T o disobey the basic laws of the universe that govern our lives is to hasten our demise. To be sure, few people in today's modern society can live in complete accordance with the dietary laws, even if they so desire. Natural, pure, and whole foods are not always available. Our lives at the dawn of the twenty- first century often do not allow the simple living that is most conducive to mental and physical well-being. We can, however, make a reasonable attempt to do better than we have been doing. Avoiding a few simple things and doing a few others will go a long way toward ensuring a cleaner, better-functioning body. If we neglect to do these things, we commit nutritional "sins," which cause sickness and ill- health.
Nutrition and cleansing constantly interact and complement one another in normal body functioning. We have seen that the other side of cleansing is building and restoration. We restore and build with nutrition. Nutrition is the master science by which we supply the body with those elements essential to the building and maintenance of cellular structure and function. Structure is intimately related to function. It is a common saying in pathology that "disease is function gone wrong."
Human beings instinctively are evolving beings, seekers. They want to know what is on the other side of the fence. They want to improve their appearance. They want to eat, drive, and own the best. They
Dr. Jensen's Guide to Better Bowel Care
understand, to one degree or another, that they can have what they want if they make the effort physically, mentally, and spiritually However, I have found in my seventy years of practice that human beings can destroy their ability to attain their goals by committing the six nutritional sins and destroying their health.
My mother used to say, "Health isn't everything in life, but without health, everything else is nothing." People cannot reach their goals or live in happiness when their health is gone. The six nutritional sins are the causes of more health breakdowns than most people can imagine. No matter what a person's profession or daily routine, he or she causes problems in every organ and bodily function through the inadequate consumption of fiber; the consumption of too much fat and the wrong kinds of fats and oils; and the excessive consumption of pasteurized, homogenized dairy products, inorganic salt, sugar, and wheat.
The Inadequate Consumption of Fiber
Over the past few years, there has been a "bran craze" in the United States. Adding extra bran to the diet is necessary because our nutritional habits do not allow us to keep our bowels in good working order. Furthermore, some people look to oat bran as the means to lowering an excessive cholesterol level. Actually, eating bran does not have a direct effect on the cholesterol level. By decreasing the transit time of waste material through the bowel, fiber such as bran reduces toxic-waste buildup in the body. Researchers now think that fiber helps dietary cholesterol to be carried more rapidly through the bowel, thus reducing the chance of its being absorbed. It is interesting that in recent years the FDA has allowed food manufacturers to cite research on high-fiber diets when touting the health value of certain high-fiber breakfast cereals.
Although high-fiber diets are desirable, cholesterol can be lowered by more-efficient methods. Bran adds very little nutritive substance to the diet. Rather, its coarse protective covering acts as rough- age, which naturally stimulates the bowel to move its contents along more quickly. This is the main function of bran. But fiber can also be found in foods that have a high mineral content such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Our ancestors didn't need to add bran to their diets. The eating habits of Americans have changed drastically since 1900. We eat less than two-thirds of the fresh fruits, vegetables, and grains that our grandparents did. At the same time, our diets consist of more refined
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and manhandled foods such as white flour and sugar products, as well as commercially packaged and preserved foods. Just as the quantity of high-fiber foods is considerably less than it was at the turn of the twentieth century, the quality of these foods is also greatly reduced. It is no wonder that we now have a higher percentage and earlier appearance of diseases such as diverticulitis, constipation, and colon cancer.
The average Western diet includes 11.0 grams of fiber, as compared to 24.8 grams of fiber in the diet of Bantu tribesman. In rural eastern Africa and other primitive societies, there is virtually no incidence of diverticulitis or colon cancer, unless the natives adopt a modern "civilized" diet, as they do when they move to urban areas. The research of British surgeon Denis Burkitt (see page 52) comparing the diets, bowel habits, and bowel-related diseases of rural eastern African natives with those of British citizens living in eastern Africa has shown that the high fiber content of the food used by the rural natives is the primary causal factor in the low incidence of bowel diseases among them. One of the main differences between the African natives and the British, whose diet is much lower in fiber than that of the natives, is that the British have a much slower bowel transit time and a significantly higher incidence of bowel diseases than the African natives.
