Wheatgrass Therapy William T. Jarvis, Ph.D. The notion that wheatgrass
can benefit serious disease sufferers was conceived by Ann Wigmore, a Boston
area resident. Wigmore (1909-94) was born in Lithuania and raised by her
grandmother who, according to Wigmore, gave her an unwavering confidence in the
healing power of nature. Wigmore believed in astrology, and described herself (a
Pisces) as a dreamer who saw life from the spiritual viewpoint to the neglect of
the physical. Wigmore's theory on the healing power of grasses was predicated
upon the Biblical story of Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar who spent seven insane
years living like a wild animal eating the grass of the fields. Because he
recovered, Wigmore presumed that the grasses had cured his insanity. [The Bible
says that a prescribed seven years of insanity was visited upon the King as
Divine punishment for his arrogance. (Dan 4:31-7)]
The common observation that dogs and cats nibble on grass, presumably when
they feel ill, also strengthened Wigmore's belief in the healing power of
grasses [1]. Wigmore theorized that rotting food in the intestine forms toxins
that circulate in the bloodstream (aka, the intestinal toxicity theory) and
cause cancer [2]. She taught that the life span of the wheatgrass juice was less
than three hours, so it had to be cut from growing plants, juiced and consumed
fresh. She speculated that the enzymes found in raw wheatgrass were alive and
could "detoxify" the body by oral ingestion and by enemas. Wheatgrass is
prepared by sprouting wheat berries and growing them until they form
chlorophyll. It was the chlorophyll in wheatgrass that enthused Wigmore. She
called chlorophyll "the life blood of the planet." Wigmore believed that cooking
foods "killed" them because this deactivates enzymes. She held that the moment
the "sacred" 7.4 acid-alkaline balance (the same as human blood) is
"killed" that its effectiveness would be reduced [3]. (For information on
exaggerations about the similarities between hemoglobin and chlorophyll see
NCAHF's statement on chlorophyll.)
Enzymes are complex protein molecules produced by living organisms exclusively
for their own use in promoting chemical reactions. Orally ingested enzymes are
digested in the stomach and have no enzymatic activity in the eater. Enzymes do
not fulfill the biological criteria for living things, because they do not: (1)
consist of cellular units; (2) possess reproductive ability; (3) demonstrate
irritability; (4) carry on metabolism; or, (5) grow. (Fuller HJ. The Plant World
New York: Henry Holt & Co., 1956, pp.6-7).
Wigmore wrote at least 15 books and established the Hippocrates Health
Institute (c.1963), which later was renamed the Ann Wigmore Institute (AWI).
Wigmore claimed to have a Doctor of Divinity (DD) from the College of Divine
Metaphysics in Indianapolis. She also listed a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and a
Doctor of Naturopathy (ND) degree at different times. None of her credentials
appear to have been from accredited schools. Among other things, Wigmore also
promoted "natural hygiene," spiritual healing, zone therapy, hydrotherapy,
acupuncture, color therapy, and spot therapy. A number of "Living Foods" groups
around the world espouse Wigmore's teachings.
NCAHF Comments The fact that grass-eating animals are not spared from
cancer, despite their large intake of fresh chlorophyll, seems to have been lost
on Wigmore. In fact, chlorophyll cannot "detoxify the body" since it is not
absorbed [4]. Although it is conceivable that enzymes present in
rectally-administered wheatgrass juice could have chemical activity, there is no
evidence that this is beneficial. In fact, when challenged legally, Wigmore
backed away from healing claims stating that she merely had an "educational
program" to teach people how to "cleanse" their bodies and make vegetable juices
(she also offered for sale a variety of juicers and other "health"
paraphernalia). [5] In 1988, the Massachusetts Attorney General sued Wigmore for
claiming that her "energy enzyme soup" could cure AIDS [6]. Suffolk County Judge
Robert A. Mulligan ruled that Wigmore's views on how to combat AIDS were
protected by the First Amendment, but ordered her to stop representing herself
as a
physician or as a person licensed in any way to treat disease. This was not the
first time Wigmore had run afoul of the law. In 1982, the Attorney General of
Massachusetts sued Wigmore for claiming that her program could reduce or
eliminate the need for insulin in diabetics, and could obviate the need for
routine immunization in children. She abandoned those claims after losing in
court.
Nutritional Value of Wheatgrass The Institute for Natural Resources
calculated the food value of spirulina and blue green algae from manufacturer's
information or labels, and compared them to common foods [7].
Wheat Grass
(Seven 3.5 gm tablets)
Amounts in Common Foods
Protein 860 mg
2,300 mg in 1/2 cup cooked broccoli
Beta carotene 1,668 IU
20,253 IU in one raw carrot
Vitamin B12 0.05 mcg
1 mcg in 8 oz 2% milk
Calcium 15 mg
89 mg in 1/2 cup cooked broccoli
Magnesium 3.9 mg
47 mg in 1/2 cup cooked broccoli
Phosphorus 3.9 mg
37 mg in 1/2 cup cooked broccoli
Iron 0.87 mg
2.2 mg in one cup cooked macaroni

