daily health tips

Fasting is the master remedy. The common cause of all diseases is the accumulation of waste and poisonous matter in the body, which results from overeating. The majority of persons eat too much and follow sedentary occupations that do not permit sufficient and proper exercise for utilisation of this large quantity of food. This surplus overburdens the digestive and assimilative organs and clogs up the system with impurities or poisons. Digestion and elimination become slow and the functional activity of the whole system gets deranged. The onset of disease is merely the process of ridding the system of these impurities. Every disease can be healed by only one remedy - by doing just the opposite of what causes it, that is, by reducing the food intake or fasting.

Instead of rushing to complete your day before your evening meal, consider fasting. Use the 2 to 3 hours you would expend on dinner to meditate and "recharge" spiritually. If you suffer a chronic illness, fasting is the best remedy for the treatment of disorders resulting from toxins in the system. general vitality. To begin with, try fasting on orange juice and water for two or three days. The procedure is to take every two hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. the juice of an orange diluted with warm water on 50:50 basis. If the orange juice does not agree, juices of vegetable such as carrots and cucumber may be taken. A warm water enema may be taken each day while fasting to cleanse the bowels. After the short juice fast, the you may adopt an all-fruit diet for about two days, taking three meals a day of fresh juicy fruits such as apples, pears, grapes, grapefruit, orange, pineapple peaches and melon. After the juice fast, follow a well- balanced diet of seeds, nuts, and grains, vegetables and fruits. This diet should be supplemented with milk, yoghurt, butter-milk, vegetable oil and honey. A further short juice fast or periods on the all-fruit diet may be necessary at intervals of a month or two, according to the needs of the case.

Fasting is highly beneficial in practically all kinds of stomach and intestinal disorders. It is curative and in serious conditions of the kidneys and liver. It is a miracle cure for eczema and other skin diseases and offers the only hope of permanent cure in many cases. The various nervous disorders also respond favourably to this mode of treatment. Fasting should, however, not be restored to in every illness. In cases of diabetes, advanced stages of tuberculosis, and extreme cases of neurasthenia, long fasts will be harmful. In most cases, however, no harm will accrue to fasting patients, provided they take rest, and are under proper professional care.

Not all fasts are equivalent. The duration of the fast depends upon the age of the patient, the nature of the disease and the amount and type of drugs previously used. The duration is important, because long periods of fasting can be dangerous if undertaken without competent professional guidance. It is, therefore, advisable to undertake a series of short fasts of two to three days and gradually increase the duration of each succeeding fast by a day or so. The period of the fast, however, should not exceed a week of total fasting at a time. This will enable the chronically sick body to gradually and slowly eliminate toxic waste matter without seriously affecting the natural functioning of the body. A correct mode of living and a balanced diet after the fast will restore vigour and vitality to the individual.

Only very simple exercises like short walks may be undertaken during the fast. A warm water or neutral bath may be taken during the period. Cold baths are not advisable. Sun and air baths should be taken daily. Fasting sometimes produces a state of sleeplessness which can be overcome by a warm tub bath, hot water bottles at the feet and by drinking one or two glasses of hot water. The craving for food will, however, gradually decrease as the fast progresses. Seriously sick persons have no desire for food and fasting comes naturally to them. The simplest rule is to stop eating until the appetite returns or until one feels completely well.

The success of your fast depends largely on how it is broken. This is the most significant phase. The main rules for breaking the fast are these:

Do not overeat.

Eat slowly.

Chew your food thoroughly.

Take several days for the gradual change to the normal diet. If the transition to eating solid foods is carefully planned, there will be no discomfort or damage. The patient should also continue to take rest during the transition period. The right food after a fast is as important and decisive for proper results as the fast itself.

Almond milk made from blanched almonds in a blender is very beneficial for ulcers as it binds the excess of acid in the stomach and supplies high quality proteins. Raw goat's milk is also highly beneficial. It actually helps to heal peptic ulcer. Cabbage is regarded as another useful home remedy for peptic ulcers. Cabbage is boiled in water. This water is allowed to cool and taken twice daily. The leaves of kalyana murangal tree, which is a variety of drumstick found in South India, have also proved helpful in the healing of the ulcers. The leaves of this tree are ground into a paste and taken mixed with yoghurt daily. Raw vegetables juices, particularly carrot and cabbage juices are beneficial in the treatment of the peptic ulcers. Carrot juice may be taken either alone or in combination with spinach or beat and cucumber. The formula proportions in the case of the first combination are 300 ml of carrots and 200 ml of spinach and in case of the second combination, 300 ml of carrots and three ounces each of beets and cucumber to make half a litre of juice.

Apples are considered valuable in the treatment of alcoholism as their use removes intoxication and reduces the craving for wine and other intoxicating liquors. The raw celery juice is also considered helpful. It has a sobering effect and is an antidote to alcohol. It is advisable that in the beginning of the treatment, the patient is given a suitable substitute to relieve the craving if and when such a craving occurs. The best substitute drink for alcohol is a glass of fresh fruit juice, sweetened with honey, if desired. In the alternative, wholesome candy may be taken. The patient should always have easily available juices, candy, or other snacks to be taken between meals if he feels a craving for a stimulant. All refined foods such as sugar, white rice, macaroni products and white flour and meat should be avoided. The patient should eat several small meals a day in preference to two or three large ones and avoid strong condiments such as pepper, mustard, and chilli. He should not smoke as this will only increase his desire for alcohol.

Fibre is essential to human health. Many are tempted to ensure their consumption of fibre by using just one source, usually whole grains. Unfortunately, eating too much wheat fibre alone can cause unexpected results, such as acid stomach, and, surprisingly, constipation. Fibre from whole grains must be supplemented. Beans and peas are as useful as whole grains as sources of fibre. Legumes have high fibre content. Much of this fibre is water- soluble, which makes legumes likely agents for lowering cholesterol. Soyabeans, besides this, can also help control glucose levels.

The beet juice has also proved valuable in arteriosclerosis. It is an excellent solvent for inorganic calcium deposit. Juices of carrot and spinach are also beneficial. These juices can be taken individually or in combination. Formula proportions found helpful when used in combination are carrot 300 ml and spinach 200 ml to prepare 500 ml of juice. Any juice provides the potassium needed for general health of the circulatory system. Favour vegetable juices is there is also any "red" condition: red skin, red face, fever, inflammation, or toxicity. Favour fruit juices is there is any "cold" condition: clammy skin, fatigue, or obesity without toxic symptoms.