ARTIFICIAL SUNLIGHT

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 22, 26 January 1929, Page 18

ARTIFICIAL SUNLIGHT

TO PREVENT ILLNESS

Mr. H. Ewaft Mitchell, actino-the.ra-pist at the Mauldeth Hospital, Manchester, recently gave an'address, with demonstrations, on, ";Artificial Sunlight and its Future" to;members 'of the National Union of Trade Union Approved Societies, reports the "Manchester Guardian.''' .

Mr. Mitchf 11 warned his hearers against some of the extravagant claims that had been made, for artificial sunlight. It jivas not the most wonderful thing in the world, neither would it cure all the ills that flesh was heir to. In the treatment of rickets it had been a great success, and moro than useful in cases -of tuberculosis; Its greatest use in. tlie future Jay 'in the preventive stages of illnesses. Time would show that ultra-violet rays -would secure its greatest success in matters of hygiene. Everyone living in large cities in England was suffering from sunlight star; vation. •'■'.'. '

Recently he went to the top of the Manchester Town' Hall tower, and found even on a very clear day that he was looking down on a smoke screen. Ultrar violet rays came very close to X-rays; They were chemically active, and could reproduce the beneficial effects of sunlight by artificial means. He predicted :that in a fo'w years'everyone living in a' city would become accustomed to regular doses of one or two minutes' treatment, avoiding irritation but benefiting by securing the normal amount of sun light that, he would receive under smokeless conditions: , ■

If the scheme of accustoming oneself to Bmall but regular weekly doses of artificial sunlight baths was generally adopted they would find that those dis' eases bred in darkness would largely disappear. He was conducting an experiment at Kendal, Milne's. Throe hu» dred members; of the staff had yolun tarily submitted- ; to weekly .doses of artificial sunlight Already the majority stated that .they were feeling better for the experience, It_ was their testimony that they approached their food with a better and a :keener appetite, and confessed they were not "feeling quite so tired on a Friday night as they used to do. He was convinced that.by next summer the sickness sheet of the staff and the vigour erf salesmanship would show a marked improvement on previous years.

Continued good health made for increased happiness, and it was his dream of the future that > every factory and every place where men, women, arid children congregated would be equipped with artificial snnligh': lamps, always, of course, under proper supervision. It was not exactly safe for anyone to use them._ They must be used under medical advice or with someone aecustimed to handling them. In five years' time he thought that conference would remember the prophecy he had made.