systems. With so little toxicity to deal with, the small amounts of nutrients contained in their foods were
almost sufficient to keep up the healthy functioning of their physiology. Their bodies produced the rest.
It is known, for example, that the human body has eight different ways to make calcium, using
bicarbonate of soda (a product of our digestive system), other minerals and certain enzymes. The body is
its own factory. It can make many minerals and even vitamins. Whatever it cannot produce itself, the
trillions of friendly bacteria residing in the gut produce for it. Whatever the body requires in terms of
nutrient complexes it is capable of producing them from even the simplest of foods. This may explain
why certain North Mexican tribes can live on eating only corn (mainly starch) and some beans and be
more healthy and fit than the healthiest and fittest individuals in the “well-fed” world. Out of necessity,
their digestive systems are so sophisticated and efficient that they can produce everything their body
needs from corn (and beans). In comparison, most of our “well-fed” bodies are so inefficient that they
have even “forgotten” how to make essential vitamins and amino acids.
Raw whole foods supply us with plenty of vitamins and if the soil is naturally fertile also with many
minerals. But this doesn’t necessarily mean that we need them all and that we can use them in such large
quantities. The initial boost in energy and vitality after going on a raw food diet is not due to the vitamins;
it is rather caused by the sudden mobilization of the immune system which tries to counteract the massive
influx of enzyme inhibitors and antibodies contained in the food. In time, the digestive system becomes
increasingly dependent on large supplies of vitamins and minerals. And when suddenly there are not
enough of them in the food we eat, the body begins to suffer from what is generally called a vitamin or
mineral deficiency, which is just another word for weak digestion. Our time is characterized by lazy
digestive systems. We have cultivated our own dependency on large quantities of external supplies of
these basic nutrients.
We can easily afford to eat a fresh salad with our meal today because we have “cultivated away” the
natural antibodies of the plants and vegetables. This makes them less “poisonous” for us but at the same
time also more vulnerable to all kinds of attacks by insects, lice, bugs, beetles, locusts, fungus, and harsh
climatic conditions. To make them resistant against the bewildering number of possible enemies we give
the plants synthetically derived poisons (insecticides, pesticides, and other fertilizers) to make up for the
missing antibodies. We have effectively impaired the plants’ immune systems, and without our chemical
assistance, most cultivated plant foods would never reach the ripening stage.
By contrast, the wild-growing herbs have retained their immunity and know very well how to survive.
They contain potent medicinal substances, which are nothing other than the plants’ antibodies. If they are
cultivated, too, removed from their natural environment and climatic conditions, their medicinal
properties become less potent; thus, they are less effective as a medicine. Many of them no longer have
medicinal values and they are now merely used in cooking to flavor the food.
The Grain Food Mystery
If you give pigs too much grain in their feed, their growth rate is retarded. By contrast, the same grains
fed to cattle ferment in their stomachs without a problem. Grains contain several substances that can
reduce our ability and that of other animals to absorb minerals, trace elements, and even vitamin B1. They
also can block our digestive enzymes and render proteins indigestible. Wheat in particular contains
material components that interfere with the digestion of fats by blocking such enzymes as the lipase of the
pancreas. Our ancestors have traditionally used plenty of lard or oil when preparing dishes made from
grain, often at the ratio of 1:1. This may explain why people who eat too little fat with their bread and
other wheat products often develop excessive weight; they suffer from a disturbed fat metabolism.