Juices!for!the!Gerson!Therapy!

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Introduction!
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Juices! on! the! Gerson! Therapy! are! a! critical! aspect! of! the! Gerson! Therapy! providing! most! of! the! vitamins,! minerals,! enzymes,! phytochemicals! and! other! nutrients! essential! to! healing! along! with! adequate! fluid!intake.! !We!are!often!asked!why!patients!cannot!simply!eat!the!foods!instead!of!making!them!into!juices,!as! there!is!no!fiber!content!to!the!juice,!and!invariably!some!nutrition!is!lost!in!the!juicing!process.! !

Why!Cant!I!Just!Eat!Solid!Food?!
! First! of! all,! ! the! typical! Gerson! Therapy! patient! will! ingest! thirteen! 8! ounce! glasses! ! about! 104! ounces! of! juice! daily!! This! tremendous! influx! of! liquid! provides! the! nutritional! equivalent! of! almost! seventeen! pounds! of! food! a! day.! ! The! consumption! of! that! quantity! of! food! on! a! daily! basis! would! be! impossible.! ! Secondly,! patients! suffering! from! degenerative! diseases! almost! always! have! difficulty! properly! digesting!and!absorbing!food.!This!can!be!a!result!of!toxicity,!malfunction!of!the!digestive!system,!a!decrease! in! stomach! acid! production,! or! a! variety! of! other! causes.! This! digestive! weakness! is! the! same! reason! that! many! patients! have! difficulty! digesting! and! absorbing! vitamin! and! mineral! supplements! in! pill! or! capsule! form.! ! Dr.! Gersons! clinical! experimentation! showed! that! fresh! juice! from! raw! foods! provided! the! easiest! and! most! effective! way! of! providing! high! quality! nutrition! and! most! importantly,! produce! the! best! clinical! results.!

! Need!for!Strict!Adherence!to!the!Protocol!
! We! continue! to! evaluate! the! effects! of! the! juices,! consider! other! juices! and! juice! products! and! look! for! ways! to! both! enhance! the! healing! process! and! minimize! hardship! in! the! practice! of! the! therapy.! As! yet,! we!have!not!found!any!way!to!reduce,!substitute!or!eliminate!any!of!the!juices,!or!the!necessity!of!preparing! them! fresh! at! the! time! of! consumption.! We! are! reluctant! to! make! changes! without! a! complete! understanding! of! the! underlying! processes,! and! it! is! difficult! to! justify! risking! lives! for! the! sake! of! experimentation! when! we! have! a! protocol! that! has! been! extremely! effective! in! treating! and! healing! degenerative!diseases.! !

How!the!Juices!Enhance!Healing!
! We! do! not! clearly! understand! the! process! of! exactly! how! the! juices! enhance! healing,! except! for! the! obvious! vitamin,! mineral,! enzyme,! and! trace! mineral! supplementation! they! provide.! The! nutrient! supplementation! alone! is! probably! not! enough! to! explain! why! there! is! a! difference! between! juices! consumed! immediately! after! preparation! and! those! consume! several! hours! later.! Clearly,! oxidation! causes! loss! of! certain! vitamins! and! enzymes.! There! has! been! much! discussion! of! the! enzyme! activity! in! the! juices! 1572!Second!Avenue! San!Diego,!CA!92101! [email protected]! Phone!(619)!685"5353! Fax!(619)!685"5363! www.gerson.org!

when! they! are! fresh,! and! the! importance! of! these! enzymes! in! numerous! biochemical! functions.! Yet,! the! enzyme!are!immediately!destroyed!on!contact!with!stomach!acid.!! !

Why!Do!the!Juices!Always!Have!to!be!Fresh?!
! What! makes! the! difference! in! healing! response! between! the! fresh! juice! and! the! hours"old! juice?! One! possibility! is! that! some! of! the! enzymes! present! in! the! fresh! juice! are! absorbed! directly! in! the! mucous! membranes! in! the! mouth! and! esophagus,! before! reaching! the! stomach.! This! theory! is! born! out! by! the! observation! that! patients! fed! through! a! naso"gastric! or! stomach! tube! do! not! respond! favorably! to! the! Gerson! Therapy.! Another! possibility,! from! the! esoteric! medical! literature! (dealing! with! human! and! plant! energies)! is! that! there! is! a! form! of! plant! vital! force! present! in! the! juices! when! freshly! made,! and! that! this! vital! force! affects! the! patient,! and! promotes! healing! at! the! energetic,! or! physic,! level! rather! than! at! the! cellular/biochemical! level.! We! have! little! evidence! to! support! either! assumption,! but! we! dont! want! to! rule! out! any! possibility! that! gives! us! greater! understanding.! In! addition! to! the! nutritional! supplementation,! the! juices! also! serve,! by! virtue! of! their! high! liquid! content,! to! help! in! flushing! the! kidneys.! However! the! process! occurs,! it! is! important! to! recognize! that! the! healing! that! comes! as! a! result! of! the! intake! of! fresh! juices! is! consistent,! and! has! been! validated.! That! along! with! the! long! ! term! positive! outcomes! that! we! regularly! observe,!is,!in!our!opinion,!enough!reason!to!follow!Gersons!original!directives!in!this!regard.! !

