Book
Obesity, or, Excessive corpulence: the various causes and the rational means of cure
Publish date:
January 10, 1864
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION.
The physician has a twofold duty to perform. He is called upon not merely to alleviate pain, and to undertake the cure of disease, but he is, moreover, required to lay down rules for the preservation of health, the prevention of disease, and its too frequent concomitant, pain.
Now, health being dependent upon the due and regular performance of the vital functions by the several physiological organs of the body, any excessive development of these organs, or undue manifestation of force on their part, must, of necessity, be contrary to the general health of the body, and be productive of disease and pain.
In many persons there exists a constitutional tendency to the excessive formation of blood, occasioning a plethoric condition, and thereby rendering the individual liable to a great many diseases; others again suffer from an exalted or diminished sensibility of the nervous system, inducing some of the greatest woes to which humanity is liable.
Many different elements are combined in the structure of the various organs of the body, and among these fat, in suitable proportion, must be recognized as necessary for the due and equable performance of the several organic functions.
This fat, however, often becomes excessive, giving rise at first to great inconvenience, after a time inducing debility, and finally constituting a disease (hitherto deemed incurable) termed obesity.
The possession of a graceful figure may be of little importance, in so far as the happiness of most men is concerned; but as regards the gentler sex, such is by no means the case. Women are too apt to believe that, in the absence of physical beauty, the possession of mental and worldly treasures can only suffice to render them endurable in their social relations. Beauty, the richest gift of nature, deserves to be carefully guarded by those who happily possess it; corpulence, its enemy, is destructive to the finest organization.
It is a painful sight to witness the many instances of women, who, though still of youthful years, and whose elegance of form, but a short time since, did but enhance their unsurpassed loveliness of countenance, lose by degrees, in the midst of an overwhelming fat, all this relative and graceful harmony, and whose ever increasing corpulence serves only to render them ill-favoured and repulsive. In all cases, so detrimental a change is much to be regretted; but for ladies mingling in the fashionable spheres of life, it is to be borne only when such a condition can be shewn to be utterly beyond all hope of relief.
Excessive corpulence has destroyed the prospects of many, both men and women, by rendering them incompetent to discharge the duties of a profession by which they had hitherto gained an honourable livelihood. Superabundance of fat prevents an infantry officer from following his regiment—a cavalry officer from being long on horseback; and thus both are alike compelled to retire from the service. The operatic artiste, whose voice or personal beauty had been hitherto a mine of wealth to the theatre, falls into indigence, because an excessive development of fat now embarrasses the lungs or destroys her personal charms.
Every one engaged in intellectual pursuits will say that since he has increased in fat he finds that he cannot work so easily as he did when he was thin. The painter feels the want of that vivid imagination which was wont to guide his brush. The sculptor labours with indifference upon the marble. The literary man feels heavy, and his ideas no longer flow in obedience to his will. The clerk in his office is ever complaining of the efforts he is obliged to make to resist an overwhelming drowsiness which interferes with his calculating powers, rendering him unable to compose a letter, or even to copy one. Obesity, in fact, lessens both physical and moral activity, and unfits man for the ordinary business of life.
It was in conformity with this opinion, no doubt, that the Romans at one time, wishing to have no drones among them, banished those of their fellow citizens who laboured under an excessive development of fat. One can conceive of the existence of such a law among a people who condemned to a like punishment any citizen known to be indifferent to the public welfare.
We must admit, however, that it would be a grave error to assert that all persons suffering under an excess of fat are invariably wanting in the finer feelings, or even in moral energy. There are many living proofs to the contrary. But it is among women chiefly that we witness instances of great mental refinement and susceptibility, in union with a body steadily increasing to a lamentable size.
