Appendix 1

Health & Medical statements found in The Ministry of Healing (M. of H.), 1905 Spiritual Gifts Volume 4 (S. G.), 1864

1864, Spiritual Gifts Vol 4b, page 80 – “He (Satan) works cures, … mesmerism are very much exalted. They are good in their place, but they are seized upon by Satan as his most powerful agents to deceive and destroy souls.”

Comment – Hypnotism is not seen to be a major help in healing and may be dangerous to psychological health. I have included hypnotism and phrenology in my section on Spiritual Gifts as it was published in Volume 4, but not in the chapter on health.

Score – Minor

1864, Spiritual Gifts Vol 4b, page 80 – “He (Satan) works cures, … Phrenology …. are very much exalted. They are good in their place, but they are seized upon by Satan as his most powerful agents to deceive and destroy souls.”

Comment – Phrenology was not good in its place, as it had no validity. Ellen White was correct in its condemnation. The principles behind phrenology have now been shown to be correct, but it requires specialized scanning of the brain to show up the functional areas and can not be achieved by skull measurements.

Score – Minor

What 6 – Health Institutions are better in the Country than City.

M. of H. pages 263 – “Institutions for the care of the sick would be far more successful if they could be established away from the cities.”

1902, Testimonies for the Churches Vol 7, page 76.1 – “The great medical institutions in our cities, called sanitariums, do but a small part of the good they might do were they located where the patients could have the advantages of outdoor life. I have been instructed that sanitariums are to be established in many places in the country”

Comment – This would have been a true statement when written and would be still true in many countries now. In the country, the air is often cleaner, the water purer, and the food supply better. However, in many countries these problems have been overcome and the position has reversed. The country has more problems with allergies and the supply of medical services.

Score – Minor

Why 3 - Country and City (What 6)

M. of H. page 236 – “Roaming through the fields and the woods, picking the flowers, listening to the songs of the birds, will do far more that any other agency toward their recovery.”

Page 365 – “The physical surroundings in the cities are often a peril to health. The constant liability to contact with disease, the prevalence of foul air, impure water, impure food, the crowded, dark, unhealthful dwellings, are some of the many evils to be met.”

Page 191 – “To many of those living in the cities who have not a spot of green grass to set their feet upon, who year after year have looked out upon filthy courts and narrow alleys, brick walls and pavements, and skies clouded with dust and smoke—if these could be taken to some farming district, surrounded with the green fields, the woods and hills and brooks, the clear skies and the fresh, pure air of the country, it would seem almost like heaven

Page 262 – “The noise and excitement and confusion of the cities, their constrained and artificial life, are most wearisome and exhausting to the sick. The air, laden with smoke and dust, with poisonous gases, and with germs of disease, is a peril to life. The sick, for the most part shut within four walls, come almost to feel as if they were prisoners in their rooms. They look out on houses and pavements and hurrying crowds, with perhaps not even a glimpse of blue sky or sunshine, of

Appendix 1

Health & Medical statements found in The Ministry of Healing (M. of H.), 1905 Spiritual Gifts Volume 4 (S. G.), 1864

grass or flower or tree. Shut up in this way, they brood over their suffering and sorrow, and become a prey to their own sad thoughts.”

Comment – The reasons given on pages 261-262 are a good summary of Why it was not as safe in the cities in the early 20th century.

Score - Verified

What 7 - Tight Clothing (R 24) G 12 A 9 C 3 J 12 K 25

M. of H. page 292 – “Another serious evil is the wearing of skirts so that their weight must be sustained by the hips.…. Of late years the dangers resulting from compression of the waist have been so fully discussed that few can be ignorant in regard to them; yet so great is the power of fashion that the evil continues.”

1865, Selected Messages, Book 2, page 473, from “How to Live” No 5 - “It is injurious to health, and, therefore, sin for females to wear tight corsets, or whalebones, or to compress the waist.” Comment – The compression of the waist causes some compromise to normal physiological function, but it is not a major health risk.

