THE DIARY OF A DOCTOR WHO TELLS

Evening Star, Issue 25470, 28 April 1945, Page 10

THE DIARY OF A DOCTOR WHO TELLS

SALT FOR STIFFNESS ; Monday, April 23.

Although the day was cool enough, we used our towels to' wipe the perspiration from our faces after a strenuous men's doubles match at the local tennis club last week-end. "You'll be stiff to-morrow," my (partner cheerfully warned one of our opponents who hasn't played for a couple of months. " Not me," be replied. " I put some salt in a couple of drinks of water when I get home, and it taikes the stiffness away, doesn't it, Doc? " ■•" A-new one on me," I replied. " Personally, I pin my faith in lying in a hot bath and then having a cold shower." ,

'•Well, at least salt stops you getting a cramp in the night," he countered.

" You're, on safer ground there," I said, as I continued to wipe away the still oozing fluid. "Miner's, or stoker's cramp is .riow known to be due to a deficiency of salt in the tissue fluids. These men naturally drink large quantities of water, and this upsets the salt balance* in that sweat consists of salt as well as water. If you replace the one, it's only logical to replace the other." " How much salt should you add, then? " asked 1 someone. " I don't know that there's any hard and fast rule about, it," I replied. '•'lt's said that the addition of 10 grains of common salt to the gallon of ,drinkiiig water will cause the symptoms to disappear.' ' ■■ ;■ There's a medical, condition called tetany, which is not to be confused with the entirely different tetanus. Tetany- isYa condition in which the muscles are over-excitable so that an ordinary stimulus will throw them into a violent state of spasm, - In these patients one always finds a deficiency of calcium salts in the blood and tissues.

It all, goes to prove the value of certain, salts, including table salt, to the body. Proper muscle function is only possible if the body fluids contain a properly balanced mixture, of salts. Tuesday, April 24. ' I found the Malltons overjoyed today, having heard from a sister who had for some time been in a Japanese prison camp. " She says she's all right," said the eldest sister, " though she's been sick most -of the tinie because of the poor food. I suppose that means she's really suffering from undernourishment, Doctor? "

"Yes," 1 replied, "though, of course, she might have had the bad luck to get one of the vitamin-defi-ciency diseases." "Oh, you mean scurvy? " asked the other sister.

"Yes," I'said, " and perhaps' beriberi/' "I thought that beri-beri was a disease the Orientals got," she replied. "Is it catching? " " It's not an infectious disease," 1 replied, " but is due to a deficiency of vitamin B. Some of the British troops got it in the Dardanelles and Mesopotamia in the last war, and it was , eventually tracked down to absence pf certain kinds of foodstuffs." Orientals suffer from beri-beri when they live on polished rice grains. When the rice is polished the " pericarp " '•;nd germ are lemoved, and these-are the parts containing the vitamin B.

There are different kinds of beri-beri, with syiaptoius varying from ordinary neuritis to ti;e " wet beri-beri," where there is heart involvement, and so a •' dropsy." I Ordinary prisoners of war, it is hoped, are treated on standard lines, and not subjected to the horrors, and neglect of certain of the unfortunate civilian internees to whose sufferings the enemy had paid so little heed. Beri-beri is commonplace in Japan. Wednesday, April 25. I was not surprised to hear that John Aioniey had ieLt instructions that he uesired two doctors to certify, death uel'ore he was buried. He also directed that at least one of them must; in the presence ot the other, cut an artery in both his leg and" arm. He told me once that he was a sufferer from claustrophobia, that fear of being " shut in." Claustrophobia is a real entity and takes all sort of forms. Some people hate beiu,g in lifts, especially automatic ones. Otiiers find they can't travel in tubes without extreme mental diecomfort. Soijf people always want a seat nearest the door in tram, bus, or train, and others are most unhappy unless they are sitting next to'.'tne aisle in a filmhouse or concert hall.

Another expression off claustrophobia is said to be the aversion oh the part of some to be " shut in " by marriage and the resultant preference for a succession of admirers, or even lovers. The.'actual'"phrase "being confined" also- explains a further claim that claustrophobia may not be unconnected with a refusal to "bear children on the part of some women. Thursday, April 26.

"And how are the boys?" ,1 asked Airs Donald, the mother of tllree soidier sons when she called about her varicose veins this morning. " Stiil all right, thank God," she said. " They've been with the forces something between three and four years now. Except for the wound Jack got at Tobruk and the one Harry got in New Guinea they've been lucky. The. wounds seem to heal in no time. It's a wonder to me,with these terrible weapons we have these days that everybody isn't killed." Actually there are fewer soldiers killed in proportion to the number employed than ever in the history of the world. Medical science has much to he thanked for in that connection. Jack. Donald (though his mother doesn't know it) got a serious abdominal wound at Tobruk. In previous wars his chances would have been small. . ...

For purposes of comparison it'6 interesting to note that at the Battle of Cannae (21(5 8.C.) 60 per cent, of the Romans were killed by Hannibal's army in one day, swords and spears beim<-. the weapons used. Even at the Battle of Waterloo 22 per cent, of the KngHsh nrmv was killed in a-single da?, muzzle-loaders' being the chief destroying weapon. There were no stretcher-bearers and scientific surgeons at Cannae, and a few of the former and none of the latter at Waterloo. . Friday, April 27. Psychology hints from this week's reading:— Fatigue and Temper.—Fatigue is notoriously bad for the temper. Don't argue when vou are tired. TCervy People.—Some are born nervous, but others have their nervous temperaments thrust upon them, usually beginning in their earliest vears. . "" " Misunderstood " Men.—Jt is not really understand-no; that a man requires, but mothering.

Calf-love. —The emotions stirrod up when things go wrong are just as strong and painful at 16 as at 2.5 ; more so, in fact, befniisp they are less well understood Names in this diarv are fictitious. (Copyright.)