[6] I said: “Oh, leave that all be! We are now resting very well at this table and on these benches now even equipped with good backs. I will even tell you as in a physical and medical respect
that people could prolong their earthly life span by a good third if they used good couches and easy-chairs like the ones you see here, instead of lying flat in their beds, for the blood circulation
varies too much between day and night when a person lies flat. This variation invites already at an early age all kinds of obstructions and changes in the alimentary canal. However, if people slept on chairs, they would remain well for many years.
[7] Abraham, Isaac and Jacob slept only in certain arm chairs and resting chairs and never used any beds; they were very moderate in everything and lived to a ripe old age, retaining the full vigor of the soul. Yet in later times, when people no longer observed these rules, their life span was reduced by more than half.
[8] Those who suffer most from the harmful effect of lying flat are the pregnant women. Firstly, the infants become stunted and weakened already in the womb; secondly, the difficult and often very malformed births are due to the flat position at night. – Let Me tell you this for your physical health! Whoever will turn towards it will feel the physical good consequences of it.
[9] Besides, in summertime you shall sleep outdoors whenever possible rather than in the rooms and stuffy huts, and you will soon feel the good consequences. Only in wintertime can you use the moderately warm, yet always clean and dry rooms. Therefore, he who lives according to the original order and is moderate in food and drink will have little to bother with physicians and pharmacies.” (GGJ Book 12, chap. 91)