
reduced to a crystalloid state and that its basic colloidal structure has
been lost.
Third, vitamins and nutritional products can be produced by the very careful
concentration of potent food sources in such a manner that all the enzymes
and compounds with colloidal structure are retained throughout the process.
In this instance, the final product can truly be called "natural,"
and in truth it is a living entity similar to the source found in nature.
This last process is obviously the most difficult and costly. It is little
used by the large manufacturers because few people are sufficiently sophisticated
to appreciate its superiority. Such products are used, however, by many
physicians in the natural healing arts who understand and demand what they
can offer their patients.
Colloidal Nutritional Supplements
Colloidal nutritional supplements generally fall into two categories. The
first contains products to be used as nutritional support to balance out
deficiencies that may be present in a patient's intake of food and drink.
The second group comprises remedies designed to correct specific imbalances
in body nutrition and to aid the body in overcoming definite symptom patterns.
In general, the first group can be used by anyone for supplementation of
his diet; the second group should be used only on the recommendation of
a natural physician for correcting conditions he has diagnosed.
The Supplemental Products
In colloidal supplemental products, an attempt is usually made to derive
concentrations from a variety of sources for the nutritional grouping desired.
For instance, in our Centers instead of using an ordinary B complex with
arbitrarily chosen amounts of the various factors present, we use a compound
in which liver, selected yeast and rice bran extracts are combined after
being processed below body temperature. In such an extract, the various
unknown factors that are part of the B complex should be present in sufficient
amounts to be nutritionally effective. From the results achieved with such
products, our theory seems to prove out in clinical practice.
The various forms of nutritional supplements can be duplicated in a similar
manner. We don't attempt, however, to duplicate the high dosages so common
to many crystalloid products. We believe that such high dosages are often
deemed necessary because the natural-occurring synergistic products essential
to the best working of some of these vitamins aren't present in the high-potency
preparations; or if present, they have been reduced by the manufacturing
procedures to a near inactive form. I believe this is why so many physicians
feel compelled to use mega-vitamin therapy, in which tremendously high
doses of various vitamins are used. True, at times this seems to accomplish
miracles, but later follow-ups on many of these patients show that other
undesirable effects are also produced by such an unbalancing procedure.
I call this "unbalancing" because no one can know what this tremendous
overdosing of specific nutritional elements will do to the complex body
structure. It would be a miracle if one could impose such an abnormal regimen
on the body without causing adverse effects.
Most physicians well-acquainted with natural therapy prefer to give nutritive
supplements in a form more closely allied to that which God created. If
these remedies are carefully chosen and administered, they not only prevent
body imbalances, but they should also achieve therapeutic results equal
or even superior to those obtained by mega-vitamin therapy.
Therapeutic Use of Nutrient Elements
The FDA, which is run entirely by men steeped in orthodox medicine, has
always proven antagonistic to the treatment by nutritional compounds of
any disease except classified deficiencies. Owing to the rules set down
by the FDA, it isn't possible for me to speak of treating a disease or
curing a condition by the use of nutritional supplementation. In truth,
though they probably didn't mean it as such, the FDA's doctrine is accurate,
for no food or supplement is capable of accomplishing this goal. What we
can do by the use of specific nutritional therapy is to give to the body
food factors necessary to fully carry on its work of overcoming physical
and mental disturbances.
Protomorphogens or Substance Therapy
Interest in what the early naturopaths used to refer to as "substance
therapy" goes back a great many years. History records that Hippocrates
and Galen used this method. Brown Sequard, a great scientist known as the
founder of scientific organotherapy, began the first modern interest in
this subject. Henry Harrower of Glendale, California, did much to advance
the concept.
Substance therapy differs from endocrinology in that the desiccated substance
of the various glands and other body tissues, devoid of their hormone activity,
is given to the patient in an effort to stimulate or initiate the repair
mechanism naturally inherent in any body tissue. From antiquity, there
were those who believed that if one wanted a strong heart he should eat
the heart of an animal, if a strong liver then eat the liver of an animal
and if he wanted intelligence he should eat nothing but brains. Although
such a supposition was much couched in superstition, modern research in
the natural field has demonstrated a certain degree of validity in the
contention.
