FOODS FOR THE

GERSON DIET
“Let food be your medicine, and medicine be your food.”

The two most important aspects of the Gerson approach to healing are freshness and
purity. All of the foods ingested on the Gerson Therapy must be fresh, organically or
biologically grown, and consumed in their most natural form.

We strongly recommend that the patient does not add to or change the dietary
guidelines without the advice of a certified Gerson Therapy practitioner. While many
patients have used appropriate, compatible additions or adjuncts to the diet that have
helped their healing process, there are many others who have failed to heal because
they made too many “minor modifications” to the Gerson Therapy protocol.

The Gerson Therapy has been shown to be successful in achieving remission and cure in
many different diseases when used as directed; modifications may or may not affect the
outcome of your particular condition, but significant alteration without medical advice
from someone knowledgeable about the biochemical basis of the Gerson approach may
reduce one’s chances for recovery.

DESIRABLE FOODS
 Apples  Cherries
 Apricots  Chicory
 Artichoke  Chives
 Arugula  Cilantro
 Asparagus  Corn (ONLY if allowed by physician)
 Beets and tops  Currants
 Broccoli  Eggplant
 Brown sugar  Endives
 Cabbage, red & leaves (smaller  Escarole
quantities – gas producing)  Flax oil (organic, not high lignan)
 Carrots  Fruit dried unsulphured as raisins,
 Cauliflower peaches, dates, figs, apricots and
 Celery Knob or stalks prunes (stewed or pre-soaked only)
 Chards, all kinds

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 Fruits fresh (except all berries and  Rice brown (if allowed)
pineapple)  Romaine
 Garlic  Rye bread (unsalted, non-fat)
 Grapefruit*  Spices and Herbs (small amounts
 Grapes only): allspice, anise, bay leaves,
 Green beans coriander, dill, fennel, mace,
 Honey marjoram, rosemary, sage, saffron,
 Horseradish (grated, not bottled) tarragon, thyme, sorrel, summer
 Juices, freshly pressed, as prescribed savory.
 Kale  Spinach (cooked only)
 Leeks  Squash
 Lemons*  Sweet potatoes
 Lettuce  Swiss chard
 Mangoes  Tangerines
 Melons  Tomatoes
 Oatmeal  Vegetables (except mushrooms,
 Onions leaves of: carrots, radishes, spinach
 Oranges* and mustard green)
 Parsley and parsley root  Vinegar (wine or cider)
 Peaches  Watercress
 Pears  Yams
 Pepper, green and red Bell pepper  Yogurt, non-fat, organic Horizon,
 Plums Brown Cow, 7 Stars (after the sixth
 Potatoes week of the Gerson Therapy or as
 Radishes (not the leaves) allowed by the physician)
 Raw fruit  Zucchini
 Rhubarb

* Patients with collagen related illnesses must avoid citrus juices and fruits. For all
others, citrus juice is optional. Only one citrus juice a day is allowed and may be
replaced for a carrot and apple juice.

OCCASIONALLY ALLOWED FOODS

 Breads made from whole rye – 1‐2 slices a day (if all of the foods are eaten first)
 Sweeteners: maple syrup (grade B) or honey or unrefined blackstrap molasses
may be used at 1‐2 teaspoons a day maximum.
 Brown or wild rice – once a week
 Yams and sweet potatoes – once a week
 Banana – ½ a week
 Organic popcorn – a holiday treat only
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PROHIBITED FOODS
 Alcohol  Mushrooms
 Animal fats  Mustard
 Avocados  Nut butters and any other
 Baking soda source of dietary fats
 Berries  Nuts and seeds
 Bicarbonate of soda in food,  Oils and fats, and any foods that
toothpaste or gargle contain them
 Black tea and other non-herbal  Olean, Olestra or other “fat
teas substitutes”
 Bottled  Pineapples
 Butter  Preserved; refined, salted,
 Cake smoked, and sulfured foods
 Candy  Protein powders or
 Canned supplements, including barley or
 Cheese algae based powders
 Chocolate  Proteins and high-protein foods
 Cocoa  Salt, table salt, sea salt, celery
 Coconuts salt, vegetable salt, Bragg
 Coffee as a regular beverage Aminos, tamari, soy sauce, “lite
 Commercial beverages salt” or salt substitutes
 Cream  Seafood, and other animals
 Cream and other dairy fats  Soy and soy products
 Cucumbers  Spices, pepper, paprika, basil
 Epson salts, sodium-based and oregano
baking powders, and anything  Spinach (raw) (allowed cooked
with “sodium” in its name only)
 Fluorine in toothpaste  Sprouted alfalfa and other bean
 Frozen foods or seed sprouts
 Hydrogenated or partially  This includes corn oil, olive oil,
hydrogenated oils’ canola oil, vegetable oil except
 Ice cream flaxseed oil, as specifically
prescribed
 Legume-based food products
 White flour
 Manufactured (processed) foods
 White sugar
 Margarine or oil based spreads
 Meats

