Some Common Diseases Of The Skin

5. Some Common Diseases Of The Skin

The skin is prone to diseases from external and from internal causes. Exposure to physical or chemical irritants can cause inflammatory conditions to develop. Contact with vegetable poisons such as that associated with poison ivy can have adverse effects as can sunburn from over-exposure to the ultraviolet rays of the sun. However, the most common cause of skin diseases is toxicosis or autointoxication.

5.1 As Recorded in Ancient Works

Even a casual study of the history of the diseases affecting the skin reveals that man has not made any progress by treating them although he has become more or less expert in the palliation of their symptoms. There is a standard joke among professionals in the field of health care to the effect that a dermatologist, or skin specialist, has the best of both worlds: “he never cures anyone but he also never has to bury anyone!” Most skin diseases are not fatal and most physicians think that these disorders were devised as a cure placed upon the world for the special benefit of their coworkers, the dermatologists.

Throughout history at various times different cultures have attributed diseases of the skin to many outside agencies. For example, several thousand years ago the Hindus thought that skin diseases were caused by worms which invaded the body and established their breeding ground under the skin. In the Bible we read about various skin afflictions but especially about leprosy which was, apparently, a rather common malady of the times. Moses himself described two forms of leprosy, one being a rather mild form the other a malignant kind.

In Europe, during the Middle Ages and even later, whole peoples were ravaged many times by fevers and by outbreaking of the skin which was called the “Plague” or “Black Death.” These plagues took huge tolls among the populaces of Athens, Rome and elsewhere, especially in Egypt and Syria. The scythe of the grim reaper made no distinctions among class or culture cutting across physical, cultural and class barriers.

We can read in the Bible about ten plagues of Egypt and it is said that God smote Egypt through the hands of Moses and Aaron in order to compel the reigning Pharoah and the Egyptian people to depart from that country.

Today, armed with more knowledge, we can look back on these times and realize that, when the early Israelites wandered over the known face of the earth, that they often lacked proper food and shelter. They were in emotional disarray, dissatisfied, disgruntled and annoyed, not only by the hardships they had to endure, but also by the actions of their friends and neighbors. They were enervated and malnourished.

Additionally, these people were often forced to embrace both customs and food which were strange to them. Their food was unsanitized for humans. Living conditions were less than ideal. Their clothing, their person and their surroundings were, in all likelihood, filthy. It is little wonder that they began to develop running sores, skin ulcers, boils, carbuncles, and even more serious skin disorders.

In more modern times the word “plague” has been restricted to the bubonic or pneumonic plagues. However, during the last century and even in this present century there have been occurrences of smallpox and similar skin disorders which were termed “plagues.” In fact, Dr. Elizabeth’s maternal grandmother became a “victim” of smallpox. Her story is not untypical of the times in which she lived, the middle 1800s.

Her name was Elizabeth, too. Both of her parents having succumbed to the disease, at the age of 16, Elizabeth was left alone to die, all relatives having long ago fled from the house fearing that they, too, might fall “victims” to the curse. They joined the multitudes of peoples, who, in their terror, were trying to escape from the devastating unknown.

But, the young Elizabeth was not destined to die. As she lay deserted and delirious in her room, she was silently joined by a young merchant of the community who had long admired her radiant beauty and her lithe and graceful young figure. Hour by hour and day by day he unselfishly and lovingly ministered to her needs. He was a student of hydro-therapy. He applied cooling cloths to her brow and body until the high fever subsided and the young girl regained consciousness and became aware of the loving care. John, for that was his name, gave her no medicines but fed her nourishing broths. It was not long before the young Elizabeth regained her health and strength and, of course, fell in love with her kind benefactor.

Because of her devoted care and also because of her personal penchant for cleanliness and for all things natural throughout her lifetime, grandma suffered no disfiguring scars and remained a real beauty up to her death at the age of 87. The young man who had worshipped her from afar continued to do so all of his life.

Our favorite story about grandmother Elizabeth is how, whenever she or one of the children became ill, she would have the doctor come to the house, examine the sick and leave his colored pills and instructions regarding the care and treatment to be followed. No sooner was the doctor out the front door than our little grandmother would scurry out into the kitchen, open up the old coal stove and toss the pills into the glowing fire. Then, out the back door she’d go, into the garden to gather greens of one kind or another. Then, she would brew up her “tizzy,” as she called it (a broth of greens). This would be the only food taken until recovery was assured. We believe that grandma Elizabeth was one of the first Hygienists! She had no faith in pills. The best place for poisons in her opinion, was on the open fire!

