Q.
In the very near future, I have been
told, I will need a hysterectomy. At this
point, I am hopeful of keeping both
ovaries. How can I best prepare my
body for this surgery?
A little personal background: I am 40
years old, weight 125 lbs., I am 5'7"
and in good physical condition due to
years of an exercise routine. I am unable to get away from processed foods
completely, eat meat daily, but also eat
balanced meals with salads, fruit, and
whole grain products. I take natural
vitamins - high potency vitamins and
minerals, with additional C, A, E, selenium, zinc, and lecithin.
I hope the above information is helpful and any response will be greatly appreciated. - I.D., India Harbor Beach, Fla.
A.
To build your health up and increase
resistance to the stress of surgery, you
should eliminate all processed, devitalized foods from your diet and stay on a
strict Optimum Diet as recommended in
my book, How To Get Well, and described in this column in the past. In addition to adequate nutrition, you need
plenty of exercise, as well as rest and relaxation and a positive state of mind a complete trust and faith that the surgery will be successful. Fears and negative attitude can prevent successful
healing. Special protective foods should
include an abundance of fresh, raw
fruits and vegetables, as well as fresh
vegetable and fruit juices, sprouted and
cooked grains, eggs and milk and milk
products, especially in raw, fresh, or
soured form, such as yogurt, kefir, buttermilk, etc., but also natural cheeses
and cottage cheese, preferably homemade.
You should fortify your diet with the
following supplements daily:
Finally, before you decide on a
hysterectomy (and it is your decision,
not the doctor's!) check with at least
two other doctors. According to medical establishment's own admission,
more than half of all performed hysterectomies were needless!
Q.
Today people are becoming aware of
excessive weight problems and possible
dangers to health. But, very little is said
about thin people. How can one gain
weight? - R.D., Edgewater, Fla.
A.
The best foods to gain weight on are
raw nuts and seeds, such as almonds,
brazil nuts, peanuts, sesame seeds,
pumpkin seeds (all finely ground before
consuming) and cooked grains such as
cooked cereals, breads, beans, corn tortillas. Old fashioned oatmeal is rather
fattening in my experience. Some of the
above mentioned "fattening" foods
could be used at every meal, plus between meals as snacks. Eating a relatively large meal late in the evening will
also help to put on weight. Also, eat 2
tbsp. of vegetable oil (olive or sesame
seed oil) every day, or its equivalent in
butter.
The above advice is given with a
heavy heart, since I've met only two
persons in the United States that were
truly too thin and could benefit from
gaining weight. My usual advice to
those who think they are too thin is to
thank the Lord for what is actually a
blessing, not a problem.
[ The rest of the pages for this month's Forum, are, unfortunately, missing. ]
Pre-surgery And Post-surgery Diet
One week before surgery, the following should be added daily to the above
list:
These supplements should be continued for 4 to 6 weeks after surgery to
help assure speedy healing and repair
of the damage to the tissues and minimize the overall stress of the surgery.
Several glasses of fresh vegetable and
fruit juices should be added to the daily
diet one week before and for several
weeks following the surgery. Also, two
raw egg yolks (like in a milk shake or
egg nog) should be taken every day - egg yolks are good sources of sulfur
containing amino acids, cystine. and
methionine, which will accelerate the
healing process.
Gaining Weight