Santokh Singh Parmar, B Arch, Dip TP, Dip LA, MRTPI, AITP, AIIA
Chairperson (DOB -27.03.1934)
MY TRYST WITH NATURO-FOOD THERAPY
My Education and Proffessional Career
I Santokh Singh Parmar (DOB 27-03-1934) qualified as an Architect (B.Arch-1959) from School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi University, India. After working for one year (1959-60) in an Architectural Practice in Delhi, I joined Town and Country Planning Department of the Government of Punjab, India and worked as Town Planner at Patiala for one year (1960-61) and as Divisional Town Planner, Hissar Division covering five Districts for 4 years (1961-65). I migrated to the U.K in July 1965 and while working as Town Planner during the day and attending evening classes for 6 years, I obtained two further professional qualifications in Town and Country Planning (1969) and Landscape Architecture (1971) from School of Planning and Landscape, Birmingham, U.K. I am a Member of the Royal Town Planning Institute, London (MRTPI), Associate of the Institute of Town Planners, India (AITP) and Associate of the Indian Institute of Architects (AIIA).
In the U.K., I worked as Town Planner in senior positions in the Local and Central Governments of England for 29 years (1965-1994). After retirement from the Civil Service in 1994, I practiced as a Planning Consultant to Local and Central Governments of England till December 2004.
My Ailments
i.Vitiligo : I had started losing body pigment due to vitiligo (Phulvairi) in 1986. After being under treatment for about a year in 1986/87 at the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K, the Consultants stopped treatment as the cause and cure of vitiligo were not known.
ii. Toe nails fungus : From adolescent age my toe nails of the right foot started getting thick one by one and became brittle and smelly by 1998. On 24-08-1998 nail clippings were sent by my doctor to Mycology Department of Bedford Hospital, U.K. for microscopy and fungal culture. However, no fungal elements were seen in microscopy and dermatophytes (fungus) were not isolated after the culture of the nail clippings.
iii.Osteoarthritis : From early 1990’s I was suffering from acute pain in the left knee caused by wear and tear of the knee joint due to excessive driving (4000 to 5000 kilometers per annum) necessitated by my job as a Town Planner. By late 1990’s I was beginning to get pain in my right knee also. It was difficult to bend the left knee due to stiffness and pain. From 1995 to 1997 I was seen by Orthopaedic Consultants at the Bedford Hospital, U.K. where I had a few sessions of physiotherapy and even had a steroid injection once in the left knee. But the treatment did not work and I was told that “ at the end of the day, I will need a new joint” or have “athroscopy and washout”. But I did not opt for either and instead kept doing massage/self-physiotherapy/exercise of the knees to contain further deterioration of the knee joints. I have to point out here that I have not taken any allopathic medicines including pain killers since 1973.
iv.Raised blood cholesterol: By September 2001 my blood cholesterol level had increased to 7.4 mmol/L against the normal healthy level of less than 5.0 mmol/L. After following a fat-free and alcohol-free diet as advised by my doctor, it only came down to 7.2 mmol/L in April 2003, which was a cause of worry for me.
v. Overweight : I was gradually gaining excess weight especially around the belly and by July 2003, I was 7.5 kilogram over my normal healthy weight of about 60 kg.
vi. Baldness : By 2003, I had gone bald in the middle of my head and all the hair on my head, eyebrows and beard had gone grey.
Meeting the Naturo-Food Therapists Goindis
On one of my visits to India to supervise the construction of our house in Mohali, I read an article titled “Curing with Food Therapy” in the Chandigarh Tribune newspaper dated May 2, 2001. This states that Goindis couple (Satyendra Singh Goindi and Gurkirpal Kaur Goindi) “who have developed their own food therapy based on principles of natural diet, claim to have cured people suffering from diabetes, arthritis, heart ailments, thyroid, even cancer and other diseases”. The article also stated that they have developed numerous oil/fat-free vegetarian nutritional tasty foods using germinated cereals and grains. Regarding their plan, Goindis said, “We have an ambitious plan to establish a food therapy ashram and hospital as our aim is to provide health and nutrition service to people.” This newspaper article is reproduced later along with other press cuttings in the “media” section.
I was very impressed and amazed at the same time that Goindis have cured many people of various ailments by just changing people’s food habits. So, I kept the cutting of the article in the Tribune with the hope to seek Goindis’ advice for my ailments, especially raised blood cholesterol level. However it took more than two years to find the time to meet them. It was on 7 July 2003, I met the Goindis couple in their house at Gandhi Samarak Bhawan, Sector 16, Chandigarh, India, where Dr. Goindi had worked as the Director for many years.
Goindis Credentials
I was shown quite a few commendation letters from persons who had benefitted with the Goindis Food Therepy, a bundle of newspaper reports about their food therapy and a set of photographs showing Goindis with eminent persons. Selected few of these are included in “Media”, Gallery and “Testimonials” sections.
My Treatment with Naturo-Food Therapy
After the meeting with the Goindis on 07-07-2003 and seeing their admirable credentials, I was fully convinced that their food therapy does work wonders in curing a multitude of lifestyle diseases. So me and my wife, who also had minor ailments, registered for treatment there and then by paying the consultation fee. We both started our food therapy which prohibits all commercially produced junk foods on 09-07-2003. The therapy allows only natural foods as prescribed by the Goindis.
