Nourishing

Traditional Diets
The Key to Vibrant Health

by Sally Fallon Morell, President

The Weston A. Price Foundation
 What is a Healthy Diet?
Atkins Diet?
Vegetarian/Vegan?
Zone Diet?
Macrobiotic?
South Beach Diet?
Juicing?
Food Combining?
Metabolic Typing?
All Raw?
Even Lisa is confused!
 Or is it the
US Government Official Diet. . .

. . . designed to promote the products of

commodity agriculture?
 NPD Photo

Photos from Nutrition and Physical Degeneration copyright and courtesy Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation
Swiss Village Photo
Primitive Swiss Villagers
Swiss Bread Photo
Modernized Swiss
Primitive Gaelics
Oats
Eskimo Moms
Primitive Eskimos
Eskimo Decay
1 st Gen Eskimos
Seal Oil
Salmon Roe
Navajo
&
Sitting
Bull
Primitiv
e
Indians
Modernized
Indians
Primitive Seminoles
 The Teeth Tell the Tale!
STRAIGHT TEETH CROOKED, CROWDED
TEETH
Plenty of room in head for Compromised space for
pituitary, pineal, hypothalamus master glands in the head
Good skeletal development, Poor development, poor
good muscles posture, easily injured
Keen eyesight and hearing Poor eyesight and hearing

Optimal function of all organs Compromised function of all

organs
Optimistic outlook, learns Depression, behavior
easily problems, learning problems
Round pelvic opening, easy Oval pelvic opening, difficult
childbirth childbirth
Modernized Seminole
South Pacific Map
Primitive South
Pacific Boys
Primitive South
Pacific Women
South Pacific Foods
South Pacific Decay
South Pacific 1 st Generation
Hawaiian TB Ward
 Primitive
Aborigine Men
Primitive
Aborigine
Women
Aborigine Decay
Aborigine 1st
Generation
Africa Map
Primitive Africans
Masai
African Decay
Africa 1 st Generation
African Boys
Dental Casts of
Modernized and
Primitive
Individuals
Pottenger’s Cats
Dental Deformities
The Facial Bones
The Sphenoid and Maxilla
MKW
Tommy
Agnes McPhail
Teenager Group
Temptations
Bill Cody’s Wild West Show
1910
Elvis
South American Children
Modern
Children
Most modern children
have thin faces and
need braces to
straighten their teeth
Thin
Faces
Jordana
G
o
 Natural Beauty
Individual beauty is a matter of both
design of the face and regularity and
perfection of the teeth.
Nature always builds harmoniously if
conditions are sufficiently favorable,
regardless of race, color or location
Weston A. Price, DDS
Great Variety in Traditional Diets
Some had no plant foods
Some had few animal foods
Some had mostly cooked foods
Some had large amounts of raw foods
Some had milk products; some did not
Some had grains; some did not
Some had fruits; some did not

What are the underlying characteristics

of these healthy diets?
1. No refined or denatured foods
Refined and Denatured Refined and Denatured
Food Components Food Components
1930's Today

Refined Sugar Refined Sugar

High Fructose Corn Syrup
White Flour
White Flour
Vegetable Oils
Pasteurized Milk
Canned Foods Skim and Low Fat Milk
Condensed Milk Hydrogenated Fats
Refined Vegetable Oils
Isolated Protein Powders
Additives
“Life in its fullness is Mother Nature obeyed.”
Weston A. Price, DDS

Factory foods are not Mother Nature’s foods!

2. Every diet contained animal
products
FISH AND SHELLFISH: including organs, oil,
bones, heads, etc. Weston Price found the best
bone structure among those eating seafood
BIRDS: Chicken, ducks, geese, etc., including the
organs, fat and skin.
RED MEAT: Beef, goat, sheep, game, etc., with
ORGAN MEATS and FAT preferred.
MILK AND MILK PRODUCTS
EGGS REPTILES INSECTS
 Animal Food Nutrients
THESE NUTRIENTS ARE THESE NUTRIENTS ARE
FOUND ONLY IN ANIMAL MORE EASILY
PRODUCTS ABSORBED FROM
ANIMAL PRODUCTS
Vitamin A
Calcium
Vitamin D
B6
Cholesterol
Magnesium
Vitamin B12
Iron
Very Long Chain,
Superunsaturated Zinc
fatty acids Copper
(AA, EPA and DHA)
 Vitamin B12 Deficiency
EARLY SIGNS PSYCHIATRIC CHRONIC
DISORDERS DISEASE
Fatigue Depression Multiple
sclerosis
Tingling in Obsessive- Anemia
hands and feet compulsion
Sleep disorders Manic- Cancer
depression
Irrational anger Dementia/ Heart disease
Alzheimer’s
 Vitamin B12
ONLY IN ANIMAL PRODUCTS: Usable vitamin B12 is
found only in animal products. Analogs in soy foods or blue-
green algae actually increase body’s need for B12.

