"Knits Up The Ravelled Sleeve"

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 208, 3 September 1938, Page 5 (Supplement)

"Knits Up The Ravelled Sleeve"

Health And Beauty

DEAR old Mother Nature, the greatest of beauty specialists, has preached for years the doctrine of sleep as Nature's first aid to beauty. While we have followed her teachings and slept—more or leas —it has meant nothing to us. We have been taught from our childhood that our bodies needed sleep. Therefore, we sleep, but it is generally, more than Nature requires—or less. We grow lazy, or over ambitious, or we may perhaps try to sleep on » schedule that failed to meet our individual needs. Six hours' sleep may be all that Nature demands from one person, while from another she will exact seven or eight in each twentyfour. Each individual must, therefore, find out exactly his or her own bodily needs in the matter of sleep and adhere to Nature's personal demands. Sleep, that potent medium that rebuilds and revivifies the body, and keeps it in the pink of condition, is closely associated with its two powerful allies — exercise and proper diet. Rest is a handmaiden of the three combined, and comes willingly at our beck and call when all three have beep well regulated. Worry and care, unless cast off, cause fitful slumbers, which in turn leaves the face lined with the wrinkles and furrows that leave no doubt as to their parentage. The lack of sleep, in its proper proportion to the needs of the body, undermines the entire constitution, while an over-abundance of sleep leaves the brain dull and the face heavy and stupid. The right amount of sleep, and that amount to be determined by each indi-

vidual, leaves the face with an expression of animation and the eyes clear and y» sparkling. It builds up the. strength and K< > prepares the waste of the body in a ™ manner that cannot be obtained in any other way. Night is the best time for sleep, as everyone knows, and the sleep gained before midnight—so called * bea.uty sleep—is worth twice the time after midnight, for it is the early hours that yield the sound sleep of exhaustion. Day slumber is apt to be fitful and uneasy, but the rest and relaxation gained by stretching out for an hour on lied or couch will prove of great benefit to tired nerves, and as rest is so closely associated with sleep its further benefits speak for themselves. Sleep induced by the use of drugs is of doubtful value. While there are cases in which drugs are given to produce sleep it is seldom that the average person need resort to this strategic move. The effect of the drug is only transient in its benefit, and will eventually leave a physical wreck to mark its use. Proper exercise and deep breathing will ensure a more healthful sleep, and one from which the benefits will be more lasting. A brief walk of half an hour just before retiring, followed by a brisk rub down with a coarse towel, will often induce sleep. Mentally repeating the alphabet backwards or counting the tickings of a clock has been known in many cases to produce the desired result. Frequently it is lack of ventilation, too few or too many clothes or covers, or the arrangement of pillows, that is responsible for the prevention of sleep. Ventilation is in greater favour with the present generation than with our ancestors, and one wonders how sleep could ever be induced with the air shut from the bedrooms in which they slept.

A Specialist

If you would have healthy and restful sleep, open wide every available window in your bedroom and breathe the pure oxygen with which Nature intends you to fill your lungs. The body and head should be nearly upon a level when sleeping, and it is best to use no pillow at all. However, if one must a pillow, it should be a fiat one, and only one. When the head is too high the spine is twisted and the muscles of the neck are strained. Sagging face muscles and double chins are caused by the high pillow, for they allow the muscles to relax and throws the head forward so that the flesh under the chin lies in folds. There is a diversity of opinion as to the proper position for sleeping. Some say that lying upon the back is more helpful. Lying upon the right side also has its adherents, and is considered more healthful than the left side, since lying upon the left side of the body is apt to cause pressure upon the heart, and impede its action. The circulation of the blood is best when the limbs are straight, and this position is supposed to be conducive to better physical development. Never sleep in a half sitting position, for if you wish for restful slumber, the body must be nearly, if not absolutely level. If the habit of piling pillows

under the head has become a set one, try gradually reducing their size until you have brought the body to a more natural and helpful position. Retiring soon after a heavy meal will cause anything but refreshing slumber, for the stomach needs several hours to complete the heaviest part of its digestive work, and is in no condition for complete repose until this work is done. If you would be beautiful, you must sleep well, and you must sleep the full amount of time that your body demands. Nothing will ao brighten the eyes, clear the brain and bring rosy cheeks, ambition and health, as complete repose, and complete repose means healthful sleep. Sleeping conditions should be of the best. A lumpy mattress or a closed room do not tend to delude the body into believing that it is receiving its just due, and Mother Nature dislikes deception and forbids disobedience of her laws. Fill your sleeping apartment with those things necessary to its comfort and attractiveness, but avoid over- | crowding it with germ and dust collectors. Remember that sleep is as much a necessity as a luxury, and should be granted under conditions as ideal aa it lies in your power to make them. Arrange your bed in such a position that it receives plenty of air from the open windows, but in a position that the morning sun does not strike across your face. Keep the clothing well aired, discarding heavy bed-clothing for a' lighter but better grade blanket. Sleep, if taken intelligently, may therefore serve the two-fold purpose of not only rebuilding Nature's waste, but of also aiding and bringing out woman's natural heritage, beauty.