Table Of Content
Counsels on Diet and Foods
Ellen G. White
1938
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AbouttheAuthor
EllenG.White(1827-1915)isconsideredthemostwidelytranslatedAmericanauthor,herworkshavingbeen
published in more than 160 languages. She wrote more than 100,000 pages on a wide variety of spiritual and
practicaltopics. GuidedbytheHolySpirit, sheexaltedJesusandpointedtotheScripturesasthebasisofone’s
faith.
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You Should Read This
HowThisBookCametoBe
Decadesbeforemanyphysiologistswereconcernedwiththecloserelationshipbetweendietandhealth,Ellen
G.Whiteinherwritingsclearlypointedouttheconnectionbetweenthefoodweeatandourphysicalandspiritual
welfare. In her discourses and writings from 1863 onward, she discussed frequently the importance of diet and
adequatenutrition. Hercounsels,aspreservedinpamphletsandbooks,inthejournalsofthedenomination,and
in personal testimonies, have exerted a strong influence on the dietetic habits of Seventh-day Adventists, and
indirectlyhavelefttheirimpressuponthegeneralpublic.
Mrs.White’swritingsregardingfoodsandahealthfuldietweredrawntogetherin1926inatopicallyarranged
workdesignedtoserveprimarilyasatextbookforstudentsofdieteticsattheCollegeofMedicalEvangelistsat
LomaLinda. Thisinitialprinting,titledTestimonyStudiesonDietandFoods,wassoonexhausted.
A new and enlarged volume, titled Counsels on Diet and Foods, Appeared in 1938. It was referred to as a
“secondedition,”andwaspreparedunderthedirectionoftheBoardofTrusteesoftheEllenG.WhiteEstate. A
thirdedition,printedinasmallerpagesizetoconformtotherequirementsoftheChristianHomeLibraryseries,
waspublishedin1946. Thepresenteditionisthefourth,andinvolvesnochangeintextorpagination.
ThisIsaUniqueCompilation
In assembling the materials comprising Counsels on Diet and Foods, an effort was made to include the full
rangeofinstructiononthesubjectfromMrs. White’spen. TheresultingcompilationisuniqueamongtheEllen
G.Whitebooks,
foritpresentsthecounselsclusteredtopicallyunderageneralheading,withnoattempttoprovideacontinuity
inreading.
EachsectioncontainstheE.G.Whitematerialsthat,assembled,makearepresentativepresentationofthetopic
dealt with. Nothing that would make a substantial contribution has been ignored. Often in the original sources
many phases of health instruction are treated together in one paragraph. To give all the context in such cases
wouldhaveinvolvedconsiderablerepetition. Throughtheuseofcrossreferencessuchrepetitionisminimized.
While the limitations of space and the effort to avoid repetition have made it inadvisable to include every
statementonthemoregeneralphasesofthedietquestion,acompleteandcomprehensivepresentationoftheE.
G.Whiteteachingshasbeengiven.
PerilofTakingaPartfortheWhole
Thefactthatthisvolumeisconstructedsomewhatlikeanencyclopedia,isolatingthemajorpresentationsand
groupingthembytopic,makesitaconvenientreferencework. Buttheencyclopediadesignalsomakesthebook
onethatmayeasilybemisused. Togaintheauthor’sintentandthefullimpactofallherteachings,itisimperative
thatthebookbestudiedasawhole.
ThereadershouldbearinmindthatasingleEllenWhitestatementonsomephaseofthesubjectofnutrition
may come far short of expressing her full intent and understanding of the nutritional needs of the body. For
example, in a sentence appearing on page 314 of this book, taken from Testimonies for the Church 2:352, she
says: “Grainsandfruitspreparedfreefromgrease, andinasnaturalaconditionaspossible, shouldbethefood
for the tables of all who claim to be preparing for translation.” In the light of other of her statements, clearly it
wasnotMrs. White’sintenttoteachthatthosepreparingfortranslationshouldreducetheirdiettosimply”grains
andfruits.” Pennedin1869inthesettingofcounselagainsttheuseofmeat,thisstatementseemstomake“grains
andfruits”standforthenonmeatdiet. The
statement does not mention nuts, vegetables, or dairy products, all of which Ellen White recognized as
importanttoabalancednutritionalprogram.
Anotherstatementonthesamepage(314),writtensometwentyyearslater,indelineatingadietintendedto
impartnourishmentandgiveenduranceandvigorofintellect, mentions“fruit, grains, andvegetables”prepared
with “milk or cream.” Nuts are not mentioned. Across the page in another paragraph written in 1905, “Grains,
nuts, vegetables, and fruits” are listed as taking the place of meat. In this statement milk is not mentioned. Yet
milkisincludedinher1909
statement that appears on page 355: “Vegetables should be made palatable with a little milk or cream, or
something equivalent.... Some, in abstaining from milk, eggs, and butter, have failed to supply the system with
propernourishment,andasaconsequencehavebecomeweakandunabletowork. Thushealthreformisbrought
intodisrepute.”
There are a number of other instances similar to those cited above where Ellen White does not in a given
statementenumeratealltheelementsofanadequatediet. Caremustbeexercisedtogethercompletethoughton
eachsubject. Anisolatedstatementshouldnotbeusedbyitself,lestthepartbetakenforthewhole.
ACallforEveryonetoStudy
EllenWhitedidnotintendthatherwritingsalongnutritionallinesshouldexcludetheneedforearneststudy
to find the best and most agreeable diet, taking advantage of a growing knowledge, and the experience and
investigationofothers. Shewrote:
“Tokeepthebodyinahealthycondition,inorderthatallpartsofthelivingmachinerymayactharmoniously,
shouldbethestudyofourlife.”—Page18.
