Imagine spending a cool, sunny afternoon outdoors sitting under the trees. The windchimes sing whimsically. The sun’s rays caress teasingly. Your hot cup of tea soothes and relaxes. Now imagine Charlotte Gerson sitting three feet away from you, sharing her experiences of the Gerson Therapy and her father’s journey of bringing this treatment to the world.
I had to pinch myself several times during this event but it wasn’t a dream. One of the most admired and revered names in natural healing was sitting in front of me, in the flesh.
Charlotte Gerson is the daughter of Max Gerson, a German physician who as early as the 1920s had discovered that a toxic-free,healthy diet could tap into the body’s natural healing mechanism and therefore cure diseases naturally. He cured himself of migraines, then cured others of migraines, then worked on patients suffering from tuberculosis and finally used his ‘migraine-diet’ to heal cancer patients, several of whom had been diagnosed with terminal cancer by conventional physicians. Charlotte founded the Gerson Institute in 1977 to spread awareness about this powerful therapy.
Charlotte Gerson was at the Florida School Of Holistic Living last month for a speaking and book signing event. Although I’ve watched her on documentaries such as the The Gerson Miracle and Hungry for Change, meeting her in person was an entirely different experience.
She is alive. She walks with no support. Her bodily movements are precise and measured. Her eyes glisten like a little girl’s, ready to take on the world. Her skin is flawless with no liver spots or signs of internal damage. She sits upright. She effortlessly recalls facts from eighty years ago.
She walks the talk. She is 91 years young.
Halfway through the talk, she held out her hands, flexed her fingers, and proudly proclaimed:
“I have no arthritis, no cataract, no backaches, no pain.
I take no drugs, no insurance and I have no doctor!”
Her words were equally, if not, more powerful than her physical presence. Here are my key takeaways:
1. pH balance is everything
Charlotte talked extensively about the importance of maintaining a healthy pH balance. After my diagnosis in 2009 , this was one of the first things I learned: maintaining a healthy pH balance is everything. A blog post I wrote in 2010 offers a detailed description. The long and short of it is that our body has to maintain a healthy pH level of about 7.35 to 7.45 in order to keep things in balance. This number is slightly alkaline, which is good. However if the pH dips below this and gets acidic things go awry. The body begins borrowing minerals such as calcium, magnesium, potassium from organs and bones in order to maintain the pH balance. Now the body’s under pressure, constantly working to eliminate acids from the body, which means it loses the capacity to fight disease and ailments. All disorders thrive in this environment! On the other hand, diseases have nothing to feed on if our pH is predominantly alkaline.
Most fresh, organic vegetarian foods, that form the basis of the Gerson Therapy, are alkaline. Everything else from dairy to animal protein to processed foods add to the body’s acidity, making it a breeding ground for all kinds of ailments. Here’s a a chart for easy reference:
2. Heal one disease. Heal them all.
When these body’s natural defense mechanism is compromised we are susceptible to all kinds of disorders from the common cold to cancer. Similarly when its restored, the body is able to cure every disease no matter what you started out to heal in the first place. Our body does not discriminate! Immunity is strengthened, hormones are balanced, bone density is regained, organs function effectively, enzymes gain potency.
That to me is nothing short of a miracle. Those seeking magic should really just kiss their face in the mirror every morning. Your body IS a wonderland 🙂
3. Drugs make everything worse
Drugs add to the toxicity of the body. They might suppress symptoms but they hardly ever eradicate the cause from it’s roots. Treating is one thing. Curing is another. I know this from personal experience. My bronchial infections were treated with antibiotics for years. Despite treatment I’d be sick every other month. My digestive health got worse and my liver seriously damaged from all the toxicity, causing a host of hormonal health problems. In 2007 I decided to get off antibiotics and treat my lung infections through acupuncture (I hadn’t discovered nutrition by then. Boo).
