Human Life Its Philosophy and Laws; An Exposition of the Principles and Practices of Orthopathy

by Herbert M. Shelton

2013 Reprint of 1928 Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. This book holds a unique place in the history of natural hygiene. It is a book for all times, all seasons, and all people. It was the first book to give detailed historical and practical credit to most all of the brilliant pioneers who were responsible for establishing the foundations for orthopathy. "Orthopathy" also called "Natural Hygiene," is an alternative medical philosophy derived from naturopathy. It advocates a vegetarian, raw food diet with periods of intermittent fasting. Contents: Health and Its Conditions and Requirements; The Laws of Life; Living Matter Cures Itself; Is Disease Friend or Foe; Early Orthopathic Ideas of Disease; Acute Disease a Curative Process; Self-Limited Disease; The Rational of Inflammation and Fever; Physiological Compensation; Acute Disease not a Radical Cure; Unity of Disease and Symptoms; Causes of Disease; Germs; Perversions; Feeding; Fasting; Sunshine and Sun-Baths; Physical Exercise; Hygiene of Health; Care of Wounds; Place of Art; Passing of the Plagues; Suppression of Disease and its Results.

Genres: Health, Philosophy

552 pages, Paperback

First published April 28, 1996

About the author

Herbert M. Shelton was an American naturopath, alternative medicine advocate, and prolific author best known for promoting natural hygiene, fasting, and raw veganism. Born in Texas in 1895, Shelton was deeply influenced by observing animal behavior during illness and early pioneers like Isaac Jennings and Sylvester Graham. He studied at several institutions devoted to chiropractic and naturopathy, eventually graduating from the American School of Naturopathy. Shelton believed that cooked food was harmful and that the human body could heal itself without medical intervention, primarily through fasting and a raw, plant-based diet.
In 1922, he self-published Fundamentals of Nature Cure, later retitled An Introduction to Natural Hygiene. He went on to write the influential seven-volume The Hygienic System and published The Hygienic Review for forty years. In 1948, he founded the American Natural Hygiene Society, which became the National Health Association. Despite facing frequent legal challenges for practicing medicine without a license, Shelton maintained a loyal following and left a lasting legacy on the raw food and fasting movements.
A pacifist, Shelton was jailed during World War I for opposing the draft. His career was marred by controversy, including patient deaths and lawsuits, one of which led to his financial ruin and the closure of his health school. Afflicted by a degenerative disease in later life, he remained active in his work until his death in 1985. His legacy remains polarizing, viewed by some as visionary and by others as dangerously unscientific.