The Edgar Cayce Diet – A Guide to Natural Health

The Edgar Cayce Diet – A Guide to Natural Health

The Sleeping Prophet gave unique guidelines for healthy eating, and the Cayce Diet is simple in concept - good advice for almost anyone. In the Western world, eating is traditionally treated as a simple matter of maintaining energy and gaining pleasure. But as in the Chinese and Indian traditions of “functional nutrition,” Edgar Cayce viewed food as medicine, both to cure and prevent disease, and he placed great emphasis on it.

It would be great if we could just ask Cayce for advice on a personal healthy diet. But since we don't have the master himself here, it makes sense to learn the basic "rules of the road" that he left us.

Here are some Cayce dietary DOs and DON’Ts. But remember that we are more than just physical beings – we are a body-mind-spirit composite. Even sleeping Cayce pointed out the psychological benefit of breaking the eating rules every now and then. In other words, occasionally eating those french fries that you really enjoy can actually benefit the body by calming the mind and emotions!

THINGS YOU SHOULD DO

Eat fish, poultry and lamb. Cayce recommended these as much better than large amounts of beef or pork.

Eat citrus fruits to alkalize and prevent colds.

Eat whole grain products

Eat local food. A Cayce rule of healthy eating recommends that people should consume as much locally grown food as possible. It is fascinating to remember that this principle was also laid down 5,000 years ago in the ancient Sanskrit Vedas of India, the origin of Ayurveda.

Cayce added thatnotEating local foods was the main cause of allergies! When I first heard this, it made perfect sense – what better way to deal with environmental factors than by eating the foods grown in that environment?

In Cayce's time, most people ate primarily local foods, even people who lived in cities. Small farmers and gardeners brought their produce and meat to the cities every morning. Unfortunately for many today, at least in the United States, the majority of our food is grown in just a few states. It can be almost impossible to get local food unless we grow the food ourselves.

Maintain the correct acid-base balance in the body. This was one of the universal rules - and he went on to say that it could completely prevent the common cold! He described the way foods react in the body rather than their intrinsic properties. For example, an orange can test acidity with litmus paper, but in the body its reaction is alkaline.

What is the right acid-base balance for you? On the Cayce diet, a sedentary person (little exercise) should only eat 20 percent acid-producing and 80 percent alkaline-reacting foods. But then he gave the opposite for a physically active person - 80% acid,
and 20% basic.

Eat 3 vegetables grown above ground to 1 grown below. (He excepted at least one diabetic who was told to reverse the rule to restore the proper balance.)

Prepare vegetables as gently as possible in their own juice. He recommended Patapar paper, which we didn't always find practical. But at least use as little water as possible, in a pot with a tight lid, and always eat all the water, which contains the most nutrients.

Many people use a steamer, but we have found that this results in undercooking of vegetables and a waste of nutrients in the water. Legumes (peas and beans) in particular cannot be digested properly unless they are thoroughly cooked (or sprouted), and people almost never use the water from steaming.

Eat yogurt, which he called Bulgarian buttermilk, for gut health.

Eat two almonds daily to prevent cancer.

Eat olive oil for heart and colon health. He said it would be better to take a tablespoon of olive oil every evening to help with elimination.

Eat gelatin on vegetables and greens to improve coordination. We often just sprinkle it on and stir it in.

Chew food slowly.

Eat in a quiet environment.

CAYCE DIET THINGS TO AVOID

All fried foods (High heat destroys most food value.) Most food goes in one shot - Kentucky Fried Chicken, a lot of Chinese food, Long John Silver's, most hamburger places, etc.

White flour in its many forms.

Eat lots of pork, especially if you have arthritis! He recommended extremely crispy bacon and giblets. (These are what most of us consider the unappetizing parts—organs and intestines that were traditionally used in bologna, sausages, hot dogs, and some types of meatballs. Unfortunately, these foods today often contain too much salt and harmful preservatives.)

Eating a lot of beef, except for his specially prepared beef juice.

Carbonated water. He called pop “slop,” except for a few people.

Alcohol, except red wine.

Eating when stressed, overexcited, emotionally upset or overtired.

Certain combinations of foods such as milk and citrus fruits (he added tomatoes as citrus fruits); whole grains and citrus fruits; meat or cheese with starch; and milk or cream in coffee.

Foods that the body doesn't tolerate, even if you like them, or even if you like themshouldbe healthy for yourself.

HOW CAN THE EDGAR CAYCE DIET WORK FOR YOU?

Can you actually eat like that and enjoy it?The fact that Vikings (and health nuts) could mix anything healthy together and not notice it doesn't really help. Cayce himself warned against indulging your taste preferences too violently. But that's why cooking was invented!

There is no doubt that it will require changes, especially if you have the habit of eating the way most people do and not thinking much about it.

That's the main thing– you have to think about itWhatThey eat, andwhereYou get it, andHowto prepare it. Shopping can take longer at first, and real cooking takes time, although good planning can save you a lot of time. But approach it slowly and you will succeed.

What we have discussed are the general principles of the Cayce Diet. But there is much more. If you have a specific question, you can usually find it in the ARE's Edgar Cayce database. The knowledge you gain is especially powerful when you can Find a Cayce-friendly doctor to help you. The legacy of the Cayce diet could make a big difference in your life –Why not make the most of it?