HEALTH HINTS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXV, Issue 199, 20 August 1904, Page 10

HEALTH HINTS.

MODERN FADS. To get all sorts of health fads on the brain is a disease in itself. It is a very prevalent disease, too, remarks a medical man. With a few foolish rules to observe, a whole lot of hygienic quirks to adjust to and a schedule of superstitious sanitary notions- diligently followed by day and dreamed of by night is a malady which begins as a mental derangement and ends in a complete physical fizzle. No room left for a spontaneous life, no place for free, joyous liberty. Not a j minute's space for rollicking disregard. Everything fixed, every minute disposed | of, introspections without number. Fore- j bodings, misgivings, hovering vaguely about the mind like flocks of carrion crows. Such a life is not worth living. One might a thousand times better go back to the reckless regime of a rough rider. THE PROLONGATION OF LIFE. The advice of Weber for the prolongation of life is summed up in moderation in eating, drinking, and physical indulgence, securing of pure air out of doors, and in keeping every organ of the body as near as possible in constant working order, daily regular exercise in all weathers, supplemented in many cases by breathing exercises, climbing, and walking tours, early going to bed and rising, and restricting of sleep to six or seven hours, daily baths according to individual conditions, cold or warm, or warm followed by cold, regular work and mental occupations, cheerfulness, employment of the g-reat power of the mind in controlling passions and nervous fears, and strengthening the will in carrying out whatever is useful, and checking the craving for stimulants, alcoholics, and other injurious agencies.—"American Medicine." TO GET A GOOD COMPLEXION. There ls really no excuse for the girl who goes around with her skin making open confession that she is a rebel against the laws of health. There are many forms of skin disease, of course, that are beyond the control of those suffering from them. Some of these are exceedingly obscure as to their origin, and obstinately resistant to treatment; and all such cases should be under the care of competent dermatologists. We have only reference in this article to those muddy, pimply, uncaredfor skins too often shown by girls who should be in the very bloom of youth and freshness, but who, through ignorance, and far too often through uncleanllness or laziness or greediness, start and maintain, sometimes through years, * condition of skin that would disgrace an Eskimo. There is one great prescription, and one only, for a clear, bright complexion, and that is—first, last, and always — bodily cleanliness, both external and internal. Now, cleanliness of the skin is by no means attained by mere surface rubbing and scrubbing, although a certain amount of this is necessary, and many a proud, fastidious, and otherwise dainty young woman needs to be told to wash her face properly. But she needs to be told more than this. The organs of this wonderful body of ours are curiously loyal to each other. If one organ is unable to perform all the work which is put upon it, for instance, the others faithfully turn in and labour to do its share as well as their own. This is a beneficent provision for the tiding over of temporary difficulties; but it was never intended in the scheme of things to become a permanent arrangement. When it has lasted long enough, the organ or organs doing extra work begin to show signs of distress. Nature is just, as well as kind, and always takes the toll. When the skin is put to it to perform part of the work that should be done by the liver, the kidneys, or other or-g-ans, it must soon throw out its signals of distress in the form of sallowness, roughness, and pimples. A younsr woman ashamed of her complexion should try the effect of drinking more water and eating less candy, giving her digestive organs a bath and a rest. Let her then treat the face to an occasional thorough washing in soft water, using one of the good, mild soaps, of ■which there are now so many offered. Let her also breathe plenty of fresh air, and then watch the speedy improvement that will come. On the other hand, errors of diet, neglected bowels, insufficient bathing, and an unventilated bedroom would dim the complexion of a dryad in a week.