In this century, of course, there have been “epidemics” of acute diseases, especially of influenza, some of which are said to have caused the death of thousands upon thousands of people, as in World War I. We don’t ordinarily consider influenza as a disease of the skin but from the knowledge we have already
learned of the structure of the skin, we now know that that is actually what it is, involving, as it does, the mucous and serous membranes.

Up until recently, it was the custom to quarantine any person who developed an “infectious” disease of the skin such as chickenpox, measles, smallpox, and similar acute disorders. Only physicians, ministers, priests, and other persons of stature were permitted to enter quarantined premises.

Such precautions were deemed necessary because, at that time, the medical community and most of the people believed (and unfortunately most still do) that all such conditions were caused by an “infectious” germ or other microscopic organism that entered the body and produced the annoying pustule or rash. It war the general belief then, as now, that these demons of destruction could be airborne, passed on by sneezing, by touching an infected surface or person, and then they could “invade” the unwary victim’s body to commence their devastating work.

This voodooistic theory of the origin of the skin diseases still receives enthusiastic support from a large segment of the medical community, from drug combines and gadget manufacturers, but more and more thinking scientists are abandoning it in view of new microscopic revelations which have been forthcoming since the invention of the electron microscope with its confirmation of the existence of cellular garbage and the possibility of such having an adverse effect on systemic and cellular efficiency of performance.

Those of us who are students of the science of life believe that self-generated toxins are the basic underlying cause of all diseases, including those which affect the skin. We further believe that when these toxins are normally removed, they do not accumulate unduly within the system. Then disease becomes impossible. Skin disorders are a very unlikely possibility, except as resulting from certain traumatic happenings.

5.2 Herpes Simplex

As mentioned at the beginning of this lesson, there are so many different kinds of skin diseases that it is virtually impossible to imagine them, to say nothing of classifying them. However, probably fever blisters might be considered the most common affliction of man, and it is especially common among children in the one-to-five age group. It is characterized by groups of small, very itchy lesions which appear on the lips. With children, but more often among adults, these lesions may occur on the nose, face, ears, genitals, or any of the mucous membranous surfaces. They are considered by medical science to be the consequence of an “attack” by a virus but, strangely enough and unexplained by medical authorities, the condition is “self-limiting,” that is, it usually disappears, the lesions healing, within a week or two. In medicine, this is known as “spontaneous healing.” The virus is thought to remain dormant in the tissues, becoming active in the presence of “trigger mechanisms,” these being fever, physical and/or emotional stresses, overexposure to sunlight, certain foods and, perhaps, even drugs. Medically, the disorder is known as “herpes simplex.”

Life Scientists know that the skin reflects the condition of the body and it is interesting in studying the process of degeneration within humans to realize that, following enervation of the nervous system, that the digestive system is the first to give way to a condition which obviously can lead to widespread malnutrition. But, we must also note that enervation and reduced energy flow are due primarily to errors in nourishing the body leading to build-up of toxic metabolites. When the liver gets so overloaded with these metabolites that it is really struggling to maintain the “status quo,” then it is that the “trigger” may tip the scales with resulting diversion of excess debris to the pore exit points.

Obviously, the method of “cure” should not be massive doses of this or that, the application of topical salves or ointments, but rather to get at the source of the trouble, poor nourishment and an intoxicating lifestyle. When the individual adopts a correct way of eating and living, the fever blisters and cold sores, and other skin disorders, soon become a matter of history and no longer a matter of concern. The fact that medical science must term this self-limiting disease, herplex simplex, seems to us just a way to keep patients coming back again and again, at great financial loss to them when, in fact, the “cure” lies within themselves. Some $200,000,000.00 a year is spent on “remedies” to “treat” simplex!

Dr. Roger J. Williams has stated that, “The skin, partly because circulation does not supply it with copious nutrition, is notoriously sensitive to nutritional lacks.” He states that the tongue, lips and gums are “favorite regions where nutritionists look to detect evidence of malnutrition.” Of course, Dr. Williams advocates “dosing” patients with skin disorders with high intakes of specific vitamins, but our students have already learned that such practice can prove highly detrimental in the long run.