Nowadays, the National Cancer Institute recommends a diet that supplies 20 to 30 grams of fiber per day. Even the American Cancer Society is now concerned with diet. Table 7.1 will give you an idea of how many grams of fiber are found in some common foods. Note that the figures supplied in the table are based on several sources that differ widely in the fiber contents they give for the foods listed. This table is provided only to give you a general idea of the fiber content of foods.
Table captionTable 7.1. Fiber Content of Some Common Foods
FOOD | AMOUNT | GRAMS OF DIETARY FIBER |
Fruits | ||
Apple, unpeeled | 1 medium | 3.5 |
Banana | 1 medium | 2.4 |
Cantaloupe | % melon | 1.0 |
Cherries, sweet | 10 cherries | 1.2 |
Orange | 1 medium | 2.6 |
Peach, unpeeled | 1 peach | 1.9 |
Pear, unpeeled | M large | 3.1 |
Dr. Jensen's Guide to Better Bowel Care
Table captionTable 7.1 (cont'd)
FOOD | AMOUNT | GRAMS OF DIETARY FIBER |
Fruits (continued) | ■ ■: ?:■ V ■ ■«; ' | .. |
Prunes | 3 prunes | 3.0 |
Raisins | l A cup | 3.1 |
Raspberries | A cup | 3.1 |
Strawberries | 1 cup | 3.0 |
Vegetables, Cooked | ; ; 'i f ■ - ■' / “ | • i ' ;> '/ r '- .• d ■ A |
Asparagus, cut | A cup | 1.0 |
Broccoli | A cup | 2.2 |
Brussels sprouts | A cup | 2.3 |
Parsnips | A cup | 2.7 |
Potato, unpeeled | 1 medium | 2.5 |
Spinach | A cup | 2.1 |
String beans | A cup | 1.6 |
Sweet potato | % medium | 1.7 |
Turnip | A cup | 1.6 |
Zucchini | A cup | 1.8 |
Vegetables, Raw | ■ 1 ’ \\ ' . ••• . T. >• . it ' | ■' " V: . - |
Celery, diced | A cup | 1.1 |
Cucumber | A cup | 0.4 |
Lettuce, sliced | 1 cup | 0.9 |
Mushrooms, sliced | A cup | 0.9 |
Spinach | 1 cup | 1.2 |
Tomato | 1 medium | 1.5 |
Legumes | ■( ■ ' ; :i ■ V- ‘v; y.'' | ' |
Baked beans | A cup | 8.8 |
Kidney beans, cooked | A cup | 7.3 |
Lentils, cooked | A cup | 3.7 |
Lima beans, cooked | A cup | 4.5 |
Navy beans, cooked | A cup | 6.0 |
Peanuts | 10 nuts | 1.4 |
Peas, dried, cooked | A cup | 4.7 |
Breads, Pastas, and Flours | r ' 1 -? | ... . V , 'V :■ ' ; V;...■■■ A A ' |
Bagel | 1 bagel | 0.6 |
Bran muffin | 1 muffin | 2.5 |
French bread | 1 slice | 0.7 |
Oatmeal bread | 1 slice | 0.5 |
Pumpernickel bread Rice, brown, cooked Spaghetti, cooked Whole wheat bread | 1 slice X A cup Vi cup 1 slice | 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.4 |
Nuts and Seeds | V " • ■ • • ' .A | . |
Almonds | 10 nuts | 1.1 |
Filberts | 10 nuts | 0.8 |
Popcorn, popped | 1 cup | 1.0 |
Breakfast Cereals | ' ^ t 2 ,, ,v A" | ' *? * * % x ^ \ ' / v-; - . ' ■ |
All-Bran | M cup | 8.5 |
Bran Buds | M cup | 7.9 |
Bran Chex | % cup | 4.6 |
Corn Chex | % cup | 5.4 |
Cornflakes | VA cups | 0.3 |
40% Bran-type | % cup | 4.0 |
Oatmeal, regular. | X cup | 1.6 |
quick, or instant | ||
Raisin Bran-type | % cup | 4.0 |
Shredded Wheat | % cup | 2.6 |
Table captionE. Lanza and R.R. Butron: "A Critical Review of Food Fiber Analysis and Data." © 1986 The American Dietetic Association. Reprinted by permission from the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, Volume 86 (1986), page 732.