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The following is an explanation on some of the foods on the Prohibited List.

ALCOHOL

Alcohol is prohibited because it limits the blood’s ability to carry oxygen, places
additional strain on the liver to detoxify and remove it from the body; and is, in general,
toxic.

AVOCADOS

Avocados are too high in fats.

BAKING POWDER AND BAKING SODA

Almost all baking powders contain alum (aluminum), which is believed to be toxic.
Those that are aluminum-free and also sodium-free may occasionally be used with the
consent of your doctor. (Featherweight is a potassium-based powder that may be used
occasionally.)

BEEF, PORK, POULTRY, EGGS, FISH, SEAFOOD, AND ALL OTHER MEAT OR ANIMAL
FLESH PRODUCTS

These are high in protein, difficult to digest, often high in fat, and make additional work
for the liver and excretory systems.

BLACK TEA AND OTHER NON-HERBAL OR CAFFEINE-CONTAINING TEAS

Black tea and other non-herbal teas are prohibited because they contain caffeine, which
is undesirable when introduced by mouth, and because they often contain undesirable
aromatic acids (see discussion under Berries below).

COFFEE AND COFFEE SUBSTITUTES BY MOUTH

Coffee and coffee substitutes by mouth, both with and without caffeine. Taken by
mouth, coffee effects undesirable stimulation of the digestive system, and the caffeine
acts as an undesirable stimulant to the central nervous system. Coffee is also virtually
devoid of nutrients. However, when taken rectally, it has an entirely different, and
desirable effect on the body.

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CANDY, CAKE, MUFFINS, PASTRIES AND OTHER REFINED SWEETS

Candy, cakes, muffins, pastries, and other refined sweets are prohibited because they
almost always contain one or more prohibited ingredients, such as fats, oils, refined
sugars or flours, salt, soda, baking powder, or dairy products.

Note that some breads and pastries can be made using permitted ingredients; these can
help to make the diet more interesting, but should not be consumed on a regular basis
(i.e., only on special occasions).

COMMERCIAL BEVERAGES, JUICES, SODAS OF ALL TYPES

Commercial beverages, juices, sodas of all types almost always have refined sugars,
carbonation, or other undesirable additives, and are all but devoid of essential nutrients.
In addition, consumption of these beverages reduces capacity for desirable fresh,
organic foods and juices.

CUCUMBERS

Cucumbers, in combination with the juices, are difficult to digest and are high in sodium.

DAIRY PRODUCTS

All milk and milk products (including goat’s milk), such as cheese, cream, ice cream, ice
milk, butter or buttermilk, except as specifically allowed under proteins. Dairy products
are generally extremely high in fat; an 8 oz serving of 2% milk contains more fat than
two strips of bacon! Cheeses can be as much as 65% fat, and are usually very high in
sodium. Even “fat free” cheeses usually have undesirable additives, and are high in
sodium. Buttermilk is prohibited because the commercial buttermilk now available is
“cultured”, rather than churned, and is high in fat and sodium. The exception is plain,
organic, non-fat yogurt after 6-8 weeks.

DRIED BEANS AND LEGUMES

Lentils are introduced if patient is doing well at about 6 months at once every 2 weeks.
Soak overnight and sprout for one day before cooking.

DRINKING WATER

Contrary to the commonly heard recommendation to “drink 8 glasses of water a day”,

Gerson strongly believed that a Gerson patient should not drink water, so as to avoid
diluting the stomach acid, and to allow maximum capacity for nutrition from fresh foods

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and juices. If the patient is taking less than 13 juices, he/she may need to augment with
detox tea or other fluid.

