If you do not have your own sauna, what can you do and how can you use fever to stimulate and strengthen your own defenses against infections and other diseases?

Here are few things you can do:

Do not suppress or reduce, but support and sustain fever in colds and acute infections.

You can take Schlenz-bath, as I described in this chapter, in your own bathroom. If you plug the emergency outlet with some pieces of cloth or paper, you will be able to raise the water in your tub so that it will cover your whole body—but be careful not to flood your house!

Physical activity to the point of heavy perspiration is almost as beneficial, if not more so, than the overheating bath. Physical exertion may actually raise body temperature several degrees. A combination of heavy exercise or exhausting, perspiring games, with swimming in a pool or the ocean can substitute for a Finnish sauna.

Even if you don’t have a bath tub, a do-it-yourself sauna in your own bedroom can be made as follows: Wrap yourself in a heavy bath sheet. Put a plastic or rubber sheet on your bed to protect it from damage by perspiration. Take one or two hot water bottles and lie on the rubber sheet. Cover yourself with an electric blanket turned on high, leaving just a crack for breathing. Use several heavy blankets if necessary. Remain until profuse sweating occurs—half an hour or more. Finish your do-it-yourself sauna with a cold shower or rub-down.

Warning. Although a fever is a welcome, constructive symptom and is perhaps the best “medicine your body could have,” and therefore should not be suppressed or lowered, but supported and sustained, I do not want to leave you with the impression that fever should be simply ignored. Fever is a serious matter, good and beneficial, but serious nevertheless. In small babies particularly the heat-regulating mechanism is not fully developed and a sudden temperature rise may cause convulsions. The sudden rise of temperature in adults to over 103° F should be watched carefully as it may become dangerous, according to some authorities. Some other doctors believe that fevers up to 104° or 106° are not harmful in themselves.6 It is wise, however, to have an understanding doctor supervise a patient with a high fever and watch for possible dangers in the development of the disease.

*65\58\2*

One of the greatest authorities on using raw juices for therapeutic purposes is Georg Lanyi, M.D., from Gothenburg, Sweden. Dr. Lanyi served for many years on the staff of the famous Buchinger clinic in Germany, where juice fasting is done by thousands of patients each year. He has had extensive experience with using different juices and their combinations for specific ailments. Much of the following information is taken from his illuminative article Raw Juices Instead of Drugs.2

The favorable effect of raw juices in treatment of diseases, particularly in combination with fasting, is attributed to the following physiological facts:

• Vital minerals, vitamins and trace elements present in juices are assimilated almost 100 percent from the digestive tract.

• They provide an alkaline surplus to balance the acids which are in large quantity in the blood and tissues during fasting.

These factors have a stimulating and exhilarating effect on the detoxicating, cleansing and healing processes. The amount of juices, therefore, should be carefully controlled in accordance with specific needs, just as it is with any other kind of medication. The total juice intake in 24 hours should be between a pint and a quart and a half, never more. It is advisable in most cases that one half of the daily intake is fruit juice, the other half vegetable juice.

The most effective way to use juices for therapeutic purpose is in the form of a juice fast, as described in Chapter 2 of this book.

The shortest juice fast is seven to eight days, the longest three to four weeks, and sometimes even longer. Fasting for one week is usually sufficient for prophylactic purposes; that is, when people in relatively good health fast regularly to cleanse the system of accumulated impurities and to give the digestive and other organs time to rest and thus restore their functions to peak performance—rather like the servicing and tune-up that we have on our automobiles. The length of the therapeutic juice fast should be determined by the experienced practitioner.

*57\58\2*

The scientific fact that our bodies are made up mostly of proteins may be largely responsible for the high-protein myth. But powerful American advertising must have played the decisive role in building up the high-protein cult. There is no money in advertising health. But there seem to be huge economic interests involved in promoting the high-protein diet.

You are subjected to continuous, never-ending high-protein propaganda every day of your life. Periodical reports of “scientific research,” naturally sponsored by the livestock, dairy or meat packing industry, see to it that you’ll never forget your need for “lots of proteins.” You read this in the medical syndicated columns of your daily newspaper; you read it in popular health magazines and health books on nutrition by “experts” and “authorities.” You have been taught this in your grade school, your Home-Ec course in high school, and your nutrition classes in college. You have been fed this propaganda and geared for the high-protein cult for decades, from all possible directions, even roadside billboards and “beef for health” stickers on automobile bumpers! You are advised to eat lots of meat, fish, eggs, and milk to get as much protein as possible. In fact, you are basically told that you can never get too much protein in your diet.

