With just over 10 years involved in the health field, there has been one area that has impacted Guy Jefferson more than any other.

Fasting….yes fasting!

fastingFasting is the voluntary and complete abstinence of all food & beverages except water. It has been used for thousands of years and is used extensively throughout the animal kingdom.

I personally have fasted, as have my wife Cass. Many of our friends and relatives have also fasted.

Over the years I have introduced fasting to many patients with very serious illnesses. To say the least, the results have been truly amazing.

There is a book by Dr Joel Fuhrman called ‘Fasting and Eating for Health’, and from the book it says.

Therapeutic fasting accelerates the healing process and allows the body to recover from serious disease in a relatively short period of time. In my practice I have seen fasting eliminate Lupus, arthritis, remove chronic skin conditions such as psoriasis and eczema, heal the digestive tract in patients with ulcerative colitis and Crohns disease, and quickly eliminate cardiovascular diseases such as high blood pressure and angina. In these cases, the recoveries were permanent.

Fasting enabled long time disease sufferers to unchain themselves from their multiple toxic drugs and even eliminate the need for surgery, which was recommended to some of them as their only solutions.

Dr Alan Goldhammer, who trained under Dr Alec Burton at Arcadia has run the True North Health Centre in California for over 20 years, has fasted over 5,000 patients with remarkable results.

Co author of ‘The Pleasure Trap’, Dr Goldhammer has also conducted a large scientifically controlled study on the positive effects of fasting on high blood pressure. The results were published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. This study alerted many medical doctors to the wonderful benefits fasting can have on hypertension.

Dr Herbert Shelton author of the book ‘Fasting Can Save your Life’ fasted over 40,000 patients at his health school in Texas. Indeed one of Dr Shelton’s patients, at least in an advisory capacity, was Mahatma Gandhi, who counselled with Shelton during his 21 day fast when Gandhi was in his 60′s.

The reality of it is, many who read this information will be sceptical, as we have been led to believe that fasting is tantamount to starving & that the practice is dangerous, not quite true!

Nothing could be further from the truth in fact! All animals go off their food when feeling unwell, as do babies & young children. We as adults mistakenly think that we need to eat to keep our strength up.

There have been a number of reports over the years where young children & even babies have survived 10 days without any food at all whilst trapped in earthquake rubble, provided they had access to dripping water.

FAQ’s about Fasting:

Isn’t fasting the same as starving?

No, not at all. When we fast, we drink water only, our bodies use non-vital tissue as fuel to live on. Thus things like fat, cysts, excess fluid, soft tumours, mucous etc are broken down by the body & used as food & fuel, the unused material being excreted by the body through any one of the 10 apertures.

This process is known as autolysis (auto = self, lysis= eat). We are then living off our reserves & the body is rejuvenating itself & detoxifying. Our bodies are designed to do this!
If we keep fasting beyond our reserves then starvation occurs, although this stage takes many weeks before it occurs. Fasting for 4 weeks is not uncommon or dangerous under the right guidance.

Why are there different lengths of fasts?

There are 2 different categories of illness- acute & chronic. Acute sickness is where we experience things like fever, headache, muscle aches & pains, anorexia (loss of hunger), sweating & shivering, vomiting, diarrhoea, prostration & extreme discomfort. Influenza is a common acute illness. There are many labels we give them. The supposed infectious illnesses are here included- measles, chickenpox, mumps, cholera, typhoid etc.

These crises are not to be feared. They are reparatory in nature, allowing the body to rid itself of its toxic load. They are not meant to work against us but are in fact working for us!

With these conditions it is critical that the person fasts & rests. Medication is working against the wisdom of the body. It is particularly dangerous to suppress the fever- this is where most problems get worse.

Take this example (true life). Medication was used on a 7 year old boy to lower a temperature with prescribed medicine to enable the fever to drop. Next day the fever returns, its job not done, only this time the fever gets higher. More medication is given. The spiking of the fever goes for 5 days with each rise in temperature aggressively medicated. Tragically the boy dies on the sixth day. The reason given by the doctor, quite wrongly, was the fever.

The fever was trying to kill off the virus, but wasn’t allowed to do its job because of the continual suppression of it by drugs. Makes sense right?

That child had no history of any health problems & was before that a vigorous & robust native child.

Indeed, in March, 2011, the American Academy of Pediatricians revised its stance on fever & advised that parents NOT routinely stop their children’s fevers.

A similar story came out of Vietnam in December 2005. A thirteen year old girl was admitted to hospital with Bird Flu. Immediately she was given Tamiflu & fever- lowering drugs. These were given every day, twice a day for five days until she tragically passed away, leading some researchers to cast doubt on whether Tamiflu should be the drug of choice in Avian influenza (Bird Flu). They missed the point! No drugs should have been given, especially to force the fever down.

A few days of fasting & complete rest was needed to enable the body to eliminate what was ailing it.

