Helena Frith Powell - The Viva Mayr Diet

‘I quickly realised I wasn’t one of those typical medical students who just read the books and learned by rote. I felt very strongly my place belonged in complementary medicine,’ he tells me, sitting at a table in the afternoon sunshine at the Viva Mayr Clinic on the shores of Lake Wörthersee in Austria – the clinic he has created based upon his philosophy of health and well-being.

‘When I left medical school I had the opportunity to work with Dr Erich Rauch, who had studied under Dr Mayr. Dr Rauch talked about intestinal cleansing as a real health issue. It seemed so perfectly logical to me and I quickly realised how important this message was for everyone.’

I’m not sure I’m ready to talk about intestinal cleansing with someone I hardly know, but apparently it is an issue that is paramount to good health. And a lot of people pay good money to come here to Austria and discuss it in great detail. Are they all slightly weird or should I let my inhibitions go?

Dr Stossier’s clinic is an oasis of calm. Clients lie on sun-loungers watching the boats go by and only need to get up for consultations with Dr Stossier, treatments or meals. It is not the most luxurious or the most expensive clinic in the world, yet while I was there I met several people who could well afford to go anywhere they chose. They have chosen Dr Stossier and his clinic in Austria because they believe that he can change their lives, and for the vast majority of people I met, he has.

I arrived at the Viva Mayr clinic one Thursday afternoon in August, starving hungry. I don’t know what it is about clinics or diet places – or, indeed, just the thought of a diet – that makes me hungry. I can have just eaten Christmas lunch and start thinking about that diet I’m going to begin on New Year’s Day and before I know what’s going on, I find myself grabbing another roast potato to add to the 17 I’ve just eaten.

I shared a taxi from the airport with a lady called Brenda, from London. She had come to lose weight.

‘I just need to stop eating,’ she told me, as we sped through the Austrian countryside.

‘Can’t you do that in London?’ I asked.

‘No, I need to be forced to. I practically need a straitjacket and a cell. This is the only thing that works for me.’

‘Well, if you get desperate, I’ve got some organic shortbread biscuits with me,’ I smiled conspiratorially.

Brenda went pale. ‘Please promise you won’t give me any,’ she pleaded, grabbing my hand.

I promised I wouldn’t. Goody, all the more for me.

It was four o’clock when we arrived, and I was relieved to see from the timetable I was handed that dinner was at six o’clock. Not long to wait before I got some scoff. I said goodbye to my new friend and headed off to explore the place. My room overlooked the lake; it was a balmy afternoon, and there were people sunbathing. In the distance there was someone water-skiing.

The furniture in my room was modern and comfortable. There was a reclining chair that I could see myself becoming very familiar with, as I ploughed through all the books that Dr Stossier had given me to read as background research. I leafed through my welcome pack. Here I found a full of explanation of when and how to take Epsom salts (something about that made me feel rather nervous; aren’t they a substance your grandmother used to punish you with?), something called base powder, and a list of my various consultations. My first one was in half an hour, with the ‘friendly werewolf’ – as Dr Stossier has been called by various journalists because of his prominent molars. I slipped into my bathrobe and flannel slippers in preparation. Such a good look. Still, I was there for a reason, and I was going to embrace it.

The clinic is possibly the cleanest and most pristine place I have ever stayed in. It is on the shores of a beautiful lake in southern Austria. The rooms are all large with balconies, the staff super-smiley and friendly. Dr Stossier will not be drawn on the famous people who go there, but I get the impression from him and his wife, who also works there, that there are many.

‘We have to respect their privacy,’ he says. His wife is responsible for some of the treatments offered there, such as personality tests based on colours, and stomach massages. She is one of the warmest, most welcoming people you could ever hope to meet; she positively radiates good health and happiness.

I had first met Dr Stossier in London, at a meeting to discuss writing this book. The publisher had chosen me for the job because I have written two books in a similar vein – that is, with a mission to appeal predominantly to women. One was called Two Lipsticks and a Lover , which is all about how to get in touch with your inner Frenchwoman, and the other, To Hell in High Heels , is all about how not to age – from which staying thin, healthy, young and gorgeous is, of course, a natural progression. I also write a lot about beauty, health, women and diets in international magazines and newspapers, so I am a seasoned expert when it comes to knowing what works and what doesn’t.

Dr Stossier and I bonded immediately in the canteen at HarperCollins HQ in London, where we discussed the central theme of the book. For years I have been convinced about the profound link between digestion and just about everything else – from how well we feel to how good our skin looks. I have suffered from digestive problems since I was a little girl, and have never really managed to cure them. In Dr Stossier and this project, I saw a way of finally understanding the whole process and changing the way I live to become thinner and healthier. I think he was happy to find a writer who was so in tune with the sorts of issues he has been working so hard to convey to people for so many years.

I first arrived at Viva Mayr with an open mind, ready to take everything on board. One of the great perks of my job is that I get to test everything for the reader. When I wrote my book about ageing, I travelled around the world testing anti-ageing techniques. At Viva Mayr, I was ready to test my own personal theory that if I started digesting properly, a whole myriad of problems, such as insomnia and bloating, would vanish. They did, and what was most incredible was the speed at which they vanished. What’s more, I was not alone in being impressed with the results.

One man had been suffering from chronic diabetes for 15 years before he came to the clinic; since his first visit, he has suffered no symptoms at all. A lady I met had tried every weight-loss programme from Atkins to that well-known ‘eat nothing until you are practically hospitalised’ diet. The Viva Mayr method is the only thing that has worked for her. She had planned to stay for two weeks, and went on to book in for another three. In fact, everyone I met under Dr Stossier’s care raved about his method and how good they looked and felt. These were people with a wide range of ailments, including obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure. But, according to the doctor, they all have one thing in common: irritated intestines. Dr Stossier estimates that around 90 per cent of us are wandering around with irritated intestines, which, if left to develop, can result in any number of chronic health conditions and diseases. In fact, he believes that almost every chronic illness we suffer from is related to problems in our intestines.

So how come everyone isn’t hot-footing it over to Austria? Could it be that most people try to avoid thinking about their intestines too much?

‘The reason people don’t believe that diseases are caused by problems in our gut is that they live perfectly happily for, say, 20 years doing the same thing. And then suddenly they are taken ill with, say, diabetes. They assume this is something new but it’s not; it’s a slow process that has been building up for years and years, and which culminates in the disease, even though they seemed healthy before. If you look at a tree, for example, its health and strength does not come from its leaves; these are only a reflection of its health and strength. This comes from its roots, and you can’t see if the roots are sick. Our intestines are our roots; they are not visible, but crucial to our health and strength. If they are weakened, so is the rest of the organism.’