Astrology, Nutrition, and Health ~ Chapter Four ~ by Robert Carl Jansky

Astrology Nutrition & Health

by Robert Carl Jansky

Chapter

Chapter Four

Proteins in the Diet

Topics in this Chapter:

Composition of Proteins

The Amino Acids

Neptune and Your Diet

   In this chapter we shall discuss the basic substance called protein and its vital role in the nutrition of all living things. Protein is the only known substance that is capable of what we understand to be life. The living part of all animals and plants is composed of protein. In the process of living, the protein in animal and plant cells wears out and must be continually replaced if the organism is to stay alive. Plants manufacture protein from amino acids, which in turn are manufactured from the minerals taken in from the soil through their roots. Animals obtain their protein by eating wither plants or other animals. Animals that obtain their protein strictly from plant sources are called herbivores, as for example the cow or the termite. Animals like the lion and the eagle that derive their protein solely from other animals are called carnivores. Those, like man, that derive their protein from both sources are called omnivores.

   Protein is not a single chemical compound; it is the name given to a class of compounds, all of which are composed of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur. A single protein molecule is large in comparison to most other chemical molecules and extremely complex, containing hundreds of atoms of each of the five elements listed above. Only recently, by using highly sophisticated electronic instruments, have scientists begun to unlock the secrets of the protein molecule.

   Because of the complex structure of protein, astrologers have never been able to fully agree as to its sign or planetary rulership. In this chapter I will attempt to establish what I believe to be the astrological rulership of protein. But to do this and to understand more clearly what protein is and why it is essential, we must start at the beginning – how the body constructs its own protein.

Composition of Proteins

   The body constructs protein from very simple building blocks called amino acids. Just as words and sentences are made of letters, the body builds protein from amino acids. Coincidentally, there are twenty-six letters in our alphabet and about twenty-six amino acids. Ten or fifteen more are known, but their functions are not well understood. And just as each group of people constructs its own language, each species constructs its own brand of protein. For example, while beef and pork are both basically protein, they taste different because they are not the same kind of protein. Each animal puts the amino acid building blocks together in a variety of different ways that are characteristic of the species.

   Fundamental to any understanding of nutrition and digestion is an understanding of how each living organism manufacturers its own protein from the amino acids. To begin with, the body gets amino acids from the protein foods we eat. However, we cannot absorb this protein directly, first, because it is insoluble in water, and second, because the combination of the amino acids is foreign to the body’s protein. The protein we eat must first be broken down into its amino acid components (which are water soluble and thus digestible) and then reassembled in the body cells to form proteins that are characteristic of the human species and of our own particular hereditary pattern. No two humans are exactly alike, and our body rejects protein that is foreign to its hereditary pattern. This is why transplanting organs from one body to another is so difficult, except in twins of very similar heredity.

   In the first stages or protein digestion, which occur in the stomach, the protein we eat is broken down into its components by stomach acid and various digestive enzymes like pepsin. The enzymes continue this process in the small intestine. Unlike protein, the amino acids are water soluble and thus can be absorbed into the body through the wall of the small intestine.

   The breaking down of protein into amino acids is a Mars process, since in astro-nutritional theory Mars always symbolizes processes that break down complex compounds into simpler ones. Like all acids, the amino acids are ruled by Mars. The reassembling of these acids into body proteins is a Venus process, since Venus symbolizes the synthesis of simpler substances into those that are more complex. Mars and Venus traditionally represent opposites in astrology.

   Taking this symbolism one step further, Venus and Jupiter are always paired, as are Mars and Saturn. Jupiter symbolizes the end product of Venus processes; Saturn, the end product of Mars processes. Thus, we see why Jupiter rules fat and weight gain, while Saturn rules feces and weight loss. The body stores Jupiter substances and seeks to eliminate Saturn waste products. Carbon dioxide, the waste product of respiration, is Saturn ruled.

