CONTINUING the basic idea of this system, which is devoted to seeking practically definiteness of results in both the prevention and cure of illnesses, the diet is also selected with these same objects in view this is the desire for obtaining definite results by the use of only certain foods. Contrary to the generally accepted opinion, man is not an animal capable of living safely on a great variety of food stuffs. When the true facts are generally known, it will be found that man is capable of subsisting properly only on a very limited number of articles of diet.
The principal test of the good quality of any food eaten is the ability of the normal person to continue to feel well shortly after eating; and to sleep well, undisturbed, continuously, without a single, marked awakening, practically dreamless and awaken refreshed and free of all complaints after a seven or eight hour period of sound sleep. During this entire period of sleep, there should be no awakening with worrisome, depressing or nervous sensations. Immediately or shortly after eating food which presumably is supposed to be good food, the person should not feel bloated, irritable, energyless, fidgety, nervous, depressed, belch acid or gas, experience pains in the stomach or anywhere else throughout the entire body or be affected with any unusual, uneasy, annoying sensations or feelings, which did not exist previously to partaking of the food. If any of these aforementioned unpleasant effects should be experienced after eating any article of food whatsoever, we may take it for granted that almost invariably the food was at fault and that the food was bad.
The food eaten is always mathematically exact in its immediate or distant effects on the disposition and feelings of the individual. If the food is good, the sleep will be sound and undisturbed. If the food is bad or harmful, shortly after eating, the person will not feel as contented and happy as he did preceding the meal. He may feel all sorts of subtle and peculiar sensations which he may not realize are the effects of the food eaten; often the individual is not conscious of these unpleasant sensations; they may only be experienced subconsciously. The sleep will be disturbed by annoying dreams directly in proportion to the amount of bad food eaten. If the food is bad enough, sleep will be shortened or there will not be much sleep.
This system has two additional tests for the quality, purity and safety of the food eaten. Good food will not constipate the person. The moment bad food is eaten, the individual will become more or less constipated, or the bowels will be sluggish. The degree of constipation will depend on the amount of badness in the food. Hence, the reverse of this is equally true. If a person is constipated, it may be taken for granted that bad food is being eaten. Bad food is food which contains traces of food poison. This food poison is a result of decomposition brought about in our foods by either germ action or chemical changes which occur naturally without the aid of germs in foods under certain conditions. A common expression for such bad foods is spoiled foods. This term does not describe the situation sufficiently. Many foods are considered safe for reasons of custom, habit and even appearance, which, however, are quite bad or spoiled, though this fact is unknown to most people.
It is amazing to realize what volume of our foods come under this heading; this is true of all preserved foods. As soon as man became capable of devising means for preserving foods, he immediately began to suffer from the evil effects of his own ingenuity.
The third test for bad food is partial interference with the freedom of the interior of the nose which comes on shortly after eating such poor foods, and more or less coating of the tongue. If the nose closes up even ever so little, thus interfering with free breathing, or the tongue becomes coated, we may be sure that bad food has been eaten. The worse the food eaten is, the more will the nose stuff up and the more will free breathing be interfered with, and the heavier will be the coating of the tongue. To the careful observer it will be surprising to note how definite are the effects of bad food on the complete freedom of the nose to breathe freely from both sides, and the rapidity with which the tongue soon acquires a coating after bad food is eaten. This partial nasal blocking or interference with complete nasal freedom is frequently manifested almost immediately after eating harmful foods. Really good and harmless food never interferes in the slightest with the freedom of nasal breathing from both sides of the nose.
The coating of the tongue will be directly in proportion to the amount of bad food eaten and the degree of badness in the food. If the tongue is very heavily coated and discolored, we may be sure the food was quite bad. It is to be remembered that the badly coated tongue is invariably due to both the sinusitis present in the patient’s nose as well as to the bad food eaten; and in most instances the badly or thickly coated and discolored tongue is due much more to the sinusitis than to the bad. food. The really heavily coated and badly discolored tongue is due principally to sinusitis. The coating of the tongue may be furred, very thickly coated, have an offensive odor, and the color may vary from a whitish yellow to a heavy, dark green, covering the entire tongue. The thick, badly coated and discolored tongues are mostly due to sinusitis; bad food helps to produce the coating, but mostly by intensifying the sinusitis.
It is also to be remembered that bad food will invariably increase the rate of the heart beat and hence the pulse directly in proportion to the amount of badness in the food. This is another good sign that the food eaten was bad.
The person may select his own food, providing the effects of the food are those demanded by these rules and principles.
The normal person may be sure that if his sleep is not exactly as demanded by these rules, then the food eaten was responsible; this is especially true if the individual is taking the antisepticizing treatments at the same time.
Ailing people, mildly or moderately ill, who are receiving the antisepticizing treatments, may feel the same way about their food; they may take it for granted that the absence of real, good sleep is due mostly to bad food.