In the 1940's, Royal Lee and William Hanson wrote a book entitled Protomorphology,
(Lee, Royal, and Hanson, William: Protomorphology. Lee Foundation for Nutritional
Research, Milwaukee, WI., 1947.) in which they attempted to prove that
in the various tissue cells are compounds that they likened to blueprint
substances, which could stimulate the repair mechanism of a like structure
if they were diseased. For instance, if one had a weak heart muscle, one
would ingest a tablet containing highly concentrated forms of this heart
blueprint (protomorphogen), and this substance would aid the weakened heart
to repair itself. Although such a theory has never been accepted by the
orthodox medical profession as a whole, there is much clinical evidence
to substantiate it, and many medical men now use these substances.
Henry Harrower considered his work as endocrinology, and yet many of the
substances he used, such as thymus and mammary tissue, had no detectable
hormonal activity. Thus, many of the outstanding results he so carefully
documents in Practical Organotherapy (Harrower, Henry: Practical
Organotherapy. Glendale, CA. The Harrower Laboratory, 1922.) must have
been due to the same mechanism that Lee and Hanson describe in Protomorphology.
Recent research by Hanson has led him to believe that the blueprint factors
are actually DNA and RNA compounds present in cell nuclei. This updated
approach doesn't invalidate the basic thought of the protomorphogens, however,
because the DNA molecule is, in effect, a blueprint for the construction
of a similar cell from this DNA structure. It is possible that all the
clinical observations on organotherapy or substance therapy can now be
substantiated by modern scientific thought.
Many natural healing physicians have found that certain diseases can be
combatted by the careful and judicious use of these products. Such protomorphogens
are particularly useful in chronic conditions because healing in such diseases
is always slow and arduous. The protomorphogen factors seem to augment
and direct the body healing forces toward the rebuilding of selected tissues.
This effect in most of the conditions we treat isn't rapid, but because
they are usually used where orthodox medicine isn't successful, there is
much to recommend them.
Other Little Known Nutritional Substances
Besides the protomorphogens, other natural factors that aren't necessarily
needed as daily supplements have proven useful in certain disorders. A
substance we frequently use was originally called Yakatron by the Japanese
physician who discovered it. Obtained from the liver, Yakatron possesses
certain natural antihistamine effects. Although its effects are only moderate
in some patients, others find their allergic sensitivities greatly helped
by its use. Because it is a naturally occurring compound, it has no known
toxicity and is free of side effects.
Thymic extract is most helpful in overcoming infections, particularly viral
infections. The results are based on clinical experience, but such results
have been too consistent to be doubted by any physician with an open mind.
The Lee Foundation of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has extracted a substance from
pea pods that they call E2. It isn't D-alpha tocopherol, but it is a related
substance that many natural physicians have found useful in a variety of
heart afflictions.
The list of these specific nutritional factors is very long, and it wouldn't
serve any useful purpose for me to discuss them all here. I desired only
to present a few examples to give an idea of the little known remedies
the natural physician has at his disposal.
Herbal Remedies
We consider our herbs not as drugs but as specific nutritional remedies
utilized for their food like effects on specific parts of the organism.
Just because a substance is obtained from a plant doesn't make it a medicinal
herb in the naturalist's point of view. Digitalis, colchicum and belladonna
all come from plants, but these, except when used homeopathicly, are thought
of as drugs by our profession. When I use the term drug, I refer to something
that has a definite body-altering property, in contradistinction to something
that offers specific organized nutrition to the body. For instance, belladonna
produces much of its desired effects by actually paralyzing various nerve
structures. Although at times such an effect may seem useful or advantageous,
it is nevertheless produced by a drug and not a nutritional effect. Valerian
also has an effect on the nervous system, but when given in naturopathic
dosages, this effect is due to certain nutritional substances it provides
the nervous system to aid in reducing its over sensitivity and establishing
a more normal functioning. Valerian thus acts, not as a drug, but as a
specific nutritional compound.