ABSORPTION DIFFICULT: Absorbed through a complex

process involving an “intrinsic factor,” secreted in the stomach.

VEGETARIANS AND THE ELDERLY: Deficiencies are

most likely to appear in VEGETARIANS, who do not consume
animal products, and in the ELDERLY and those deficient in
hydrochloric acid or pancreatic enzymes, who cannot produce or
use the intrinsic factor.

PASTEURIZATION: B-12 is almost completely destroyed by

pasteurization.
African Vegetarian
 Cow Products

Products that come from cows

Even strict vegans cannot escape dependence on animal products.
 The Origins of the Modern High-Fiber,
Vegetarian Dietary Movement
SYLVESTER GRAHAM
(1794-1851) advocated a
whole grain, vegetarian
diet to promote chastity
and curb lust. Preached
that excessive sexual
desire caused disease.

The Food
Puritans! JOHN HARVEY KELLOGG (1852-1943),
Seventh Day Adventist who promoted a high-
fiber, vegetarian diet to combat the twin evils
of constipation and “natural urges.” Preached
against sexual activity, even in marriage!
 3. Dr. Price’s Key Finding

Primitive Diets contain 4 times the

calcium and other minerals, and

10 times the fat-soluble vitamins as

the modern American diet.
Sources of Vitamins A and D
SEAFOODS LAND ANIMALS
Fish Eggs GRASS-FED!
Fish Livers Insects
Fish Liver Oil Butter and Cream
Fish Heads Egg Yolks
Shell Fish Liver, Organ Meats
Oily Fish Animal Fat
(Especially mono-gastric
Sea Mammals animals such as
(birds, pig, bear, Guinea pig)
The Fat-Soluble Activators A and D
A question arises as to the efficiency of the human body in
removing all of the minerals from the ingested foods. Extensive
laboratory determinations have shown that most people cannot
absorb more than half of the calcium and phosphorus from the
foods eaten. The amounts utilized depend directly on the
presence of other substances, particularly fat-soluble vitamins.
It is at this point probably that the greatest breakdown in our
modern diet takes place, namely, in the ingestion and utilization
of adequate amount of the special activating substances,
including the vitamins [A and D] needed for rendering the
minerals in the food available to the human system.
It is possible to starve for minerals that are abundant in
the foods eaten because they cannot be utilized without an
adequate quantity of the fat-soluble activators.
Weston Price, DDS
Nutrition and Physical Degeneration
 Bricks and Mortar

The body is like

a house or temple,
built of bricks and mortar
Bricks = Minerals
Mortar = Fat-Soluble Activators A and D
Conversion of Beta-Carotene
to Vitamin A
 Conversion Problems
Needed to Convert Carotene to Vitamin A
Fats in the diet Thyroid Hormone
Enzymes (as yet unknown) Vitamin E
Conversion & storage is difficult or impossible for
BABIES AND CHILDREN DIABETICS
Individuals with poor thyroid function
Individuals with poor liver function
Individuals with poor intestinal absorption
Individuals with high intake of sodium nitrites and nitrates
Individuals exposed to pesticides and other toxins
Individuals who consume lots of carotene
Even under optimal conditions, plant sources of
carotene cannot supply sufficient vitamin A
for optimum health.
Vitamin A is Needed for
Protein assimilation
Calcium assimilation
Proper growth
Prevention of birth defects
Proper function of the glands
Thyroid function
Immune system function
Production of stress and sex hormones
Eyes, skin, bones
ACTH
Cholesterol, the Mother
Cholesterol of All Hormones
Pregnenolone Progesterone DOC Corticosterone 18OH
Aldosterone
Corticosterone

