Overeating

6. Overeating

A person who habitually overeats is no less an addict than the alcoholic. Overeating wears out the vital powers through overstimulation, overworking the digestive organs, the heart, the endocrine system, and the emunctories, by the strain placed on them and gives rise to intoxication through the poisons that these foods generate.

Most people are addicted to overeating on foods that would result in ill health even if they were consumed in moderate amounts. Flesh foods, baked goods—such as pies, pastries, cakes, etc.—bread and all cooked foods are toxic in themselves. Overeating on such foods makes invalids of those who so indulge.

Throughout history, there have been many noteworthy gluttons who always suffered from indigestion and other diseases and soon died from their indiscretions. Dr. Shelton describes a breakfast that was typically eaten by Mr. Bryan, a noted glutton:

“Cantaloupe was first served. Bryan ate a whole one— an immense yellow-meated melon. It was in the fall season—early fall—and quail were on the bill of fare. Bryan ate two. Virginia ham and eggs followed. Bryan ate almost ravenously of this ham in large portions and consumed not less than six eggs, when batter cakes are served, the commoner disposed of a plateful, swimming in butter and then accepted a second helping and got away with that.

“Numerous cups of coffee, potatoes and side dishes of various kinds accompanied the cantaloupe and the ham and eggs and the rest of it.”

Bryan had diabetes, hardening of the arteries, heart disease and appoplexy. But the final and real cause of his death was gluttony. He was a sick man who dug his grave with his teeth.

On the other hand, one Dr. Low performed a feat where he lifted 1,000 pounds 1,006 times in thirty-five minutes and four seconds, after a period of training on one meal a day and less. For the first five weeks of his training he ate one meal a day, almost wholly of uncooked foods. During the last three weeks of his training period he ate only four meals a week; the last meal was consumed eleven hours before the lift. It is significant that he abstained from eating 11 hours before the lift as energy was not diverted into the digestive process while needed in muscular activity.

Conservation of energy is the key in health and disease. You must eat enough to supply your body with needed requirements but not so much that there is a great surplus and excessive vital energy is being expanded in disposing of this surplus.