Dr. Forrest C. Shaklee DC
August 22, 2008
Chiropractor Dr. Forrest Shaklee founded the company that bears his name in Oakland in 1956 at age 61. He traveled throughout California with his two sons in a Plymouth station wagon, selling his products. Two decades later, Shaklee saw his business become a Fortune 500 company.
During his life, he played golf with Thomas Edison, met Harvey Firestone (of the tire company) and Henry Ford, was friends with Williams Jennings Bryan and flew with Charles Lindbergh in a plane called Spirit of Unrest. He also corresponded with Casimir Funk, the Pole who coined the term "vitamin" in 1912 (three years before Shaklee introduced vitalized minerals called Vita-Lea) and created headlines in 1919 as one of the first doctors in Iowa to make house calls by airplane (a two-passenger Curtis).
Shaklee had his own radio show on which he often spoke about conservation. He designed a forerunner of the modern recreational vehicle, which he called a "touring home." He cultivated "Dr. Shaklee's experimental garden" on the roof of his office building, consisting of organic vegetables and greenery grown in sea sand. The sand was fertilized with his vitalized minerals.
The good doctor recommended a diet of whole wheat bread, vegetables, fish, white meat of chicken, no sugar and no fats. Egg yolks were restricted, while egg whites were permissible.
Source: "When nature speaks: The life of Forrest C. Shaklee, Sr.”
