At 11:32 PM 3/18/97 +0100, Denis wrote a bit about fasting, and I stuck it
somewhere in the ether to be considered later. I doubt if later will come,
but as I remember the topic was:
>Against fasting, which produces toxic ketones.

A co-worker at my lab was told this by her physician, and even tho she was
only on a minimum 1200/day calorie fast, she was instucted to drink 8 oz.
water every hour on the hourx8,to flush out metabolic toxic byproducts from
this system cleansing,and to check her chem profile (her specialty)
frequently during the diet, because of the _toxic_ ketones which could
become seriously prolific and dangerous when fasting. I wish I'd listened
more thoroughly, but I had no intention then or ever to stress my body that
way on purpose, so I didn't investigate the consequences of what I consider
to be an abnormal animal state for a healthy animal. If one studies a
healthy, hungry animal, from amoeba to blue whales, one finds an animal
seeking food. Must be a reason for it, don't you think? An instinct to
survive, based on millions of years of experience?

Of course, to stress a sick animal with the digestive process is
instinctively avoided by all animals,infants, young and old, but in the
hospital very ill patients are often
stabilized by intravenous feeding. What should this tell us, who are guided
by instinctive nourishment needs? Why, that the _food_ we are presented with
is not correct for healing us, but that the simple glucose molecule is
vitally needed for energy support to fight the problem. The sickest I've
ever been in a lifetime (I pray!) was one Thanksgiving, home from
college,with an extremely virulent gastrointestinal "virus"?
"Salmonella"?"other toxic poisoning?"(in that small town no one cared, just
fix it) in which I could not keep even water or coke down for ten minutes. I
was given Emetrol, a glucose sol'n,to swallow which was comforting and
tolerated, and which is all I had of liquid or solid by the tablespoonful
for seven days, and then only thin bland soup for another 3-5--I don't
remember.

When I did get my appetite, my table manners were not a pretty sight, only
the water glass and the table itself were safe from assault!! I was a fit
athlete, and had lost 12 pounds, and I hunkered down to gain them back
without conscious thought about it at all. Such experience tends to make one
believe that when very, very ill the body instinctively avoids any stress at
all, including food digestion.. But then hunger strikes with a vengeance,
first for very bland food, then as strength is gained, robust protein, fat
and carbs are craved. If this isn't plain good body/mind instinct, why,
polar bears are safe playmates.

This assumes that the food has not been chemically or genetically altered
beyond the body's ability to understand its danger, of course.

Pat