Notes on Dr. Andrew Weil's TV Lectures

Introduction

Dr. Andrew Weil appeard on KQED - educational television for the Bay Area on March 4, 1994 from 7:30 P. M. until 11:00 P. M., often interrupted by KQED for its sponsor drive. While sitting and watching the production, I hand wrote the following notes and transcribed them to these pages. Any similarities to actual written material by Dr. Weil are purley coincidental.

Spontaneous Healing

• The body can heal itself.
• Heal->whole->holy
• Dr. Weil prescribes botanicals about 40 times more than medications.
• The medical business aims at suppression (so many ant- medicines). Appropriate for crises.
• Belief in treatment enhances cures
• The breath is the master key to good health
• Seven strategies of patients who recover:
1. Don't take no for an answer - these are "difficult patients"
2. Actively seek out information
3. Seek out other people who have been healed (from their disease)
4. Formed constructive partnerships with medical professionals
5. Did not hesitate to make radical changes to their lives, including eating habits and jobs
6. Illness was seen as a gift - it became a great motivator for them change
7. They cultivated an attitude of self-acceptance

Eight Week Program to Better Health

Andy's Eight Week Program for Better Health asks you to make changes in five areas:

1. Projects to clean up your envionment and learn about health
2. Diet
3. Supplements
4. Exercise
5. Mental/Emotional/Spiritual changes

Week 1

1. Throw out all products containing polyunsaturated oils
2. Keep saturated fats as low as possible in your diet
3. Throw out artificailly hardened fats - get rid of trans-fatty acids
4. The safest bet for fat is olive oil because it contains oleic acid, which is best for the body. Be sure to get extra virgin olive oil and keep it refrigerated. Watch out for immitations. The oil shoud be greenish. This should be your main cooking fat.
5. As a distant second, consider organic, expeller pressed canola oil.
6. Get rid of artificial sweetners
7. Don't eat food with artificial colors or dyes

1. Brocolli - a cancer protective which contains sulforathane as its active ingredient
2. Salmon (or sardines) for the omega 3 fatty acids, which protect the blood and help the auto-immune system. Wild salmon is better. You can grill, broil, or poach it to keep the fat intake down.
3. If you don't like or want salmon, get flax seeds as a good source of omega 3 fatty acids. Grind it up and place 1 TBS/day on your salads or vegetables to get an adequate supply of omega 3 fatty acids.

Vitamin C - 1000 to 2000 mg at least twice a day. Try for a third. It is a powerful antioxident.

Walk for 10 minutes a day five days a week. This has great neurological benefit and should be done in addition to any other aerobic exercise that you do. Walking is a great exercise because
1. you know how to do it
2. it involves the least risk of major injury
3. you can do it anywhere
4. it can last your whole life
5. it is fun
6. it can take you to beautiful places

For 5 minutes a day, observer you breath with your mind in neutral.

Week 2

Find out about your drinking water. Get your water tested or get results from your supplier. Bottled water isn't always what they say it is, so be careful. Use a "KDF" copper-zinc alloy with graphite filter.

1. Eat fish once a week
2. Investigate soy products. Soy has isoflavons, which block access to estrogen enhancers
3. Dring Japanese green tea. It lowers cholesterol and reduces cancer risk

Add carotenes - beta-carotene, likopene.

15 minutes walking per day.

1. One day news fast.
2. Continue breath observation

Week 3

1. Find out were you can get organic produce. If you cannot get the organic versions of the following, do not eat them: strawberries, peaches, spinach, cherries, apricots, celery, grapes, apples, bell peppers, green beans, and wheat products.
2. Avoid electromagnetic fields - electric blankets or heating pads, clock radios, hair dryers - these are dangerous

1. Eat more fruit and vegetables
2. Eat fish two times per week
3. Replace one meal a week of meat with soy

1. Get natural vitamine E: 400 IU if less than 40 years old, 800 IU if greater
2. Use selenium - 200 mcg

Walk more - up to 20 minutes per day

1. Think about the people you know who are positive and enjoyable. Plan to spend time with them.
2. Continue breath observation for 5 minutes

Week 4

Check out your bed and mattress and sleeping arrangements. Try to make them more comfortable. (Note from Jerome Freedman: we have been using Airloom Vitagenic mattresses for sixteen years, as recommended by our former chiropractor. Our new chiropractor, Dr. Steven Katz, now send people to us to by these mattresses. We sell them at wholesale plus $100. Please send me email if you are interested. I can email you information. I plan to put pictures and other information on this web site in the near future.)

Eat more garlic.

1. Walk 25 minutes 5 days a week
2. Begin using stretching exercises

1. Do a two day news fast
2. Continue breath observation

Week 5

Locate steam bath of sauna. Do one for 20 minutes. Be sure to replace your fluids.

Add ginger to your diet. This is a good natural anti-inflamatory and good for the digestive system. You can use chrystalized ginger.

1. 30 minute walks
2. stretching

1. Go to a park or spend some time out in nature.
2. Practice relaxation breathing - inhale for the count of 4, hold for the count of 7, exhale for the count of 8. Do this 8 times, two or three times a day.

Week 6

Bring the concept of healing more into your life. Remember your own experiences of healing and talk to your friends and acqauintences about theirs. Read about other healing experiences.

Do all of the previous weeks.

1. 35 minute walks
2. stretching

1. Visit an art museum
2. Continue with breathing exercise
3. Continue with breath observation

Week 7

1. Find some kind of service or volunteer work that you would enjoy doing. Put other peoples' interests ahead of your own.
2. Continue steam baths or sauna

Continue fish, soy, fruits, vegetables, and organic whole grains.

40 minutes walking every day with stretching.

1. Reach out to someone you've been estranged from and make a connection.
2. Make time for flowers and music that you enjoy
3. Do eight cycles of the relaxing breath

Week 8

Review the changes you have made over the past weeks. Make realistic plans for how you will continue.

Think about the changes you've made and what you plan to keep doing.

1. Keep up with your anti-oxident formula
2. Try a tonic - mushrooms or ginseng

Achieve your goal of 45 minute walks 7 days a week

1. Continue breathing exercises 8 cycles two times per day
2. News fast for seven days
3. Think about the actions of people who made you angry.
4. Buy flowers for the end of your program
5. Buy flowers for someone else

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PLEASE NOTE: This material is copyright(c) 1997, by Jerome Freedman, Ph. D. All Rights Reserved. This material will be submitted for publication. This document is meant to be a description of the author's experience and he in no way takes responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of any medical knowledge. The author assumes no responsibility for choices made by any of the readers of this material.

Please send comments and questions to Jerome Freedman, Ph. D.

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