*48\58\2*

I have told about mud pack cures used in European biological clinics. But in Mexico I learned a wonderful way to make a do-it-yourself sand pack cure by the seashore. On my favorite beach in San Bias, Nayarit, I have on several occasions observed Indians from nearby mountains coming down to the ocean and taking these packs. This is how they do it:

They dig a hole in the sand sufficiently deep for a man to lie down flat in it. The hole should be close enough to the water so that the bottom of the hole will be moist from the seeping sea water. The patient lies down in the hole and is completely covered by the dry hot sand, leaving only the face uncovered. Then the others bring a pail of sea water and pour it over the sand. The patient stays in the hole for about 15 minutes to half an hour.

I have asked several Indians why they take these packs. Their answer was always enthusiastic: These sand packs have a wonderful healing effect on most diseases, but especially on abdominal disorders, nervous conditions and blood diseases. They have told me of many dramatic cases of miraculous cures accomplished by these packs. There is no doubt that the combination of the osmotic absorbtion of minerals from the sea water and the therapeutic effect of cold water and hot sand packs has a powerful healing effect. Try a salt water sand pack next time you are on the beach!

By the way, these same Indians always take several bottles of sea water with them to the mountains. They told me that they drink it when they feel “out of sorts.”

*40\58\2*

In Europe millions of people each year go to health spas, “Bads,” or water resorts and take a water cure. Over 3,000,000 people in West Germany alone visit Bads each year.

The water cure is an old tradition in Europe. Cities have been built around mineral-rich springs. You have only to take a quick look at the German map to notice hundreds of towns and cities with the prefix “Bad” (spa) to its name, like Bad Neuenhahr, Bad Pyrmont, Bad Homburg, or with a suffix like Wiesbaden or plain Baden-Baden. Only when spring waters are medically recognized as being of therapeutic value may the town add the prefix Bad to its name. Some of these are big cities, like Wiesbaden, with a population of 260,000; some are just small villages with a few hotels for the water cure guests.

People travel to these spas on their own or on the recommendation of their doctors. Most Bads have several clinics and sanatoriums where medical doctors give an examination and advise on drinking waters from certain springs and/or using various other water cure facilities: baths, packs, swimming, steam inhaling, etc. The pleasant atmosphere of a typical beautiful resort town with many parks and lakes for walks and recreation, adds to the overall curative and health-restoring atmosphere.

*32\58\2*

Dr. Bircher-Benner’s discovery, (or I should say “rediscovery,” since it had been known to ancient physicians) of the healing power of raw foods was made long before vitamins and enzymes were discovered. Although searching furiously to find out “why,” and using his discovery to help thousands of his patients, Dr. Bircher-Benner was not able to pinpoint in detail what factors in raw foods were responsible for their miraculous health-protective and healing properties.<íåèIn the last couple of decades nutritional science has leaped forward and advanced at an unprecedented tempo. In 20 years we have learned more about nutrition than in the previous 20 centuries. Now we know that the potent “energy” or sun energy, which according to Bircher-Benner’s second principle of thermo-dynamics is lost in foods subjected to physical and chemical devitalizing processes such as heating, wilting and industrial processing, comes from natural food’s vital, life-sustaining elements: enzymes and vitamins.<íåèEnzymes and vitamins are indeed the “Life-Force,” the powerful catalysts which direct and control all life processes in the human body. Yes, the secret of life itself is in the minute enzyme! Without enzymes your life would be impossible! Your life depends on adequate nutrition. Your physical energy, your mental capacity, the proper functioning of your vital organs, the healing and health-restoring processes—all depend on adequate nutrition of vital nutritive elements. Without enzymes your organism would starve to death, even if you had plenty to eat, because your body would not be able to convert foods into energy and into living cells. We talk so much about vitamins, proteins, and minerals—and they are all essential for good health and life. But vitamins can work only in the presence of enzymes. The food you eat must be broken down and changed chemically into substances which can build the human body. This is accomplished by the magic work of enzymes.

*24/58/2*

Notwithstanding the fact that liquid or juice fasting is not dangerous and could be safely undertaken without supervision at home, I would advise the average person, who does not have a borough understanding of all the phases and details of fasting, to ve his fast supervised by an experienced practitioner. This will ure him peace of mind and confidence in the treatment, which are imperative for the successful outcome of any therapeutic measures.

