THE MAN MACHINE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 370, 17 June 1911, Page 7

THE MAN MACHINE.

GRAVITY AND ILLNESS. Dr E. P. Banning has surprised tnd interested the medical world by ais remarkable discovery that healtu ind disease in the human body are largely dependent on the force of gravity. The body is a, machine, and if it be displaced in any way, the force of gravity does not exercise its proper influence and the body falls into disorder. Have you stomachache ? Your boiler is not properly "bedded." Have you heart disease? Your government is out of alignment.

Just as a delicate engine needs to be kept in a certain position and in a state of equilibrium, so must the body be kept in a proper position and state of equilibrium. If the body inclines greatly to one side or the other, or if it leans backward or forward too heavily, or if one side be heavier than the other, or if you have too much stomach, the action of gravity is deranged and disease results.

The centre of gravity must be equally divided between the soles of your two feet or you will suffer. Dr. Banning has set forth his theory in a paper entitled " Gravity the PrimeFactor in the Prevention, O.usation and Cure of Tuberculosis of t>.e Lungs and other Diseases," which he read before the convention of the International Hahnemannian Association.

" When a man fails to sit or stand in a natural position " said the doctor," so that a line of attraction by the power of gravity passes from the centre of the head down through the frame to the centre of the feet, this same power of gravity is pulling unnaturally on all the organs, gradually displacing them and rendering them liable to derangement causing defects of function and disease.

" Correcting the poise of the machinery gives nature the power to restore what is wrong. In this way the terrible scourge of consumption may be driven from the system." Dr. Banning's method of treatment consists in forcing the patient by mechanical means, to return to a normal poise. He has devised a system of light braces that keeps the body in a perfect state of equilibrium, the spinal column erect and the arms properly balanced. While wearing this apparatus the patient can walk or sit down and move about without any difficulty. The effect of this correction of the equilibrium is said to be most exhilarating upon the patient. The force of gravity immediately makes itself felt through the system. The body being poised in accordance with the law of gravity, works freely without fatigue or exertion. Gravitation ensures a vigorous circulation of the blood and stimulates all the vital functions. Dr. Banning states that his treatment has now stood the test of many years' experience although it has not hitherto been communicated to the general public. It is amazing how close a resemblance the human body bears to a certain type of engine. The stomach is the boiler and the food is the fuel of the human engine ; the lungs are the air chambers ; the legs and arms are the shafts ; the backbone is the central support ; the glands that lubricate the joints are the oil cups, and the mouth is the door of the furnace.

The relation of gravity to diseases 'ji the body has long been recognised by scientists, although the interesting view of the subject put forward by Dr. Banning is novel. Darwin first pointed out —and many other scientists agree with him—that many of our diseases are due to the fact that man has changed from the horizontal position in which his ape-like ancestors walked to his present upright position. This was a violent Sisplacement of the original centre af gravity.

In consequence of the upright position of modern man, all the contents of the body, including the many injurious foreign substances that are usually to be found in it, press to the feet and lower extremities. When man ran on all fours, this weight was distributed over the four legs, and the lower abdominal wall as in the lower animals at present. Rupture is more common and more severe in man than in animals, because the erect position causes great pressure of the viscera towards the lower part of the abdomen. An animal running on all fours, moreover, maintains a more suitable centre of gravity which Dr. Banning considers of great importance, than one going on two legs. " In spite of these considerations it must be said that man derives enormous advantages from standing on two legs, among them being the free use of his hands and the full development of his chest. It will, therefore be better to cure disease by Dr. Banning's method of correcting the :entre of gravity while the patient still walks on two legs rather than by going back' to the position on all tours.—" Popular Science Sittings,"