When I was younger, I used to sing a great deal in public and earn from it. A bad cold, therefore, meant harmed voice, equals no income. In those days, I believed a great deal in the curative powers of medicines and so every time a cold attacks, I did the usual “stuff a cold and starve a fever". What was worse was that it usually took me too long to recover from a single attack that left me unable to perform and earn a living. There was this very important concert then that I had to perform in along with others. I was so excited because this was no small-time concert. All forms of advertisements were exhausted for the event and the venue had been long prepared. Suddenly, three days before the anticipated performance, I caught an awful cold.

I went to the manager of the affair and reported my sad predicament. Fortunately, the manager was a doctor who was not overly convinced by the curative powers of medicines. And he was the one who introduced me to the “fasting cure" which he, himself practices when he’s afflicted with one. I was advised to starve and eat nothing but I can drink all the water I can until my pulse and body temperature returned to normal. I was also advised to rest in bed for about three days and he promised me I’d be as good as new after that. I was told not to listen to my family, relatives and doctor if they tell me to eat to gain my strength back. He assured me that I would not grow weak for lack of nourishment in a three-day fasting. I also learned about not being able to digest food well if the person has a fever, so it is advisable, really to fast.

I took his advice and the results were exactly as he had stated. After the end of the three-day fast, I was able to join a last rehearsal in the afternoon of the big event. And that night, I sang my numbers without a trace of the bad cold! In three days I was able to recover fully well from a bout of cold through fasting, which would have normally taken me much longer if I had succumbed to purely medical solutions.

Digestive disorders are caused by many factors. Eating a lot and eating more than what is required is quite a common cause. Other factors include hurried and improper eating. These two alone cause about 80% of digestive disorders. Then there’s the tobacco or after-meal cigar, “treats" and the business-first-before-meal attitude.

I have a very good appetite or digestion though some things could cause it to falter once in a while. In those cases, I eventually resort to fasting to give my stomach a few days’ rest. For my fever, catarrhal problems and bad cold and glandular disorders, fasting never fails to restore me up. Fasting can help clean the digestive system. It can be done through the supervision of a capable nurse without inducing any other commercial medicine. Under these conditions a satisfactory cure is almost certain.

My summary of the matter is, as I have stated, that the difference between starving and fasting lies in the mental attitude. The beneficial effect of fasting is that it gives the stomach needed rest from any digestive disorders. While in “bad colds" the clogging rubbish or surplus matter is burned up or eliminated from the body and glandular structures very much in the same way that this end is accomplished by prolonged systematic exercise.

The only danger in the fasting system, if not of too long duration, seems to lie at its termination. Taper off gently and don't gorge yourself. Do this and no harm will result. At the end of the four days' fasts I have taken, I ate in moderation; grape juice, well-boiled rice, green peas and carrots. The next day I ate anything I liked, provided I chewed it properly and slowly.