FINE, ROBUST LOT

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 16, 31 October 1935, Page 6

FINE, ROBUST LOT

CHILDREN IN ASHBURTON. HEALTH ON THE WHOLE IS GOOD CARE NEEDED IN SOME CASES. INTERVIEW WITH HEALTH OFFICER. “AshbuHon children on the whole, are a find, robust lot,” Dr. E. BakeMcLaglan (health officer, Christchurch) told a “Guardian” reporter in an -n----terview to-day on the subject of the health of school children in this district. “However, there are in Ashburton, as in every other community, a number of children who are not as big, as heavy or as rudely robust as wo should like to see them,” she said. “A normal, healthy, happy child has a good clear skin, firm muscles, an erect posture, a light elastic step, a fearless direct gaze, and height and weight approximately up to the normal (or staridard) for the age. It has a good appetite and digestion, sleeps soundly and sufficiently, is cheerful and interested in all sorts of tilings and people, is good-tendered and not nervous or irritable. This is the bind of health we would like all our chilcren to exhibit, but if one visualises the children one knows it will be evident that there are a number in every walk of life who fall short of this standard in many ways. Many Contributing Factors. “There are many factors which cause an unsatisfactory state—over-feeding, and improper feeding will bring it about as well as under-feeding. Insufficient sleep or lack of peace and harmony in the home is a more potent cause than is usually realised. For instance, in a small house with a wireless blaring from early morning till the last station closes in New Zealand riviien the set is probably tuned in to Australia or even Europe) good sleep or vest is impossible. Slumber is bound to be fitful and the nervous system continually oyer stimulated. As another instance, the unhappiness of a home where a father drinks is often quite as vital a factor preventing his children from thriving as is the smaller quantity of food his reduced wages buys for them. The pampered and spoilt child of rich parents may suffer physically as -well as in character.”

A child who is not thriving well presents a pinched, strained or anxious the doctor continued. Its colour is poor, either too pale and too sallow, muscles are flabby and wanting in tone, and it is either listless o-r over-active and restless. It is often very irritable and finally is usually underweight in proportion to its Ueigh.t. It may also be under-weight for its age. This height and weight for age, and especially the weight for height, is one of the most important items. “When it is considerably under the standard of weight for its height, say 10 per cent or even 7 per cent, we would say it was suffering from malnutrition, by which term we mean simply that a child is well under the standard weight for its height, not necessarily that it is not getting enough food,” stated Dr. McLaglan.

For Uhder-weight Children. Following .are some hints for parents of underweight children: (1) May require treatment for some defect, such as badly-decayed teeth, septic tonsils, discharging ears, appendicitis. (2) May not get enough sleep. Take a mid-day rest if possible and yo to bed early. (3) May not bo getting enough fresh air and sunlight. Bleep outside and play outside. 4. May be over-active, overtired, fidgety or excitable. Do not overdo play, relax and do not fret over lessons. , ~, . . , 5. May not be getting the right kind of food. Should have plenty of milk, cream, butter and eggs. 6. May not be getting enough food. May have a poor appetite, may not be digesting food or not absorbing it. Should force itself to eat is the appetite is poor. Three glasses of miK daily between meals has transformed many a child. “A sensible mother, who knows her

child is under weight for. height, can generally by following this advice, gradually get- its weight up to standard,” the doctor went on. “Yet it is curious how few do. They will not use their brains or else they cannot make their children follow rules. The children rest to-day and exhaust themselves to-morrow and their life is not properly conducted. Mal-nutrition in all Classes. “Country children on the whole show less mal-nutrition and kindred defects than do town children and, though mal-nutrition is found in all classes, it is certainly more common in the poorer city schools. However, malnutrition can occur in the best families,

because it is a matter of right foods and not of quantity. The exact ratio has been worked out for very few schools, so that I cannot give comparisons of actual figures between Ashburton -ai/d, say, Christchurch, but there are certainly a number of children here who would benefit by health camp treatment. I find that the majority of children suffering from malnutrition do passably, at best, and often go down hill unless some drastic change is made in their environment such as is obtained in a health camp.” Dr. McLaglan said that camps for children may be divided into two types, holiday camps and health camps. While it is impossible for a properly run holiday camp not to be to some extent a health camp too, health camps are really different. There is a less strenuous regime and there may be definite curative measures, such as properlyconducted sun-bathing, mid-day rests and so on. No child should be received in a health camp with any obvious remedial defect, such as enlarged tonsils, until after the defect has been treated. Residence in a health camp should be for at least three weeks and six weeks if possible. Residence in a holiday camp may be but for one week.

At health . camps everything is very simple. The routine arranges. for plenty of sunlight and fresh air, regular, good but plain meals, and a cheerful round of work and play. “It works wonders,” concluded the doctor.