Paul Chappuis Bragg (February 6, 1895 – December 7, 1976) was an American alternative health food advocate and physical fitness enthusiast. Bragg's mentor was Bernarr Macfadden. He wrote on subjects such as nutritional detoxification, dieting, fasting, longevity, orthopathy and physical culture. Medical experts criticized Bragg as a food faddist and promoter of quackery.Cramp, Arthur J. (1936). Nostrums and Quackery and Pseudo-Medicine, Volume 3. Press of American Medical Association. pp. 145-147
Early life
Bragg claimed to have been born in 1881 in either Fairfax County, Virginia or Pinkle, Virginia,Dr. Paul Bragg, 94, Turns the Actuarial Tables: 'I Have An Ageless, Tireless, Painless Body' People Magazine, November 8, 1975 but genealogical research indicates he was born on February 6, 1895, in Batesville, Indiana, where his father was editor, publisher, and printer of the "Batesville Democratic Herald" newspaper.
Bragg grew up in Washington, D.C., with his parents, Robert Elton Bragg (1866–1944), who had procured a U.S. Civil Service position there,Batesville Tribune, November 28, 1895 and Caroline (Chappuis) Bragg (1859–1934). He had two brothers, James Elton Bragg and John Harrison Bragg. His father was employed by the U.S. Printing Office."Robert E. Bragg, 77, retired government printer,...died Monday at his home....Surviving are his wife, Mrs. Tyler Bragg, Miami, three sons, James of New York, Paul and John, both of Burbank, Calif.;...." Robert E. Bragg obituary, Miami Herald, February 15, 1944. However, in the 1972 Edition of the Bragg Apple Cider Vinegar System booklet, at page 12, and in later editions, Bragg claimed both that his father was "a splendid farmer" and that "I am the oldest of 16 children".
There is no evidence of a sister named "Louise" that Bragg claimed to have tutored to good health in his "Miracle of Fasting" publications, Paul Bragg and his two brothers did have a half brother named "Rufus Albert Chappuis" (1880–1948), from an earlier marriage of their mother, Caroline.Caroline J. Bragg obituary, Los Angeles Times, January 13, 1934, page 6; Rufus Chappuis obituary; Lancaster-Eagle Gazette, Lancaster, Ohio, September 2, 1948.
At age 16, it is alleged that Bragg had tuberculosis which was cured at Auguste Rollier's sun sanatorium.Shurtleff, William; Aoyagi, Akiko. (2022). History of Vegetarianism and Veganism Worldwide (1970-2022): Extensively Annotated Bibliography and Sourcebook. Soyinfo Center. p. 53.
Career
At some point, Bragg enlisted with the Washington, D.C., National Guard for "three Years", as is shown on his 1917 Draft Registration, which he filed with the Indianapolis, Indiana draft board that year.
Although Bragg had claimed participation in both the 1908 (London) and 1912 (Stockholm) Olympics as a member of the United States wrestling team, the "Encyclopedia of American Wrestling" (Pub. 1988, Mike Chapman, author) does not show any such person as a member in either year.
In 1915 Bragg married Neva Cecelia Parnin (1897–1988) at the Chapel of St. Barnabas in New York City.Washington Post November 22, 1915 They moved to Indianapolis, where Bragg became an agent with The Metropolitan Life Insurance Company.
Several years later, Bragg returned to the East Coast and was employed by various YMCAs and school districts in physical or athletic director capacities, his last known position before moving to California being football coach for the 1920 season at Connersville High School, Connersville, Pennsylvania."New Physical Instructor, Paul Bragg, Will Be Coach Of C.H.S. Eleven", The Connersville Daily Courier, July 31, 1920.
In 1921 Bragg and his family, now also including two young daughters, Neva Pauline/Polly and Lorraine Agnes Bragg (both born in Washington, D.C., on October 14, 1917, and March 10, 1919, respectively), came to California, where Paul was again employed by the YMCA.Los Angeles Times, September 28, 1921. Son, Robert Elton, was born in Los Angeles County on March 25, 1922. It is unknown how long Bragg stayed with the Los Angeles YMCA, but in 1922 he was in charge of the Physical Education Department at San Luis Obispo High School,San Luis Obispo Daily Telegraph, September 15, 1922 and in 1924 he was a physical education teacher at Redondo Union High School, Redondo Beach, California."Calling All Grads of Class of 1924", Van Nuys Valley News, March 31, 1974.
Around 1926, Paul Bragg became an entrepreneur in the health field, first by opening an establishment on N. 7th Street, Los Angeles, called "Health Center of Los Angeles" and then, in 1928, "Bragg Health Center" on South Hill Street, Los Angeles. To publicize these businesses, he wrote a weekly health column (in the early days they were "advertorials") in The Los Angeles Times from 1926 to 1928 which he sometimes called "Newslets" and other times "Health Notes". The health services that business endeavors offered are described in the advertorials and columns.
1929 was the beginning of Paul Bragg's health lecture tours where he went to various American cities (San Antonio & Dallas, Texas in 1929; San Francisco & Oakland, California and Denver, Colorado in 1930), rented a facility, advertised heavily, then gave a series of lectures—usually over a period of five or six consecutive evenings. His lectures were free, but he did charge a fee for post-lecture private consultation. ($20 circa 1935—approximately $343 in 2015 dollars per CPI calculation—according to testimony in a Maryland court case against him).
1929 was also the copyright year of the first health book attributed to Bragg as author, Cure Yourself. Since book stores or book departments in retail stores in that era were usually only accessible in the more highly populated areas, another purpose of Bragg's lecture tours was most likely to promote and sell his books.