Moralists have written that obesity is a sign of egotism; of a good stomach, but of a bad heart; and many may be found to endorse the sentiment. Unhappily people are easily dazzled with high sounding words, and the sententious phrases of moralists. This is wrong; for if we take the trouble to adopt for a moment the opposite to that which they advance, we shall often find that this opposite is not void of reason. In support of this remark many reasons can be advanced why a fat person should have a good heart, and be endowed with most excellent qualities. Corpulence, it is true, usually indicates good digestive powers; but good digestion is not incompatible with goodness of heart. One who digests his food easily ought to be better disposed towards those around him, than the sickly creature labouring under dyspepsia. What amount of temper can be expected in those who daily experience pain in the stomach while the digestive process is going on? they can have no joyousness of heart, but must continually be in bad humour, too often seen in their contracted and jaundiced features. It is a great mental effort on their part to receive you with even a seeming cordiality. We may always accost a person with a degree of confidence, whose skin is gracefully spread over a sufficient layer of fat. I may be mistaken, but in my opinion we need not expect to meet in such persons great mental anxiety, or intense egotistical feelings.
Julius Cæsar was warned a few days before his assassination that an attempt would be made upon his life:—Antonius and Dolabella were accused of being the conspirators. "I have but little dread of those two men," said he, "they are too fat, and pay too much attention to their toilette; I should rather fear Brutus and Cassius, who are meagre and pale-faced." The end justified Cæsar's opinion.
With respect to lean persons, I shall not undertake to oppose the general opinion that a delicate organization is emblematic of a mind endowed with a great member of most precious and good qualities, frequently used with such energy, as by its very strength to be the cause of bodily weakness. But let us beware of entering the domain of Lavater, Gall and Spurzheim. We would rather say that the emblem of health is a sufficient but not too great rotundity of person—mens sana in corpore sano.
Authors
Image | Author | Author Website | Twitter | Author Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Jean-Francois Dancel | Deceased |
Topics
Meatritionist | A doctor or medical professional who studies or promotes exclusive meat diets | |
Obesity | ||
Low Carb Against the World | Refers to the concept that low carb diets must fight an uphill battle against myths and misconceptions. | |
Carnivore Diet | The carnivore diet involves eating only animal products such as meat, fish, dairy, eggs, marrow, meat broths, organs. There are little to no plants in the diet. | |
Ketogenic Diet | The ketogenic diet involves eating high fat, low carbs, and moderate protein. To be in ketosis, one must eat less than 20 grams of carbohydrates per day. |
History Entries - 10 per page
Monday, August 15, 1853
Jean-Francois Dancel
Obesity, Carnivore, Keto
Obesity, or, Excessive corpulence : the various causes and the rational means of cure
One would scarcely believe that a lady, reduced to despair on account of her obesity, and threatening to commit suicide unless relieved of her embonpoint, could promise that she would obey my instructions to live chiefly upon a meat diet, and to abstain from inordinate quantities of fluid, yet the very next day would resume her customary mode of living;—breakfasting upon eggs, preserves, and two or three cups of sweetened tea; and dine upon rich pastry and sweetmeats, accompanied with a full allowance of champagne. I could not have believed it possible had I not witnessed it myself.
It is said, that in order to be understood and believed, it is necessary to repeat the same thing over and over again. But all things must have an end; and all the cases which I might yet report, would still end in diminution of obesity. It may be said, however, that, like most medical writers, I report only favourable cases, and conceal those which are unfavourable. My answer is, that I have never treated a single case in which a favourable result has not been obtained, provided the patient has observed my directions for even eight days; and I am satisfied that if any one could be found to say that he has not been benefited, that it would be because he has not been willing to carry out the treatment for even eight days. It has no doubt frequently happened that a patient has consulted me, and has then followed my directions for two, three, or even four days, and then, for some cause, has given them up: under these circumstances it might be said that no benefit has been derived.