Using the fast to detoxify the system and realign nutritional forces within the system is the most rapid, most effective and least expensive method to rectify all skin and body disorders and, let us acknowledge, also the most beneficient.

It is interesting in considering nutrition and the health of the skin to note that diseases of the mucous membranes lining the oral cavity affect 75 percent of all adults over 50 years of age. Periodontal disease is the most common condition afflicting these people. Medical science again, as always in their quest for isolated causes, attributes such conditions to long-term reactions of the body to certain bacteria and their products. However, more recently, four researchers from the University of Washington in Seattle presented a paper at the annual meeting of the American Association for Dental Research in which they stated that “very few people become sufficiently deprived of vitamin C these days to develop scurvy, which results in severely damaged periodontal (gum) tissues, but many individuals may not consume enough fresh fruit and vegetables to maintain adequate levels of this vitamin.” Life Scientists have long known that few people, and especially in America, eat as they should. In fact, only Natural Hygienists have any concept of what a physiologically correct diet encompasses, namely, eating a preponderance of fresh ripe fruit with limited amounts of leafy green vegetables, non-sweet fruits, nuts and seeds, and eating these as and when required as evidenced by true hunger and in amounts not in excess of body needs. Eating this kind of diet contributes to a smoothly grained skin, faultlessly perfect, wrinkle-free and radiantly beautiful. This kind of eating carries a guarantee, all other life practices being equally conducive to superior health: the kind of beauty that lasts for a lifetime—a much longer lifetime!

5.3 Diseases of the Skin as Outer Manifestations of Inner Toxicity

The skin is always talking and revealing. It can reveal to a competent observer just how well the body is getting along, whether the pathways are clogged with litter or whether the fluids, especially the blood, flow free and clean. When the skin looks like fine pinkish porcelain, it shouts to the world that the body is radiantly alive. But, when it is dull, pale, or yellow in hue or when it has enlarged pores or an abnormally deep flush and pimpled surface, is wrinkled, or has that deadly grey look, then it tells an unhappy story.

Such a countenance reveals a pathetically encumbered inner world, the pathways and byways of which have become obstructed, saturated, the blood thick with debris; debris that is silently and stealthily burning and irritating, working to destroy the tissues of the body. It tells of metabolic avenues and cell factories filled with garbage and of millions of enzymes floundering helplessly in the face of so
much toxic wastes. The cause? Systemic malnourishment—inner toxicity.

5.4 Some External Signs of Inner Toxicity

1. Excessive paleness which may be indicative of:

• Anemia
• Dysemia (any abnormal condition of the blood)
• Leukemia
• Bright’s Disease
• Amyloid Degeneration (occurs characteristically as pathologic extracellular deposits beneath the layer of flat cells of capillaries and arterioles. These deposits interfere with normal function and can lead to very serious disorders including infarction of the heart and even cancer.)

Paleness combined with profuse sweating and strong acid odor:

• Articular rheumatism
• Strong emotional outbursts: uncontrolled anger, fear, jealousy, etc.
• Spasms in the arteries and veins. Fainting spells.

Redness of the skin:

• Capillaries in the face may have a tendency to burst.
• Too much blood concentration in a particular area.
• An abnormal state which can make the individual stroke-prone.
• If frequent headaches are also present, there may be present some congestion in the brain.
• When combined with swelling and mild scaling visible on the skin, the skin may be photosensitive at this time with a more gradual exposure to develop pigment advisable. Extreme saturation of tissues and organs with animal protein wastes.

Shiny, tight, skin:

• Due generally to a previous history of high salt intake either in foods such as canned vegetables or applied topically to foods.
• Due, also, to excessive drug taking, both prescribed and over-the-counter drugs are chemical compounds containing sodium, the main ingredient of table salt and the causative agent in most cases of shiny tight skin.

5.5 Relation of Cause to Effect

By this time in your studies the student should be convinced that saturation of the fluids of the body, especially the blood, with toxic metabolites and/or other poisons is the underlying cause of all diseased conditions, exempting, of course, those directly attributable to some major trauma. This is true of skin
disorders also.

Certainly we can say without fear of contradiction that no person should be considered even reasonably healthy who has a sick skin, especially when the condition persists. The acne of the teenager is a forerunner of more involved diseases to come, while the more serious and I vertical skin conditions such as chronic eczema, psoriasis, ichthyosis (fish skin disease) speak a language all of their own and are the visible signs of cellular malfunctioning, organic degeneration and systemic pollution, all of which have been brought about by faulty eating and living habits. They are certainly not the product of a sudden invasion by germs, viruses or other unknown “demon.”

