The Nature Doctor By Mrs Vera West

I continue my survey of books that prudent people should be squirrelling away now for the hard times that are coming, and in fact, are already here. My argument is that we have seen how there can be restrictions upon medical services, in a sense, through lockdowns, with people perhaps technically legally able to travel to a doctor, but perhaps not wanting to risk facing the Covid police. Apart from an outright collapse, this represents some of the same aspects. Overall, it is time to get control of one’s health, learning more about medical conditions, both traditional, orthodox and complimentary treatments. And, the usual disclaimer, this is a discussion only for education purposes, not recommended medical advice, and so on.

Another classic book that needs to be on every patriot/survivor’s shelf, is Dr H. C. A. Vogel, The Nature Doctor,( 1952/1995). The book has been through at least 50 editions, and who knows how many copies sold, first being published in German.

The preface of the book describes the text as dealing broadly with naturopathy, the treatment of disease and ill-health by natural means and remedies. In the edition that I have the good doctor says that the new edition aims to take account of developments in alternative medicine, and also to confront new diseases such as AIDS, chronic fatigue syndrome, and a whole range of viral-based diseases, and I imagine that if the doctor was alive today, preparing another edition, he would have some informative things to say about Covid-1984. However, the core of naturopathy is to re-establish a balance between nature and man, and he says, “all medical research is a waste of time if these holistic interrelationships are not taken into consideration.” From his study among native peoples over the world, such as the Sioux Indians in South Dakota, he developed an extensive knowledge of traditional herbal remedies, such as Echinacea, used by the Indians for treating wounds and poisoning, even snake bites, he alleged.

As well, he developed a philosophy of diet, seeing the Western diet as based upon processed food with little live nutrients in it, and far too much protein, which produces excessive acidity in the body, one of the causes of cancer, he believed. Instead, he was an early advocate of a natural diet of raw foods, unadulterated, and primarily alkaline, as in a vegetarian diet. Dr Vogel also collected the traditional medical knowledge based in European folk medicine, using plants he found in his backyard so to speak, in the Swiss Alps.

The book is jam-packed with information, which Dr Vogel says, has been tested both upon himself and thousands of patients he saw over his long life. This is 676 pages, with a comprehensive index to guide you around. This is not to say that the book eschews orthodox medical assistance, and does recommend going to hospital when necessary, such as for the treatment of third-degree burns, which does require special medical treatment. But much lesser burns, for example, can be treated by first immersing the area in cold water, then covering the area with gauze until one is able to reach medical help. For superficial scratches and small wounds that are subborn in healing, he recommends using concentrated whey, dusting with biological calcium powder, and for two nights, applying quark. I do not know if this would work, but it would certainly smell nice!

For headaches, apply onion or horseradish poultices to the nape of the neck. That sounds weird, but I got yet another headache while typing this, and it seemed to work, so there was no harm in trying it out. That is the beauty of the natural remedies proposed, they first of all, do no harm, as far as I can see, and that is the first requirement of any medical treatment.

Hundreds of topics are covered, such as treating boils, insect stings and bites, excessive libido (avoid eating eggs, oysters and celery and take cold showers), non-surgical treatment for appendicitis, diarrhoea, and harder cases like AIDS (best to live a clean life and avoid infection), cancers (diseases of modern living), and cardio-vascular disease.

Overall, this is an excellent book to regularly dip into, particularly good for the niggling day-to-day complaints, which may be quickly treated. But the wider message is that prevention is better than cure, and living a healthy lifestyle, something the modern world does not promote, is the main message, one of lasting value.