Many such cases have occurred. In one instance, a wealthy man, a gold-beater by trade, living in Paris, sought my advice. He followed my system for several weeks, without success. One day I said to him, "I can only explain your want of success by attributing it to excessive drinking. You live upon meat principally, it is true; but how much liquid do you imbibe daily?" His answer was,—"I cannot abstain from drinking when thirsty, and my thirst is frequent. I spend the whole day in the factory, among fifteen or twenty workmen, and the heat is necessarily great, as the nature of our manufacture demands it, and I am therefore obliged to drink a great deal." I consequently recommended him to abstain from further trial of a system which, under these circumstances, could not possibly be of any benefit.
We meet with people who make, or seem to make, a resolution to live according to a certain plan, for eight or ten days, and who, like spoiled children, forget the very next day the resolution they had made. I have met with many such cases. One would scarcely believe that a lady, reduced to despair on account of her obesity, and threatening to commit suicide unless relieved of her embonpoint, could promise that she would obey my instructions to live chiefly upon a meat diet, and to abstain from inordinate quantities of fluid, yet the very next day would resume her customary mode of living;—breakfasting upon eggs, preserves, and two or three cups of sweetened tea; and dine upon rich pastry and sweetmeats, accompanied with a full allowance of champagne. I could not have believed it possible had I not witnessed it myself.
Men generally carry out my directions more faithfully than women, being firmer and more persevering in their resolves.
I am almost angry at times with this want of perseverance in persons who boast that they have carried out my treatment without success. It would be an easy matter to shew that the want of success in such cases is entirely their own fault.
A young lady of one of the most illustrious families of France, and married to a wealthy foreign nobleman, consulted me in the month of May, 1853, in reference to her corpulence. She told me that her cousin, the Duchess of X., had derived great benefit from my treatment; and from what she had witnessed in her case, she was induced to place herself under my care. She promised to commence my system on the following day.
A few days afterwards I saw her. She told me she had forgotten to take her medicine the day before. In subsequent visits, she confessed that she had not taken any medicine, either because she had been up very late the previous evening and had laid in bed late that morning, or that she had been spending a day or two in the country; or that, having been out for an early ride, she had forgotten all about it. On the occasion of my last visit, she told me that she was going for some time to her country-seat, and from thence intended to visit a watering-place. The Baroness did not follow my treatment for three days consecutively, and consequently lost nothing of her embonpoint. Under such circumstances, want of success ought surely not to be attributed to inefficacy of the treatment.
A very corpulent professor adopted my system for eight days, and lost three pounds and a half in weight. Being relieved at the same time from a sense of oppression which had continually troubled him, he was delighted, and spoke of the happy results to many of his acquaintances. Unfortunately at this time he received from the country a present of a large basket of grapes, and being very partial to them, neglected my instructions, and partook of them inordinately as long as they lasted. The consequence is, that the professor is as fat as ever, although he had followed my plan of treatment for eight days. Now whose fault is this? Nevertheless, his acquaintances, to whom he had spoken of being under my care, will attribute the failure to me. I shall see him again, no doubt, some of these days, when in danger of suffocation.
The reader who has perused the preceding cases of cure, may say that I have omitted to speak of obesity accompanied with skin disease, and in my introduction mention has been made of its frequency. In truth, many such cases have been met with; but skin disease, in my opinion, is of such a nature that it is better not to give a hint even of the parties in whom it has been met with and cured at the same time with co-existing corpulence.
My method of reducing obesity being thus frankly explained, is perhaps likely to lose its value in the eyes of many, owing to its extreme simplicity. M. Desbouillons, of Brest, a patient whom I successfully treated, wrote to me on the 15th August, 1853:—"On reading your treatise a second time, I cannot but express my astonishment that the medical faculty should so long have failed to discover the means which you now so successfully employ for the cure of obesity."
Having accomplished the object I had in view, it matters not whether it be the result of little study or of long and deep enquiry into the secrets of animated nature; my satisfaction consists in having destroyed those false and prejudicial doctrines which had existed for ages in the writings and teachings of philosophers, and in having demonstrated a truth destined to render important services to our common humanity.
