The Science and Fine Art of Fasting

In his 1934 book, The Science and Fine Art of Fasting , Herbert M. Shelton outlined his theory that fasting is a key component in promoting healing. The book's ideas run counter to the well-known conventional wisdom that those who are sick must eat to "keep up their strength" and posits that fasting is a natural part of the rhythm of life. Shelton's book outlines the history of this practice and explains the following in detail: what is fasting, the purpose of fasting, how to fast successfully, intermittent fasting for healing, and the benefits of fasting in general. Shelton was writing before the advent of genetic theory and modern medicine. His beliefs were criticized during his time, and he even faced legal penalties for publishing his views. But modern science is now beginning to show that, in some instances, his theories were accurate. Caloric restriction has been repeatedly shown to increase life span in animals, and researchers, such as David Sinclair of Harvard University, have discovered the cellular and genetic mechanisms that respond to such techniques. According to Shelton, when someone is fasting, the energy typically going into eating and digestion is instead redirected to promote health and well-being. Fasting works as a method of "resetting" the body's metabolism and has a multitude of applications. Shelton divided fasting into two distinct periods: eating and abstaining. Both periods are considered to be vital aspects of the same process. As a child on his family's farm, Shelton observed animals abstain from food when upset, wounded, sick, or just simply not hungry. Shelton came to understand this behavior as a means of survival. Man, as part of the organic world, has many reasons to mimic such behavior and has done so throughout history--as is seen in various religious practices throughout the world. Shelton viewed the purpose of fasting as a natural occurrence that generated healing and restorative benefits. As with animals, Shelton believed abstention from food is sometimes more beneficial than its consumption. For more than 10,000 years, fasting was used to alleviate human illness. In his book, Shelton gives anecdotal evidence of humans fasting for periods of 60 days or more and shows the practice has been known to cure a wide range of diseases such as epilepsy, typhoid fever, cataracts, and obesity. Over the course of 30 years, Shelton conducted 25,000 fasts ranging from three days to over two months. Throughout the duration of the studies conducted, Shelton found the number of red blood cells increased during a fast and that a general rejuvenation occured. He claims to have observed rapid healing of wounds and various organ systems in patients undergoing the practice. In one case, a group of university students studied for one week without food and showed remarkable improvement in their performance. He asserted that addicts found relief through fasting and that other mental conditions showed improvement through his methods.Herbert M. Shelton and his works remain popular in the alternative medicine community even today, especially in the realms of fasting and restorative care.

2013 Reprint of 1963 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. This is the fasting portion only of what was originally published as "Fasting and Sunbathing" (The Hygienic System, Vol 3). Herbert Shelton wrote 40 books over his 60-year career in health education and "natural hygiene." He supervised over 30,000 fasts of chronically ill and terminal patients, losing only three. Shelton's teachings on fasting inspired Ghandi as well as such popular authors as Fuhrman, the Diamonds, Mercola and Graham. Harvey and Marilyn Diamond said of Shelton: "A man of astounding intelligence and understanding, Dr. Herbert Shelton was the greatest health oracle of the 20th century." One of the key tenets of natural hygiene is toxemia + enervation = disease and that symptoms of disease are remedial efforts by the body to return to balance. For example, a fever is instituted by the body to speed metabolic action and kill germs. It is a healing event that should be allowed to run its course, not a dreaded enemy to be suppressed. The best action to take when first becoming ill is to stop eating and rest, which goes contrary to the prevailing advice to take a drug, eat to keep up your strength, and keep on going. When you fast, you are not starving your body of nutrition, because it obtains all the nutrition it needs from its own tissues. But in doing so, the not inconsiderable amount of energy that would have been spent in digestion is now spent in repair of tissues and elimination of toxins. Long fasts of up to three months followed by healthy living practices can (but not always) reverse chronic degenerative diseases such as arthritis, heart disease, colitis, migraines, mental illness, even cancer. (See also Fasting and Eating for Health: A Medical Doctor's Program for Conquering Disease.) This book will teach you most of what you need to know to conduct a fast of any length. The chapters are: 1. Definition of fasting 2. Fasting among the lower animals 3. Fasting in man 4. Bill-of-fare for the sick 5. Autolysis 6. Fasting is not starving 7. Chemical and organic changes during fasting 8. Repair of organs and tissues during fasting 9. The influence of fasting on growth and regeneration 10. Changes in the fundamental functions while fasting 11. The mind and special senses during a fast 12. Secretions and excretions 13. Bowel action during fasting 14. Fasting and sex 15. Rejuvenescence through fasting 16. Gain and loss of strength while fasting 17. Gain and loss of weight during fasting 18. Fasting does not induce deficiency "disease" 19. Death in the fast 20. Objections of the fast 21. Does fasting cure disease? 22. The rationale of fasting 23. The length of the fast 24. Hunger and appetite 25. Contra-indications of fasting 26. Fasting in special periods and conditions of life 27. Symptomatology of the fast 28. Progress of the fast 29. Hygiene of the fast 30. Breaking the fast 31. Gaining weight after the fast 32. Living after the fast 33. Fasting in health 34. Fasting in acute disease 35. Fasting in chronic disease 36. Fasting in drug addiction 37. Fasting versus eliminating diets