In Sweden, of course, fasting is a national sport. Thousands of Swedes, young and old, men and women, especially the members of the Swedish health organization Halsoframjandet (Health Promotion) fast for a week or two almost every year. These short fasts are considered to be an effective way to cleanse the body of wastes, build up resistance and physical stamina, and prevent illness. Contrary to the popular notion, you are not weakened or depleted by fasting—the opposite is true. The objective which induces thousands of Swedes to fast is the total regeneration and rejuvenation of all the functions of the body. These fasts in Sweden are done by individuals in their own homes, and without the supervision of doctors, although many who suffer from various ailments do travel to biological clinics where their fasting is performed under expert supervision.

*16\58\2*

In 1954 Sweden made headlines in the world press when eleven men walked from Gothenburg to Stockholm, a distance of about 300 miles, in ten days. During the whole march these men, who walked about 30 miles each day in rain or shine, did not eat any food at all!

They didn’t drink any juices, did not take any drugs, tablets or vitamins—nothing but plain water!

This fast march created a sensation not only in Sweden but around the world. Not only the average man but even the medical doctors did not realize that man can go without food for ten days, especially under such a severe physical stress. Many have heard stories of flyers who crash-landed their airplanes in the wilderness then died from starvation after eight or nine days; or of the lost mountain climbers who were starved to death after a few days. This dramatic fast march was the shock that forced people to re-assess their thinking about fasting. It made them realize that man not only can be without food for ten days but he can even perform a physical feat which many would not be able to duplicate on a diet of fat steaks.

The Gothenburg-Stockholm march received unprecedented world publicity right from the beginning. The world was not prepared for anything of this nature. Several doctors expressed their opinion that fasters would never reach Stockholm—they would die on the road. Large headlines in all the newspapers talked about “insane, mad, crack-brained faddists.” Doctors suggested stopping the project by force. Sweden’s largest newspaper sent a medical doctor, a specialist in athletics and sports, to check the condition of the fasters after about five days of march. Disappointed by the fact that he could not find anything wrong with the seemingly healthy and happy men, the doctor made his now infamous statement: “They remind me of a man who jumped from a skyscraper and while passing the tenth floor said to himself ‘Well, so far the flight is great!’ ”

Hundreds of thousands of people greeted the 11 men when they triumphantly marched into Stockholm. Medical check-ups, immediately after the march, several weeks and then several months later, showed that the men did not suffer any damage. Their weight loss was an average of 20 pounds per person, or two pounds a day.

*8\58\2*

Epsom salts, used as an after-shower drench, is an effective treatment for problems of insomnia, high blood pressure and bed-wetting.

The method is very simple. Each evening take a good hot shower to cleanse the skin and open the pores. Have ready a quart of warm water into which 2 ozs. of Epsom salts have been dissolved. When the shower (or bath) is over, slowly pour the solution over the whole body so that, as far as possible, every part has been covered. Then wait for a minute or two before patting the skin dry with a towel.

Because of its powerfully relaxing effect, this treatment can be a valuable aid in the relief of insomnia. However, each person will have to determine by experience how long to wait before drying, and how thorough the drying with the towel should be. Some will find, for instance, that if the body is not thoroughly towel-dried, they will hardly be able to get out of bed. The limbs will feel heavy and the whole body will be so relaxed that they will wonder if they will ever move again. Needless to say, this is too severe a reaction, and the treatment needs to be modified for that person. When you do it, take note of just how much rubbing you do and be aware of the effect of the treatment on your sleep and upon your feelings in the morning. You will soon learn just how brisk the rub-down should be for you in order to give you an excellent night of unbroken sleep and a fresh awakening in the morning.

This treatment will not bring lasting results from only one application. It needs to be repeated every night. The results will become apparent gradually as the treatment is repeated.

What happens is as follows: The Epsom salts draw off the toxins thrown off by the skin while at the same time the magnesium is absorbed in part by the skin and conveyed to the nerve endings. Anyone who doubts that magnesium can be thus absorbed by the skin can have his doubts dispelled very quickly by taking a handful of Epsom salts, moistening it, and rubbing it on the back over the area of the intestines. If he does this thoroughly, he will find his bowels as activated as if he had taken a stiff internal dosage.

