Читать книгу The Natural Food of Man. Being an attempt to prove from comparative anatomy, physiology, chemistry and hygiene, that the original, best and natural diet of man is fruit and nuts онлайн

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Many persons would be willing to concede, I fancy, that man can live without meat—indeed, there is no escaping this conclusion, since thousands of persons are actually doing so. But not very many would be willing to concede, probably, that all breads, grains, and vegetables are to be abandoned as unfit for human food also! They would be unwilling to admit that! And yet I think it can be shown very conclusively that none of these foods are intended for the human being, any more than is the grass of the field. Each genus has its own particular food, allotted by nature; and man’s food consists—or should consist—of fruit and nuts. Further, these fruits and nuts should be eaten uncooked—in their original, primitive form. I am convinced that cooking ruins nearly all foods treated in that manner—my arguments for this will be found in full in the chapter on “The Fruitarian Diet.”

If this be true, as I most firmly believe it is—it will be seen that practically all other foods are naturally barred out, by the very nature of the case. Certainly no one would care to eat his meat raw; and all vegetables, with very few exceptions, would also fall under the ban, for but few of them can well be eaten without cooking. Grains, also, are very unappetising, when eaten raw, and it is now well known that but a small amount of their starch is converted properly, in the body, unless the grains are well cooked; so that all these foods would be eliminated from the diet, and practically nothing left but fruits and nuts! Although this may seem appalling to the average reader, it is the logical outcome of the theory, and I am convinced the right interpretation of the facts. The fruitarian diet is the one best suited for man; and the one upon which he can live best and longest. I myself have lived upon this fruit and nut diet almost exclusively for several years, and I may perhaps say that I am always in excellent spirits and condition, and a source of constant surprise to my friends in that I seem to possess an untiring energy and ability for work. I say this, not to boast, but to show that a diet of this character is perfectly compatible with health and strength; and I believe that almost any person could double his energies, his health, and his self-respect by adopting a diet of this character. For it has a tremendous effect upon the mental and moral, no less than upon the physical life, as I shall presently endeavour to show.