GENERAL PROHIBITIONS

All manufactured (processed) foods: bottled, canned, frozen, preserved, refined, salted,
smoked, and sulfured.

HOT PEPPERS

Hot peppers (jalapeños, etc.) contain the same strong aromatics found in prohibited
spices. These may inhibit healing responses and should be avoided. Green, yellow, and
sweet red peppers may be used without limitation.

MUSHROOMS

Standard white mushrooms are not a vegetable, but a fungus. They are difficult to
digest, and provide little nutrition.

NUTS AND SEEDS

Nuts and seeds, including almonds, apricot kernels, sunflower seeds, flax seeds,
peanuts, cashews, and all other nuts and seeds, are prohibited because they are high in
protein, generally high in fat, often salted, difficult to digest and abundant in enzyme
inhibitors.

OILS AND FATS

Oils and fats, and any foods that contain them are not allowed. This includes corn oils,
olive oils, canola oils, and all other vegetable oils except flax-seed oil as specifically
prescribed; butter, cheese, cream and other dairy fats; all animal fats; all margarines or
oil-based spreads; coconuts and avocado; all hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated
oils; Olean, Olestra or other “fat substitutes”; nut butters; and any other source of
dietary fats, except as naturally occurring in allowed foods.

With the exception of fresh raw flax seed oil, no oils or fats of any kind are permitted.

PINEAPPLES AND BERRIES

Max Gerson found that a number of his patients were experiencing allergic reactions,
apparently to the aromatic acids present in pineapple and berries. Dr. Gerson felt that
the aromatics interfere with healing. For this reason, pineapples and berries are
prohibited.

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PROTEINS AND HIGH-PROTEIN FOODS

Proteins and high-protein foods, such as meats, seafood, and other animal proteins;
nuts and seeds; soy or other legume-based food products; all protein powders or
supplements, including barley or spirulina and chlorella, unless specifically used when
prescribed for protein supplementation.

Outside of these categories, there are other foods that must be “off-limits” until the
patient is completely healed, and in some cases, even after full recovery. Almost all
packaged, prepared (“convenience”) foods (frozen, bottled, or boxed) must be forsaken
for health reasons. Restaurant food will almost always be unacceptable, both because it
is rarely organic, and almost always cooked with added salt, fats, and other additives
inappropriate for the Gerson diet.

Patients new to the Gerson Therapy often comment that Gerson’s list of prohibited
foods is much longer and more restrictive than other “natural” or “holistic” approaches
to healing and wellness. The Gerson approach looks at everything that goes into, or on,
the body as important to the healing process. It is through this attention to detail that
we are able to accomplish healing even in some extremely advanced cases, or in
diseases that are otherwise not curable.

We have, whenever possible endeavored to provide a brief explanation why the various
foods are not allowed on the diet.

SALT AND SODIUM

Salt and sodium in all forms, including table salt, sea salt, celery salt, vegetable salt,
Bragg Aminos, tamari, soy sauce, “lite salt”, baking soda, Epsom salts, sodium-based
baking powders, and anything with “sodium” in its name, as well as salt substitutes.

SPICES

Spices (black pepper, paprika, basil, oregano, and others not specifically permitted) are
prohibited because of their high content of aromatic acids.

SOY BEANS AND PRODUCTS

Soy beans and products, including tofu, tempeh, miso, tamari, and other soy sauces,
Bragg’s Aminos, textured vegetable protein, soy milk, and all other soy-based products.
These are prohibited for a variety of different reasons including high fat, sodium and/or
protein content, and the presence of toxic inhibitors to nutrient absorption.

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SPROUTED ALFALFA AND OTHER BEAN OR SEED SPROUTS

Alfalfa sprouts have been found to be high in l-canavanine, an immature amino acid that
can cause immune suppression. Patients without a prior history who have used sprouts
in juices have reported sudden onset of arthritic-like joint pains and other undesirable
side effects. This has only been studied in alfalfa; we do not know if this effect applies to
other sprouts, but we recommend caution. Before adding sprouts to your diet, discuss it
with an experienced Gerson practitioner.

OTHER PROHIBITED ITEMS

Fluoride in water, toothpaste, gargle, hair dyes, permanents, cosmetic, underarm

deodorants, lipstick, lotions.

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