The second category is chronic disease which is longer term. This is where the body has given up the effort to eliminate the irritating internal material & instead has adapted to the internal toxaemia. In the process of adaptation the body then slowly gets worse, with diminished function & increasing deformity & pathology. Therfore the diseases of arthritis, heart disease, kidney disease, auto-immune illnesses & many other diseases slowly ruin the patient’s life, all the while being suppressed by drugs.

In these situations longer fasts are needed. Generally between 2-5 weeks is the time frame, depending on many factors.

With a longer fast, can I fast at home?

It is not recommended. This is where you need a very experienced practitioner to supervise the fast & the breaking of it. This cannot be emphasised strongly enough.

Do you get hungry during a fast?

Surprisingly not at all. The first 2-3 days maybe but after that you don’t miss food at all.

Do you feel weak?

Mostly yes. Your body conserves energy as far as possible. This is then used to clean your system.

My stomach plays up when I don’t eat. Shouldn’t I avoid fasting?

Again, not at all. Fasting will quickly allow your intestinal tract to recover its normal function. In healthy individuals, no discomfort like stomach cramping, headaches, dizziness etc should occur if meals are missed or delayed. These are not normal symptoms- they are signs something is abnormal. It’s what is called “toxic hunger”.

True hunger is not a stomach sensation. It is a mouth sensation- where one salivates when truly hungry.

I heard that you can feel unwell in the first few days of a fast. Is this true?

It is common to experience symptoms & signs of elimination, especially during the early stages of the fast. Headaches, muscle aches, vomiting or diarrhoea may occur although some people never experience them. Over the years I have found that in people who take social drugs regularly- tea, coffee, alcohol & tobacco- they often suffer during the early stages, not because of fasting but because of withdrawal.
How do you break the fast?

On small quantities of diluted fruit juice or watery fruit itself, depending on how long you fast. It is very important to not overeat when breaking a fast, particularly a long one. Have some self control.

Can you work when you fast?

Short answer…..No. Rest is needed for the body to conserve its energy for eliminating & healing.

What about exercise?

Again…..No. Normal movement is enough. Exercise will come later when health has been restored.

Do you take any supplements when fasting?

No. Nothing but water, as indicated by thirst.

Why isn’t Fasting used in conventional health establishments, such as hospitals?

A very good question. If fasting was actually used, there would be a complete revolution in the health industry. Medical doctors are not trained in nutrition, let alone fasting. They do not understand it, have never seen the rejuvenating effects that come from fasting & have never seen it used as a means of overcoming disease.

Dr Burton has had medical doctors come to him after seeing one of their patients or relatives fast back to health from serious illnesses, (which have no medical cure), & actually request that he explain the rationale behind fasting’s consistent efficacy.

The reason that fasting will never become mainstream is that there is no money to be made from people drinking plain water & getting well. Without being cynical, the power & influence the drug companies (Big Pharma) have over the medical training that doctors undergo at University, their hold over the governments & media is unbreakable. You must seize the initiative individually & not rely on conventional opinion. At the present time there are an increasing number of professionals who are themselves speaking out about the uncontrolled power of the drug companies & the needless suffering because drug use is so rampant & the many side-effects so deadly.

A highly recommended book on this is by Dr Ray Strand, called ‘Death by Prescription’.

What illnesses have you personally seen recover through fasting?

Wow, lots, but here is a short list

  • Lupus
  • rheumatoid arthritis
  • ulcerative colitis
  • crohns disease
  • severe & recurrent tonsillitis/appendicitis
  • hypertension,
  • angina
  • anaemia
  • ulcers anywhere in or on the body
  • pneumonia
  • bronchitis
  • nephritis
  • Bells Palsy (trigeminal neuralgia)
  • chronic migraines
  • asthma
  • IBS ( irritable bowel syndrome)
  • CFS ( chronic fatigue syndrome)
  • depression,

Infertility in men & women, eczema & psoriasis, endometriosis, gall stones, bladder & kidney stones and the list goes on. Plus there have been many people who have been extremely unwell but whose conditions defied diagnosis who have fasted their way back to robust health.

What if I can’t fast for reasons of time or whatever?

If you have an acute illness, you will be off work or school anyway so just do not eat for a couple of days. That’s easy. If however you have a chronic illness & you cannot fast then consult with a practitioner very conversant with the subject of Natural Hygiene, & be prepared to make changes in your diet & other areas. The results will be worthwhile, to be sure.

Where can I find out more about fasting?

As this is a subject that you won’t be hearing a lot about in the media, it would be worthwhile to explore this topic more deeply.

The following books & resources are excellent sources of accurate information about fasting:

 

  • Fasting for Renewal of Life by Herbert Shelton;
  • Fasting & Eating for Health by Joel Fuhrman;
  • www.healthscience.org (National Health Association);
  • www.doctorburton.com (Arcadia Health Centre);
  • www.healthpromoting.com (True North Health Centre California )

To learn more about the benefits of fasting, contact us today.