The four overriding schools of thought in the medical model.

Under The Medical Mentality are 4 overriding schools of thought. Under the alternatives, if different diets to get well are included, are literally hundreds of schools of thought: from acupuncture to Zen. We do not intend to cover all these alternatives in our Live Food Factor book. Some are just modified versions of The Medical Mentality and on the wrong track entirely. Some seem harmless but do little good, either. When these “harmless dead-ends” and the sometimes phenomenal wastes in time and energy, not to mention money, are calculated into health-seeking, however, harm indeed has been done, since this Health Seeker ends up getting worse while taking the precious time traveling into each no-where-land. Sometimes, there is no coming back from these no-where-lands. There is no such waste when on the right track. Every alternative program that is firmly based in correct human physiology and health sciences and that shows how the body is self-healing if the causes of disease are removed and the conditions for health are provided is on the right track. But only one is the best of all the hundreds. In this Chapter 4, we lay out 2 paradigms: the medical model and the alternative model known as “Natural Hygiene” which is best summarized as “Health by Healthful Living!”

The Conventional Paradigm: The Medical Model of Disease & it’s 4 traditional schools of thought.

The Medical Mentality is represented by 4 primary, traditional schools of thought:

  1. The Mystery School
  2. The Wear-and-Tear School
  3. The Genetic/Congenital School
  4. The Germ Theory School

The Mystery School

The Mystery School of disease origin is based on the assumption that the body is fundamentally flawed, that it will break down and contract or be stricken with disease, and that nobody really knows exactly why or what to do about it. In the case of “disease as a mystery,” how doctors handle such cases is shrouded with occult factors. We are told that the causes of some diseases and their cures are simply “baffling,” “mysterious,” or “unknown.” These explanations are backed up by admonition and intimidation to “follow doctors orders” and to never go outside the establishment for cures. The Mystery School is turned to when the other 3 schools fail utterly and probably accounts for about 10%, more or less, of conventional doctor and hospital case files in recent times.

The Wear-and-Tear School

The second school of thought under the medical model is based on the assumptions that the body is fundamentally flawed in design, that it will break down as time marches on by virtue of “wear-and-tear,” and that disease is inescapable and disrepair inevitable. Dentistry and ophthalmology (eye doctoring) and orthopedic, replacement, and reconstructive surgeries are representative of this school. Some in The Wear-and-Tear School do acknowledge that the lifestyle choices primarily of wrong-nutrition, under-exercise, and over-stress have been known to accelerate breakdown. But most doctors and patients have little faith in the human ability to change these lifestyle habits and even less in the human psyché to be inspired to change. Wear-and-tear doctors, therefore, handle diseases with a “We can fix it!” approach. The medical doctors turn to administering drugs, performing surgeries to replace worn out parts or get rid of them completely, replacing blood, and generally doing what is necessary to get a few more weeks, months, or years in for their patients until inevitable and final breakdown occurs. In addition to many other diseases, such as arthritis, obesity, and chronic fatigue, 3 of the top 4 Killer Diseases in America today are all wear-and-tear situations: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cirrhosis of the liver. Wear-and-tear patients, therefore, probably account for 70%, or much more, of conventional doctor and hospital case files in recent times.

The Genetic/Congenital School

The third school of thought under the medical model explains the ongoing disease processes in the body as flawed-genetics, as a diseased destiny stored within one’s DNA; and no cure is offered in most all cases. While it is true that some diseases are genetically determined and thus not preventable, such conditions are extremely rare compared to the numbers of sick people seeking medical intervention for wear-and-tear and germ-related disease situations. Flawed genetics or flawed-at-birth patients account for 2% – 5%, or even less, of conventional doctor and hospital case files in recent times. Dr. Lipton states: “Some diseases, like Huntington’s chorea, beta thalassemia and cystic fibrosis, can be blamed entirely on one faulty gene. But single-gene disorders affect less than two percent of the population” (The Biology of Belief, p. 51). Dr. Lipton even cites a study in which the improved diet of mice prevented their genetic diseases from being passed on (p. 71).