Certain herbs may be placed in either category, depending on the dose given.
But this is true of many things in life, for few substances are harmless
if given in excess of what the body can readily accept.
In the use of herbs for nutritional effect, we must again consider the
colloidal-crystalloid concept. If an herb is so prepared so that its colloidal
active principles are broken down into crystalloids, its effectiveness
is greatly diminished. We generally use either powdered herbs or the homeopathic
mother tinctures. I have found that homeopathic pharmacies are most painstaking
in the production of their tinctures, and because of their fine therapeutic
effects, I believe they have preserved a large amount of the original colloidal
structure of the growing plant.
Recently we have been fortunate to have brought "on line" at
our Centers a fine Herbalist who is trained in the production of his own
herbal extracts. Since these are made fresh at our own facility and in
the extract form are far more effective than in the simple tincture form,
we are able to use them more effectively to help our patients than ever
before.
Herbs in the form of teas are useful in various conditions, particularly
when we desire a calming or sleep-inducing effect. In general, I prefer
the tinctures to the teas, because a greater concentration of vital effective
principle is present in the tinctures. The one exception to this rule is
our Kidney Tea. This group of herbs is best made into a tea so that it
can exert its effect on the urinary tract.
Because I hoped to present only new material in this book, I do not plan
to discuss at length the various herbs used at our Centers. There are many
excellent books available for this purpose. One of the most useful was
written by Dr. Clymer himself, entitled Nature's Healing Agents.
(Clymer, R. Swinburne: Nature's Healing Agents. Quakertown. Pa..
Philosophical Publishing House. 1965.) This is available from the Beverly
Hall Corporation Healing Research Center.
Summary
I agree in general with the medical profession when they say that the best
way to get the nutrition one needs is through the daily intake of food.
If it is possible to obtain untampered, unaltered, unsprayed, naturally
grown foods and to eat them in the proper balance, supplementation should
generally be unnecessary. Unfortunately, few of my patients are able to
obtain such a diet. For most of us, the best way to stay healthy is to
do the very best we can with our food supply and to supplement this diet
with specific nutritional products designed to retain, as nearly as possible,
the natural colloidal structures found in fresh foods. In certain disorders
and under certain periods of stress, it may be necessary to use non colloidal
substances for temporary help, but the day-to-day bulk of our supplements
should be in the natural configuration.
In these days of high-powered advertising the words "natural"
and "organic" have very little honest meaning when applied to
a product. Legally, a product can be called organic as long as it contains
some of the mineral carbon, for in scientific parlance, an organic compound
is merely a compound that contains carbon and some other elements. Because
all synthetic vitamins contain carbon, they can legally be called organic,
though this is not at all the meaning there manufacturer hopes to give
to the unsuspecting public. Remember what Macbeth said: "And be these
juggling fiends no more believed that palter with us in a double sense,
that keep the word of promise to our ear and break it to our hope."
Nor is the word "natural" to be believed anymore than organic;
this word can also be misused in two ways. First, it is possible to extract
nutritional compounds from natural sources, but to so process them that
they are little better than their synthetic counterparts. Second, some
manufacturers even take the meaning of natural to mean "that which
is derived from Nature," and in truth, isn't everything derived from
Nature? If a product is made from coal tar, coal tar is derived from Nature
and therefore a product derived from coal tar is obviously natural. Such
a position could undoubtedly be defended in court. So whenever you look
at labels on supplements, even those produced by highly reputable firms,
remember well the statement of Macbeth.
There are available to Natural Healing Centers such as ours, many substances
that, when properly used, can be most helpful in balancing the body, thereby
enabling the vital force to re-establish normal function. The control of
the Food and Drug Administration by the orthodox medical profession has
caused an almost complete blackout of information on these products, but
in spite of this opposition, they have helped a great many people to a
healthier, happier life. You could be one of them.