To start with I was prescribed a mono-diet of fresh apricots which was a seasonal fruit in July. I was allowed to eat as many apricots as I could every two hours but without overeating. In between meals, I was asked to drink water. This I did for three days when another seasonal fruit was added to my diet for further three days. Then green salad, sprouted and steamed grains/cereals and conservatively cooked home foods were added progressively. I was to eat 6-7 small meals a day rather than the usual three large meals of breakfast, lunch and dinner.
After following Goindis food therapy for six weeks, my blood cholesterol level was in a healthy range at 4.5 mmol/L, my weight came down to 60 kilogram from 67.5, and there was some relief of pain for my arthritic left knee also.
I am still following the basic principles of Naturo-Food Therapy religiously. To my utter surprise my skin pigment lost due to vitiligo started to come back after 15 months on my hand fingers and is gradually increasing. After about 4-5 years new hair growth started in the bald patch on my head and my nails on the right foot, affected by fungus since adolescence, are healing rather slowly. Some black hairs have also appeared in my beard and eyebrows.
Establishment of Goindis Naturopathy Trust
Thus, when I myself experienced these miraculous benefits to my health, there was no doubt whatsoever left in my mind about the efficacy of Goindis Naturo-Food Therapy in curing all ailments holistically. As I was going to retire from my professional career as Architect/Planner in December 2004, I (as Chairperson) along with like minded co-Trustees established a charitable “Goindis Sialkot Gandhi Naturopathy Trust” (Registration No. 845/4) on 03-09-2003. By amendment to the Trust Deed, the name of the Trust was changed to “Goindis Naturopathy Trust” on 14-05-2004.
Trust’s Mission : Our Trust’s mission is to carry forward the Naturo-Food Therapy concept of healing all kinds of lifestyle human ailments holistically through natural and home-made food preparations which are nutritious, palatable, easily digested and at the same time bringing out their medicinal attributes. As you know, You are what you eat and one should mostly eat to live and not live to eat. We will also endeavour to change the food habits of children, young and senior citizens, who are rapidly being “Westernised” and “Americanised”. We cannot remain healthy by eating junk foods and beverages rich in fats/oils, salt, sugar and a host of harmful chemical additives/preservatives.
Objectives of the Trust
1. The establishment of Naturo-Food Therapy Ashram/s with boarding/lodging facilities and other related Institutions for all sections of humanity , globally, without any discrimination on grounds of race, religion, cast, creed or sex;
2. The Research and Development of alternative health-giving nutritional foods/beverages based on the principle of Natural Dietetics;
3. The commissioning of Research/Clinical Projects in association with Medical/Hospital/ University establishments to evaluate the effectiveness of healing specific ailments through Naturo-Food Therapy;
4. Propagation of Naturo-Food Therapy practices through holding of conferences, seminars, lectures, exhibitions and camps; and
5. The dissemination of information on Nuturo-Food Therapy and alternative healthy foods and beverages through dedicated web-sites (www.foodtherapy.org and www.naturofood therapy.org), the establishment of a Library, publication of books, periodicals, brochures/pamphlets and by the involvement of the media.
A sister Holistic Naturo-Food Therapy Trust was also established in the U.K. on 29.02.2004 but due to manpower resources this was wound up after a couple of years and its Trust Fund money was transferred to the Goindis Naturopathy Trust in India.
Inauguration of Temporary Ashram
The Trust’s temporary Ashram(now closed) in sector 65 at Mohali was innaugrated on 13-01-2004. A press conference was held on this occasion to highlight the work of the Trust in the field of Naturo-Food Therapy. Various natural food preparations by the Goindis were displayed and were offered for tasting to the media persons who were very impressed with the quality of the healthy foods and drinks.
Goindis Visit to the U.K.
On the invitation of the U.K. Trust, Goindis went to the U.K. on 23.06.2004 and stayed there for over two months. During their stay in the U.K., they visited a number of towns and cities delivering lectures, attending seminars, giving radio talks on the benefits of Naturo-Food Therapy. They were also consulted by 53 patients suffering from various ailments. Those who followed the dietary advice saw a marked improvement in their health.
A few press reports about the Inauguration of the Trust, Goindis visit to the U.K. and more recent ones are included in the “Media” section.
Since the establishment of the Trust in 2003, whole of my spare time is devoted in promoting and propagating the concept and benefits of Naturo-Food Therapy for preventing and curing all kinds of human ailments without the aid of any allopathic medicine.
I have, after extensive research, written many books/leaflets with emphasis on Naturo-Food Therapy on lifestyle and other “Ailments”, “Human Body Functions” and many more are in the pipeline. I have also prepared “Diet Guidelines” and information on the benefits of “Natural Foods” such as sprouts, wheat grass etc. All this has been included in the website for the benefit of the society in the respective sections and more information will be added in due course.
By the end of 2008, I had gained sufficient experience and confidence in the field of Naturo-Food Therapy and have successfully treated many patients suffering from various lifestyle and other ailments. See “Patient Histories” and “Testimonials” sections.
I have spent considerable amount of time and effort in the creation and launching this website and my efforts will continue to improve and expand the website.
Santokh Singh Parmar
Naturo-Food Therapist & Lifestyle Consultant
Address: #76, sector 63, Mohali,Punjab,India-160062
Mobile: +91(0) 9815922330
Websites: www.naturofoodtherapy.org & www.foodtherapy.org
January, 2014