Pregnenolone Progesterone 11 Deoxycortisol Cortisol

Note: Vitamin A is
needed for each
conversion.
DHEA Androstenedione Estradiol
Trans fats inhibit
enzymes that make
Testosterone these conversions.
Pig Study
Vitamin A Stores are Depleted by
Stress
Excess Dietary Protein
Cold Weather
Fever and Illness
Physical Exertion
Exposure to Toxins
 Dioxins and Vitamin A
DIOXINS DEPLETE vitamin A stores in the liver.
Vitamin A protects against dioxins - almost 80
scientific papers on the interaction of dioxins and
vitamin A - take your cod liver oil!
FISH EATERS in Japan do not have high levels of
dioxin in the blood, meaning that there are protective
factors in the diet.
CHLOROPHYLL prevents absorption of dioxin from
the intestinal tract - eat your greens!
 Vitamin D Myth
MYTH - To get adequate
vitamin D, just expose your
face and hands to sunlight for
10 minutes every day.
TRUTH - The body makes one
form of vitamin D out of
cholesterol by the action of UV-
B sunlight on the skin.
However, except in the Tropics,
UV-B is available only at MID-
DAY during the SUMMER
months.
 Vitamin D Food Sources
All healthy primitive groups, including those living in
the tropics, had rich dietary sources of vitamin D.

Fish liver oils Egg yolks

Shell fish Organ meats
Insects Fat of birds
Butterfat Fat of pigs
 Roles of Vitamin D

Healthy bones Insulin production

Proper growth Immune system
Mineral metabolism Nervous system
Muscle tone Cell Function
Reproduction Feel good chemicals
Healthy Skin Longevity
 Synthetic Vitamin D2
MADE FROM VEGETARIAN SOURCES

OPPOSITE EFFECT TO ANIMAL SOURCE D3

Causes softening of the hard tissues
(bones)
Hardening of the soft tissues
(organs, arteries).

ADDED TO PROCESSED VEGETARIAN FOODS

Soy Milk Rice Milk
Oat Milk Almond Milk
 Vitamin A and D Toxicity?
BALANCE: When vitamin D is low, vitamin A can be toxic, even
at low doses; when A is low, vitamin D can be toxic.
ADEQUATE VITAMIN D: With adequate vitamin D - about 1000
IU per day - vitamin A is not toxic even at very high doses.
VITAMIN A FORTIFICATION: Fortification of lowfat milk,
cereals, etc. with vitamin A in northern countries, such as
Sweden, where vitamin D intakes are inadequate, has led to
osteoporosis.
BEST RATIO: The ratio of A to D in cod liver oil should be at 10
to 1 or less. Many brands of cod liver oil contain almost no
vitamin D, which is removed during processing.
HIGH VITAMIN COD LIVER OIL: Available through our
recommended suppliers, has good A/D ratios, and supplies a
good level of vitamin A in small amounts of cod liver oil.
African Protestors
Shrimp Paste
Sources of Fat-Soluble Activators
in the Traditional African Diet
Sources of Fat-Soluble Activators
in the Traditional American Diet

Also:
Organ meats
such as liver,
and contained
in sausage,
scrapple,
liverwurst,
etc.
 Skinless Chicken Breasts?
Vitamin A
per 100 grams
Skinless breast 21 IU