The Consumption of Too Much Fat and the Wrong Kinds of Fats and Oils
Surprisingly, fats are among the most useful foods, but they are also the most abused. Good fats and oils are efficient sources of energy, carry the fat-soluble vitamins to the cells, are necessary in the production of certain hormones, and make up the myelin sheath that covers and protects many of the nerve cells in the body and brain. The problem is too much fat and the wrong kinds of fats and oils. The average American diet is about 50-percent fats, mostly saturated fats, the animal fats that harden at room temperature. These fats are blamed for the high incidence of heart disease and other health problems.
Excess fat in the diet causes hardships for the liver and gallbladder, which aid in the digestion of fat. Heated fats and oils are among the biggest contributors to excess cholesterol formation in the body. We must stop taxing our bodies with pasteurized butters, roasted nuts, deep-fried foods, and other heated oils. Fatty foods such as
bacon, sausage, hamburgers, and foods fried in grease produce too much cholesterol in the body.
Heated oils such as butter, margarine, and vegetable oils are found in foods like cheeses and baked goods. In advertisements, the manufacturers of children's snacks highlight the good ingredients— for example, "real" fruit, granola, oats, yogurt, vitamins, and skim milk—but neglect to mention the hydrogenated or partially saturated vegetable oils and lard, sugars, and salt. Coconut and palm oil account for most of the saturated fats found in pudding snacks and "health" bars. These oils are saturated fats, which may not be harmful in moderate quantities—as long as they are not heated to high temperatures.
Among the worst fats are the so-called partially hydrogenated fats, which are artificially created. Oils—that is, fats that are naturally liquid at room temperature—are hydrogenated to give them a creamy consistency. Margarine is a prime example. These fats and oils are dangerous because the hydrogenation process creates chemical compounds that do not occur naturally in foods. These chemical compounds' long-term effects on the body are not known. Always read the label before buying any food product. You don't want anything that contains partially hydrogenated ingredients. Food products that contain these ingredients are what I call "manhandled foods." They are created only for convenience and profit, and ignore your good health.
Foods that supply good fats and oils include avocado, raw nuts, fish, goat's milk, and seeds such as flaxseed.
The Excessive Consumption of Pasteurized,
Homogenized Dairy Products
The dairy industry constantly promotes the notion that pasteurized and homogenized milk is "good food," especially for children. Milk products including cheese, buttermilk, ice cream, whey products, yogurt, sour milk, cream products, and cottage cheese—all pasteurized and some homogenized as well—account for 25 percent of the American diet. I believe that 6-percent dairy products in a diet is sufficient.
The average daily food regimen is 54-percent milk and wheat. Are we not ignoring the principle of variety? God's garden gives us a healthy range of foods! Asparagus, beets, turnips, carrots, fruits, berries, nuts, and all the other natural foods enable mankind to eat a balanced diet. It is not natural, however, to have so much milk and wheat in the diet.
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Cow's milk and wheat are two of the greatest catarrh-producing foods. They are common allergens and often provoke an immune-system response, the result of which is a catarrhal condition. In moderate amounts, pasteurized milk and wheat are usually tolerated well. However, the American diet is overburdened with wheat and dairy, and this is one reason why people who consume such heavy amounts of these foods are overburdened with catarrh.