   Pluto, which symbolically represents heredity and all processes of replication, ultimately controls the replication of worn-out protein by new protein. It rules the cell’s nucleus, which contains the hereditary material that is the template on which the amino acids are reassembled to form new protein. When something happens to this Plutonian template, the metabolism of the cell goes awry and we have a cancer cell, which accounts for Pluto’s rulership over cancerous growths and tumors.

   Do not infer from this discussion that Saturn processes are all “bad” and Jupiter processes all “good”. It’s about time we eliminated these good and bad tags in astrology. It is good that the body eliminates that which it does not need, and it is bad when we acquire too much Jupiterian fat! Saturn checks the excesses of Jupiter.

   To what planet then shall we assign the rulership of protein, the only chemical substance capable of life? For the answer to this question we have to look at the planetary exaltations. What planet is exalted in the Venus-ruled signs of Taurus and Libra? The Moon is exalted in Taurus, but we already know that the Moon rules all body fluids. Thus, it is Saturn, exalted in Libra, that rules protein. Saturn, together with the Moon, ultimately determines the body’s form and shape, including the skeleton, which is also Saturn ruled. Saturn, then, is exalted in Libra, Venus’ sign, while Mars is exalted in Capricorn, Saturn’s sign. Saturn ties the Venusian and Martian processes together in an order that makes sense.

   The Sun rules the body’s vital heat-forming processes. It’s opposite, the Moon, puts out the fire, in that water dilutes and slows down the heat-forming process, and perspiration cools the body. Jupiter, which is exalted in Cancer, rules fat, which also slows down physical activity and dampens the metabolism of sugar (glucose), which is an essential ingredient in producing energy.

   We cannot understand the process of metabolism and nutrition properly if we hang on to the “good” and “bad connotations given to Jupiter and Saturn by earlier astrologers.

The Amino Acids

   We have learned how the process of digestion breaks down the complex protein molecule into its component amino acids. These are later reassembled in the cells to produce human protein, a process that is similar to stringing a number of colored beads according to a particular sequence.

   All but eight of the amino acids are considered to be nonessential, because the body can synthesize them from other amino acids.. If a nonessential amino acid is missing in the diet, the human body can manufacture it. The remaining eight amino acids are indispensible, because the body cannot synthesize or manufacture them. A deficiency of one or more of these essential amino acids in the diet soon has extremely harmful effects upon the body. Some of these effects are:

           Lowered blood pressure
           Poor digestion and constipation
           Fatigue, lack of endurance
           Bones that fracture more easily
           Excessive water retention in tissues
           Wounds that heal poorly or fail to heal
           Weakened hair and nails
           Lowered resistance to infection
           Anemia
           Loss of muscle tone

   Unless we eat foods or combinations of foods that contain adequate amounts of all the essential proteins, normal bodily functions are impaired. Unfortunately, the foods that have these amino acids are the most expensive. While we get protein from both animal and plant sources, no single plant protein supplies all of these amino acids in sufficient amounts, not even soybeans. Vegetarians and vegans, please take heed!

   Foods that contain proper amounts of the essential amino acids include dairy products like milk and cheese, meat, fish, poultry and eggs. Certain plant proteins, such as those in soybeans, nuts, yeast and wheat germ do contain all of the amino acids, but the quantities of the essential amino acids in an ordinary serving are inadequate to fulfill daily nutritional requirements. However, they are rich in other essentials and have an important place in your diet. Thus, if you choose not to eat meat, be sure that your diet contains plenty of eggs and dairy products. Grain products and legumes (peas and beans) are also sources of plant protein, but they lack one or more of the essential amino acids. Mushrooms are the only plant food that comes close to supplying enough of the essential amino acids.