Answers to Questions about Wheatgrass Therapy
Question: What is responsible for the reported "rush" that users report?
NCAHF: There is no pharmacological reason why a user should experience a "rush."
Possible explanations include the placebo effect (ie, enthusiasm for the
therapy); route of administration (i.e., rectal applications may produce a
"goosing" effect)
Question: Why do people report that they are better following use of
wheatgrass therapy?
NCAHF: Since there is no scientific evidence that the therapy is effective, such
reports could either be due to:

natural changes in the symptoms people experience
the placebo effect mentioned above
wishful thinking on the part of the desperate
lying by people who have a financial interest
something else that the patient is doing--especially if they are using
psychoactive drugs, such as herbal uppers or downers.

Question: Is wheatgrass therapy intrinsically dangerous?
NCAHF: Not in the wheatgrass itself, but attendant risks include:

perforation of the bowel during enema tube insertion. This can introduce
infectious agents into the bloodstream.\
It is possible that "organically grown" wheatgrass plants could become
contaminated by soil constituents.

Question: Does NCAHF oppose the use of wheatgrass therapy? If so, why?
NCAHF: NCAHF opposes the use of all false or unproved remedies. This is because:

we object to cheating people for money
may divert patients from more responsible care
create false hope that eventually leads to greater despair
expose patients to charlatans and cranks who traditionally foster
dependency relationships that permit further exploitation.

NCAHF representatives are sympathetic toward desperate sufferers of disease.
We never blame the victims of quackery. We understand that people who are
frightened will try anything that offers promise with little perceived risk. We
regret having to be cast in the role of "doing away with Santa Claus" when it
comes to fad remedies. However, NCAHF's dedication to providing reliable
information on health and disease makes it impossible for us to do other than to
tell the truth as we perceive it at the time.
Comments on Some Notable Proponents
Steven Haasz: Hungarian refugee who called himself a "healing science
practitioner" operated the Temple Beautiful in Philadelphia. Lena Rosenberg
testified that in 1979 she had taken her husband, who had colon cancer, to both
Haasz's Temple Beautiful and to Wigmore's Hippocrates Institute which were
"somehow connected." Rosenberg stated that because of her desire to help cure
her husband that she had become "obsessed" with Wigmore's teachings. She
testified that she felt "foolish" about having malnourished her dying husband on
a raw vegetable diet [8]. Another of Haasz's followers, David Blume, died of
self-imposed malnutrition in a vain attempt to become a breatharian, a holy man
who could subsist upon air alone [9].
Edyie Mae Hunsberger: Hunsberger believed that wheatgrass had cured her of
cancer and wrote How I Conquered Cancer Naturally. A wealthy person, she also
opened a West Coast version of the Hippocrates Health Institute (later known as
Optimum Health Institute [OHI] of San Diego). OHI has been operated more
recently by Raychel Solomon. The San Diego Union reported that Solomon doesn't
believe in disease, and described OHI as "extremely unhygienic and unclean."
[10]
Shu Chan, director of the Ann Wigmore Foundation, vowed to continue Wigmore's
work following her death in 1994 [11].
References
Wigmore A. Be Your Own Doctor.
Cassileth B. "Contemporary unorthodox treatments in cancer medicine," Annals
of Internal Medicine. 1984;101+, p.109.
American Cancer Society, Medical Affairs Department, "Informal summary on
wheatgrass therapy proposed by Ann Wigmore, DD, PhD," (c.1966).
Bidlack WR, Meskin MS, "Nutritional quackery: selling health misinformation,"
Calif Pharmacist 1989;36:(8):34+.
Knox RA. "Group ordered to halt claims of disease cures," The Boston Globe,
5/15/82, p.13C+.
Medical World News 6/13/88.
Alternative Medicine -- An Objective View. Berkeley: Institute for Natural
Resources, 1998, p.23.
Pepper. Quackery: A $10 Billion Scandal. US House of Representatives, 1984,
pp.148-150.
Assoc1ated Press. "Temple Beautiful diet - death for David Blume,"
Sun-Telegram, San Bernardino, CA, 10/15/79, p.A-3).
Wong J. "Some skeptical, but she see miracles," San Diego Union (undated
copy), p.B-1+.
Brelis M. "Holistic health pioneer dies at 84 in fire at her Back Bay
mansion," Boston Globe, Feb 17, 1994.
Copyright Notice © 2005 Pak Su Jok Center, Pakistan +92300 269 4110.
With proper citation, this article may be reproduced for noncommercial purposes





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