Customer Reviews

Folk Medicine: A New England Almanac of Natural Health Care From A Noted Vermont Country Doctor

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book and Jarvis' other book on "Arthritis" should be read together. They cover the same topic and are complementary. Both record this classically trained M.D.'s experience coming to grips with and subsequently proving to his own satisfaction, the wisdom of Vermont Folk Medicine.

All the other books have hardly any value besides telling you how to use vinegar for disinfecting, cleaning and household tasks (which are good, but secondary in my opinion). What little value they MIGHT have is because they have read and either quoted or plagiarized Jarvis. Sometimes because these people know more about typing than science, their statements on one hand present Jarvis' concepts then contradict it a few pages later by quoting some unproven babble.

While I don't think his work is the end all of nutrition, I wish I had ten times as much information from his pen and notes as "fodder" for interacting with other nutritional studies.

Unless you just want to know how to use vinegar to wash windows, these are the only "Apple Cider Vinegar" books I reccommend that I've seen on Amazon.

There is one exception to this rule. You might also want Natural Healing with Cider Vinegar by Hellmiss too. These three are "IT". The rest will at best duplicate what you can get in these books or at worst, babble on incessantly. Mindell, while a top health writer, offers only a booklet with nothing much more to add to these three works. One topic Jarvis didn't address was the difference between the old fashioned apple cider vinegar which had many vital components retained and the filtered stuff which has been cleaned up to look nice but is the bottled equivalent of white flour... the good stuff has been taken out.

Buy Jarvis, read the books and put the information to work!

I read this book a number of years ago and took the advise of Dr. Jarvis. I have been taking a combination of Apple Cider Vinegar and Honey for over 10 years now and have not been sick at all. I credit taking this mixture for my good health.

My mother used many of Dr. Jarvis' remedies with me when I was a child. They worked. We also used traditional medicine of course, but often came back to the folk remedies when the medical remedies didn't work or the doctors had no answer. In turn I used these remedies with my own family--and now with clients who come for help with holistic approaches to healing. I recommend the book to people who are well and want to stay that way, and to those who are ill, have no insurance, and no money for high priced drugs, even if they had the money to go to doctors. No, these remedies will not--and should not--replace western medical care in serious situations, but they will definitely help reduce the number of doctor's visits for non-critical illnesses. I recommend Dr. Jarvis' book because I have forty years of successful experiences with it. He was way ahead of his time.

Dr. Jarvis has only the best credentials. In this day and age of New Millennium drugs, he promotes the use of such innocent items as apple cider vinegar, royal jelly, and honey. I have not tried all the remedies in the book because they cover too broad a spectrum of ailments, discomforts and inconveniences. But he has been right on target for migraines, age spots, and more! My aunt is beginning his regimen to cure arthritis. I give the book 4 stars instead of 5 only because I cannot begin to prove the effectiveness of his entire household medicine bag.

Although i am not a medical professional, i have always been intreged by the natural healing properties of our bodies and the earth. I don't have much to back up ALL of Doctor Jarvis's research EXCEPT for 1. The Apple Cider Vinegar claim. I was stricken with a horrible case of Adult Acne in which i tried every product and even went to a dermatologist who just shoved chemicals in my face and told me to take some awful pills- telling me that it would only get worse b4 it got better. (which it did.) - so I stopped EVERYTHING and began putting Apple Cider Vinegar on my skin, and drinking a few tbls every day. I cant even explain to you how i saw my skin change, every day that passed it got better and better and better - and only about 3 weeks to a month later - i was completely clear of acne that had stricken me for months and months.... and i would never had known about it, had it not been for this book.

I thought that this book was going to cover all kinds of herbal medicine.
It turned out that it covered just 3 natural products,which were apple cider vinegar, honey, and kelp. It turns out that if you just add these to your diet that you will be healthy.Dr Jarvis started experimenting using these ingredients on cattle and horses.The animals has such excellent results that he started using them on his patients.They also had excellent results.He includes a lot of research information from other sources.He has a nice comfortable writing style.
I loved it.

A friend lent me this book to read and what a treasure. I had to have a copy for myself and bought one to add to my collection. I disagree with a previous poster that stated this book is "very archaic" - yes, this book was published in 1958, quite some time ago. But the essence is still relevant today - eat as one's ancestors ate. Dr. Jarvis, M.D. uses animals to clearly illustrate the point of survival of the fittest. Animals, unfettered by the politics of pharmaceutical companies, follow their innate instinct to eat foods of maximum nutritional value to nourish their bodies to carry their species into the next generation without disease and physical impairment. As Dr. Jarvis, M.D. states "... it makes a great difference to your heart whether you give it the natural sugar which is found in honey, or refined white sugar." A simple, yet profound statement having tremendous consequences on the population addicted to processed white sugar as we humans battle cancer, heart disease, and designer ailments (through the power of pharmaceutical advertising). The previous poster also states that "the information had no real research to back it up." I beg to differ. The lack of authoritarian research is not an indication of a lack of viable results. My own "personal research" is quite impressive. As a testament to my spouse and my understanding of the necessity of a proper diet, we raised our two children with the basic principles of good nutrition (that means NO DRUGS). As they make their way through college, their critical thinking just astounds us. How much easier it is for them to accomplish tasks at a higher intellectual level than most Americans will ever experience in their lifetime. This basic foundation of GOOD food from birth will carry them over into middle and old age free of the devastating side effects of pharmaceutical drug usage. And lastly, the previous poster states "It is silly." Since when is the principle "You are what you eat" ever silly? Dr. Jarvis, M.D. is necessary reading for all who want to get back to basics and live healthy and live long.

My family and I began using the 'suggestions' in Folk Medicine in the 60's. The children liked honey and vinegar in hot water along with us in the morning. It proved a good 'PH' balancer for the body and was great when cold season upon us.
The book hasn't lost it's appeal for simple reading to gain useful knowledge. We may not be trying to increase fertility either in ourselves or cows, but a healthy body functions better... and it tastes good. We call it 'honegar'and I often have it instead of a cup of tea.... Patsy from the Hudson River Valley.

I found the book most helpfull in my search to alleviate the chronic pain of arthritis and gout. It also gave me hope to clear a breathing problem I have as well as various form of rosacia. An excellent book indeed.

I read this at a bookstore a long time ago and still remember some parts of it. Recently I made my Mum drink apple cider vinegar in water (no honey) for her heartburn (believe it or not, apple cider vinegar makes your body more alkaline), and she's a lot better now, no more attacks! I can't thank this book enough. (note: my apple cider vinegar is made from demeter-certified biodynamic/organic apples... tastes nothing like the usual cheap flavorless stuff from supermarket shelves)