Promoting health through happiness is an interesting pursuit. The poet Conrad Ferdinand Meyer thought deeply about this subject and concluded that a heavy heart is not cured by unrestrained hilarity but responds very quickly to even a little happiness. Was he really right? Can life’s problems be sorted out by just a little happiness, even though our everyday demands, worries and sufferings continuously erode our energies?

Imagine a beautiful peach tree espaliered against the wall of your house. Each spring it blossoms anew and a few months later it brings forth delicious fruit. Why should we think it could be otherwise? Yet suddenly the unexpected happens. The peach tree flowers as usual, but just as the flowers open they fall to the ground. The bark of the tree dries up and the tree dies. What has happened? The tree was the pride of the household; its healthy growth, its beautiful blossoms and delicious fruit were the talk of the neighbourhood. How could this tree die so quickly and unexpectedly? What malicious enemy could have attacked it? You ask yourself all these questions but you can only find the answers by digging up the tree. It is then that you discover the cause: field mice have eaten the roots and so killed the beautiful tree.

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If you want to move house, you should check the location you have chosen from the standpoint of bioclimatology; of course you will also wish to see whether the area is suitable, that is, whether you actually like it and it suits you. For this reason it would be useful if you could live in the selected area for a while before finally deciding to build or buy a property there. In accordance with our constitution and sensitivity, various circumstances can be significant, for example atmospheric humidity, elevation, and whether the area is known for the fohn or any other influential winds. You should also take into account whether you feel the cold or the heat, your preference as regards food and exercise or movement, or whatever type you are. In view of the different idiosyncracies and natures we have inherited and from which we cannot escape, it is by no means of little importance where and under what conditions we live. The various members of a family often differ in their needs and preferences, in which case it would be advisable to be guided by the more sensitive ones, choosing your site to suit them.

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In Switzerland very few plants contain iodine. Iceland moss, lung moss, reindeer moss, larch moss (Usnea) and carrageen (also called Irish moss) are some of the plants that do contain vitamin A and a reasonable amount of iodine, as has been proved by the pharmacologist Professor Gessner. In Switzerland there are thirty-eight different varieties of these mosses, which are described in botanic terms as lichens. Professor Gessner reports that these additionally contain antibiotic substances with a strong tuberculostatic effect. Some of these lichens are used in Usneasan drops and Usneasan Cough Lozenges. Genuine eelgrass (Zostera marina) and thrift [Armeria maritima), which can be found on the shores of the North and Baltic Seas, contain iodine, fluoride and bromide, three essential trace elements. Small amounts of iodine are also found in watercress.

All seaweeds contain iodine, the amount varying according to the kind and where it grows. The species known as bladder wrack (Fucus vesiculosus) grows to a size of 5 cm (2 inches) wide and 1 metre (3 feet) long. Its iodine content varies between 0.03 and 0.1 per cent, and it is used to treat obesity, struma and scrofula. However, it is unsafe for some people to take large amounts of this seaweed, especially those with a sensitive thyroid.

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Girls and women who become obese because of ovarian insufficiency should take herbal sitz baths and eat plenty of wheat germ, as this will stimulate the ovaries, increase the metabolic rate of the body and so dispose of undesirable fat. In addition, they should take the seaweed preparation Kelpasan for even faster results.

Lack of vigour and stamina, tiredness because of overwork and neurasthenic conditions call for foods rich in vitamin E, which have a better effect than all expensive medicines if taken over a period of time. Anyone suffering from impotence should not give up hope, but take a long-term course of wheat germ or wheat germ oil capsules and, at the same time, Kuhne treatments, which will certainly help, if not cure the problem completely. In addition to wheat germ, other sources of vitamin E are lettuce, watercress and soybeans. So make sure to eat enough of these natural products if you suffer from any of the above-mentioned conditions. Moreover, it is interesting to note that experiments on vitamin E have shown that no side effects have resulted if too much of the vitamin is taken.

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It was many decades ago (in 1922) when the American scientist Herbert McLean Evans discovered vitamin E. Since then it has been proved that there is no better natural remedy for sterility and infertility. Many a woman could have saved herself great heartache if she had known about vitamin E. Not only does this vitamin prevent miscarriage, but it also promotes the healthy, normal development of the foetus, ensuring a normal pregnancy without complications.

However, vitamin E is not only important for women; men too depend upon an adequate supply of it for the normal functioning of the sex glands. In turn, vitality, pleasure in work and stamina are dependent upon the efficiency of these glands.

