|
Mark S. Blackburn, MBA
An Introduction to Natural Hygiene
Have you wondered why some people die so young? Have you ever
wondered whether humans were meant to be sick
and diseased so much of the time? Have you ever wondered whether
your diseases had causes and that by removing the cause you could cure the
disease. Or, do you ever wonder whether the pills your doctor
prescribes may, along with nasty side-effects only be treating symptoms
and not resolving underlying causes? Do you sometimes think
current medical practices are set up more for the benefit of doctors,
hospitals, and drug companies than for patients? Do you wonder if
widespread disease is normal? In the USA and most Western countries
90% of people die early from degenerative diseases. Yet, in some
countries today, less than 4% do. Are we doing something
wrong? Are they doing something right? Why don't our doctors
know more about health around the world than they do about dispensing
drugs? Do you wonder why when there is an exposure of a group of
people to a disease, some people contract the disease, and some
don't? Finally, does it bother you that every year US doctors kill
more US citizens just through toxic drug prescriptions than were killed in
the 14 year US debacle in Vietnam? In fact they kill 3x as many! And,
death by doctors (Iatrogenic Disease) is the 3rd leading cause of death in
America!
If you have ever pondered these questions and if you would like to
assume more empowerment over your own life and health and well-being, I
cordially invite you to examine Natural Hygiene.
-Mark Blackburn
Natural Hygiene is Scientific and Honest
Natural Hygiene is a method and system of healthful living based upon the
scientific method. It uses logic, reasoning, and observation to
derive laws and principles regarding healthful living. Whenever
observation does not yield hypothesized results, the hypothesis must be
rejected. This contrasts strongly with current US health
practices. Today in America the Medical Industrial Complex does not
admit the scientific method into healthcare principles. It admits
only the profit motive. And, with minor exception, it does not consider the benefit,
well-being, or financial, physical, or emotional health of the
consumer. Profit for the drug companies and their union drug
dealers (US licensed physicians) is their chief motive. Health studies in
the USA are conducted at the expense of corporations, for the benefit
of....yes, corporations---not for your benefit. For this reason
there is so much confusion on the part of Americans about health. In
fact, very few Americans are healthy,
and even fewer understand what health is, or recognize it when they see
it. Even US doctors have little idea what health is since they
seldom if ever see healthy people.
Natural Hygiene is based upon Proven Principles
or Laws
If a principle cannot be
observed and proven, then Natural Hygiene will not adopt it. There
are observable, repeatable, provable laws which govern human health.
For instance--if you take two men of nearly identical size, athletic
ability, mental acuity, health and age and give one 8 hours of sleep per
night and the other only 1 hour, the one receiving 8 hours will outperform
the other in physical and mental activities, and will be less prone to
diseases. This is observable and provable. If you've ever
spent a sleepless night, you've already proved this to yourself.
There are but a few central laws to Natural Hygiene and they will sound so
simple-minded and unsophisticated, that you may dismiss them as
childish. Please ponder them carefully, though, as it is the
ramifications of these laws which can start you on the path to a much more
creative, meaningful, productive, and healthful life.
-
Disease arises not from
exterior enemies in the form of germs, microbes, or viruses, but ONLY
from taking improper care of the body. If the body is not receiving
proper care, it can enter a state of dis-ease. Our
bodies are bio-mechanical beings. Just like a mechanical object
like a car, if our body does not receive the correct fuel, or adequate
rest, or sufficient oxygen, it will suffer and break down. The
body will make every effort to accommodate improper care and special
conditions, but eventually it will succumb to the ill effects of
improper care. This is similar to putting coffee in your car's
gas tank. Without the proper care, a car will not function
properly. The human body, like all life forms on
Earth will respond similarly.
-
There is no such thing as
medicine. Medicines, tonics, and elixirs have been foisted
upon an unsuspecting but faithful public for centuries. In fact,
all drugs are toxins--poisons. That is why they are controlled
substances. If you give a well man a drug, you will make him
sick! How could giving a sick man the same substance make him
well? It is logically impossible. Poison is
poison--Always. The body will heal itself in the absence of
poisons. it cannot heal itself when they
are present. At
best, drugs suppress symptoms. Symptoms, however, are the body's
method of healing itself. Do you have a cough, or congestion, or
an elevated temperature? These are all mechanisms the body employs
to rid itself of toxemia and heal itself. If you artificially
stop these mechanisms, you do not permit the body to heal
itself. The disease remains although some of the curative
symptoms have been suppressed. The suppression was accomplished
by consuming toxic drugs which will further toxify the body and
compromise one's health. And the disease remains. Health NEVER results from eating
pills. Health is the result of healthful living. Pills do
not occur in nature, and should never be eaten for any reason.
