CHAPTER I.

“THE BLOOD IS THE LIFE.”

Its Structure and Function Depend on the Building Material.

Foods are substances which, when introduced into the system, supply the necessary material for growth, renewal and maintenance of the vital structures. Food is anything that nourishes.

Foods must contain the same elements found in our bodies. The body requires a combination of different food elements in proper proportion to produce a suitable diet. Foods are divided into five classes: water, protein, fats, carbohydrates and mineral matters.

Air and sun are also foods, but are not generally spoken of as nutrient.

WATER.

Our bodies consist of about two-thirds water. It helps to regulate the body processes, and supplies building material. Watery fruits and vegetables contain pure distilled water. The amount of water required for the average individual differs greatly. If water is added to our foods in the cooking process, a lesser amount is required for drinking. Wholesome, non-stimulating food will call for a normal supply of water between meals.

Pure water is as important as pure food. If you boil your water the minerals are deposited on the bottom of the kettle instead of in the system for bone-making material.

PROTEINS.

These are sometimes called albumen, and they supply the body with nitrogen, sulphur and phosphorus. They are great tissue builders; they also furnish energy and heat, in combination with fats and carbohydrates.

Sources of Proteins:

Legumes, lean meats, nuts, cheese, whites of eggs, fish, and the glutens of the grains. Milk contains proteins in the right proportion with fats and sugars to make it suitable as a food for infants. Oats, wheat, and rye contain more protein than other grains, and if no other protein foods are on hand, these can maintain health for a long time without harm.

FATS.

They are obtained from the vegetable and animal kingdoms. They supply heat and energy in the most concentrated form, and are also flesh-builders. In diseased conditions, where economy of nerve force is required, fats in combination with acids, minerals and gelatine can form a substitute for part of the protein foods.

CARBOHYDRATES.

These are found in large percentage in cereals and in fruits which contain stones and seeds, and in underground vegetables, including the lighter starches, such as sago, agar agar, sea moss and gum. Milk can serve as a carbohydrate for special conditions, being evenly proportioned with fats and protein it contains little waste. A certain amount of carbohydrate foods in the form of cereals is necessary in our daily diet, as they are rich in lime and fat—yielding material which is required for ligamentous and other elastic tissue. People who live on fruits, greens and nuts, or on fruits, greens and meats only, require a larger amount of protein food, in order to make up for the loss of cereals.

Teach a growing child that selecting and preparing his food is an important occupation. Do not allow a child to fill his body with trash.

MINERAL MATTER.

In an organic form, we find mineral matter in large proportions in green leaf vegetables, small fruits and berries, bran, rye, green peas, string beans, tomatoes, yolks of eggs and in all the outer skins of legumes, grains and fruits. The importance of the mineral elements in our foods has been little understood, so far. Of late, health reformers are beginning to realize that many serious diseases, such as tuberculosis, insanity and malnutrition, are the result of mineral starvation. Three-fourths of these valuable minerals are removed from our foods daily by modern milling, bleaching, and polishing of rice, wheat, corn and all the other grains. Not alone the minerals, but necessary volatile oils, acids, and ferments are removed by these processes. Refined white flour and sugar have been on the market for the last hundred years; and much time and health have been wasted with the writing of fashionable cook books, and the manufacture of anemic snow white cakes, crackers, biscuits and soft putrefying puddings and desserts, prepared with skim milk, sugar and eggs. The deficiency of minerals in these products has created an abnormal desire for salts, spices, and chemically pure sugar, followed by an additional craving for intoxicating beverages and liquors. The latter articles cannot enter into the composition of perfect teeth and bone, or gray nervous tissue; therefore, the result is premature death and many new diseases.

It is my desire to present in this book food combinations as perfect as can be produced from food material with our present methods of milling and preliminary treatment. Many people have become so delicate in structure that they cannot use coarse breads and cereals; therefore, a variety of different cereal foods have been included. Vegetable foods, such as are rich in minerals, have been added to the breakfast foods in place of sugar and beverages. In order to supply the body with the necessary amount of minerals, we must learn to eat greens for breakfast, until our so-called breakfast foods have improved in quality.

Keep the feet warm, the head cool and the stomach not too full.

Take walks out of doors daily and breathe deeply.

Do not wear tight shoes or corsets.

All foods possess potential or latent energy. The sun is the great positive element, and plants store up the sun’s energy. It is transferred to us through the eating of plants and animal foods. Through the process of oxidation this energy is set free in our bodies, and appears as heat and muscular power. This energy contained in foods is known as heat or fuel value, and is expressed in terms of a heat unit or calorie. A calorie is the amount of heat necessary to raise one kilogram of water, one degree centigrade. This is spoken of as a large calorie, which is used in determining the energy value of food. The small calorie is ¹⁄₁₀₀₀ of a large calorie.

The physiological fuel and energy value of the different foods is as follows:

1 gram of Protein yields 4 Calories 1 gram of Fat yields 9 Calories 1 gram of Carbohydrates yields 4 Calories

To determine the energy value of a food or combination of foods it is necessary to know first its composition. Then determine the weight of protein, fat, and carbohydrate in grams and multiply these weights accordingly.

Many people are under the impression that if a certain food is recommended as especially healthful, over-indulgence must be beneficial. All natural foods are wholesome; over-eating produces discomfort and disease. Some fruits and vegetables have high medicinal values. Specific foods prescribed in large quantities are useful for certain ailments, but not for a healthy individual.

Some people think that we become like the food we eat. This is true when the vibrations of what we eat are stronger than the vibrations in our bodies. All food consumed has a vibration of its own and unless the vital force within can change the rate of vibration of the food eaten and tune it to the vibration of the body itself, one cannot become nourished, or in other words “he becomes like the food he eats.” There is but one force or energy in the body, which is life or “spirit”. Under normal conditions this force has in itself all the power to harmonize with the vibrations of the foods taken into the body. Provided there is a demand for food in the form of true hunger.

Natural diet, deep rythmic breathing with corresponding exercises awaken latent talents within us and rapid mental and spiritual unfoldment takes place. Inharmony, disease and pain are caused by living a life contrary to the laws of God and Nature.