Ellen White wrote against the wearing of fashionable clothing before the vision of 1863.

1861, Testimonies for the Churches Vol 1, page 275 – “While the visions have reproved pride and imitating the fashions of the world,”

In The Ministry of Healing, Ellen White quotes current literature to back up her claim about dress.

Score – Minor

Why 4 - Tight Clothing 1 – Circulation (What 7)

M. of H. Page 271 – “Its (blood) circulation should not be hindered by tight clothing or bands, or by insufficient clothing of the extremities. Whatever hinders the circulation forces the blood back to the vital organs, producing congestion. Headache, cough, palpitation of the heart, or indigestion is often the result.”

1865, Selected Messages, Book 2, page 473, from “How to Live” No 5 – “to compress the waist …(has) a depressing influence upon the heart, liver, and lungs..

Comment – The physiological principle, that tight clothes can hinder normal circulation, is correct.

Score - Verified

Why 5 - Tight Clothing 2 – Respiration (What 7)

M. of H. page 292 – “This heavy weight, pressing upon the internal organs, drags them downward ….inclining the wearer to stoop, which further cramps the lungs, making correct breathing more difficult…It is essential to health that the chest have room to expand to its fullest extent in order that the lungs may be enabled to take full inspiration. When the lungs are restricted, the quantity of oxygen received into them is lessened. The blood is not properly vitalized, and the waste, poisonous matter which should be thrown off through the lungs is retained.”

Page 293 – “A multitude of women are nervous ….Many women have become confirmed invalids when they might have enjoyed health, ….. had they dressed in accordance with health principles and exercised freely in the open air.”

1865, Selected Messages, Book 2, page 473, from “How to Live” No 5 – “to compress the waist …(has) a depressing influence upon the heart, liver, and lungs..

1871, Health Reformer Nov 1, par 22 – “The compression of the waist by tight-lacing prevents the waste matter from being thrown off through its natural channels.”.

Comment – Tight clothes can reduce respiration, but I doubt whether it would be enough to cause a health risk. On the other hand, habitual use of tight clothes causes a reduction of exercise ability and in this way could cause a small health risk.

Appendix 1

Health & Medical statements found in The Ministry of Healing (M. of H.), 1905 Spiritual Gifts Volume 4 (S. G.), 1864

Score – Verified

Why 6 - Clothes Hanging from the Waist (What 7)

M. of H. page 292 – “This heavy weight, pressing upon the internal organs, drags them downward and causes weakness of the stomach and a feeling of lassitude,…the internal organs are so cramped and crowded out of place that they cannot perform their work properly.”

1865, Selected Messages, Book 2, page 473, from “How to Live” No 5 – “Many females drag down the bowels and hips by hanging heavy skirts upon them. These were not formed to sustain weights Comment – There is no disturbance to abdominal organs by hanging clothes from the waist, as long as the waist is not too tight. If the person is not overweight, the weight of clothes suspended from the waist is supported by the iliac crests (which are made to support weight) and not the abdominal organs. If the waist is compressed, the problem is from circulatory and respiratory compromise as already mentioned.

Score – Unverified

Why 7 – Consumption (What 7)

M. of H. page 293 – “many have died of consumption and other diseases when they might have lived their allotted term of life had they dressed in accordance with health principles and exercised freely in the open air.”

1868, Health Reformer, August 1, par 13 – “she may remain shut up in the house, and become so delicate and feeble that when she is compelled to go out she is sure to take cold, which may result in cough, consumption, and death.”

Comment – Tuberculosis and other infective diseases are caused by the presence of an organism that overcomes the body’s immune system. Inadequate exercise and clothing are two of the many causes of weakening of the immune system.

Score – Verified

Why 8 - Cleansing of Blood (What 7)

M. of H. page 273 – “Thus (improper dress) an insufficient supply of oxygen is received. The blood moves sluggishly. The waste, poisonous matter, which should be thrown off in the exhalations from the lungs, is retained, and the blood becomes impure. Not only the lungs, but the stomach, liver, and brain are affected.”