Wild Animals don't get Sick
In nature, animals seldom
if ever suffer diseases. If we look at our own class of
mammalia and order of primates it is extremely rare that a primate
in the wild suffers any of the maladies Americans suffer from. The
primates lucky enough to live in the wild are driven largely by instinct
and availability of their native foods. With the onset of
agriculture, refrigeration, factory farming, pesticides,
preservatives, grocery stores, processed foods, and businesses driven by profit
rather than human animals driven by instinct, the 'civilized' human race
has put itself into a state of deplorable health. The US
Surgeon General says 6 of the leading 10 causes of death are caused
directly by improper diet. Many experts say the figure is 9 out of
10. (Leading cause of death number 3 is improper care from our
Doctors). Logic should tell us that when 6 or more
out of the 10 leading causes of death is diet, that something is terribly
wrong with our diets). By observing the relationship between diet
and health the early Natural Hygienists were able to draw conclusions
easily. If they were alive today, they would be affirmed by the
correctness of their observations, and horrified by the accelerated
downturn in public health.
I will note here that while
improper food (fuel) is a rampant problem for all humans today, it is
especially so in western cultures such at the USA, Oceania, and
Europe. However, improper care of the body includes more than
dietary guidelines.
A Healthful Diet
We all learned as children that
fruits and vegetables were good for us. We learned that as we
cooked our food, it would lose vital nutrients and vitamins. We
learned it was better to lightly steam vegetables than to, for instance,
boil them. In other words, the more we cook, the less benefit we get
(from our food). We all intuitively understand that it is better to eat
ripe food, fresh food, whole food, raw (uncooked) food, organic
food. But, understanding this, how many of us make it a point to
insist that we eat a diet of predominately whole, fresh, ripe, raw organic
plant food?
Americans think they eat the
healthiest diet on the earth. The opposite is true. Imagine if
I locked you in prison and fed you nothing but raw potatoes for 2
years. Would that be a healthy diet? Most Americans would
intuitively say no. It would not have enough variety! Did you
know that during the German occupation of Holland during WWII, that
Hitler's occupying troops saved all the sugar and spices & milk (the
dainty, tasty food) for themselves, and gave only potatoes to Dutch
citizens. Firewood was tightly rationed, and it was very rare that
cooked meals could be prepared. Most of the potatoes consumed by Hollanders were eaten
raw....for two years. What do you suppose happened to the health of
these poor potato-heads? It so happens that Holland kept fairly
detailed health records before, during, and after the war. During
the German occupation there was no meat or dairy consumed, and their diets
consisted of primarily potatoes and edible weeds. The health
statistics spiked on the charts. Disease rates plummeted, the death
rate plummeted, and the birth rate shot up. The Dutch had never been
healthier. As soon as the war was over and the normal rich modern
Dutch diet returned, the death & disease rates increased back to
pre-war levels. Americans, too, would thrive on a diet
of uncooked potatoes and dandelions. (This is not to suggest that
potatoes & dandelions would be the optimal diet....but it does
correctly point out that such a diet is vastly superior to the average
American diet).
I have other articles on this
website describing what I consider to be a proper diet:
Why I'm in the Best Health I've Ever
Known
How Do I Eat?
Naturalism and the Anthropology of the Human Diet
However, let me
say that the proper diet for homo sapiens is about 50% fruit, and 50%
vegetables. All of these should be eaten in their whole,
ripe, raw, natural, organic condition. This is the original and
appropriate diet of man. Avoid grains, dairy, and meat, since the
human species was never intended to eat any of these. Like most other
primates we are not carnivores, omnivores, or gramnivores, but
are frugivores (primary fruit-eaters).
What are Health-robbing
things to avoid?
Avoid loud noise.
Loud noises especially industrial noises (and music with syncopated
beats which run contrary to your heartbeat) should be avoided. The
loudspeaker at your gym---if it is blaring syncopated music as 90+% of
them are, actually results in a significant, measurable loss of muscular
strength. If this noise causes enough stress that your
physical strength is hampered by 30% or more, it cannot be good for
you.
Avoid toxic
environments. Avoid, for instance, areas where there is exhaust
gases from internal combustion engines, paint or industrial fumes,
Hair Salons with heavy chemical odors. Avoid proximity to all
electromagnetic energy (whether from radio transmitters, x-ray
machines, cell phones, microwave ovens, etc.).
