American Natural Hygiene Society, Inc. Formerly contained within Volume III (Orthotrophy) of The Hygienic System: Fasting and Sunbathing, published by Dr. Shelton's Health School First edition 1934 Second (revised) edition 1942 Third (revised) edition 1950 Fourth (revised) edition 1963 Fifth (revised) edition 1978 Second printing 1993 Copyright © 1978 by Natural Hygiene Press All rights reserved. ISBN 0-914532-21-9 Library of Congress Catalog Number: 77-99219 PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA American Natural Hygiene Society P.O. Box 30630, Tampa, FL Table of Contents Foreword to the Fifth Edition 1 Introduction to the Fourth Edition 9 Introduction to the First Edition 15 CHAPTER I. DEFINITION OF FASTING 23 Fasting. Dieting, Inanition. Starvation. CHAPTER II. FASTING AMONG THE LOWER 26 ANIMALS Fasting when not hungry. Food scarcity. Fasting in acciden- tal imprisonment. Fasting when angry or excited. Fasting in captivity. Experimental fasts. Fasting after birth. Pupal sleep. Fasting during the mating season. Hibernation. Hibernation in plants. Hibernation in animals. Hibernation by bears. Hibernation in rodents. Hibernation among bats. Hibernation in cold-blooded animals. Hibernation of in- sects. Initiation and duration of hibernation. Aestivation. Fasting when wounded. Fasting in disease. No fear of fast- ing. Fasting as a means of survival. How long can animals abstain from food? CHAPTER III. FASTING IN MAN 49 Religious fasting. Fasting as magic. Disciplinary fasts. Periodic and yearly fasts. Hunger strikes. Exhibition or stunt fasts. Experimental fasts. Fasting when eating is impossible. Shipwrecked sailors and passengers. Entombed miners. Fasting in illness. Famine and war. Fasting under emotional stress. Fasting by the insane. Hibernation in man. Instinctive fasting. Long fasts in man. Fasting ability and survival. CHAPTER IV. A BILL-OF-FARE FOR THE SICK 69 Specialized food reserves. Generalized food reserves. The effect of fasting. CHAPTER V. AUTOLYSIS 78 Autolysis in plants. Autolysis in animals. Autolysis during pupal sleep. Distribution of materials. Autolysis is con- trolled. The autolytic disintegration of tumors. Limitations. Objections. CHAPTER VI. FASTING IS NOT STARVING 91 Stages of inanition. Death. Cancer. iii THE SCIENCE AND FINE ART OF FASTING CHAPTER VII. CHEMICAL AND ORGANIC 99 CHANGES DURING FASTING Blood changes. The skin. The bones. The teeth. The brain, cord and nerves. The kidneys. The liver. The lungs. The muscles. The heart. The pancreas. The spleen. The stomach. Chemistry changes. CHAPTER VIII. REPAIR OF ORGANS AND TISSUES 115 DURING FASTING Wounds. Hair growth. Planaria. Starfish. Metamorphosing insects. CHAPTER IX. THE INFLUENCE OF FASTING ON 118 GROWTH AND REGENERATION "Robbing Peter to Pay Paul." The Basking shark. The salamander. The Rhine salmon. CHAPTER X. CHANGES IN THE FUNDAMENTAL 123 FUNCTIONS WHILE FASTING Physiological rest. Metabolism during the fast. Anabolism during the fast. Katabolism during the fast. Metabolism during hibernation. Fasting metabolism in man. Respira- tion. Elimination. Organic house cleaning. Actions in rela- tion to poisons. CHAPTER XI. THE MIND AND SPECIAL SENSES 137 DURING A FAST Spiritual powers. Insanity. "Abnormal psychism." The special senses. CHAPTER XII. SECRETIONS AND EXCRETIONS 149 Saliva. Gastric juice. Bile. Pancreatic and intestinal juices. Milk. Sweat. Mucus. Urine. CHAPTER XIII. BOWEL ACTION DURING FASTING 155 Dr. Dewey's observations. The author's observations. Hard feces. The enema. Testing the no-enema plan. The colon. CHAPTER XIV. FASTING AND SEX 163 Sexual and asexual reproduction. Fasting during the mating season. Sexual desire during the fast. Sexual power after the fast. CHAPTER XV. REJUVENESCENCE THROUGH 169 FASTING Schultz's experiments. Child's experiments. Huxley's ex- periments. Surfeit. The nucleus of the cell. Hunger contrac- tions. Metabolic rate. CHAPTER XVI. GAIN AND LOSS OF STRENGTH 174 WHILE FASTING Succi. Levanzin. Tanner. Athletes. Mr. Low's world records. "Feeling" of strength. Physiological strength. Stimulation. The vital energies. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER XVII. GAIN AND LOSS OF WEIGHT 181 DURING FASTING Fat people. The first few days of the fast. Average loss of weight. No danger from loss of weight. CHAPTER XVIII. FASTING DOES NOT INDUCE 188 DEFICIENCY "DISEASE" Dr. Forster's experiments. Malnutrition. Famine. Overfeed- ing. Vitamins. CHAPTER XIX. DEATH IN THE FAST 195 The skeletal condition. Immediate cause of death in starva- tion. Death in hygienic fasts. Fear. CHAPTER XX. OBJECTIONS TO THE FAST 203 Decomposition products. Instinct. Confusion of fasting and starvation. Recognized benefits of fasting. Resistance to disease. Acidosis. No such thing as a fast. "Hidden edema." Myths summarized. CHAPTER XXI. DOES FASTING CURE DISEASE? 