In addition to the 30+ materia medicas and perhaps 20 homeopathic repertoires, plus hundreds of homeopathy books authored by some of the world’s finest medical doctors over the centuries, I also have a library full of old, sometimes quirky books that were fundamental to my understanding of health.

Many were read years before I discovered homeopathy, which helped form the architecture of my understanding of health.

I continuously studied and implemented my newfound knowledge on subjects such as whole living, botanicals, nutrition, chemical-free environments and farming, to name a few, for about 15 years prior to entering the study of homeopathy.

I did whatever it took in an effort to find relief after suffering from illness every day for so many years.

(I began life with food intolerances and eczema at six weeks old.)

So, it has been a lifelong pursuit.

I thought you might be interested in a glimpse of some of the books that got me thinking.

Most of those listed here are older books; not the information in them, but the edition dates. Many can often be found on Amazon now for only a few dollars. Certainly, today there are many more manuscripts available on these subjects.

(I use it as an excuse to add to my library regularly.)

When I was compiling the list for this blog, I had so many that I thought it might overwhelm my readers.

And my goal is to inspire you, not crush you with too much information.

So, I scaled it down to only a few below.

It might also be of interest to know that some of these books were required summer reading for my children.

No, not by a school district! By me; their primary educator.

Here are a few of the titles:

Healthy Environment

     1. “Nontoxic, Natural and Earthwise: How to Protect Yourself and Your Family from Harmful Products and Live in Harmony With the Earth“
by Debra Lynn Dadd (Anything Debra has authored is valuable. She has actually become a professional friend, and I recommend all of her offerings.)

Doctors Speaking Out Against Modern Medicine

     2. “The Truth About the Drug Companies: How They Deceive Us and What to Do About It“ by Maria Angell, M.D. (This courageous doctor, spent two decades at the New England Journal of Medicine and subsequently exposed the reality of this journal’s involvement in an industry that is nothing short of shocking. Got a doctor who’s trying to convince you of the validity of a study on a drug he’s pushing?  Here’s the book that will put it to rest.)

     3. “Confessions of a Medical Heretic“ by Robert Mendelsohn, M.D. (This is my all-time favorite doctor. I urge you to watch him on YouTube and read everything he’s written.)

     4. “Male Practice: How Doctors Manipulate Women“ by Robert S. Mendelsohn, M.D. (You’re going to hate your OBGYN after you read this. Not really my goal, but we need to put a little balance in this otherwise often over-trusted profession.)

    5. “Dissent in Medicine: Nine Doctors Speak Out“ by Robert S. Mendelsohn, M.D., George Crile, M.D., Henry Heimlich, M.D., Alan Scott Levin, M.D., David Spodick, M.D., Richard Moskowitz, M.D., Gregory White, M.D. (These are the kind of doctors we need to have access to.)

    6. “Beyond Antibiotics: 50 (or so) Ways to Boost Immunity and Avoid Antibiotics Second Edition“ by Michael A. Schmidt, MD, Lendon H. Smith & Keith W. Sehnert (This is a good starter book for those who are wondering about antibiotics. I wasn't enamored with some of their solutions…after all, they're not homeopaths, but it’s an eye-opener for neophytes to this kind of thinking.)

Whistle-Blowers of Modern Medicine

    7. “Selling Sickness: How the World's Biggest Pharmaceutical Companies Are Turning Us All Into Patients“ by Ray Moynihan & Alan Cassels (If this doesn’t convince you of the importance of staying clear of drugs, you’re incorrigible.)

    8. “Medical Nemesis: The Expropriation of Health“ by Ivan Illich (Prolific author. Consider reading his other offerings as well.)

    9. “Politics in Healing: The Suppression and Manipulation of American Medicine” by Daniel Haley (Another important expose of what medicine has become in the last century or so.)

Home Birthing

    10. “Five Standards for Safe Childbearing“ by David Stewart, Ph. D. (This was the icing on the cake for me in deciding to home birth my children. A classic.)

    11. “Spiritual Midwifery“ by Ina May Gaskin. (The tone of this book is right out of the ’60s. During my birthing years, it was foundational to my ability to give birth at home. I just worked at getting past the hip jargon.)

Food

    12. “Milk Diet As A Remedy For Chronic Disease“ by Charles Sanford Porter (Kind of says it all in the title.)

    13. “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration“ by Dr. Weston A. Price (This is a landmark book and was mandatory reading in our home-school curriculum.  I had our kids read aloud from this book, write essays and even memorize from it.)

    14. “Nourishing Broth (An Old-Fashioned Remedy for the Modern World)[NOURISHING BROTH] [Paperback]“ by Dr. Kaayla Daniel and Sally Fallon (This is not a new book, and it is a subject I thought I had mastered until I read it. I refer to it regularly. I consider Kaayla Daniel to be one of my closest friends, so I am especially keen on this book.)

    15. “The Milk Book: How Science Is Destroying Nature's Nearly Perfect Food” by William Campbell Douglass, M.D. (This author is one of the few medical doctors with a published presence, who understands nutrition. I subscribed to his newsletter for decades.)

    16. “The Church and Farming” by Rev. Denis Fahey (Wait 'till you read this one! It’s a real switch-flipper. The distilled picture? The church has historically encouraged its followers to take up the whole-life lifestyle based on autonomy for the family. This book really spoke to me.)

    17. “Pottenger's Cats: A Study in Nutrition” by Francis Marion Pottenger Jr. MD ( This was mandatory reading every summer for my kids.  I required that they read it for 3-4 years in a row. How else would I be able to undo what advertisements were telling them? Since kids are attracted to animals, I thought that this was a good medium. Along with their friends, I had them watch a video on the same subject from time to time. To this day, the mothers of those kids still ask me where I find my videos.)

There you have it. A small sample of what influenced my thinking. I hope some of these books find a place in your library too.

Here in Western New York, the weather is perfect for hammock reading. I might just re-read some of these old favorites myself.