Once the real cause of the disorder has been determined and then removed and a more physiologically sane method of eating and living has been established and then maintained for a sufficiently long period of time, the skin disorder, regardless of its nature or origin, usually disappears and thereafter can be kept under control.

Often unnecessarily, over the years, the once beautifully clear complexions of the very young become wrinkled and old-looking, filled with coarse pores and so often marred by disfiguring moles and blotches. Deep-seated wrinkles, once established, cannot be eradicated but, with a well-planned and scientifically-correct total nutritional program including correct food, sunshine, fresh air, cleanliness, exercise, and all the other requisites of our organic existence, then much can be accomplished. The body fluids can be cleansed and the liver and kidneys restored to some semblance of normalcy which will be reflected in a younger looking, more elastic skin.

Frequent attempts have been made throughout modern times to classify the multitudinous numbers of skin disorders, but the task is well nigh impossible. There are numerous divisions and subdivisions in the nomenclature.

When the extreme outer skin is affected, any of the following common skin conditions can develop:

1. Numbness which often accompanies other common skin disorders.
2. Chronic or acute eczema characterized by papules, vesicles, crusts and scales. Generally accompanied by itching and/or burning.
3. Ichthyosis, a condition characterized by a lessening of flow from the sebaceous glands with scaling. Generally accompanied by severe itching. Can afflict any part of the outer skin.
4. Psoriasis, an eruption covered by silvery-like scales which characteristically “flake off.” Generally found most prominently on the elbows, knees, scalp and trunk but can also be found around breasts and in the groin area. Rarely does it cover the entire body. (See Case Study—John to follow.)
5. Plus numerous other similar, but slightly differentiated conditions, some of slight concern, others of major concern as the various forms of lupus (an inflammatory condition which may be localized, usually in the face, but also general as in systemic lupus, an idiopathic disease, meaning of unknown origin, according to medical thinking).

The mucous membranes normally secrete a clear mucus which serves to keep them moist. The outer layer of cells of this part of the skin is equipped with microscopic flagella which are in constant motion. These serve to propel any kind of irritant or foreign substance to some point in the body where they can be more readily eliminated.

All of the activities of the skin are under the control of the thyroid gland located at the base of the neck. Sometimes this gland will direct the mucous membranes to assist in an eliminative effort if the body is under great stress. In such a case, the toxins will be forced out through the mucous membrane cells. During such times polyps or other growths may form. Polyps can appear in the nasal cavities but also in any part of the alimentary canal where they can prove most troublesome. Generally, polyps respond
quite well when a sound hygienic program is instituted. We recently were consulted by a young woman schoolteacher who had already had three surgeries for nasal polyps and was anticipating a fourth. We made abrupt changes in her dietary program from the traditional meat and potatoes diet to an all raw diet composed of fruits, leafy green vegetables, fruit vegetables, nuts and seeds and within three months, upon examination by the consulting specialist, an operation was no longer required!

If the elimination process is unsuccessful or only partially so, then the individual may develop a “cold” or a mild case of “catarrh.” If the toxicity is permitted to increase, deeper layers of the mucous membranes can become involved and the discharge will consist of a combination of mucus and pus.

When this latter condition develops, we observe such diseases as the following:

• Appendicitis
• Bronchitis
• Cervicitis
• Enteritis
• Gastritis
• Mastitis
• Pyelitis
• Sinusitis
• Tonsilitis

and other “itises” which involve the mucous or serous membranes including, among others, the following: arthritis, bursitis, encephalitis, iritis, meningitis, neuritis, pericarditis, peritonitis, and so on.

While not normally considered as diseases of the skin, the student will readily see that, by the very nature of skin construction, this is exactly what they are, one and all, without exception.

It is interesting in this regard to know that by correctly evaluating the kind of condition which has developed, it is possible to gain a pretty fair idea of which organ in the body is the more involved.

The lungs act as a substitute kidney, the outer skin as a substitute liver, while the pancreas enlarges its normal operations to compensate for a malfunctioning and/or overworked liver.

