Henry Lindlahr (March 1, 1862 – March 26, 1924) was the author of one of the cornerstone texts of American naturopathic medicine, Nature Cure, which includes topics about disease suppression versus elimination, hydrotherapy, and the importance of fresh air and sun bathing.
Career
Lindlahr was born March 1, 1862, in Cologne, Kingdom of Prussia. He devoted himself to healing after being helped by Father Sebastian Kneipp (1821–1897), in Europe. Lindlahr was also influenced by the ideas of Bernarr Macfadden.Fishbein, Morris. (1932). Fads and Quackery in Healing: An Analysis of the Foibles of the Healing Cults. New York: Covici Friede Publishers. pp. 118-119 He graduated from the National Medical University in Illinois, US. In 1902, he opened his practice in Chicago. In 1914, he founded the Lindlahr Sanitarium, in Elmhurst, Illinois.
Lindlahr and his institute were criticized by medical health experts for peddling quackery.Anonymous. (1922). The Propaganda for Reform. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association 79 (4): 1628.Yadon, Laurence; Smith, Robet Barr. (2011). Old West Swindlers. Pelican Publishing Company. p. 135. For example, Lindlahr was an advocate of "Iridiagnosis", a method alleged to diagnosis any disease by examining the eye alone. He also claimed that vaccination was worthless against smallpox and was the cause of cancer, tuberculosis and insanity.
Physician Morris Fishbein noted that "the methods of diagnosis used in the Lindlahr institution were preposterous, the methods of treatment varied and ridiculous." These included dubious treatments such as chiropractic, homeopathy, osteopathy and "strange" diets. He died in Chicago on March 26, 1924.
Publications reprint General Books LLC, 2009, ; reprint Kessinger Publishing, 2004, also published as: Nature Cure Cook Book and ABC of Natural Dietetics Reprint Kessinger Publishing, 2004,
reprint Kessinger Publishing, 2004,
References
External links
"Nature Cure" , Soil and Health Library