Excerpts from Hilton Hotema's 'Long Life in Florida'.
The Wonderful Orange by Dr. Leon A. Wilcox.
"For twenty years I have been trying to put over a message about the wonderful Orange and the benefits to be obtained from its use.A few years ago a horse named Black Gold won the Kentucky Derby.It seems this horse was owned by a woman who had come into her fortune in the Oklahoma oil fields. She named her horse after the black oil that had made her wealthy. This black oil of Oklahoma never contained anywhere near the wealth that is to be found in the golden orange of Florida and California. In the orange there is health. In the black gold is self indulgence, dissipation, sickness and death.Till a very few years ago, it was the custom to carry home a dozen oranges with much the same mental attitude as was felt about a box of candy. They had been regarded as something nice to eat between meals, or as a dessert. To think of them as a wonderful food- perish the thought!The great majority of the medical profession have always knocked the citrus fruits.
Even in this day it is not uncommon to hear one say their doctor told them not to eat fruits, as they contained too much acid.Especially are people advised not to eat the citrus fruits, such as oranges, lemons and grapefruit, on account of the acid. It is only within recent years that any of the medical practitioners suggested the use of these valuable foods.I regret to have to say that only a few today know how these fruits should be used.It depends entirely on how these fruits are used as to whether they will give an acid reaction or not. Citrus fruits will always return an alkaline reaction when taken in the stomach by themselves.
These fruits (in fact all juicy fruits) should never be eaten at the same meal with cooked or baked foods, nor should they ever be eaten with sugar.Cooked foods contain a certain amount of starch. When fruit juices come in contact with starch in the stomach, the reaction is sure to be fermentation. The fermentation process is what generates acid. So you see it is not the fruits that make the acid; it is the food combinations.Remember, all kinds of fresh fruits, melons and berries should always be eaten alone or with the fresh salad vegetables.
William H. Dieffenbach, M.D., of New York City, is the authority for the following about Fruits." Fruit instead of being a dessert, should, if properly evaluated, be classified as the most valuable of foods."Fruits contain little protein and fat but are most valuable sources of mineral salts, cellulose, carbohydrates and vitamins.The water content of fruits ,with mineral content, keeps the blood in a state of alkalinity. Its alkaline elements , which are combined with the fruit acids, act as natural laxitives by promoting the secretory action of the liver, pancreas and other secretory glands.
"Fruits furnish calcium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, and manganese of a highly organised type and are indispensable for the rebuilding of blood platelets and corpuscles."Fruits are important sources of vitmins A,B, and C. Fruit sugars are a great source of vital energy and strength. Their combustion is readily accomplished and their basic elements readily neutralize CO2. Refined sugars, must first be converted by the pancreatic juices into dextrose before being available for combustion, and are therefore a strain on the economy if used to excess. Orange juice contains vitamins A,B and C."The fresh citrus fruits, lemon, orange, tangerine, lime and grapefruit, prevent scurvy, due to vitamin C."
King of Fruits.
After having given the question of fruits twenty years of study and research not only by personal use but also by the direction and treatment of patients, I have arrived at the conclusion that the orange is the king of all fruits.Very few would believe the length of time an individual can live and perform the hardest kind of work, both mental and physical, using absolutely nothing but oranges for food. Another very important thing; a sick person living exclusively on an orange diet, is not only getting all the nourishment that the body requires, but the orange will neutralize the acid in the system and prove a better medicine than any drug known to pharmacy.
Finset Distilled Water.I, one time heard a great physician and dietitian say "orange juice is water distilled in God's own distillary".How true this is. It is a food and a drink for the healthy and a medicine for the sick. For those who are seeking to regain their health, there is nothing that can be taken in the human system that will assist nature like this golden elixir of life.
Millions of dollars are being spent every year advertising all kinds of foods. The old high powered salesman has given way to the high powered advertising counsellor. These fellows must lay awake nights conjuring up good advertising copy telling us why we should eat Buncom & Co's Patent Leather Cheese for our health.In the fruits and green uncooked vegetables you have food exactly as Nature has prepared it, and there is positively nothing of any sort on the market that can equal these foods for good health. All the vitamin content is still intact. There has been no processing of any sort to take away the virtue from these things. All the food value is still there.Let us learn to utilize the golden nuggets of health found in fruit, so we can better enjoy the black gold found in our natural resources and industry."
February 1931. Pittsburg Health Club.
How these words inspired and enthused me when I was on my Orange Juice during Lent 2008.
I am endeavouring to find out more about the wonderful Dr. Wilcox and will keep you posted if I find out any more about him.
