By the word ‘drugs’ we mean all such branded or generic medicines which are prescribed and used. Dissemination of medicinal and medical aspects, through Audio, Video and other media have generated general awareness and awakening even among village folk. This has given impetus to self-medication and counter-selling – not to speak of quackery and their trade pranks.
Most of the people are not, at all, aware of side-effects of certain drugs which, if indiscreetly used, may or may not rid the patient of the infection from which he is suffering but will create new health problems for him. Our purpose is not to deride, criticize or decry any profession but we are decidedly against self-abuse of drugs and ever-ready counter-selling. Let the medical profession share the blame for not charging reasonable fee but for charging hefty consultation fee, expensive diagnostic clinical tests and costly medicines etc.
Cost escalation and hefty medical charges have landed the. poor arid helpless patients at the mercy of quacks and chemists who, unmindful of the ravages and (fatal) side-effects, continue to ‘treat’ their customers (patients). Qualified medical profession must positively come forth to help the poor, needy and helpless sufferers, by drastically tapering down their hefty and pinching professional charges, thus not telling them a prey to unscrupulous persons.
I know about a doctor, in North Bengal, who still keeps a day apart for the poor and needy without charging any fee. There may be many more such benevolent and philanthropic gentlemen whose names remain still dormant.
If, at all one is obliged to use any drug for any physical disorders, it must be ensured that he is diagnosed, monitored and treated by a qualified physician only, and the patient must follow his doctor’s advice in entirety. Casual or lopsided approach must not form part of a patient’s approach.
Now, coming to fruit therapy (especially with drug-use has many inherent and apparent hazards and drawbacks) it hardly needs any eulogization. At least this theory is not harmful, has no side effect, is cost-effective and easily available. Toxity, too much heat or too much cold, which are considered to be basic causes of a disease, are dispelled and done away with use of raw fruits, their juices and vegetable juices because they are absolutely harmless, have no toxic or side-effects, provided purity of vegetable products used is assured and the means, adopted for extracting juices, are also neat, clean and free from all outside infections.
Pineapple, Orange, Mousambi and Lemon are such excellent juicy fruits that they are capable of purging out toxins and waste products from the body. They have nutritive, purging and food-value carrying fruits(some consider lemon under ‘vegetable category’). Juices of all those fruits can be blended and mixed also. It may be noted that all fruits do not possess nutritive and medicinal properties but their utility cannot be. denied.
Fruit juices also retard further degenerative process and also delay aging process. If fruit juice forms essential part of one’s dietary menu, most of the probable diseases and infections can not only be prevented but, if infection is in inception stage, its further advance can also be controlled. Those who live wholly on raw fruits, vegetables and their juices enjoy much longer, healthier and happier lives whereas those, who opt for fried, spicy, meat based diets, suffer from various diseases.
Some naturopaths have amply proved that they have cured ‘hopeless, and terminal’ cases, suffering from fatal and dreaded diseases like diabetes mellitus, serious digestive disorders, heart attacks and allied heart diseases, hypertension, gradual degenerative process of human body organs, cancer, osteo rheumatoid arthritis by giving raw juice of Mousambi (lime) Orange, Lemon which detoxified their bodies.
A doctor, in West Bengal, cured cases of inveterate tuberculosis by advising his patients to drink only ‘Dhabwater’ (Narikel Jal) or green coconut water which is purgative, restorative and nutritive and can be given to diabetic patients also.
There is no denying the hard fact that use of drugs destroys natural auto-immune defence mechanism of human body and too much drugging has perilous side-effects too. What is the good of such a therapy which, instead of providing a permanent relief, leaves behind host of other complications. Compared to this, fruit and vegetable therapy is a flawless and harmless therapy — if cannot cure, at least it doesn’t cause other serious diseases. Moreover, man is himself a product of nature and all vegetations owe their origin to nature and mother earth.
In order to fortify our observations, made heretofore, it won’t be out of place to quote Dr. M. Fyke’s opinion, “Food is anything taken into the body which is capable of supplying physical energy, promoting healthy repairing tissue and furnishing energy for bodily heat and work and aid in protection from diseases Man is the only animal who does not know instinctively how to select his right food and so the science of dietetics has developed. He is also the only animal who cooks his food which may become less digestible and not so nutritious as they are in their natural raw state.
On the other hand heat destroys natural vitamins and mineral to a great extent the green leafy yellow vegetables like spinach, carrots, beets, garlic, onions etc. taken in their raw state, will certainly provide natural vitamins in plenty’ Further pursuing this topic Dr. Llyod E Lewis also gives a note of assent and maintains that the green leafy and yellow vegetables like spinach, kale, carrots and sweet potatoes contribute vitamin ‘A’, riboflavin and iron to the diet, if taken raw.”