The worst kind of skin diseases and the hardest to eradicate are those caused by severe protein-poisoning because these are usually longstanding. Studies seem to indicate that it takes about twenty years, at least, of indiscriminate feeding of refined carbohydrates and animal products before the presence of major disorders begins to be revealed. The intervening years are characterized by minor disorders beginning with the first sniffle in infancy and early childhood, the acne of the teenager, the later itches, wheezes and sneezes, and ending up in the mature years with the embarrassment of psoriasis, the pain of rheumatoid arthritis, or other major catastrophic vertical disease (meaning progressive).

Man simply does not possess the metabolic machinery to cope with the modern senseless deluge of sugars and meat, nor with, the heterogeneous concoctions of chemicalized substitutes quaintly described as “food.”

To those clients who are afflicted with skin disorders of whatever kind, and especially when these have already established chronicity, it must be made crystal clear that they have a choice: the present skin condition, an unsightly appearance and a constantly diminishing vitality, OR the acceptance of certain restrictions and the introduction of a new way of eating and living, all measures which will help to restore a more normal systemic health as well as clarity and beauty to the skin.

5.6 Behind the Scenes

When an unhealthy, scabby-looking animal is killed and then dissected, the organs of the corpse will be seen to be diseased also. A scaly, pimply or ulcerated skin likewise tells us that the entire inner body is, more likely than not, to be in the same state, in a rather advanced state of malnutrition and deterioration. The rashes and pimples so casually treated on the outside also deserve attention to the whole body.

Quite often the very same ulcers and measly appearance visible on the outer skin have been observed in autopsies of humans who have died from “sudden” illness of unknown origin. Dr. Robert W. McCarter, Sr., M.D., at one time stated that autopsies such as these showed that most of these individuals could have died from any one of ten different diseases, so far and to such an extent had malnutrition caused systemic degenerative malformations.

A healthy skin sings of a well-nourished body, of systemic equilibrium, of balance, of homeostasis, of sound living practices, of good inheritance, of vitality, of a clean, free-flowing unobstructed bloodstream and of organs functioning silently and efficiently in a body at peace. But, what causes the sick skin?

If we place a fermenting mass in a bottle and close it up tightly with a cork and then put it in a warm place, some perhaps drastic results may be noted. It won’t be very long before the force generated by the gases bubbling inside the bottle will cause the cork either to give way or the bottle to explode?

Dr. Elizabeth well remembers a time forty or so years ago when she was serving as a physical education instructor at a penal institution in the East. She was called upon in an emergency to supervise in the kitchen during the canning season. The inmate temporarily designated to supervise the canning was inexperienced at canning corn, as was Elizabeth, but, since the corn was arriving in truck-loads from the fields, all the inmates went ahead with their own version of the proper way to can corn.

Before the day was done glass jars of corn decorated table after table in the huge kitchen. There were hundreds and hundreds of the two-quart glass jars. The crew went to bed that night happy that their work was successfully accomplished.

In the morning, Elizabeth went to the kitchen to inspect. She found, to her dismay, that most of the jars had exploded! Corn covered the tables, the floors, and was even glued to the ceiling! She said that that was the first and the last time she was ever involved in the canning of corn.

So it is in the human body. When the toxic condition of the body becomes so great, the pressure simply becomes intolerable, the mass swells and becomes intolerably large; the channels which normally dispose of metabolic waste find that the load is beyond their present ability to handle. All organs and systems are being subjected to degenerative poisons. It is then that the liver and kidneys must request assistance to preserve the integrity of the body (its life).

The interpretive and control centers in the brain then redirect body energies and call the skin to urgent duty. It must perform extraordinary vicarious duty as an auxiliary eliminating organ. Otherwise, the system might burn up from the heat generated systemically.

Even though it is the largest organ in the body, the skin is not normally a major eliminating organ. The lungs, however, and kidneys, with the liver being the great body filter and organizer y normally, are entrusted with, this responsibility and well capable of carrying it on successfully. However, in emergency situations, the body will forcefully eject its excess gases, acid sweat, toxic oils and greases out through the pores of the skin and also through temporary exit points devised for the purpose, those being called boils, pimples, rashes, ulcers, and so on. Itching is a typically annoying symptom characteristic of the exodus.

The client must be made to understand why the abnormal skin condition exists, that it is the outward manifestation of a badly contaminated interior. Not that an infection exists, but rather that undue acid wastes have accumulated with possible damage to the liver, to the nervous structure and perhaps even to all systems and organs with the result that they are no doubt functioning at a reduced capacity as they strive to accomplish their allotted duties while working under greatly enervating conditions.

