Nature Cure Treatment

The science of natural therapeutics is based on a use of the same five elements, in the treatment of disease, which constitute the human body. These are earth, water, ether, sunlight and air. It is my effort to point out how they can be utilized for-health purposes.

Up till the year 1901, although I did not rush to the doctors whenever I happened to get ill, I did use their remedies to a certain extent. I used to take fruit salt for constipation. The late Dr. Pranjivan Mehta who had come to Natal introduced me to certain drugs to remove general lassitude. This led me to read literature on the uses of drugs. Add to this a little more knowledge I gained by a certain amount of work I had put in at a cottage hospital in Natal. This enabled me to carry on for sometime, but none of the drugs did me any good in the end. Headaches and loss of a sense of general wellbeing persisted. I was very dissatisfied with this state of things and what little faith I had in medicines began to fade.

All through this interval my experiments in dietetics were continued. I had great faith in Nature Cure methods, but there was nobody to help me with practical guidance in their use. With the help of whatever knowledge I could gather by reading a little of Nature Cure literature, I tried to treat myself by diet regulation. My habit of going out for long walks also stood me in good stead, and thanks to that habit I did not have actually to take to bed. While I was thus managing to keep going somehow, Mr. Polak handed me Just's book, called Return to Nature.

Key to Health, pp. 57 & 58