By Jeanne Schumacher, EdD – NHA Historian

In my role as Historian for the National Health Association, I have to say that I have learned so much. As I have spent countless hours exploring nearly 50 years of Health Science magazine and delving into the writings, photographs, biographies, previous magazines, and records of those who came before us, one thought continues to come to mind:

What a rich and fascinating history. What a legacy!

The history of Natural Hygiene is far more extensive than many people realize. For more than 175 years, Natural Hygienists have been teaching principles of health that continue to appear in conversations about nutrition, wellness, and preventive health today.

Ideas such as emphasizing wholesome plant foods, allowing the body adequate rest, recognizing the body’s remarkable capacity for healing, using fasting as a traditional health practice, getting sufficient fresh air and sunshine, exercising, sleeping well, and avoiding unnecessary drugs and surgery were not new ideas when they became popular in recent decades. These principles were being discussed, practiced, written about, and taught by Natural Hygienists generations ago.

Looking back through their writings, it is remarkable to see how many of their fundamental principles have endured. Their work gives us an opportunity to understand where many of these ideas came from and how they developed over time.

Start with the Pioneers

To understand Natural Hygiene, we have to begin with the pioneers.

Beginning in the early 1800’s, the Natural Hygiene movement developed through the work of physicians, health reformers, authors, lecturers, educators, and dedicated laypeople who questioned many of the prevailing approaches to health care of their day. They devoted themselves to teaching people how to live in ways they believed supported health and helped prevent illness.

These early Hygienists placed considerable emphasis on the conditions that support health rather than simply focusing on the treatment of disease. They looked to nature, lifestyle, nutrition, rest, cleanliness, exercise, fresh air, sunshine, and other basic requirements of life.

Food was one of the fundamental pillars of their philosophy.

Long before today’s renewed interest in whole-food, plant-based nutrition, Natural Hygienists were writing about the importance of eating natural, wholesome foods. They emphasized the importance of simple, nourishing meals. Their approach went beyond individual foods, however. They viewed health as the result of the many conditions under which a person lives.

The Body’s Capacity to Heal

Another enduring principle was the belief that the human body possesses an extraordinary capacity for self-preservation and repair.

Natural Hygienists taught that the body should be given the conditions it needs to carry out its normal functions. Rather than viewing every symptom as something that necessarily required suppression, they encouraged people to understand the importance of rest and to remove, when possible, the conditions that were contributing to poor health.

This perspective led to an emphasis on rest, proper nutrition, fresh air, sunshine, exercise, sleep, cleanliness, and other natural requirements of life.

Fasting also became an important part of the Natural Hygiene tradition. Early Hygienists considered periods of abstinence from food to be a way of giving the digestive system a rest and allowing the body to devote its resources to its own restorative processes. Over the decades, fasting became one of the practices most closely associated with Natural Hygiene.

Questioning Conventional Practices

The pioneers of Natural Hygiene were also willing to challenge prevailing medical practices.

During the nineteenth century, medicine was very different from what it is today. Many treatments commonly used at the time were later abandoned as medical knowledge developed. Natural Hygienists questioned practices they believed interfered with the body’s natural processes and instead emphasized prevention and healthy living.

Their writings often reflected a simple but powerful question:

What conditions does the human body need in order to function well?

That question remains at the heart of Natural Hygiene.

From Individual Pioneers to a Movement

As the movement developed, Natural Hygiene was carried forward by successive generations of teachers and practitioners.

Names such as Isaac Jennings, Russell Thacker Trall, Sylvester Graham, Robert Walter, John Tilden, Susanna Way Dodds, Mary and Thomas Nichols, and many others became part of the larger history of natural health and hygiene. Each contributed in different ways to the development, teaching, or preservation of Natural Hygiene principles.

Their writings became books, lectures became educational programs, and local groups developed. People gathered to learn about nutrition, fasting, healthful living, and the principles of Natural Hygiene.

Eventually, these efforts helped establish organizations devoted to preserving and promoting the philosophy.

As I continue exploring the NHA archives, I am continually struck by the conversations taking place decades and even centuries ago. Questions about food, environmental influences, fasting, lifestyle, preventive health, pharmaceuticals, and the body’s natural processes appear again and again throughout the historical record.

Some of today’s conversations sound remarkably familiar.

That does not mean every historical claim or recommendation should automatically be accepted simply because it is old. History gives us context, not a substitute for careful evaluation. But understanding the origins of these ideas allows us to appreciate the depth of the Natural Hygiene tradition and the people who spent their lives exploring and teaching them.

As Historian for the NHA, I feel incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to uncover and organize this history. Every old article can reveal another piece of the story. Every photograph can put a face to a name. Every biography can remind us that the movement was built by real people who believed strongly enough in these principles to dedicate their time and energy to sharing them with others.

There is still so much to discover.

And perhaps that is one of the most exciting things about history: the story is never quite finished.

The pioneers of Natural Hygiene began a conversation almost 200 years ago. Generations followed, building upon the work of those who came before them. The American Natural Hygiene Society helped preserve and advance that tradition beginning in 1948, and the National Health Association continues to carry an important part of that history forward.

As we look toward the future, it is worth remembering where we came from.

The legacy is rich. The history is fascinating. And there is still much more of the story to tell.

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Explore the history of Natural Hygiene on the NHA website:

Visit HealthScience.org → About → Natural Hygiene History to explore the Early History Timeline, discover the incredible stories of the Pioneers who shaped the movement, and learn what was happening in Europe during the same period.