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Frequently!Asked!Questions!
! ! Q.!Can!I!add!another!fruit/vegetable!into!the!juice?!
! A. No,!every!ingredient!is!!there!for!a!specific!purpose.!

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Q.!What!type!of!juices!are!part!of!the!Gerson!Therapy?!
! A.!!They!are!four:!green,!carrot,!carrot/apple,!and!orange!(or!grapefruit)!juices.! ! !

Q.!What!if!I!cant!find!one!of!the!ingredients?!
! A. Dont! substitute.! Find! as! many! ingredients! as! possible! and! make! the! juice! without! the! missing! ingredients.!Incorporate!the!missing!ingredients!once!they!become!available!again.!

! ! Q.!Can!I!store!the!juices?! !
A. Green!juice!may!not!be!stored,!it!must!be!taken!right!away.!Carrot/apple!juice!is!best!taken!right! away,! but! may! be! stored! if! necessary! up! to! 72! hours.!! It! is! best! to! store! the! juice! in! small! 8oz.! mason! jars,! filled! up! to! the! top! so! there! is! no! room! for! oxygen,! and! placed! in! a! cooler.!! A! small! container! is! better! than! a! thermos! or! a! larger! jar,! as! each! time! a! larger! container! is! opened,! !

more! air! gets! in! and! further! oxidizes! the! juice.! ! A! smaller! container! is! best! because! it! is! not! opened!multiple!times.!

! ! Q.!Are!the!juices!the!same!for!diabetic!people?!
! A. (See!the!Diabetes!Protocol!document!for!answers).! ! !

Q.!If!Im!a!healthy!person,!can!I!have!other!juices?!
! A. If!you!are!following!the!Gerson!therapy,!there!is!a!reason!for!everything!and! things!shouldnt!be! changed.!! But! if! you! are! healthy,! it! is! your! own! personal! decision! to! add! other! juices.! Use! the! Food!Reference!Guide!document,!available!in!the!Gerson!Therapy!books.! !

Q.!Can!I!drink!water!in!addition!to,!or!instead!of!juices?!
! A. No,! it! will! dilute! the! nutrients! in! the! juices.!! There! is! already! distilled,! organic! water! in! the! juices! that! has! been! extracted! from! the! fruit! and! vegetables.!! In! some! circumstances,! herbal! teas! such! as!peppermint!or!chamomile!tea!are!alright!to!drink.!

! ! Q.!What!do!I!do!if!I!cannot!find!organic!ingredients?!
! A. Under! no! circumstances! are! non"organic! ingredients! to! be! substituted! for! organic! ingredients.!! Patients! who! have! done! this! have! quickly! found! it! to! be! detrimental! to! their! recovery.! ! Root! vegetables! especially,! concentrate! whatever! is! in! the! soil.!! For! example,! the! herbicide! Roundup! is! one! of! the! most! toxic! substances! you! can! put! in! your! body.! Concentrating! a! chemical! like! Roundup! with! a! press! type! juicer! and! drinking! it! is! extremely! harmful.! Make! the! juices! without! the!missing!organic!ingredients!until!they!become!available!again.! ! !

Q.!What!about!adding!raw!spinach?!
! A. Raw! spinach! is! not! part! of! the! Gerson! Therapy.!! It! has! oxalic! acid! in! its! raw! form! which! inhibits! the!absorption!of!some!necessary!nutrients.!

! ! Q.!Can!I!substitute!with!different!apples!if!the!Granny!Smith!(green)!is!not!available?!
! A. Do!not!substitute!red!or!yellow!apples!(example!=!Delicious).!!The!preferred!substitute!would!be! a!tart!apple!(example!=!Fiji).!!Return!to!the!Granny!Smith!variety!once!they!become!available.!

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References:! ! ! Healing!the!Gerson!Way,!Chapter!12!Preparing!Food!and!Juices!!The!Basic!rules!p.!153! ! The!Gerson!Therapy,!Chapter!9!Thirteen!Glasses!p.!111!! !