In 1930, Bragg was sued in Federal Court/San Francisco by St. Louis Estes, a Los Angeles-area raw food health lecturer/manufacturer, charging copyright infringement, stating "A 1929 publication of Bragg is a rearrangement of material in an earlier book on raw food written by Estes.""Raw Food Advocate Sues On Copyright", San Francisco Chronicle October 24, 1930. The outcome of this lawsuit is unknown.
Bragg gave health lectures at churches. In 1934, Betty Thompson an 18-year-old church musician testified in Superior Court that Bragg attacked her in April, 1932. She sued Bragg for damages of $100,000.Anonymous. (January 23, 1934). Girls Asks $100,000: Attacked, Alleged. Bakersfield Californian. p. 7
Later life In September 1928, Paul and Neva Bragg divorced,Los Angeles Times, September 26, 1928, p. 24 and in the 1930 U.S. Census, Neva and her new husband, August Busch, were shown living with the three Bragg children in Los Angeles, California.
Bragg married Gertrude Elizabeth Brownlee (born July 6, 1902, Eau Claire, Wisconsin) on February 17, 1930, in Clearwater, Florida. Brownlee was an Advance Manager for the Bragg lectures. On their Florida marriage license application, Bragg stated his age as 49, his residence as Hollywood, California, and his birthplace as Pinkle, Virginia. Paul Bragg and Gertrude Elizabeth Brownlee Bragg were divorced in January 1932 in Los Angeles County, California.Los Angeles Times January 12, 1932 Paul Bragg never remarried.
Burbank, California city directories of the time reflect his residence in that city from 1935 to 1954, and that his food manufacturing company, Live Food Products, Inc., later Bragg Live Foods, Inc., was also located there during that period. Subsequently, he relocated to Desert Hot Springs, California, and later in the 1960s, at least part-time, to Hawaii.
Bragg was the inspiration and personal health and fitness adviser to several Olympic athletes: Murray Rose, Betty Cuthbert of Australia, his relative Don Bragg (pole-vaulter), and others. Jack LaLanne, the original "TV Fitness King", said that "Bragg saved my life at age 15 when I attended the Bragg Crusade in Oakland, California".Bragg Live Foods About Paul
Education claims
Although Bragg claimed advanced scientific degrees in newspaper and magazine interviews—including his 1975 People article—there is no documentation. The 1940 Federal Census showed him living on National Avenue in Burbank, California, gives his age as "45" and the highest attained academic grade for him as "H1", which would be only one year of high school. On October 8, 1914, Washington, D.C.'s Evening Star newspaper reported that Paul C. Bragg was appointed to the student staff of The Balance Sheet, a newly planned newspaper of that city's "Business High School", as its "Athletic Editor". Currently, no books authored by Bragg refer to any specific educational accomplishments, but a 1977 publication he co-authored with Patricia Bragg, titled The Shocking Truth about Water, appends the titles of N.D. and Ph.D. behind his name, although in earlier booklets he published under only his name prior to his death, such as "Bragg Apple Cider Vinegar System" (Thirteenth Printing 1972) and "Building Powerful Nerve Force..." (Fifth Printing 1973), he uses the titles "N.D." and "Ph.T", not "Ph.D" as editions printed after his death indicate.
Business
Patricia Bragg, Bragg's former daughter-in-law, according to official records, has since taken over Bragg's health empire, having previously married (and later divorced) Bragg's son, Robert Elton Bragg.Public Records, L. A. County Case No. D490122 She has stated that she was legally adopted by Paul. The company they started and ran, Bragg Live Food Products, Inc. was sold to an investment group in 2019, and Patricia Bragg is apparently no longer associated with the company, but the new ownership continues to sell the products it is known for, like liquid aminos and apple cider vinegar.
Health beliefs Bragg advocated using deep breathing, fasting, organic foods, drinking distilled water, juicing, exercise, listening to one's body, and many other techniques as methods of prolonging lifespan. Bragg was not a vegetarian. His diet included fresh fish, lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and raw milk.
Medical experts criticized Bragg as a food faddist and promoter of quackery.Green, Marilyn L; Harry, Joann. (1987). Nutrition in Contemporary Nursing Practice. Wiley. p. 212. "Food faddists in the United States before 1930 were Sylvester Graham, Horace Fletcher, and Bernarr Macfadden. More recent faddists include Adelle Davis, Paul Bragg, and J. I. Rodale."Anonymous. (1931). Professor Paul C. Bragg, A Food Faddist and Sexual Rejuvenator Debarred from the Mails. Journal of the American Medical Association 96: 288-289.Anonymous. (1947). Paul Bragg's Health Cookbook. Hygeia 26 (1-6): 376.
In 1931, the Bureau of Investigation of the American Medical Association (AMA) issued an article on Bragg which stated that he was a "food faddist and sexual rejuvenator debarred from the mails." Arthur J. Cramp of the AMA dismissed Bragg as a "charlatan". Bragg held pseudoscientific views about dieting and disease. He stated that tonsillitis is the result of people eating "mucus forming foods", cancer is caused by "gooey, slimy foods" and that colds are caused by the consumption of white bread or ice cream. Bragg firmly opposed the use of white bread and white flour and sold a substitute for each.
Bragg was criticized for his involvement in "mail-order quackery". He advertised a patent medicine called "Glantex" which he said could make people feel twenty years younger. In December, 1930 after a hearing the Postmaster General issued a fraud order against Bragg and his health center. He got around this by advertising himself as "Paul Chappuis".