'The Master Cleanse' by Stanley Burroughs (my summary)

The book begins with Burroughs' explanation that "cleansing is basic for elimination of every kind of disease." (Warning: you must get past the preachy & righteous tone of the author to make it through this book.) Burroughs identifies the basic cause of disease as the "habits of improper diet, inadequate exercise, negative mental attitudes, and lack of spiritual enlightenment, which combine to produce toxic conditions and malfunction of our bodies." He throws this wide net in effort to encompass all stressors in our life (psychological, mental and social) that "encourage us to eat in excess - both good and bad foods - which in turn creates our disease." He then poses a challenge to those who may not support his principles by requesting the reader "test them (his principles) as given to you" before attempting to debunk them. (Hey, that's what I'm doing!)

A story from a satisfied customer, Mr. Herman Schneider, then follows about his experience with high blood pressure (200/120) and the merry-go-round of drugs prescribed to him by various MDs until he ended up in San Antonio under the guidance of Dr. Herbert Shelton (a Hygienist, Naturopathic doctor, and the father of the modern day Natural Hygiene Movement) where he was put on a water-fasting diet for 21 days. The purpose of this testimonial? His introduction to cleanses led him to Burroughs' "Master Cleanser" (which he notes is also mentioned in 'Get Well Naturally' by Linda Clark) and his blood pressure has remained normal for 13 years.

Burroughs then describes his theory on disease, which I find rather simplistic. "Disease, old age, and death are the result of accumulated poisons and congestion throughout the entire body. These toxins become crystallized and hardened, settling around the joints, in the muscles, and throughout the billions of cells all over the body." "Their (disease) spread and growth is dependent on the unusable waste material throughout the body." The primary unusable waste material that he identifies as leading to the accumulation of toxins and diseases is "flesh foods." He continues by pointing the finger at mainstream medicine for exacerbating our diseases by fighting germs with poisons. "These germs are our friends, there are no bad ones..." "Basically, ourselves create all of our diseases because we have never taken the time to discover the true foods meant for man's use. We can create healthy bodies by using the right foods and eliminating highly toxic and mucus-forming foods." But not all germs lead to disease, why do some people get sick while others can withstand an epidemic? Burroughs' "logical reason for the triggering of an epidemic...is a matter of simple 'vibration.'" Explaining that those who are clogged with waste material have lower vibrations and are more susceptible to disease from germs, compared to a person with a "toxic free body and undisturbed mind."

Burroughs then shares his creation of the lemon juice diet "as a means to give relief and heal stomach ulcers in ten days." Attributing the development of ulcers to the eating of meat, which during digestion in the stomach "(deplete) the sodium on the walls of the stomach." He then cites an experience with a client who upon completing the lemon juice diet had his ulcer completely healed, and "numerous other disorders were also corrected during the ten-day period."

Finally before describing the actual diet, Burroughs address the question of whether the lemonade diet should also be considered a "reducing diet." He claims "it dissolves and eliminates all types of fatty tissue. Fat melts away at the rate of about two pounds a day for most persons - and without any harmful side effects. All mucus diseases such as colds, flu, asthma, hay fever, sinus and bronchial trouble are rapidly dissolved and eliminated from the body, leaving the user free from the varied allergies which cause difficult breathing and clogging of the sinus cavities." "The types of disease that are a result of calcium deposits in the joints, muscles, cells, and glands are readily dissolved and removed from the body."

He then goes into the specifics about how to make the lemonade diet, how often to take it, the purpose of laxatives, how to break the diet, and special instructions for diabetics. I will go into detail about the actual ingredients on another post, but I do what to share his description of the vitamins and minerals obtained via the ingredients of this diet which make it superior to water-fasting.
Lemons: "Lemons and limes are the richest source of minerals and vitamins of any food or foods know to man."
Maple Syrup: "The maple syrup has a large variety of minerals and vitamins." "These are the minerals found in average samples of syrup from Vermont: Sodium; Potassium; Calcium; Magnesium; Manganese; Iron; Copper; Chlorine and Silicon. Vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, C, Nicotinic acid, and Pantothenic Acid are also present in the syrup."
Cayenne Pepper: "...also adds many of the B and C vitamins."

Burroughs follows the specifics of the lemonade diet addressing the concern of limited protein in the diet. He suggests that the need for protein is overrated and that pure protein is "primarily oxygen, hydrogen and some carbon" which we can obtain from the air, including large amounts of nitrogen. Thus we can "build the nitrogen also into our bodies as protein...by natural bacterial action, which is capable of converting it to our use." "From the combination of the best foods (fruits, berries, nuts, vegetables, seeds, and sprouted seeds) and clean air we are able to create our own amino acids..."
Side note: I am not really a big meat eater (fish, red meat every few years) so I am all for a "good food" diet, and believe we can get adequate protein sources from non-flesh foods, but I can't support the logic that the combination of these foods with "clean air" is the primary source of our required amino acids.

Burroughs wraps up his theories supporting an organic, whole food diet, after a cleansing of toxins, to build and retain health. He likens the use of vitamins and supplements to adding "wood fiber in bread" and suggests rather that we should consume food "as it is originally without separating it in the first place."

The remainder of the book includes suggested recipes to assist the reader in maintaining a "good food" diet following the cleanse.