Avoid
unhealthful foods: All Dairy, Baked Goods (Breads, Cakes,
Crackers, Muffins, Pastries), Coffee, Meat, Fish, Fowl, Fermented
foods (including Alcohol), and Grains. The human species was
never designed to consider any of these as 'food,' nor do any of the
primates with whom we share highly similar anatomy.
Avoid a
sedentary life. We are beings created to be active and in
motion. Sitting for extended hours in front of a TV or a computer is
contrary to the biomechanical needs of our body.
What are some Healthy things
to enjoy?
Breathe fresh air.
Obviously, we were not meant to live indoors. This is not our
natural environment. Get as much fresh air each day as
possible. Sleep with windows open if possible.
Get adequate sleep.
Now considered to cause 10x as many car accidents as alcohol (according to
DOT & NHTSA) inadequate sleep and rest are pandemic to our
modern society. You will function better and you will live a safer,
healthier, longer life full of greater joy, accomplishment and
satisfaction if you ensure that you get adequate
sleep and rest.
Get adequate sunshine.
Really? Doesn't sunshine cause skin cancer? No, a
cancer-causing western diet (rich in dairy & meat & cooked,
processed foods) causes cancer. Sunshine is a life-sustaining
nutrient that is very healing and cleansing to your skin. Naturally
I am not advocating sunburn. Moderation is fine. But, generous
and frequent sun exposure is essential to optimum health. I take
most of my vacation time in the winter when it is too cold to sun in
Sacramento, and I head a lot closer to the equator where I can comfortably
lay in the sun for two weeks. Australia has more skin cancer cases
than any other country. My Natural Hygiene friends in Australia say
that no one following a hygenic diet has a problem with skin cancer.
Cancer is caused by eating toxic acid-forming American food which is full
of pesticides, poisons, amines, and many other cancer-causing
compounds.
Get
regular, moderate, varied exercise. Ideally 30+ minutes a day at
least 5 days per week. Try to not perform the same exercises all the
time. Try to change your routine frequently. Exercise the
entire body.
Enjoy
Passion and Purpose in Life. Be a lifetime learner. Get
your heart and mind engaged in worthwhile, fulfilling pursuits.
Individuals who have purpose and who support positive causes invariably
have better health.
Have a
Partner in Life. Many related studies seem to confirm that all
individuals do best with a partner in life. There are many physical
and psychological benefits which accrue from loving and being loved.
There are benefits which come from touching, and being touched. If
you are not in such a relationship, you might make special effort to
receive massages frequently. If you're in a bad relationship, try to
make it work. If it cannot, end it and after some time find one that
will work.
Practicing Natural Hygiene
in Daily Life (A practical approach the next time you get sick):
Incidentally, as I write this I
have not been sick in 4 years. That is the goal of Natural
Hygiene: to live in such robust health, that you never get sick, or
feel any discomfort at all (such as headaches, stomach aches,
menstrual cramps, bad breath, dandruff, psoriasis, cold clammy feet or
hands, body odor, etc.). And, since I have adopted and followed a
Natural Hygiene regimen, I have never had any of the discomfort
symptoms or disease of any kind.
If you are sick, remember that
you have departed from health--the natural state of the body. The
body is naturally self-healing. Only toxifying the body can cause
illness. Therefore you may need to carefully audit what you have
recently been doing which may have toxified the body. Probably you
will know. You may have eaten something the body is rejecting like
popcorn or cheese...two of the worst things any human can eat.
You may be severely run down from lack of sleep & rest. Usually
there are several factors at work. Yet, removing the most
significant contributing causes should result in rapid improvement, since
the body is naturally self-healing.
During my first few years
following Natural Hygiene principles, I would follow the following
protocol during sickness and I found I would recover about twice as fast
as when I would go to a doctor and go the 'pill' route. When sick, I
would immediately restrict my food to only fruit. Ideally you might
eat just one fruit per meal or one fruit per day. But, the key point
is to eat only fruit. Absolutely no vegetables, nuts, etc. If
you have never tried this, you are in for a pleasant surprise. You
will find yourself bouncing back very quickly if you eat only fruit.
Why is this? Fruit is the easiest to digest of our foods.
Fruit requires much less energy to be converted into fuel. Due to
this, it puts very little strain on your body to digest. Digestion,
by the way, is a huge energy drain on the body. Minimizing this
drain by eating the perfect food for humans (fruit) you will recover very
quickly.
What if you have no
appetite?