2013 Reprint of 1963 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. This is the fasting portion only of what was originally published as "Fasting and Sunbathing" (The Hygienic System, Vol 3). Herbert Shelton wrote 40 books over his 60-year career in health education and "natural hygiene." He supervised over 30,000 fasts of chronically ill and terminal patients, losing only three. Shelton's teachings on fasting inspired Ghandi as well as such popular authors as Fuhrman, the Diamonds, Mercola and Graham. Harvey and Marilyn Diamond said of Shelton: "A man of astounding intelligence and understanding, Dr. Herbert Shelton was the greatest health oracle of the 20th century." One of the key tenets of natural hygiene is toxemia + enervation = disease and that symptoms of disease are remedial efforts by the body to return to balance. For example, a fever is instituted by the body to speed metabolic action and kill germs. It is a healing event that should be allowed to run its course, not a dreaded enemy to be suppressed. The best action to take when first becoming ill is to stop eating and rest, which goes contrary to the prevailing advice to take a drug, eat to keep up your strength, and keep on going. When you fast, you are not starving your body of nutrition, because it obtains all the nutrition it needs from its own tissues. But in doing so, the not inconsiderable amount of energy that would have been spent in digestion is now spent in repair of tissues and elimination of toxins. Long fasts of up to three months followed by healthy living practices can (but not always) reverse chronic degenerative diseases such as arthritis, heart disease, colitis, migraines, mental illness, even cancer. (See also Fasting and Eating for Health: A Medical Doctor's Program for Conquering Disease.) This book will teach you most of what you need to know to conduct a fast of any length. The chapters are: 1. Definition of fasting 2. Fasting among the lower animals 3. Fasting in man 4. Bill-of-fare for the sick 5. Autolysis 6. Fasting is not starving 7. Chemical and organic changes during fasting 8. Repair of organs and tissues during fasting 9. The influence of fasting on growth and regeneration 10. Changes in the fundamental functions while fasting 11. The mind and special senses during a fast 12. Secretions and excretions 13. Bowel action during fasting 14. Fasting and sex 15. Rejuvenescence through fasting 16. Gain and loss of strength while fasting 17. Gain and loss of weight during fasting 18. Fasting does not induce deficiency "disease" 19. Death in the fast 20. Objections of the fast 21. Does fasting cure disease? 22. The rationale of fasting 23. The length of the fast 24. Hunger and appetite 25. Contra-indications of fasting 26. Fasting in special periods and conditions of life 27. Symptomatology of the fast 28. Progress of the fast 29. Hygiene of the fast 30. Breaking the fast 31. Gaining weight after the fast 32. Living after the fast 33. Fasting in health 34. Fasting in acute disease 35. Fasting in chronic disease 36. Fasting in drug addiction 37. Fasting versus eliminating diets