215 Curing. Rest. Toxemia. Effects of fasting summarized. CHAPTER XXII. THE RATIONALE OF FASTING 221 Nature's preparation for a fast. They that work must eat. Elimination. Compensation. CHAPTER XXIII. THE LENGTH OF THE FAST 230 Premature breaking of the fast. The return of hunger. The tongue. Short fasts versus long fasts. CHAPTER XXIV. HUNGER AND APPETITE 237 Physiologists opinions. What hunger is not. True hunger. Appetite. CHAPTER XXV. CONTRA-INDICATIONS OF 248 FASTING Fear. Extreme emaciation. Extreme weakness. Inactive kidneys accompanied by obesity. Marked "deficiency diseases." Difficult breathing. CHAPTER XXVI. FASTING IN SPECIAL PERIODS 251 AND CONDITIONS OF LIFE Why fast. When to fast. Fasting by vegetarians. Fasting in infancy and childhood. Fasting in old age. Fasting during pregnancy. Fasting during lactation. Fasting by the strong and the weak. Fasting by the emaciated. Fasting in defi- ciencies. CHAPTER XXVII. SYMPTOMATOLOGY OF THE 261 FAST Subjective symptoms. Feeling of chilliness. The pulse. Appetite. The tongue and breath. Temperature. "Famine fever." Sleep. THE SCIENCE AND FINE ART OF FASTING CHAPTER XXVIII. PROGRESS OF THE FAST 271 The early days of the fast. Disappearance of symptoms. In- crease of symptoms. Crises during the fast. Dangerous com- plications. Strength and weakness. CHAPTER XXIX. HYGIENE OF THE FAST 287 Where to fast. Conservation. Rest. Mental influences. Fear. Maintain poise. Fresh air. Warmth. Exercise. Working during the fast. Bathing. Sun bathing. For the bad taste. Gum chewing. Water drinking during the fast. Seasonings for the water. Cold water. Feeding intervals. The enema during the fast. The gastric lavage during the fast. False teeth. Forcing measures. CHAPTER XXX. BREAKING THE FAST 311 When to break the fast. How to break a fast. Fallacies about breaking fasts. Hunger after the fast. Overeating after the fast. Food after the fast. CHAPTER XXXI. GAINING WEIGHT AFTER THE 319 FAST Thin people. Experiment on a salamander. Von Seeland's experiments. Too rapid gains. CHAPTER XXXII. LIVING AFTER THE FAST 323 Dr. Eales' experience. Dewey's diet. The milk diet. Exercise. Limitations of fasting. Enervation. CHAPTER XXXIII. FASTING IN HEALTH 327 Carrington's view. Macfadden's view. The healthy faster versus the sick faster. CHAPTER XXXIV. FASTING IN ACUTE DISEASE 330 False teachings of medical "science." Instinctive repug- nance to food in acute illness. Feeding to keep up strength. No power to digest in acute sickness. No nourishment with- out digestion. Rectal and skin feeding. Gastro-intestinal decomposition. The stomach and intestines in acute illness. Nausea and vomiting. Feeding increases suffering. Com- pensation. Physiological rest. Prevention. No danger of starvation. Pain. Torture of hopeless cases. Fasting in fevers. Typhoid. Pneumonia. Appendicitis. Rheumatism. Coughs. Diarrhea—Dysentery. Wasting by the acutely ill despite feeding. Weakness. CHAPTER XXXV. FASTING IN CHRONIC DISEASE 349 Dieting versus fasting. Lost appetite. Plenty of good nourish- ing food. Fear of fasting unfounded. Starvation from over- feeding. Fictional desire for food. Undigested food in the stomach. Instinctive eating. Nature accepts the fast. Elimi- nation. Physiological rest. Relief of pain. Pleasures of the practitioner. Some "orthodox" testimony. A few diseases considered. Fasting in nervous diseases. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER XXXVI. FASTING IN DRUG ADDICTION 363 Alcoholism. Nicotinism. Coffee, tea, cocoa. Other poison habits. After-care of the addict. CHAPTER XXXVII. FASTING VERSUS ELIMINAT- 371 ING DIETS Food cures. Deficiencies. Less food better. REFERENCES 379 vii Foreword to The Fifth Edition Science stubbornly clings to its errors and resists all effort to correct these. Once an alleged fact has been well established, no matter how erroneous it is, all the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Nowhere in this fact so well illustrated as in the history of the efforts to break down the stubborn resistance of science to the idea that the human organism, like the organisms of the lower animals, can safely abstain from food for prolonged periods. Long after thousands of men and women had fasted for periods ranging from a few days to several weeks and were benefitted by the experience, science persisted in repeating, as though it were a fully demonstrated fact, its stupid notion that man cannot fast for more than a few days without dying. Indeed, after some of these long fasts had received much world-wide publicity and some of them had been studied by men of science, the devotees of the modern infallible god, science, continued to repeat the old fallacy that