Breast with skin 83 IU

Skinless dark meat 72 IU

Dark meat with skin 201 IU

Chicken livers 13,328 IU

Lard
They’re Happy

Vitamin D in lard
helps the body
make neuro-
chemicals that
protect against
depression.
 Price Factor or Activator X
CATALYST: Discovered by Weston Price, a potent
catalyst for vitamin and mineral absorption.
GROWTH: Important factor in the growth of children; has
potent curative powers.
SACRED FOODS: Found in foods considered sacred by
primitive populations--liver and other organ meats from
grazing cattle; marine oils, fish eggs and shellfish; and
butter from cows eating rapidly growing green grass.
BASIS: Green growing plants which have an unknown
factor that animals transform and store in certain fatty
tissues.
PRIMITIVE DIETS: All healthy primitive groups had a
source of the Price Factor in their diets.
 Activator X = Vitamin K2
ANIMAL FORM: K2 is the animal form of vitamin K,
made from K1, the plant form
GROWTH: Plays important role, especially in facial
development. (Sign of deficiency: Underdevelopment of
middle third of the face.)
BONES AND TEETH: Needed for deposition of
phosphorus and calcium in bones and teeth
HEART DISEASE: Prevents calcification and
inflammation of the arteries
BRAIN: Involved in synthesis of myelin sheath; supports
learning capacity
REPRODUCTION: Vital for normal reproduction
The Synergy of Vitamins A, D and K

Vitamin K activates proteins after

signaling by Vitamins A and D

Vitamins A and D tell cells

to make certain proteins
 Food Sources of Vitamin K
TESTED SOURCES OTHER PROBABLE
SOURCES
Natto (fermented soy)
Goose, Duck and Chicken
Goose Liver Fat
Cheeses Crustacean “Butter”
Egg Yolk (Hepatopancreas)

Butter Bone Marrow

Chicken Liver Other Organ Meats

Fatty Meats Fish Eggs

Sauerkraut Fermented Cod Liver Oil

 Peruvian Girl with
Peruvian Girl Dried Fish Eggs. . .
“for healthy babies.”
Activator X
Vitamin A
Vitamin D
Zinc
Iodine
Special Fatty Acids
All essential to healthy
reproduction.
 High-Vitamin Cod Liver Oil and
High-Vitamin Butter Oil
Dr. Weston Price found that
high-vitamin cod liver oil
(source of vitamins A and D)
given with
high-vitamin butter oil
(source of vitamin K)
was a very powerful
combination for mineral
absorption. He used this
combination to treat tooth
decay, bone and growth If butter oil is not available,
problems, arthritis and many include other sources of
other disease conditions. vitamin K in the diet when
taking cod liver oil.
 How Much Cod Liver Oil?
VITAMIN A VITAMIN D
Maintenance Dose 10,000 IU* 1000 IU

Pregnancy and 20,000 IU 2000 IU

Lactation
Illness or Recovery Up to 90,000 IU 9000 IU
from Surgery for short period
Babies and Children 5000 IU 500 IU

• From 1 teaspoon high-vitamin CLO or 2 teaspoons regular cod

liver oil. Use only WAPF-recommended brands.
 Taking Cod Liver Oil
MIX WITH WATER, FRESH JUICE OR CREAM: Much
easier than taking CLO on a spoon! Give to babies in an
eye dropper
BOOKS ON INFANT FEEDING: Before 1950,
recommended 2 teaspoons cod liver oil for babies 3
months and older.
SYNERGY: Cod liver oil works synergistically with
saturated fat. The best combination is cod liver oil in a
diet containing butter from grass-fed cows.
HIGH-VITAMIN BUTTER OIL: Recommended in
addition to CLO for pregnant, nursing women and those
with health problems.
Key Nutrients for Brain Development

VITAMIN A: Cod Liver Oil, Liver, Butter and Egg

Yolks from Grass-Fed Animals
VITAMIN D: Cod Liver Oil, Lard, Butter and Egg
Yolks from Grass-Fed Animals
VITAMIN K: Butter, Egg Yolks and Organ Meats
from Grass-Fed Animals
CHOLINE: Liver, Egg Yolks
DHA: Cod Liver Oil, Liver, Butter, Egg Yolks
ZINC: Red Meat, Shell Fish
Liver: No food higher in nutrients
Per 100 g Apple Carrots Red Meat Liver
Phosphorus 6 mg 31 mg 140 mg 476 mg
Iron .1 mg .6 mg 3.3 mg 8.8 mg
Zinc .05 mg .3 mg 4.4 mg 4.0 mg
Copper .04 mg .08 mg .2 mg 12 mg
Vitamin B2 .02 mg .05 mg .2 mg 4.2 mg
Vitamin A 0 0 40 IU 53,400 IU
Vitamin C 7 mg 6 mg 0 27 mg
Vitamin B6 .03 mg .1 mg .07 mg .73 mg
Vitamin B12 0 0 1.84 mg 111.3 mg
Eat liver fried, grilled, with bacon, in sausage, pate and liverwurst.
 Calcium
PRIMITIVE DIETS: At least 1500 mg per day
US GOV’T RECOMMENDATION: 800-1200 mg per day
1500 Mg Calcium is in:
5 Cups Whole Milk = 805 calories
7-8 Ounces Cheese = 900 calories
40 Carrots = 1680 calories
9 Cups Ice Cream = 2517 calories
32 Chocolate Cupcakes = 4117 calories
4.5 Cups Almonds = 4077 calories
78 Slices Whole Wheat Bread = 4305 calories
4. All cultures cooked some
or most of their food…
but they always ate some
of their animal foods raw.
Examples of Raw Animal Foods

