Nerve Building Diet

Edgar Cayce often urged people with various health complaints to change eating habits and adhere to the “blood and nerve building diet”. While average person is usually familiar with some of the blood building foods, the nerve building diet is, even among health-professionals, considered the uncharted, if not the non-existent territory.  

However, the readings repeatedly affirmed that the neural tissue can be rebuilt if the given treatments were followed persistently, consistently and patiently. The building blocks for nerves were to be found in easily digested food that could be almost entirely assimilated, thus resulting in minimal wastage. In other words, the recommended food supplied high quality ingredients in small quantity meals, saving digestive system from unnecessary work in both, the assimilation and elimination “departments”. As a consequence, body can use the saved energy for its healing and rejuvenation.

Q. Outline proper diet for body.

A. That as will give to the nerve system more of the ENERGY as is necessary. That is, those of the vegetables that are nerve building. Those that do not carry too much of the value of just weight, but [that] carry more WITH same that as is ASSIMILATED in system. As may be illustrated in this: In potatoes of any character, better were the body to eat the peel than for the other portion. In those of the green vegetables, those of the radish, onion, the lettuce - HEAD, especially - for were the other character taken much by the body it would produce too much drowsiness - and those of celery; these do not carry so much dross, but are MOSTLY all assimilated, see? (5475-2)

While the diet needs to be balanced, including different foodstuff, the emphasis is put on raw vegetables.

Keep a well balanced diet, body and nerve-building foods. Have raw vegetables as much as possible. (5048-2)

First, let the diet be vegetables…those nerve building vegetables as are found in all that grow above ground; spinach, celery, peas and such, with cabbage properly prepared with milk and such, and other cereals and fruits ... (4771-1)

Whether for healthy or ill individuals, Cayce always advised salad for lunch, preferably with added gelatine. According to his source, gelatine helped with the assimilation of vitamins.

Vegetables that are raw, especially such as water cress, celery, lettuce, carrots should be prepared quite often - in fact, have some of these every day, but prepare most often with gelatin because of the activities that cause the better nerve forces. (4033-1)

While the green, raw vegetables grown above ground were the main part of the nerve building diet, Cayce did explain that well cooked meat was allowed occasionally.

The diet - not meats, vegetable matter; all those that lend energy to nerve building forces and those that give to the blood force the eliminating properties - berries and fruits, see; vegetables, those that are green. Meats, very little. When used, only game or fish or the sinew of any other force. (4730-1)

Beside these lean meats some entrails were also recommended in small quantities.

The diets will be along those lines that make for nerve BUILDING. Plenty of the green foods - as celery, salsify - not too much of the asparagus, but only those of the fresh or the green - cabbage, lentils, peas, beans, and such - these may be taken. Little or no meats, to be sure - though those that will add for nerve forces, as tripe, brains, kidneys, liver, spleen, or such, these will be beneficial to the body in small quantities (3747-1)

Although green vegetables represent the core of the nerve building diet, Cayce did acknowledged not only the role of proteins (meats), but of the fats (oils) as well.

We would build that, which will produce the nerve energy and blood building. Those of the tripe, hog liver, the olive oil - take all that can be assimilated, see? And those that are not just FAT building, but NERVE building, and those that carry same - as may be termed - JUST fodder in the system; as will be seen in those of lots of lettuce, lots of celery, lots of asparagus, and such - that are taken as GREEN vegetables; and especially of the lettuce that DOES NOT head. (102-2)

There are slight variations in the prescribed food of animal origin, but the overall description of the diet is consistent for each and every person.

Q. Is there any combination of foods that could be truthfully called Brain Foods, Nerve Foods, Muscle Foods?
A. Those that are body-building; those that are nerve building and those that supply certain elements. For, as indicated, those foods suggested are to be taken by the body. Fish, fowl and lamb are those that supply elements needed for brain, muscle and nerve building. Vegetables that carry certain chemicals, as carrots, celery and lettuce are especially nerve building and supply the vitamins called the B and B complex, or B combinations. Those foods that grow under the ground of certain characters, as well as lentils, beans and cabbage supply certain sulphurs as well as other elements that are needed in the body for better chemical balance. (4008-1)

In uncertain terms Cayce stated that our whole body is rebuilt every seven years. Some cells and tissues are replaced more often than others, but at the end of a seven-year-cycle the whole organism is made anew. Meanwhile, if non-constructive thoughts, attitudes and behaviours are kept the same, than the same malfunctioning body will be built again. Since mind is the builder, a new body is built according to the existing mental patterns. Therefore, in order to get full benefit of the change in diet, the adequate changes need to be implemented as well at all three levels of our being – physical, mental and spiritual.