“Itisplainlyourdutytogivethese[nature’s]lawscarefulstudy. Weshouldstudytheirrequirementsinregard
toourownbodies,andconformtothem. Ignoranceinthesethingsissin.”—Ibid.
ClearlyMrs. Whitefeltthateachpersonshouldbecomewellinformed,takingadvantageoftheadvancements
ofscience
innutritionalinvestigations,solongastheconclusionsharmonizewiththecounselsgiventhroughinspiration.
TheHazardsofExtremes
EllenWhitewasnotslowtopointoutthehazardsofextremes,orinattention,orlaxityinprovidinganadequate
dietforthefamily. Thisfactisillustratedbythestatementthatthemother“byill-prepared,unwholesomefood”
might actually “hinder and even ruin both the adult’s usefulness and the child’s development” (p. 476). In the
samestatementshecalledfor“providingfoodadaptedtotheneedsofthebody,andatthesametimeinvitingand
palatable.”
Whilethereasonsforincludingsomedairyproductsinabalanced,adequatedietwerenotfullyunderstood,
Ellen White spoke in favor of them, and even cautioned against eliminating them. Today in the light of the
knowledge that certain minute nutrients are vital to body functions, we have a better understanding. Some
of these nutrients, while apparently not present in all-vegetable diet, are available in adequate amounts in a
lacto-ovo-vegetariandiet. ThisisparticularlyimportanttochildrenwhoseproperdevelopmentEllenWhitestated
mightbehinderedby"ill-preparedunwholesomefood.”
Near the turn of the century Ellen White began to write that because of accumulating disease in the animal
kingdomallanimalfoods,includingmilk,willintimehavetobegivenup(seepp. 356,357);yetatthesametime
she repeatedly cautioned against premature steps in this direction and in 1909 declared that the time will come
whensuchmaybenecessary,buturgedagainstcreatingperplexityby“pre-matureandextremerestrictions.” She
counseledthatwe“waituntilthecircumstancesdemandit,andtheLordpreparesthewayforit”(pp. 355-359).
It was the lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet that sustained Ellen White in active service well into her eighty-eighth
year.
EmploySoundPrinciplesinStudy
Certainsoundprinciplesmusteverbeappliedinthestudyofthedietarycounselsfoundinthisbook. Allthe
instructions,asabroad,consistent,well-balancedwhole,shouldbestudiedwithanopenmind. Careshould
betakentoreadtheentirestatementonagiventopic. Then,togainthefullintentoftheauthor,statementshould
beputwithstatement. Ifonestatementdoesnotseemtoaccordwithanother,thestudentwoulddowelltotrace
one,orboth,totheoriginalsettings.
ThestudentshouldalsofollowEllenWhite’sexampleinrecognizingthreebasicprinciplesasenumeratedon
page481:
1. “Thedietreformshouldbeprogressive.”—TheMinistryofHealing,320.
2. “Wedonotmarkoutanypreciselinetobefollowedindiet.”—TestimoniesfortheChurch9:159.
3. “Imakemyselfacriterionfornooneelse.”—Letter45,1903.
ARecommendationforHealthReform
True diet reform will recommend itself because of its good sense. Its fruitage will be seen in good health,
strength, a sweet breath, and a sense of well-being. Even the spiritual life may be aided by good health habits.
It has been gratifying to witness, through the onward march of scientific study, a full substantiation of many
greatprinciplesandevenminutepointsofinstructionrevealedtoSeventh-dayAdventiststhroughEllenWhite’s
inspiredpen.
Thatthisvolumemayaiditsreadersinobtainingbetterhealth,bothphysicalandspiritual,isoursincerewish.
TheTrusteesoftheEllenG.WhiteEstate
Washington,D.C.
September17,1976
Contents
InformationaboutthisBook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
AbouttheAuthor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
FurtherLinks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
EndUserLicenseAgreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
YouShouldReadThis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
HowThisBookCametoBe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
ThisIsaUniqueCompilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
PerilofTakingaPartfortheWhole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
ACallforEveryonetoStudy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
TheHazardsofExtremes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
EmploySoundPrinciplesinStudy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
ARecommendationforHealthReform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
DatesofWritingorFirstPublication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
KeytoCreditsandAbbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Chap. 1-ReasonsforReform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
FortheGloryofGod . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
ChoiceofLifeorDeath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
SeekforPerfection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
AQuestionofObedience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
PenaltyforIgnorance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
NotAlwaysIgnorant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
ResponsibilityforLight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
AnOfferingWithoutBlemish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
APitifulOffering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
WhytheLightonHealthReform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
ImportanceofHealthPrinciples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
IntheFrontRanksofReformers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
HealthReformandPrayerfortheSick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
TheChristianRace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Daniel’sExample . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
God’sApprovalWon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
UnreadyfortheLoudCry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
PreparationfortheRefreshing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
AppealstotheHesitant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
AllBeingProved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
TrueReformIsHeartReform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
AQuestionofPrimaryImportance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
AUnitedFront . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
StumblingOvertheBlessing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
ConsidertheJudgment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Chap. 2-DietandSpirituality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
IntemperanceaSin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
WhenSanctificationIsImpossible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
WillingIgnoranceIncreasesSin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
MentalEffectsofDisobediencetoPhysicalLaw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
EffectonAppreciationofTruth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
EffectUponDiscernmentandDecision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
EffectUponInfluenceandUsefulness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
SpecialResponsibilitiesandTemptationsofMinisters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
“DoAlltotheGloryofGod” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
RelationtotheVictoriousLife . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
TheRelationofDiettoMorals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
MoralPollutioninEarlyTimes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