Not only is cow's milk catarrh-producing, but milk products today lack the quality they once had. Coves are not fed nutritionally balanced diets because farmers are paid for the quantity of milk they supply, not for the quality. Soil and fodder are often sprayed with chemicals that show up in the milk in the form of residues and eventually lead to allergies in many of the people who consume milk products.
Pasteurization may have been justified when milk-borne diseases such as bovine tuberculosis, transmitted from infected cows and associated with unsanitary milking conditions, were a threat to human health. However, pasteurization also kills important enzymes and reduces the nutritional value of milk. Raw milk contains phosphatase, an enzyme that is essential for calcium absorption. Although pasteurization does not deplete calcium, it hinders calcium absorption because it destroys the phosphatase enzyme.
With the cleanliness and health standards imposed on dairy farms today, pasteurization is hardly necessary. The FDA admits to this by certifying the farms that adequately meet its strict cleanliness requirements to sell raw milk. In other words, pasteurization is a way of letting farms get by with reduced standards of cleanliness. The name of the game here is money, not what is best for health. It costs more, and thus would increase milk prices, if more stringent cleanliness requirements were imposed on dairy farms.
Scientific research indicates that homogenized milk may be one of the contributing factors to atherosclerosis. According to Nicholas Sampsidis in his book Homogenized! milk fat contains an enzyme called xanthine oxidase. When milk is not homogenized, its fat and xanthine oxidase are digested in the stomach and small intestine. When milk is homogenized, its xanthine oxidase is not broken down, but instead passes into the circulation, where it damages arterial walls and heart muscle. Scar tissue and a buildup of calcified plaque on the arterial walls are the normal responses to this tissue damage. Cholesterol and fatty deposits are then laid down along the roughened surfaces of the scars and plaque, narrowing the passageway and obstructing the flow of blood.
It has been demonstrated in guinea pigs that pasteurization and heating of milk and other dairy products can contribute to conditions such as joint stiffness. Guinea pigs fed pasteurized skim milk developed joint stiffness, hardening of the arteries, and calcification of the soft tissues. When raw cream was added to their diet, these conditions were reversed. A factor in the cream of raw milk, the Wulzen factor, was credited with the reversal.
Probably the most famous experiments pointing out the difference between raw and pasteurized milk were conducted by Francis M. Pottenger, Jr., M.D., and clearly set forth in his book Pottenger's Cats. (See "Francis Marion Pottenger, Jr., M.D." on page 163.) A group of cats was restricted to a diet of raw milk and raw meat, while a second group was fed only pasteurized milk and cooked meat. By the second generation, the cats fed the pasteurized milk and cooked meat were unable to reproduce, while the other group remained healthy and normal. This classic experiment pointed out the benefits of raw foods as opposed to heated or cooked foods.
As I already mentioned, both pasteurization and homogenization are economically motivated. Pasteurization increases the shelf life of milk. In recent years, we have seen ultra-pasteurization (pasteurization at higher than normal temperatures) extend shelf life even longer. Homogenization forces people to purchase cream and milk separately, rather than to buy one bottle and pour the cream off the top, as used to be done. Pasteurization and homogenization serve merely as conveniences to increase profits for the dairy industry.
I recommend goat's milk, soymilk, and nut-milk drinks as substitutes for cow's milk. They do not produce problematic amounts of catarrh in the body. My recommendations are shared by many allergy specialists, whose first advice to their asthmatic patients is often to eliminate wheat and cow's milk from the diet. These simple changes often regulate these patients' allergies. Catarrh overloads the five main elimination channels of the body. When the elimination systems are overburdened, the result is a buildup of toxic material, which is at the root of many of today's health problems.
The Excessive Consumption of Inorganic Salt
When most of us think of salt, we think of common table salt. Table salt, or sodium chloride, is usually mined or obtained from evaporating sea water or Celtic salt. Our bodies require the chemical elements that salt provides. When salt is dissolved, its elements—sodium and chloride—are ionized and become two of the more important elec-
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