Wouldn't it be great if we could get a handle on the numerous diseases plaguing our society? Cures for diseases like cancer, HIV/AIDS, lupus, endometriosis, and diabetes continue to elude modern medicine. Conventional medicine seems to have minimal success, and focuses more on treatment rather than an actual cure.

Within the area of nontraditional medicine, insight into these and many other diseases has been provided by independent researcher Hulda Regehr Clark, Ph.D., N.D, author of The Cure for All Diseases, The Cure for All Cancers, The Cure for HIV and AIDS, and, most recently, The Cure for All Advanced Cancers. Clark has found that most illnesses can be traced to problems in the body due to parasites and/or toxins. When the parasites and toxins are removed, the body can usually heal itself.

Seventy-one-year-old Clark has a Ph.D. in physiology and a naturopathy degree. She performed research for the government at Indiana University for almost ten years, and then began private nutritional counseling in 1979. Following an independent path of research, she learned about the causes and cures of diseases. Realizing that it could take many years for the medical establishment to accept her nontraditional findings, especially since the pharmaceutical companies can't profit from her discoveries, she chose to present her findings directly to the public by writing books. It is Clark's goal to empower people to take charge of their health so that they are not at the mercy of the medical industry.

Clark has traced the causes of both cancer and HIV infection to the parasite Fasciolopsis buskii. In the presence of certain solvents, some parasites can complete their life cycles within the human body. When the solvent isopropyl alcohol is present along with the parasite Fasciolopsis in an organ, cancer can result. When the solvent benzene is present along with the parasite Fasciolopsis in the thymus gland, AIDS can result. HIV is apparently housed within the Fasciolopsis parasite, since getting rid of the parasite causes the virus to disappear, too. When the solvent wood alcohol is present along with the parasite pancreatic fluke in the pancreas, diabetes can result.

How do these toxic solvents end up in our bodies? According to Clark's research, these solvents are all around us in our food and household products. In some cases, the toxins are pollutants of which the manufacturers are unaware. In other cases, the toxins are used purposefully, without an awareness of the toxicity. Isopropyl alcohol is legally used as a sterilizing solution for food-handling equipment used in manufacturing; consequently, trace amounts of isopropyl alcohol end up in foods and beverages. Other products that can contain isopropyl alcohol include shampoo, cosmetics, and vitamins.

Toxins can also be brought in from other countries that don't have the same standards as the United States. For example, Clark has found that some clothes dryer belts contain asbestos that can contaminate the air space. When belts are replaced with those made in this country, she no longer detects asbestos in the environment.

In many cases, scientific research has already demonstrated that certain toxins are carcinogenic, and yet we continue to be surrounded by them in our daily lives. Toxins common in our environment include metal (from metal cookware, tooth fillings, plumbing, and jewelry); Freon™ (from refrigerators and air conditioners); asbestos (from some clothes dryer belts, hair dryers, and - possibly due to conveyor belts used in their manufacture - foods); fiberglass (used in insulation); arsenic (used in pesticides); Polychlorinated biphenyls (found in most detergents); formaldehyde (used to cure foam mattresses, pillows, and foam furniture); and certain dyes (found in clothing and added to our food). These toxins are a stress to the immune system, and tend to accumulate in the weakest organ of a person's body.

Another common toxin comes from mold. There are several molds that are toxic to the liver. When the liver experiences toxicity due to mold, it has a greater difficulty detoxifying isopropyl alcohol and benzene. These mold toxins can also inhibit the immune system. These toxins are called mycotoxins, and include aflatoxin, zearalenone, sterigmatocystin, ergot, cytochalasin B, kojic acid, T-2 toxin, sorghum molds, and patulin. Common foods harboring toxic molds include peanuts, pasta, brown rice, popcorn, grocery bread, corn chips, potato chips, crackers, dried fruit, maple syrup, Russet potatoes, and honey.

Given the prevalence of parasites and toxins, what can be done to restore health? In the case of toxins, avoidance is the best method. Switch to one of the newer Freon-free refrigerators; use enameled cookware; switch to a nontoxic detergent like Borax™; replace galvanized metal and copper with PVC for plumbing (although PVC is toxic, none can be detected in the water after the first three weeks); avoid processed foods. In some cases, vitamin C can be added to food to detoxify mold; in others, it's best to avoid moldy food altogether by substituting other foods. For example, while grocery bread is moldy, freshly baked bread is not.

