In November 1991, former world heavyweight boxing champion Mohamed Ali, after a nervous breakdown, was treated for about a month by abstaining from food – newspapers even wrote about the success of this treatment.
In addition, in some countries, including Russia, government health authorities officially recognize abstinence from food as a medical method. Thus, the abstinence-only method is now regarded worldwide as an extremely effective way to stay healthy. Now that Western medicine is at a standstill, even in Japan there is a hidden boom in therapeutic fasting as a remarkable method of wellness. Former Hyogo Prefecture Governor Sakai Tokitada Sakai Tokitada undertook a 7-day fast and experienced amazing effects. He said: “Therapeutic fasting is a wonderful way to stay healthy. In addition, it seems to help with various chronic diseases, so we will soon establish a proper medical center.” Indeed, a municipal center for therapeutic fasting was soon established in Awajishima City, Hyogo Prefecture.
Goto Juo, Executive Director of Material from Mitsubishi, fasts for one week every year. “During my one-week fast, my body gets into an excellent condition that lasts 2 to 3 months,” he comments.
In Osaka, Sanyo Joint Stock Company has opened a “Physical and Mental Wellness Hall” where employees can occasionally fast from time to time. Two-thirds of the employees use the room.
In the last 2-3 years, the topic of health fasting has been widely covered in TV programs, newspaper and magazine articles devoted to health. The number of people practicing therapeutic fasting is growing. So many entrepreneurs and other people have recently become fascinated with one-day fasting at the end of each week.