Neptune and Your Diet

   The average adult male weighing 155 pounds requires about 70 grams of protein per day; the average adult female weighing 125 pounds requires 60 grams (100 grams while nursing a baby). Protein foods also have calories. Many people on a diet, unless they plan carefully, may get less than the minimum daily requirement of protein while cutting back on the calories

   A good, carefully planned diet can accomplish wonders, but an inadequately planned diet, including many of the current fad diets, can be disastrous. Virgo represents nutrition and good diet. Neptune represents our ideal of the slim, trim body, but Neptune also represents deceit – and it is in its detriment in Virgo! Many people who are now in their forties were born with Neptune in Virgo, and this is the age group that is particularly attracted to fad diets, since they are losing their youthful figures and bodies. Don’t let Neptune pull the wool over your eyes and deceive you – now you know better. Oh, you say, my Neptune is in Leo (if you’re in your fifties) or in Libra (if you’re in your thirties or late twenties). Do I have the same problem? When it comes to diet and the proper selection of foods, we all have a problem with Neptune. However, this problem is especially characteristic of the generation with Neptune in Virgo, who are so inclined to excesses of junk food.

   Neptune in general represents chemical substances that are not meant to be part of a normal healthy diet. Neptune symbolizes drugs of all sorts, nicotine, alcohol and many other poisonous substances. These Neptune compounds are both subtle and deceptive in the true astrological manner, for most of them simulate natural substances that the body needs.

   A few common examples illustrate this point beautifully. Caffeine in coffee simulates adrenalin in its effect upon the body – it simulates the release of glucose and speeds up the metabolic rate. Alcohol simulates glucose, and it is now believed that the body actually prefers alcohol to glucose in the basic process of oxidation, for alcohol too will produce energy and calories. A simple drug like aspirin turns off pain, but pain is a symptom, a warning, that something is wrong in that area of the body. When you turn off the pain with aspirin, you are lulled into a false sense of security that whatever was wrong has gone away. Food additives “trick” us into seeing our food in other than its natural state. Artificial sweeteners trick our taste buds into thinking something is sweet, when of course it is not and may well contain no sugar at all.

   The golden rule of the nutritional astrologer should be:

”Beware of Neptune and all the foods and substances that it rules.”

   Most of these substances are harmful to the body in some way. Poisons, ruled by Pluto and Neptune, are substances that interfere with and often destroy some essential bodily process. Plutonian poisons and their sources are easily recognized, like venomous snakes and lizards, scorpions or poisonous mushrooms. Neptunian poisons are subtle and not easily recognized.

   The most insidious poisons of all, however, are those that interfere with protein metabolism, such as plant alkaloids (heroin, cocaine) and heavy metals (lead). Neptune is in its fall in Capricorn, ruled by Saturn, which also represents protein. No one now living has Neptune in Capricorn in their chart, but planets in Capricorn aspecting Neptune sometimes have this effect. And in the 1980s, Neptune will again be in Capricorn. Those who now saturate their diets with Neptunian substances may reap the reward of this body abuse at that time.

   However, Neptune is in its exaltation in Cancer, which is ruled by the Moon, the natural astrological antidote for Neptune illnesses and problems. This is because the Moon rules water – pure, simple water, which dilutes and washes away many poisonous substances. Urine is nothing more than a complex solution of substances that would in time poison the body if they were not regularly eliminated. Urea, the principle component of urine, is the end product of protein metabolism, the form in which used-up protein is eliminated from the body. Urea is probably rules by Saturn, but urine is ruled by Pluto and Scorpio (the eliminative function). Urine also eliminates excess salt and sugars when their concentration in the body rises above healthy levels. Normally the urine contains salt and trace amounts of sugar. Noted nutritionists, including Carlton Fredericks, claim that sugars and excessive salt in the diet constitute the greatest threat to life and longevity in the United States. The fact that the body recognizes excess amounts of these substances as poisons (Pluto rules the urine and its contents) lends astrological credence to Fredericks’ theory.

   To sum up, protein, ruled by Saturn, is the only chemical substance we know of that is capable of life. Its building blocks are amino acids, ruled by Mars. Adequate amounts of the eight essential amino acids are a must every day as part of a nutritionally sound diet. Neptune-ruled substances, on the other hand, should be eliminated as much as possible from the body and diet. Since it is almost impossible to completely eliminate these substances, pure water should be included in the diet in sufficient quantity to dilute and wash them out of the body in the urine. Today, the only pure water is distilled water, because pollution has affected all water sources, even high mountain springs.