Clark uses a variety of herbal remedies. Black walnut hull (harvested when the hulls are green), freshly ground cloves, wormwood, l-cysteine, and ozonated olive oil are used to eliminate parasites. She also recommends herbal recipes for improving overall health. Her liver cleanse helps remove stones blocking the bile ducts in the liver. These stones accumulate in everyone and can be associated with the development of allergies, poor digestion, and shoulder pain. Her kidney cleanse helps dissolve stones and crystals that accumulate in the kidneys. These sharp crystals can be responsible for lower back pain.

In addition to herbal remedies, Clark uses what she calls a zapper, an electronic device that takes advantage of the fact that all organisms emit a characteristic range of frequencies. By matching the frequencies emitted by viruses, bacteria, and parasites, the zapper can electrocute these organisms. Note, however, that the electricity is unable to penetrate the inside of organs, since the organ effectively shields the organisms.

Electronic principles are also utilized with the Syncrometer™, a testing device that Clark uses to determine the presence or absence of a toxin or parasite within the body. The Syncrometer is an audio oscillator circuit. This means that test substances can be placed in the same circuit as your body to test for resonance. If resonance is present, then you know that the test substance is present in your body. This is a form of inexpensive testing that can determine which toxins are affecting your organs. In this way, the progress of a person's treatment can be monitored.

Clark's most recent research involves the study of cancer. Based on her discoveries, Clark makes a distinction between tumor growth and malignancy. She has found that tumor growth is due to a disabling of cells' mitochondria so that ATP isn't being produced. This is caused by Ascaris roundworms, tapeworm stages, and malonic acid. At this point, Clostridium bacteria can invade the cell. Clostridium is an anaerobic bacteria that can live without oxygen within repaired or dead teeth and in the intestines. Toxins and mutagens are drawn to the cell, contributing to the impaired metabolism. Mutations occur, and tumor growth begins. Malignancy occurs when the parasite Fasciolopsis buskii invades the tumor while in the presence of isopropyl alcohol.

Clark has an herbal program for eliminating the malignancy and shrinking the tumors. Her success rate is about 95%, including patients who have been diagnosed as terminal. She has discovered that even more important than getting rid of the malignancy and the tumors, however, is addressing the toxicity present in the body that allowed the body's health to deteriorate in the first place. The numerous case histories in her books (especially The Cure for All Advanced Cancers, which provides the most details) document the shrinkage of tumors and other health gains that her patients experienced.

In spite of the fact that Clark is a naturopath who uses herbal treatments rather than prescription drugs, she has recently come under attack from the legal establishment. In September 1999, the FBI arrested Clark in San Diego for an outstanding warrant from Indiana. The charge was practicing medicine without a license, a class C felony with a potential two to eight years in prison. The charge referred to an incident several years ago when Clark had her clinic in Indiana.

In 1993, while in Indiana, Clark realized that she was being investigated, so she moved to San Diego and set up a clinic in Tijuana. After she moved, Indiana filed a warrant for her arrest, but never notified her of the warrant. In September, Clark was arrested as a fugitive and extradited to Indiana for a hearing. She was offered a plea bargain that consisted of paying a fine, never seeing patients again anywhere in the world, and withdrawing all her books. She rejected the plea bargain and chose to plead not guilty. Currently, she is out on bail, and her trial is scheduled for early this month.

One of the best sources for learning about Clark's research is her books. One thing to be aware of, however, is that the information changes as she does more research. So, while she used to recommend replacement of mercury amalgam fillings with composites, she has since found some carcinogenic compounds present along with composites and so no longer recommends them.

Another thing to notice is that The Cure for HIV and AIDS and The Cure for All Cancers were originally printed in 1993 and then reprinted in 1998 with updated information. However, the date is still listed as 1993 inside the book for the newer editions. To tell which version you have, refer to the chapter on Dental Cleanup. The newer books mention the problems with the composite fillings.