1865, Selected Messages Book 2, page 473, from “How to Live” No 5 – “The health of the entire system depends upon the healthy action of the respiratory organs”.

1868, Dress Reform, page 7 – “A bad circulation leaves the blood to become impure, and induces congestion of the brain and lungs, and causes diseases of the head, the heart, the liver, and the lungs.”

Comment – There is some truth in this statement, but carbon dioxide is the main metabolite controlled by the lungs. It is very unlikely that poor posture or tight clothing are able to alter the pH (the affect of changes in carbon dioxide levels) of the blood. This occurs in respiratory suppressions or hyperventilation.

Score – Verified

M. of H. Page 272 – “Hence the ill effects of the practice so common, …. of stooping.”

1870, A Solemn Appeal, page 130 - “Young children ….by habits of proper exercise and positions of the body, obtain healthy forms.”

Comment – Poor posture is bad for the spine.

Appendix 1

Health & Medical statements found in The Ministry of Healing (M. of H.), 1905 Spiritual Gifts Volume 4 (S. G.), 1864

Score - Minor

Why 9 – Poor Posture (What 8)

M. of H. page 272 – “The lungs should be allowed the greatest freedom possible. Their capacity is developed by free action; it diminishes if they are cramped and compressed. Hence the ill effects of the practice so common, …. of stooping. In this position it is impossible to breathe deeply.

Superficial breathing soon becomes a habit, and the lungs lose their power to expand.”

1870, A Solemn Appeal, page 130 – “Young children can grow into almost any shape, and can, by habits of proper exercise and positions of the body, obtain healthy forms.”

Comment – Bad posture does have some effect on body shape, but genetic developmental problems and disease are the major causes of severe deformities, especially those severe enough to have a deleterious and permanent effect on function. It is unlikely that any permanent damage will be done to the lungs by bad posture. It is interesting to note that cyclists who exercise in a most unnatural position have one of the best respiratory functions of all athletes.

Score – Verified

M. of H. pages 293 – “Another evil which custom fosters is the unequal distribution of the clothing, so that while some parts of the body have more than is required, others are insufficiently clad.” 1865, Selected Messages, Book 2, page 478, from “How to Live” No 5 – “females should clothe their limbs as thoroughly as the males….. the limbs and feet are kept comfortable with warm clothing.

Comment – This is only a problem if there is too much heat loss and hypothermia. In warm climates and while exercising there is no danger to health in exposing parts of the body. The context of this statement was in a cold climate.

Score – Minor

Why 10 - Warm Clothing & Circulation (What 9)

M. of H. page 293 - “Perfect health requires a perfect circulation; but this cannot be had while three or four times as much clothing is worn upon the body, where the vital organs are situated, as upon the feet and limbs.”

Page 271 – “Whatever hinders the circulation forces the blood back to the vital organs, producing congestion. Headache, cough, palpitation of the heart, or indigestion is often the result.”

Page 382 – “The limbs being remote from the center of circulation, demand greater protection than the other parts of the body. The arteries that convey the blood to the extremities are large, providing for a sufficient quantity of blood to afford warmth and nutrition. But when the limbs are left unprotected or are insufficiently clad, the arteries and veins become contracted, the sensitive portions of the body are chilled, and the circulation of the blood hindered.”

1865, Selected Messages Book 2, page 478, from “How to Live” No 6 – “If the limbs and feet are kept comfortable with warm clothing, the circulation will be equalized, and the blood will remain healthy and pure, because it is not chilled.”

Selected Messages, Book 2, page 469, from “How to Live” No 5 - “The extremities are chilled, and the heart has thrown upon it double labor, to force the blood into these chilled extremities, …. The heart fails in its efforts, and the limbs become habitually cold; and the blood, which is chilled away from the extremities, is thrown back upon the lungs and brain, and inflammation and congestion of the lungs or the brain is the result.”