This is fine and no cause for
alarm. Your Aunt Margaret would bring you chicken soup in such an
instance and force you to eat. Can I let you in on a valuable
secret? Do you want to do much better in the future? The
body expends 60% of it's daily energy digesting foods! That's a huge
amount. When the body gets sick it will try it's best to heal
you. And, it will if you cooperate! For instance, if your
temperature elevates to 105, your body is doing this for a reason.
Taking aspirin to reduce the 'fever' merely disables the body's natural
self-healing intelligence which is absolutely superior to any physician,
drug, or pill. So, if you have a loss of appetite, the body is
saying to you: 'please do NOT eat anything until I switch back on
your hunger.' Why would the body do this? In nature almost all
animals if injured, in shock or trauma, will go for several days without
eating. This natural fasting allows (in the case of humans) the 60%
of your energy which gets directed towards digestion to be directed to
much more important tasks. In essence the body is saying, "we
have an emergency here. It is much more important to conserve &
direct energy now than it is to take in food. If I can save enough
energy by not digesting, I can overcome this toxification
(disease)." The average adult human can go about 40 days
without eating anything with no harm (and often with considerable
benefit).
To eat when you do not
have appetite is very harmful, and substantially compromises the
self-healing process. During a fast, the constantly working
digestive system can rest and reinitialize. Fasting has been a
regular part of many religious traditions. During a time of fasting
the mind and spirit of man often move into heightened states.
Fasting is widely followed in the animal kingdom during crisis,
injury, or disease. It is a very beneficial practice,
and millions of people around the world fast regularly. It is only
in the obese & sickly United
States that fasting is considered strange or even unhealthy. In
September, 2000 I suffered the only serious injury of my adult life.
The doctors could only recommend an expensive, invasive, potentially
debilitating surgery, and suggested that I would probably never fully
recover the use of my knee. I live in a downtown bungalow up 3
flights of stairs. The knee injury was a huge issue for me.
After several discouraging months, I decided to voluntarily fast for 10
days. During this fast my knee healed rapidly and remarkably.
There are numerous books detailing remarkable recoveries from injury and
disease through extended fasting. Fasting is a regular part of the
Essene's religion. They fast one day per week, they fast 3
consecutive days per month, 10 consecutive days per quarter, and once a
year they fast for a few weeks. Essenes
are the healthiest religious group in the world. They only eat
living plant foods, ideally that they have grown themselves. They do
not kill any animals or plants to feed themselves. They are at peace
with the universe as they dispense no violence to any living being.
Lastly, in a natural environment, fasting was sometimes necessary as
seasons changed and food became unavailable. It has always been a
part of the natural human existence until recently (especially in the
USA).
Conclusion:
Natural Hygiene is a protocol
for healthy living with a tradition of over 100 years. It has a
fascinating history, and at one time was the dominant health & healing
protocol in America. It was overcome by the drug companies who did
not want health to stand in the way of their profits. Logically,
Natural Hygiene could & should be called simply "Natural
Health." Interestingly the ANHS (American Natural Hygiene
Society) recently renamed themselves to the American Natural Health
Society. The ANHS has suffered the loss of many members during the
past 15 years because they compromised Hygenic principles and recommended
eating lightly cooked foods. Now, many Raw Food groups are springing
up all over the country which are essentially following the Natural
Hygiene (original) diet of whole, fresh, ripe, raw, organic plant
food.
But, many people do not know or well understand the Natural Hygiene
principles for health. There is an extensive body of knowledge, and
Hygenic Doctors have equivalent training to medical doctors.
There are several Schools of Natural Hygiene in the USA, and one notable
correspondence school (over the web) run by my friend Dr. Robert
Sniadach. For the individual who wishes to empower himself and gain
a new appreciation for the wonderful body they have, such a correspondence
course is highly recommended. It gives a superb grounding in NH
principles.
Here are a few Natural Hygiene Links:
Books dealing Expressly with
Natural Hygiene:
Awakening
Our Self Healing Body by Arthur Baker
(The best book**)
Fit
for Life by Harvey Diamond
Best NH Advice on specific maladies & conditions:
Dr. Bernarr's Site: http://www.HealSelf.org
Dr. Bernarr will help diagnose and suggest proper NH care to support your
body to heal over the phone for very reasonable fees.
A Consortium of Natural
Hygiene Sites:
Natural
Hygiene Web Ring
Houston
Area NH Site
(superb site detailing history & philosophy of
NH)
Natural
Hygiene Institute An Online School of NH
Dr. Robert Sniadach is Dean
Addenda:
Do
we need to worry about Anthrax?

Mark Blackburn
Return to Mark's Papers
Return to Mark's Homepage |