Nutrition: A Holistic Approach

Today’s understanding of nutrition is based largely on physical, chemical considerations and analysis. Hauschka takes a radically different approach, viewing matter―and food in particular―as having a spiritual aspect. From this holistic perspective he presents a new, practical approach to nutrition.

his classic work is the result of Dr Hauschka’s many years’ research at the Ita Wegman Clinic in Arlesheim, Switzerland. Through active experimentation, Hauschka found fresh insight into the principles of digestion, which enabled him to evolve a system of nutrition suitable for the present day.

In an age of mass food production, Hauschka considers one of the most neglected aspects of nutrition―food quality. He discusses aspects of food that can be measured by conventional scientific means, as well as aspects that defy quantification by the usual methods. He relates these findings to a historical survey of food cultivation, preparation, and preservation, as well as to the question of today’s chemically treated foods.

In the present climate of food scares and concerns―BSE, foot and mouth disease, genetic modification, chemical poisoning, etc―Hauschka’s book takes on a new relevance, adding a significant contribution to the current debate. Also included are concise dietary suggestions by Dr Margarethe Hauschka for healthy as well as sick people.

This book is a companion volume to the author’s other work, The Nature of Substance.

Dr. Rudolf Hauschka, a chemist, asked Dr. Rudolf Steiner in 1923, “What is life?” Steiner’s answer was: “Study rhythms, rhythm supports life!” Soon after receiving this answer, Hauschka was asked by Dr. Ita Wegmann to research and study the rhythms in nature at her institute in Arlesheim, Switzerland. After many attempts and a new understanding of the processes in the plant world, he produced a plant extract from rhythmized rose water, which could be kept stable for more than thirty years. Today WALA, a manufacturer of anthroposophical medicines and skin-care products, is based on Hauschka's discoveries.

Marjorie Spock was born Sept. 8, 1904, in New Haven, Connecticut, the second child and first daughter of six children. The Spock family was prominent in New Haven; her father was a corporate lawyer, and her older brother, Dr. Benjamin Spock, became a renowned pediatrician. Marjorie became a student of Anthroposophy as a teenager in Dornach during the 1920s, and became a eurythmist, teacher, biodynamic gardener, and the author and translator of numerous books. In the 100th year of her life, she produced, directed, and choreographed a video about eurythmy, followed by two short training films when she was 101 and 102 years of age. Marjorie Spock died at her home in Maine, Jan. 23, 2008, at the age of 103.