He further adds, “The citrus fruits, tomato and raw cabbage furnish ascorbic acid, iron while, other vegetables and fruits, may provide other vitamins and minerals. Therefore, the major sources of chief vitamins, calcium and iron are the green, leafy and yellow vegetables. They should be consumed in their raw state as far as practical.”
A cancer specialist of Auckland General Hospital; N.Y. expresses like this, ‘Man is the sickest animal on earth and he is the only one that mucks about with food’ and Dr. Eva Hill further adds: Eat your food the way God made it. Cancer is only one of the degenerative diseases, increasingly afflicting those who eat and drink unnatural food dosed with pesticides and reared on or grown on depleted soils.’
It won’t be an amiss to quote Dr Bendict Lust who said, “It is deplorable that a large part of the nutritive value of our foods is lost by irrational preparation, particularly over-cooking. The tender leaves and stems of fresh vegetables contain the largest percentage of alkaline bases; hence they are not only useful as garnishes but should (also) feature as salads, juices and vegetable dishes.
Foregoing excerpts, from authorities on the subject, will suffice to prove effectivity and efficacy of juice therapy. In India Mr. R.N. Chopra should be credited with carrying on research on indigenous plants, especially those having medicinal and food values, as detailed in his monumental book ‘Indigenous Drugs in India’ which is considered to be a leader and forerunner of many other books on the subject.
Let us not forget useful observations of Dr. Gay Lord Hauser who declares that ‘The almost immediate effect experienced by a fatigued person after taking pure fruit juice is due to the nutritions energy released by its fruit sugar-content, almost instantaneously utilised by the body. Natural fruit sugar is a great source of potential energy.”
As mentioned earlier lemon falls under both fruit and vegetable class. It is a rich source of vitamin ‘C. The author once restored normalcy to a close relative, who had colliquative perspiration, Vitality at its lowest ebb, was panting and was relegated to a virtual run-down condition. She was at once given lime juice mixed with sugar in a half tumblerful of plain water. So all those anxious faces, who were in a dazed state, were aghast when they noticed that the lady regained normal health status within ten minutes.
Later on, the above-mentioned preparation was repeated after half an hour of initial recovery. In a case of hypoglycemia (low sugar content in blood) collapse an old lady was given two T.S.Ps of sugar mixed in a 100 ml. fresh water and within 8-10 minutes she regained consciousness and was normal as heretofore. So many cases of fatigue, exhaustion, low-sugar content in blood, those in virtual collapse stage, anaemic (even of pernicious anaemia), unable to move due to weakness alone, (not due to any physical infirmity) can be treated and fresh lease of life given to them, if above lime-sugar-juice mixed with water is given.
Take fresh lime juice (5-10 ml) and mix up with 2 TSPs of Glycerine, compounded together in a glass of water, is said to dispel instant debility as also pernicious anaemia. But to hyperglycemic patient it should never be given. Those patients who are prone to sudden onset of low blood sugar content are, thus, always advised to always carry sugar with them in whatever form available. If nothing is handy let them have cane-sugar, any sweetmeat or else any cold drink or any easily assimilable food-item which contains sugar.
It is an unfortunate and deplorable fact we do not allow even fruits and vegetables to remain fresh. During off-season some vegetables are stored in cold storages and chemical preservatives are freely used with utmost indiscretion that in peak of off-season people get only polluted and stored vegetables which already have lost the nutrients inherent in them. Similarly prune fruits like oranges, mangoes, apples, lemons, grapes etc. are stored in cold storage, in an unripe stage, and are ripened with the help of carbide. This process destroys actual food and nutrition contents thereof.
Fresh and natural ripe fruits make up for deficiency of trace vitamins. Fresh fruit juices quench our thirst, provide a sense of satiation, nourish and nurture our body, regulate and revitalise blood and regulate its flow in blood vessels. In addition, they rejuvenate and revive our sloth and inactive body organs. They modify toxins and thus cause their elimination through secretory organs. In short, fruit juices provide a healthy and lustrous look to our body, reduce weight and obesity, clear up and activate digestive organs, clarify urine. If cost is the only consideration for the user even then they are much cheaper and far less harmful, if at all, as compared to ever-rising spiral of drug prices.
The views expressed herein are seconded by Dr. Paul Bragg when he claims very rightly, “The continuous and persistent practice of getting the liquid life of fruits and vegetables into the system is one of the secrets of keeping young. They revitalise the blood stream, giving a sparkle to the eye(s), colour to the lips and a spring to the step.” The only pre requisite is that fruits and vegetables must be used in fresh and raw form but without preservatives.
All the prevalent disorders of almost all the vital organs can be cured by regular and judicious use of vegetables and fruits—provided their use is health-based and disease-based.