The outward violent exhibition is the visible evidence of the turmoil that exists within, of the fact that the blood is so saturated with toxic material that the body itself is attempting to eliminate the excess before irreparable damage can be done.

When the skin condition becomes chronic and/or acute, the visible symptoms will, more often than not, be accompanied by fever, as for example, in measles and other so-called “childhood diseases.”

When the body vitality is high, the skin eruptions can be very violent but if it is at a lower level (as is generally true in the elderly), then the disorders will be either milder or will have become chronic. The outward manifestation is always dependent upon these factors:

1. The existing vitality.
2. The systemic weakness.
3. The amount and kind of impurities which are present.

When the exodus of toxic material becomes so great that the glands and follicles of the skin themselves becomes obstructed or injured in any way, then we usually witness the development of abnormal growths, such as warts, benign tumors, moles, and the like, some of these being of enormous size. We have observed one such growth which extended some eight to ten inches along one thigh and several inches across. One client had a very noticeable wart which protruded right out from the tip of her nose. After two prolonged fasts and two full years of hygienic living, this disfiguring wart was finally autolyzed.

When the exodus is mild and the symptoms likewise mild, we generally find that there is no fever present.

It is well to know that skin diseases usually become chronic in those persons who develop them early in life and continue to have them periodically throughout life. The periodicity is due to the fact that such individuals begin to develop levels of tolerance which are higher and higher. Indeed, the symptoms may disappear for years and then reappear. As the level of tolerance to systemic poisons increases, the vitality of the individual decreases. From time to time, especially when a person is under unusual stress situations, the poisons which exist begin to exceed whatever level of tolerance has been established and, at such times, a “sudden” eruption can occur.

Once the toxic burden slips again below the existing level of tolerance, then the condition, whatever it may be according to individual weaknesses, the skin begins to clear until there are no further outward signs—until, of course, the next time! No “cure” has been effected. All that has taken place is a certain amount of elimination which has reduced the toxic load to a level whereby the body can function albeit with diminished vitality.

It is worthy of note to observe that those persons with vigorous circulation are more likely to have eruptions on the surface of outer skin; for example, on the face, back, neck or elsewhere, while those possessing a somewhat reduced circulatory power will usually suffer from eruptions on the surface of the mucous membranes, especially those lining the nasal cavities and the digestive tract. Usually these latter persons have highly-inflammatory and catarrhal conditions, with the colon being a frequent location for such. It is common for persons with diminished circulatory powers to be afflicted with all kinds of digestive disorders, often quite serious, these leading, of course, to increasing malnutrition.

The prognosis is always more encouraging when the eliminating effort is made through the outer skin. Generally, if all contributing causes of toxic build-up are removed, and especially incorrect habits of eating, and this is followed by a more constructive dietary—living regiment, then the eliminating effort should be successful in time.

It is important at this juncture to emphasize most emphatically to all clients who consult with you regarding skin eruptions that, after the cleansing has been accomplished and the healing has taken place, any resumption of old habits of eating and living will, in all likelihood, plunge the individual into an even deeper pathology than before, due to the fact that the body’s level of tolerance has been lowered while, at one and the same time, his vitality has been increased. He has already demonstrated his vulnerability!

As we examine the masses more closely we can observe the progression of skin diseases from bad to
worse. Young people build their pimpled and mottled oldish skins on their hamburgers, french fries, and cola drinks. School lunch programs add to the problem. Here in Tucson, a “Type A” lunch is made up of a hodge-podge of heterogeneous digestive problems artfully disguised as a protein, fruit or vegetable, bread and milk combination scientifically planned to contain the FOUR BASIC GROUPS.

A meal planned thusly is sufficient to confound the most vigorous enzymatic capabilities even of the very young. In recent years peer drug use has become a serious problem, not only among adults, but also among the high school crowd.

And have you looked at the skins of infants and toddlers? Gray, sicklish products of baby formulas and canned processed baby foods, of soda pop and Kool-Aid and other chemicalized poisons.

Older people gorge on pies, cakes, steaks, soft drinks by the carload, on processed products of every imaginable kind often accompanied by alcoholic drinks; they nibble at all hours and fail to get proper rest: they down all manner of drugs, prescribed and over-the-counter. Like children offered candy, they enjoy and then wonder why they break out with rashes and pimples and are lacking in vitality!