We live in a pretty toxic environment already. The soil is damaged, our foods are sprayed with a cocktail of harmful pesticides and fertilizers. There’s chlorine in our water supply. Our cosmetic and household cleaning products are laden with nasty, harmful chemicals. A diagnosis, no matter how small or big, is an indication that these toxins have entered our body and disrupted it’s natural defenses.
Drugs add to that toxicity. So does chemotherapy.
The Journal of Clinical Oncology published a study in 2004 where researchers studied the 5-year survival rates of chemotherapy on 22 types of cancers in the US and Australia.
The results? The overall contribution of chemotherapy to 5-year survival in adults was estimated to be 2.3% in Australia and 2.1% in the USA.
Chemotherapy works 2.3% of the time. That’s it. Yet it remains the primary and most recommended treatment for cancer.
Why?
Each session costs between $2500 to $10000.
Now we know.
Here she is with a ninety year old gentleman called Carl.Carl was diagnosed with terminal melanoma 33 years ago. After failed chemotherapy treatments he was given 6 weeks to live. So he packed his bags and went to The Gerson Institute as a last ditch attempt.
He sat there able and healthy, happily sharing his experiences at the institute: walks on the beach and all those tasteless green juices he had to drink!
How is that possible? And how come we don’t hear these stories more often?
4. Yay potassium. Nay sodium
Our diets today comprise three main flavors: sugary, salty or creamy (fatty). Traditional dietary theories such as Ayurveda and Chinese medicine recommend we get all six flavors in our diet: salty, sugary, sour, astringent, pungent and bitter. Unfortunately sugary, creamy foods and salty foods damage our immune system equally. Charlotte spent some time talking about the health hazards of sodium consumption. According to her, our body needs much higher quantities of potassium than sodium. Human milk has less sodium than animal milk (she warned strongly against dairy!) because animal babies need to grow very quickly in order to be part of the herd and move. Human babies take much longer to stand and develop their bodies and their brain growth is supported by potassium consumption, not sodium consumption. In adults, potassium regulates the body’s pH levels, supports cardiovascular health and improves blood pressure. Too much sodium can inhibit enzyme growth and also stimulate tumor growth.
5. Coffee enemas are cool
Enemas help eliminate toxins from the system. Ayurveda also relies on anemas for complete and thorough detoxification. I’ve had enemas in India that used oils. The Gerson way is to use coffee. When a person undergoes the Gerson treatment: the healthy foods, the nutrient-dense juices (and supplementation) the immune system attacks the tumor tissue, breaking it down. These toxins and other free radicals, if not eliminated from the body can overburden and poison the liver (which is the most important organ responsible for detoxification. Enemas ensure complete and proper elimination of these toxins from the body.
Charlotte didn’t touch upon the emotional aspects of cancer manifestation or any other disease for that matter. Louise Hay and Anita Moorjani are two cancer survivors who looked at not just their physical toxicity as a cause of cancer but their emotional toxicity too. I highly recommend their books You Can Heal Your Life and Dying To Be Me respectively.
I returned from this event energized and renewed in my resolve to do what I do: get people healthy before disaster strikes. On a personal level my love and enthusiasm for getting the word out a about healthy and conscious living was renewed. On a community level I realize it is my responsibility to make some noise about the bullshit we’re being fed by Big industry. We need to be informed and educated about every single option to heal and cure that is available to us.
What you can do
- Educate yourself and others
Movies:The Gerson MiracleFood Inc
Books:
The China Study
- Question everything. When you contribute to cancer research, check where it is really going
- Follow people who’ve cured themselves naturally
Jessica Ainscough (The Wellness Warrior)
Cris Karr (Crazy Sexy Life)
Chris Wark (Chris Beat Cancer)
I know I haven’t scratched the surface with all the resources available both off and online. So please add to this list by leaving a comment below.
Healing: The Gerson Way
DISCLAIMER: All content on this website is for educational and informational purposes only. Please consult your own doctor or healthcare provider to determine the best course of treatment for you.