if a man should abstain from food for six days his heart would collapse and he would die. Kirk's Handbook of Physiology, 17th American edition, page 440, says: "In the human subject death commonly occurs within six to ten days after total deprivation of food, but this period may be considerably prolonged by taking a very small quantity of food, or even water only. The cases so frequently related of survival after many days, or even some weeks, of abstinence, have been due either to the last mentioned cir- cumstances or to others no less effectual, which prevented the loss of heat and moisture. Cases in which life has continued after total ab- stinence from food and drink for many weeks or even months, exist only in the imagination of the vulgar." Statements of this nature led to much confusion and misunderstanding about the possibilities of abstinence and any possible benefit that may be derived from it. It is not true, as numerous experiences have shown, that man cannot go without food and water for more than six to ten days without dying, but the confusing of the two forms of abstinence in one general statement resulted in the idea becoming current among those who presumed to know, that six days without food would have fatal results. How long this idea was current among the medical profes- sion is difficult to say, but the statement that it was true was not deleted from the encyclopedias until after the MacSweeny hunger strike in 1920, although thousands of cases of abstinence for much longer periods had been recorded. 1 THE SCIENCE AND FINE ART OF FASTING As late as 1927 a physician told a patient whom I placed upon a fast that if she abstained from eating for six days her heart would collapse and she would die. The old prejudice against fasting still lingers in medical thinking. Although at intervals somebody makes the important discovery that the popularity of fasting has waxed and waned among medical men and that they have, at several different times in the past, made extensive use of it, I have been unable to discover any reference, in mcdical history, to their extensive use of fasting. Ever so often some wiseacre among medical men will assure us that his profession gave it a test and that it was found wanting, but he always fails to give us the documentation of the tests. I think that it is all myth. That a number of individual medical men have employed fasting (and all of them have been enthusiastic about it) is true, but the profession, as a whole, has not employed it. In 1877 Henry S. Tanner, M.D., a regular physician in good standing, undertook to kill himself by abstaining from food. He had been taught that he could expect death by the end of the tenth day, and he had suffered so much and so long with his ailments that he decided that this would be the best way out. He found himself growing better day by day, as the fast progressed, and, instead of dying on the tenth day, he fasted for forty-two days, to recovery. The story was published and he was denounced by his professional brethren as a fraud. In 1880 he underwent a second fast in New York city under the most rigid test conditions. This fast lasted forty days and while no charge of fraud could now be launched against him, his medical colleagues still refused to believe that a man could live more than ten days without food. Be- low I am giving Dr. Tanner's own story of his two fasts. Living at that time in Duluth, Minn., he journeyed to Minneapolis to secure professional aid. Rheumatism of an "aggravated character," followed by "rheumatism of the heart" was the diagnosis of his case by seven reputable physicians and he was regarded by them as hopeless. He also had asthma of a very distressing character, which prevented sleeping in a recumbent position, and his pains were intense. He tells us that "At that time, in common with the profession, I entertained the fallacy that ten days total abstinence from food would prepare one for the undertaker. Life to me under the circumstances was not worth living. Death would have been welcome at that stage of the proceeding. Ten days of fasting was the open door to the desired end. I had found a short cut and had made up my mind to rest from physical suffering in the arms of death. "I undertook the fast, without any preparation more than what Hope with her benign smile held out to me. To my agreeable surprise I found that every day of my stomach's absolute rest, freedom from pain came as a sequence. The fifth day came and I was so far relieved that I could lie down for a short time and sleep. I continued the fast everyday finding myself relieved to a surprising degree. "The eleventh day came and found me breathing normally; the equilibrium of the entire organism restored, and I felt as well as in my 2