Page:Linda Hazzard - Fasting for the cure of disease.djvu/55

 interrupting the periods of abstinence with intervals of diet.

The only alleviation that can be accomplished when distress occurs in a fast, is that which may be obtained by assisting nature hygienically. Little can be done in case of severe symptoms save to await results, but the enema is an all-important ally, and invariably brings immediate relief, while hot applications for pulse and temperature below normal, and cold applications for the opposite condition, are essential as well. The partial and the interrupted fast, whether indicated in the manner described or entered into from policy, are always beneficial.

The post mortem examinations cited in the text reveal the fact that it is impossible for one to die in the fast unless the vital organs are in such condition prior to entering abstinence that death is inevitable whether food is taken or not. Symptoms severe in character result, in the fast or out of it, from organs that are below normal in size or that are misplaced or defective in structure. And, when distressing conditions arise in the fast, the safer and the saner thing to do is to continue the omission of food to the point of purification, rather than to return to feeding or to