Some may say that the Epsom salts bath would do just as well. However, this would seem very doubtful since the bath would make the solution too diluted. To achieve the same concentration in the bath, something like two gallons of Epsom salts would have to be added to the average bathtub full of water. Case History

We know a woman who suffered from symptoms of high blood pressure. Her doctor tested her, found it to be so, and warned her of the need to get the pressure down. She went to her humble home in which was neither bath nor shower, and every night took the Epsom salts treatment just described. She accomplished this by taking a wash from a handbasin placed on the floor and pouring the solution over her, rubbing off lightly, and retiring.

On her next visit to the doctor, tests showed that the blood pressure was normal. While she faithfully continued the treatment, there was no return of the trouble.

Bed-wetting in children is often the result of a nervous or highly-strung disposition. It can also be caused by the irritation of high acidity of a body in a fairly toxic state. Epsom salts will take care of both problems. Bathe the child each night as described above. The Epsom salts will relax and settle the nervous disposition and also draw off the acidity. The result will be a dry bed, unless there is a cause of the problem other than the ones mentioned above. Again, do not expect that one application will solve the problem. It may take a week of nightly treatments before the desired results are achieved, and it will take continued treatment to maintain the results.

*38\62\2*

Case No. 1: Hamstring cramping.

This person was running on the beach and into the cold water when suddenly he felt as if a baseball bat had belted him in the right calf muscle. In intense pain, he hobbled back to his car and reached home successfully. He felt sure that he would be off his feet for days so he tried to get a pair of crutches to use. None were available, but the leg was steamed as described above. The next day he drove to the city, sixty miles away, and went about his business as usual, with only a slight limp. Two 2-hour treatments were used in this case.

Case No. 2.

Another lad suffered a motorbike accident in which his only injury was several broken bones in the back of his hand. By the time he reached the doctor, it was badly swollen. He was informed that the bones could not be reset until the swelling had subsided, in an estimated three days. He came to us and, using a cardboard carton, we made a little steam tent and steamed the hand for approximately three hours, which was as long as it took to get the swelling down. Every 15 minutes we would take it out of the tent and wrap it with a rag that had been soaked in ice water. He returned that same afternoon to a very surprised doctor who was then able to set the bones. The double action induced by the steam (sweating and circulating), had enabled the body to carry off the fluid built up in the hand.

Case No. 3.

A carpenter fell off a roof onto some rocks, badly injuring his shoulder in the process. He came straight over, and we put him into a full-body steam tent. This was done because the whole body was bruised and aching. However, we applied the ice water only to the injured shoulder. The treatment lasted about two hours. This was followed with a light massage, and the patient went home feeling comfortable. He rested the next day and returned to work the following day. It is his testimony that, but for this treatment, he feels he would have been incapacitated for the next two weeks, which was time off he could not afford.

In similar circumstances, another man was given two weeks of workman’s compensation, but with hot and cold treatment he was back at work in three days’ time. And another using hot and cold recovered over the weekend instead of being away from work for the predicted two weeks.

Case No. 4.

Working in the garden one morning, I accidently ran a prong of the garden fork into the upper part of my foot. It did not penetrate very deeply, but it did break the skin. Just then a visitor drove into the yard, and the incident was forgotten for the time. However, later in the afternoon while I was working at my desk, I began to feel pain in my foot. Looking at it, I noticed that it was swelling, but I still thought that it was not very serious. I decided to overlook it and kept on working, hoping it would take care of itself. Another half hour went by and the swelling continued. Now it was uncomfortably painful. There was no one at home to help me, so I had to devise a way to take care of the situation myself. I hobbled up to the house and set up a chair and a kettle so I could sweat the affected foot. I also wanted to disperse the build-up of fluid, so I placed my steam tent beside the refrigerator. Then I took two wet face-cloths and put them in the freezing compartment. Now I was in great pain from having to walk on the congested foot. But, by alternately heating the foot in the steam tent and then wrapping it in the cold cloths from the refrigerator, I was able to find relief after about an hour’s time. The swelling did not show any signs of going down, but there was a softening of the tissues which helped relieve the pressure.

It was necessary for me to have more than one treatment, and during this time I made a few visits to the sea-side.

I sat at the edge of the water and allowed the waves to splash over it and massage it. Sea water contains many healing mineral salts that cleanse and restore health. This, together with the action of the waves, stimulated the circulation. An onlooker at the beach was shocked when she saw the condition of my foot the first day. I only wish she had been there later to see the effective results of using nature’s doctors in this instance.

*29\62\2*