Max Gerson cancer cure diet therapy
Other Common Name(s): Gerson Diet, Gerson Method, Gerson Treatment,
Gerson Program
Description of the Gerson Therapy
Overview of the Gerson Method
How is the Gerson Treatment promoted for use?
What does the Gerson Diet involve
The history of the Gerson
Program
The evidence on the Gerson Therapy
Possible problems or complications with the
Gerson Therapy
Refrences for the Gerson Program
Links
Gerson therapy involves coffee enemas and a special diet with
supplements claimed to cleanse the body and stimulate metabolism.
There is no scientific evidence that Gerson therapy is effective in
treating cancer. Nevertheless there are thousands of people who have
improved their health with it.
Gerson therapy is considered a metabolic therapy, and is based on the
theory that disease is caused by the body's accumulation of toxic
substances. Practitioners believe that chemical fertilizers,
insecticides, and herbicides contaminate food by lowering the potassium
content and raising the sodium content of fruits and vegetables. Food
processing and cooking adds more sodium which changes the metabolism of
cells in the body, eventually causing cancer.
According to practitioners, people with cancer have an excess amount of
sodium, far outweighing the potassium in their bodies. The fruit and
vegetable diet, which is part of Gerson therapy, is used to correct this
imbalance and revitalize the liver so it can begin to rid the body of
malignant cells. Coffee enemas are claimed to eliminate dead cancer
cells (detoxification), and relieve pain.
The goal of metabolic therapy is to eliminate toxins from the body and
enhance immune function so that the body can "fight off" cancer. Liver
extract injections, pancreatic enzymes, and various supplements are said
to stimulate metabolism. Proponents of metabolic therapy claim that it
addresses the underlying cause of disease rather than treating the
symptoms.
Gerson therapy requires following a strict diet that involves eating
a low salt, low fat, vegetarian diet, and drinking juice from
approximately 20 pounds of freshly crushed fruits and vegetables. In
addition, patients are given 3 or 4 coffee enemas a day. Various other
supplemental substances, such as pepsin, potassium, niacin, pancreatin
(a digestive enzyme), and thyroid extracts, are ingested to stimulate
various organ functions, particularly the liver and thyroid. Sometimes
other treatments such as laetrile, hydrogen peroxide, hyperbaric oxygen
therapy, and shark cartilage are also recommended.
The Gerson Institute does not own or operate any medical facilities;
however, it refers patients to clinics they license. Individual clinic
fees often exceed 4,000 per week, and treatment may last from a few
months to 10 years or more. The Gerson Institute also offers a home
therapy package.
One of the oldest nutritional approaches to cancer treatment, the
Gerson therapy was developed by Max Gerson, MD, a German doctor who
emigrated to the United States in the late 1930s. He designed the
dietary program in order to treat his own migraine headaches. He later
expanded his method to treat other conditions such as arthritis,
tuberculosis, and cancer. In 1945, Gerson published a preliminary report
of his results in treating cancer in the Review of Gastroenterology.
After his death in 1959, his work was carried on by his daughter,
Charlotte Gerson Strauss, who established the Gerson Institute in 1977.
There have been no well-controlled studies to support the beliefs and
practices of the Gerson therapy. The Gerson Research Organization
conducted a retrospective review and reported that survival rates were
higher for patients with melanoma, colorectal and ovarian cancers who
participated in the Gerson program compared to those who did not at
another institution.
According to a critique in a major peer-reviewed journal, the
explanation for how the method is supposed to work does not follow the
established scientific principles of basic nutrition, biology, and
cancer immunology.
Possible Problems or Complications with the
Gerson Therapy
There are a number of significant problems that may develop from the
use of this therapy.
If not done correctly, coffee enemas can lead to electrolyte
imbalances. Continued home use of enemas may cause the colon's normal
function to weaken, worsening constipation problems and colitis.
Enemas should be given only under guidance by a well trained colon
hydrotherapist or studied to be done properly.
Alternative Medicine: Expanding Medical Horizons. A Report to the
National Institutes of Health on Alternative Medical Systems and
Practices in the United States. Washington, DC: US Government Printing
Office; 1994. NIH publication 94-066.
American Cancer Society. Questionable methods of cancer management:
'nutritional' therapies. CA Cancer J Clin. 1993;43:309-319.
Hildenbrand GL, Hildenbrand LC, Bradford K, Cavin SW. Five-year survival
rates of melanoma patients treated by diet therapy after the manner of
Gerson: a retrospective review. Altern Ther Health Med. 1995;1:29-37.
Murphy GP, Morris LB, Lange D. Informed Decisions: The Complete Book of
Cancer Diagnosis, Treatment, and Recovery. New York, NY: Viking; 1997.
University of Texas Center for Alternative Medicine Research in Cancer.
Gerson summary. University of Texas-Houston Health Science Center
US Congress, Office of Technology Assessment. Unconventional Cancer
Treatments. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office; 1990.
Publication OTA-H-405.
Note: This information was reprinted from the American Cancer Society's
Guide to Complementary and Alternative Methods. Copyright(c)2000,
American Cancer Society. This information may not cover all possible
claims, uses, actions, precautions, side effects or interactions, is not
intended as medical advice, and should not be relied upon as a
substitute for consultation with your doctor who is familiar with your
medical needs
Links
Gerson Consultant in Australia
Gerson institute
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