Healing the Body through the Mind

Abstract

Even though Jorge Vergara’s business approach fits neatly in the lineage of New Thought-inspired direct sales companies, his idiosyncrasies distinguish him as an original thinker. On a trip to Mexico City shortly after meeting Luisa, I mentioned to friends that I had begun studying a curious company in Morelia. One of my friends, a reporter for Newsweek, was familiar with Omnilife from an interview he had conducted with Vergara (Zarembo 2001). What he remembered most from the encounter was that Vergara refused to wear socks. When I returned to Morelia and saw Luisa again, I asked her about this quirk. She laughed and admitted it was true. She thumbed through a stack of company magazines to find a photograph of the sockless leader. She explained that because the foot is one of the body’s thermostats, Vergara believes that covering it leads to sickness. According to Vergara, most illness result from exposure to man-made toxins or poor self-care, which inhibit the natural smooth functioning of the human organism. Luckily, because we inflict the damage ourselves, we can also undo the harmful effects. Luisa added that, following Vergara’s example, she never wears socks, closed toe shoes, or panty hose. Of course, by this logic, it would be wrong to wear shoes, too, but if Vergara advocated going barefoot it would provoke a whole new set of health problems.