Raw milk, butter and cream

Raw cheeses
Raw and marinated fish
Raw shellfish (oysters, etc.)
Traditional ethnic raw meat dishes
(steak tartare, carpaccio, kibbeh, etc.)
Vitamin B6 Deficiency Linked to
• Diabetes • PMS
• Heart disease • Morning sickness
• Nervous • Toxemia of pregnancy
disorders • Alcoholism
• Cancer • Sickle cell anemia
• Kidney failure • Carpel Tunnel
• Asthma Syndrome
Real Cheese
5. High Levels of Enzymes and
Beneficial Bacteria
 Types of Enzymes
METABOLIC DIGESTIVE FOOD
(1,000s discovered) (about 22) (3 types)
Delta desaturase Pancreatin Amalyses
Superoxide Pepsin Lipases
dismutase Trypsin Proteases
Gluththione Lactase
peroxidase
Galactase
Catalase
Phosphatase
Lysyl oxidase

When the diet contains food enzymes, the body is spared from
making some digestive enzymes and therefore has more energy.
Food enzymes are destroyed at 118o F wet heat, 150o F dry heat.
Examples of Enzyme-Rich Foods
Raw dairy products
Raw meat and fish
Raw honey
Tropical fruits
Cold pressed oils (extra virgin olive oil)
Wine and unpasteurized beer
Lacto-fermented (enzyme enhanced)
vegetables fruits
meats fish
dairy products beverages
 Beneficial Bacteria
OLD PARADIGM: Healthy human body is sterile and
microbes attack it, making us sick.
NEW PARADIGM: Healthy human body lives in
symbiotic relationship with microorganisms.
SIX POUNDS of healthy bacteria in our digestive tract
Digest our food
Assist in assimilation
Create nutrients
Protect us against toxins
Help us feel good

Without good bacteria, we are dead!

 Lacto-Fermented Condiments
provide enzymes and good bacteria

Beet relish Pineapple chutney

Ginger carrots Raspberry syrup
Cortido Apricot butter
(spicy So. American sauerkraut)
Lacto-Fermented Beverages

Kombucha
Kvass
Sour Grain
Drink
 Resources
The Weston A. Price Foundation
www.westonaprice.org
Quarterly Magazine
Informational Brochures
Yearly Shopping Guide
Annual Conference
Local Chapters
Books from NewTrends Publishing
www.newtrendspublishing.com, (877) 707-1776
NewTrends DVD Series

Five-Hour
Seminar on
Nourishing
Traditional Diets

The Oiling of
America
 Dr. Price’s Pioneering Work

The Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation

www.price-pottenger.org
(619) 462-7600
 Summary
Traditional diets maximized nutrients while
modern diets minimize nutrients
TRADITIONAL DIETS MODERN DIETS
Foods from fertile soil Foods from depleted soil
Organ meats over muscle meats Muscle meats, few organs
Animal fats Vegetable oils
Animals on pasture Animals in confinement
Dairy products raw and/or fermented Dairy products pasteurized
Grains and legumes soaked/fermented Grains refined, extruded
Bone broths MSG, artificial flavorings
Unrefined sweeteners (honey, maple syrup) Refined sweeteners
Lacto-fermented vegetables Canned vegetables
Lacto-fermented beverages Modern soft drinks
Unrefined salt Refined salt
Natural vitamins in foods Synthetic vitamins added
Traditional Cooking Microwave, Irradiation
Traditional seeds/Open pollination Hybrid seeds, GMO seeds