In the most comprehensive study on nutrition ever conducted, genes were found to be virtually irrelevant compared to diet (The China Study, T. Colin Campbell, p. 71). Gabriel Cousens, M.D., corroborates Campbell when he points out that genes themselves don’t cause disease, but rather, that an unhealthy lifestyle and poor diet can change gene expression in such a way as to develop disease. What we eat and the toxins to which we expose ourselves affect our genes. Dr. Vetrano re-emphasizes the conclusions of both men: “Good nutrition is very often master of heredity. And many Health Seekers who have had so-called ‘genetic diseases’ have recovered, employing fasting followed by an uncooked diet of fresh fruits, vegetables, and nuts and seeds. Supply the body with the correct diet and with all the requisites of life, and it is possible that even genetic errors, damaged genes, and mishaps at birth (congenital defects) may be corrected fully or to some extent.” In addition, gerontologists now agree that 75% of a person’s health after the age of 40 depends not on genetics, but on what that person has done to keep his genes healthy. About 80% of our health status is determined by diet, lifestyle choices, and other environmental factors. (See my Appendix F.) This is why identical twins can grow up with very different results. One can stay very youthful and healthy well into old age by practicing healthy habits, while the other, who breaks every law in the healthful-living book, inevitably experiences disease and debility early in life, by comparison. Even the Human Genome Project researchers align with this 80% determination, stating that genes are only a part of the story. The book Genetic Nutritioneering: How You Can Modify Inherited Traits and Live a Longer, Healthier Life by Jeffrey S. Bland, Ph.D., shows that scientists now have a huge amount of evidence that many diseases previously attributed to “bad genes” are now known to be caused by a bad diet that “feeds the genes,” affecting them for the worse.

The Germ Theory

The fourth school of thought under the medical model of disease is The Germ Theory School: it holds that disease-producing microorganisms, either present in the body or by introduction, are the sole, causative factor in disease. The cure is to get rid of the germs, almost exclusively, with drugs, usually via injections. This school of thought probably accounts for 30% – 40% of conventional doctor and hospital case files in these recent, pandemic-phobic times. The Germ Theory is so pervasive in the collective American consciousness, and its basic tenets still operating so powerfully today, that a separate section is devoted to this theory later in another chapter.

The best model of disease of origin: Toxemia Theory

“Health by Healthful Living!” Via Natural Hygiene

Einstein laid the foundation for virtually all of the natural health care models when he showed the world that everything, including the human body, at its most fundamental level, is vibrating energy that follows natural laws. If we cooperate with the natural laws of our being, we will have health. The many alternative, holistic models of disease origin and health care that are on the right track are thus all energy-oriented. The alternative health care movement shook the world in 1986 when Fit for Life, the all-time best seller in diet and nutrition in history, made “Natural Hygiene” a common household term in millions of homes worldwide. Health via raw foods is the alternative movement now gaining the most momentum. As far as I am concerned, The Live Food Factor is so far superior in scope, content, research, organization, and especially correct recipes to Fit for Life that our book should now be heralded as “The New, All-time Best Seller in Diet & Nutrition in History!” Only time will tell if those of us sharing and promoting our Live Food Factor will make that happen. First, we must capture the global imagination of Health Seekers and spark them with inspiration that produces motivation to do right! In our new millennium, the people are becoming so well informed that they are rejecting the medical route and choosing the Natural Hygiene road to recovery. With our system, we learn this sequence of events: we get sick because we become toxic, and we become toxic because our bodies run low in Nerve Energy. I simply teach:

“Disease is an energy crisis in the body!”

Virtually every new Health Seeker gets this and wants to know more about Natural Hygiene!

Since 1832, Natural Hygiene has been waved under the banner of “Health by Healthful Living!” For 25 years now, I have taught Natural Hygiene under banner of “The Superlative, Alternative Health Care System!” Its popularity is growing because it is systematically grounded in human physiology and the health sciences. It gets the best results for sick and suffering Health Seekers. For most sick people, it is the only route that gets good results at all. When Dr. Vetrano, Susan, and I speak of “The 10 Energy Enhancers” or “health care based on The Natural, Physiological Laws of life” or “Health by Healthful Living!” from this point on, therefore, we are speaking of all alternative health care systems based on principles that are on the right track and that align with those of the best systematic body of natural healing knowledge and health care known as “Natural Hygiene.” To the degree the alternatives do so, to that degree will they be successful in helping Health Seekers get well and stay well.

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