5.7 Cosmetics

Probably just about every woman in the civilized world (and in recent years, many men, loo!) has been entranced by the advertised promises of youth eternal as depicted in demographically targeted advertisements. But, contrary to all of the seductive avowals, the skin cannot be fed externally. Its beauty comes from deep within!

We have previously pointed out how the pores act as exit points for certain kinds of waste metabolites. It is vitally important for these cleansing avenues to be kept open and clean so that all toxic material oriented to these exit points can be discharged according to systemic planning.

It should be obvious that using creams, oils, powders, or other common cosmetics can serve only to clog up an important segment of the body’s sewer system. Industry makes billions of dollars catering to a woman’s natural desire to be young and beautiful and for a man to be a ‘”Number 10,” but it is a sad fact that all such concoctions only cause the skin to wrinkle and age prematurely.

The sebaceous glands, which lie deep within the skin are, in fact, excellent cosmeticians and especially so when the entire body is healthy. These glands manufacture a fine face cream which contains various waves and fatty acids which serve to keep the skin moist, pliable, wrinkle-free and young-looking. They can do a far better job than any product devised by a laboratory technician.

No foreign substance from the outside belongs on the skin. Nature has provided well for the entire body. As Dr. Virginia Vetrano so well said in an article entitled, “The Skin. Our Natural Umbrella,” featured in Dr. Shelton’s Hygienic Review, June 1979. “Nature puts there what she wants and that’s the way we should leave it.”

Thus it is that any extraneously applied substance will annoy, irritate, clog, and eventually wrinkle and age the skin and if the foreign substance should penetrate the membranous barriers of the surface cells, perhaps cause some amount of harm in the body cavity itself.

The living skin cells must cope with the very same problems and challenges common to all living cells. They must secure food from the blood, they must repair or replace any old and worn-out cells. They must take the food supplied to maintain and build on the skin. They must reproduce as and when required to sustain the larger community of cells which they enfold and protect, the entire body. It would appear to be the height of folly to place road blocks in the way of potentially efficient feeding and eliminating processes by applying creams, lotions and the like to block transport.

Certain skin problems have been known to arise from outside applications which have blocked exodus of systemic wastes, conditions such as dry, scaly, itchy skin; red, swollen eyelids, rashes on the neck and behind the ears accompanied by intense itching; abnormal deposits of pigment on exposed areas such as the cheek; and swelling, peeling and rashes around fingernails and even under them. Often such conditions are termed “allergies” and treated topically when simple abstinence from the use of all cosmetics coupled with a Hygienic diet quickly removes the problem.

It is interesting to know that there are about seven million pores (exit passages for wastes) and they represent some seven or more miles of leading duct sewer lines. Each duct acts like a miniature sewer pipe, complete with valves that can be turned on and off according to the conditions at hand, all control being handled by the autonomic nervous system.

The ducts from the glands are built in a spiral from which is so ingeniously designed that it is well nigh impossible for foreign materials, “cosmetic foods,” to enter the inner sanctum, through these pore barriers. Oxygen from the air may be the sole exception.

In Foundations of Health Science, Second Edition, 1972, authored by Henkel, Means, Smolensky, and Sawry and published by Allyn and Bacon, Inc., Boston, Mass., we read the following: “There is no known substance or combination of substances that can live up to the promises suggested in any of the following names: contour cream, crow’s-foot cream, deep pore cleaner, eye wrinkle cream, scalp food, skin conditioner, skin firmer, skin tonic, eyelash grower, or wrinkle eradicator.”

However, science marches on—sometimes penetrating into strange uncharted, and perhaps even dangerous, waters. The skin is such an area. Dr. Vetrano again in an article entitled, “The Skin, Our Natural Umbrella.” in the Review of June, 1979, tells us that “pharmacologists have long been engaged in finding formulas that will penetrate our membranous barriers, either the skin or our mucous membranes, or the cell and its nuclear membrane” and let us add, to date they seem to have had some success. A to be making more and more “progress” in this regard. It would seem that our scientists can never give up tinkering with the nutritive process of the human body.

Some substances are used to convey drugs and other substances through the skin, either for cosmetic or other drugging purposes, the practice increasing with each new discovery. These materials are either damaging to the skin itself and/or to the entire system. In our view, they should be strictly avoided.