| Eugene Christian | |
| Birth Date: | 1860 |
| Birth Place: | McMinnville, Tennessee |
| Death Date: | 1930 |
| Death Place: | San Diego, California |
| Occupation: | Naturopath, nutritionist, writer |
Eugene Christian (May 30, 1860[1] –1930) was an American naturopath, nutritionist and raw foodism writer.
Christian was born in McMinnville, Tennessee. He worked in manufacturing and sales until 1900.[2] Similar to George J. Drews, Christian was one of the pioneers of the raw foodism movement in America.[3] Christian authored the raw food book Uncooked Foods and How to Use Them, in 1904.[3] The book was popular and went through five editions in 1904. It went through ten editions through 1924 and was printed up until the late 20th century.[4] It was widely reviewed in health journals.[5] [6] [7] [8] Medical experts accused Christian of promoting a fad diet and called him the "dean of American food faddists".[9]
Christian had no medical qualifications, advertised himself as a "food scientist" and practiced diet therapy. In 1905, he was arrested and prosecuted by the New York County Medical Society for practicing medicine without a license.[10] In 1907 after an appeal, the New York Supreme Court concluded that no crime was committed and that Christian was improperly convicted.[11] Christian did not prescribe medicine.[12] The Supreme Court decided that a "food scientist" does have the right to diagnose or treat illness by prescribing diet.[2] Christian then advertised himself as a "hero" and "vindicated by the supreme court".[13] Christian believed that cooking food destroyed nutrients. During World War I, he appealed to the Surgeon General to change the army's rations to a raw food diet.[14] [15]
Christian was the owner of the "Christian Natural Food Company", he also operated a mail-order school, the Eugene Christian School of Applied Food Chemistry.[9] He charged $100 for a diploma course in which an F. S. D. degree (Doctor of Food Science) was awarded. The school faded and he formed the Christian Dietetic Society and School of Scientific Eating.[9] He sold a "Course in Scientific Eating" for $10. The organization merged into the Corrective Eating Society. The Society offered a course for $3 which promised to teach people how to cure disease through a dietetic system. The Society sold quack products such as the "Vaco Reducing Cup", that was alleged to remove fat.[9] His products were described as "pseudo-scientific buncombe" by the Bureau of Investigation of the American Medical Association.[16]
Christian recommended raw egg as a good source of protein. He commented that "an egg should never be cooked".[17] He promoted a raw vegetarian diet. However, in volume eleven of Eugene Christian's Course in Scientific Eating, he wrote that "eggs and, once a week, a small service of fish or fowl, may be eaten to maintain the balance as to protein."[18] Christian promised his followers that they could live a hundred years on his recommended diet but died at the age of 69.[19] He died of pneumonia in San Diego, California.[20] [21] In medical literature, Christian was cited as an example of a quack.[9] [19]