Vitamin E influences the development and function of the smooth and striped muscles, being able to prevent muscle degeneration. This is of great importance for the cardiac muscles. In fact, vitamin E, together with natural heart remedies such as Crataegisan and Auroforce, has proved most effective as a tonic for weak heart muscles. It can be added that a vitamin E deficiency is very bad for the nerves too.

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The symptoms of multiple sclerosis are not always the same, so that the identity of the disease sometimes escapes diagnosis, especially in its early stages. One of the earliest symptoms is often the absence of the abdominal reflex. A fairly reliable diagnostic sign concerns the optic nerves. In this case, by using an ophthalmoscope the eye specialist will observe demyelination where the optic nerve enters at the back of the eye.

It is important to begin treatment as soon as the disease has been diagnosed, since the chances of success are then better than if it is neglected, although many orthodox medical doctors do not agree with this view, or do so only reluctantly. Years ago, a lady from eastern Switzerland came to me for treatment. Three or four doctors and a professor had diagnosed multiple sclerosis. The symptoms of paralysis were only slight to begin with. About three months later, when the lady went to see a specialist, he did not believe that she had suffered from multiple sclerosis, since she was found to be in good health. If she had had multiple sclerosis, the doctor contended, she could not be well again, because there was no cure for it and no one had so far been cured. The treatment she was given is the first of those outlined below.

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In many other areas, for example in North Africa and Egypt or Sri Lanka and India, travellers are exposed to the ever-present danger of hookworms. This dangerous worm is so widespread that Professor Dr Nauck, one of the foremost specialists in tropical diseases, believes that over 500 million people are infested with it. According to his estimate, every fifth person in the tropics is a carrier of this dangerous parasite.

Not only are roundworms and the tiny threadworms or pin-worms extremely widespread in tropical lands and islands, but the even more dangerous whipworms are abundant in some areas, so that practically all the inhabitants are infested with one kind or another of these parasites.

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The diet should be low in protein and all white flour products should be avoided, as well as white sugar. Instead, stick to a natural wholefood diet and take plenty of juices, including beetroot, carrot and celery. Horseradish and young nettles should be eaten daily and, as a supplement to the diet, oysters, shrimps and squid have great therapeutic value.

A carrot juice diet is beneficial. Juices of grapefruit, grapes and oranges are also excellent. Experience will tell which juice suits you best, because certain acids, although harmless to people in good health, do not always agree with someone who is not quite so well. If you want to achieve good results without complications, follow the reactions of your body and take care. Also, drink only reasonable quantities of the juices, because you could do more harm than good by overdoing it. Caution is recommended even when the juices and remedies which are to help reduce weight are natural.

Extracts from animal glands may be helpful, but only if given in the appropriate doses, because they may otherwise do more harm than good. Exercise and deep-breathing, preferably in mountain or ocean air, are among some of the best remedies for stimulating the glands.

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Even the most difficult case will yield to this treatment, providing the proper diet is maintained and very little salt and protein is ingested. When it comes to skin disorders, salt is a poison and the metabolic toxins resulting from an excess intake of animal protein aggravate these diseases in general and psoriasis in particular. Further advice on diet is given on pages 180-1. If there is a discharge of pus from the eruption, Hepar sulph. 4x should be taken. If the trouble is connected with an acid condition of the body or if there is an oozing, burning, blistering rash with painful itching, then Rhus tox. 4x to 6x will be the best remedy. Arsenicum alb. 4x to 6x is good for both dry and oozing eruptions which burn and irritate especially by night. In cases of chronic eruptions the homoeopathic sulphur remedies Sulphur 6x and Sulphur iod. 4x to 6x have proven their worth, particularly if the eruption is of a scrofulous nature. Finally, if the disease is the result of a tendency

to rheumatism or gout, then Calcarea carb. 4x alternated with Lycopodium 6x would be indicated.

Whatever the cause, it is useful to add a calcium preparation which incorporates nettles, for example Urticalcin, to the other medication. And do not forget that Violaforce (heartsease drops) is an especially effective remedy for skin disorders.

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We have all developed the bad habit of using the motor car for every little errand instead of walking. It is most unusual for a person who owns a car to take regular walks, not even when it is just a stone’s throw to the corner shop. We have become a generation spoiled by the many inventions that make life easier: we no longer want to walk, we no longer want to use our limbs, and our muscles suffer from disuse. Many people are not aware of the danger that results from this way of life. Our circulation suffers and there may even be a deterioration of the entire vascular system as well as of the heart. Monotonous mental activity may lead to tensions, stagnation in the circulatory system, spasms, high blood pressure and many other problems. All these things are potential causes of heart attacks, especially for people in their late fifties.

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