Wednesday, October 19, 1853
Jean-Francois Dancel
Obesity, Carnivore, Keto
Obesity, or, Excessive corpulence: the various causes and the rational means of cure
A landlord at the Golden Lion Hotel loses 90 pounds going from 270 to 160, and tells many about Dancel's meat-cure. He wrote in a letter: "Immediately after adopting your system, my fat began to disappear, my appetite improved, and, after a few months, my weight was reduced to one hundred and sixty pounds, and my circumference to thirty-two inches. My health is now excellent."
Towards the latter end of 1851, Madame Wimy, from the town of Marle, came to consult me in reference to her husband, who was labouring under obesity to such a degree as to be unable to attend to his business. I gave her the necessary advice, together with some medicine. On the 19th of December Madame Wimy told me by letter that her husband had already much improved, that his breathing was easier, he was more capable of exertion, and that his corpulence had notably diminished. This lady again wrote to me in the following year, requesting a further supply of medicine. She said:—"My husband, before commencing your treatment, weighed two hundred and seventy pounds: he now weighs only two hundred, and hopes to weigh still less. You are no doubt in the frequent receipt of letters seeking advice, for we have many inquiries for your address."
In truth the case of M. Wimy has brought me a great many patients. Anxious to know whether he still continued my plan of treatment, and wishing to introduce a statement of his case in this the third edition of my work, I wrote to M. Wimy on the 16th of October last and received the following reply:
"Marle, 19th Oct., 1853.
"Sir,—In your letter of the 16th, you requested me to give a somewhat detailed statement of my case. I commenced the treatment under your directions, the latter part of 1851, and continued it during the early part of 1852. My weight was two hundred and seventy pounds, and I measured sixty-one inches in circumference. I walked with great difficulty—suffered much pain in the kidneys—my legs were swollen. I had a constant cough, and was much troubled with drowsiness. Immediately after adopting your system, my fat began to disappear, my appetite improved, and, after a few months, my weight was reduced to one hundred and sixty pounds, and my circumference to thirty-two inches. My health is now excellent. Being landlord of the Golden Lion Hotel, at Marle, where the stages put up, my recovery is known to a great many; and travellers who stopped at my house two years ago, when I was labouring under obesity, on seeing me at present, and noticing the wonderful change which has taken place, invariably ask by what means it has been effected.
"It always affords me great pleasure to acknowledge that my cure is due to your system of treatment.
"I have the honour to be, &c.,
"Jules Wimy.
"Golden Lion Hotel,
Marle, Aisne."
A person who visited Marle about four months ago, and who had not seen M. Wimy since the great change had been effected in his appearance, was much astonished, and made inquiries respecting the cure. Some time afterwards, this person met, at Orleans, a wealthy gentleman, about forty years of age, suffering from obesity, and told him what he had witnessed at Marle; recommending him at the same time to visit Paris, in order that he might have the advice of the doctor who had freed Wimy from his excessive fat. This gentleman wrote to Marle, before coming to Paris, and received a satisfactory answer.
He called to consult with me, saying that he wished to place himself under my care, provided that it would not interfere with his business or with his usual habits. He is postmaster at Orleans, and, previous to the building of the railroad, had a great deal of business to attend to. Having many more horses than necessary for his business at Orleans, he has opened a livery stable in Paris. He is consequently obliged to attend all the fairs and markets, in order to purchase horses and provender for his two establishments,—the one at Paris and the other at Orleans, and is almost constantly travelling between these two cities, and therefore leads a life of great activity. He weighs two hundred and twenty-two pounds, and wishes to lose fifty pounds of fat, but he cannot afford to lose a day from his business.
My reply to Mr. M. was, that so far from my treatment demanding any cessation from work, it would rather give him strength to carry it on. He began the treatment ten weeks since, and has already lost between twenty-eight and thirty pounds of fat; and, as I had promised, without causing him the loss of a single day.