TALKS ON HEALTH

Greymouth Evening Star, 24 January 1931, Page 4

TALKS ON HEALTH

.FIGHT AGAINST CONSUMPTION. (By a Family Doctor.) Do I know a cure for consumption? Oh, yes, certainly. Fresh air, good food, sunshine, sound sleep, cleanliness, healthy houses, light, and a careful choice of one’s father and mother, Now cure yourselves. You cannot order sunshine in winter. Never mind, do your best. Be sure to put the baby in the sunny room if there are a few gleams. The experiment has been tried of putting poisonous germs on a plate and exposing the plate to the rays of the sun; in a short time all the germs are dead, and no one is found to shed a tear over them. Light is an inveterate enemy of the germs; they hate the light, for their deeds are evil. Fight for the open spaces in your towns. Never let anyone build over a “4ung.” The town breathes through its parks and greens and squares. Let the light come in; pull back the heavy curtains; wash the window panes. Choose a bright wall-paper. Have the ceiling white-washed again; it needs it. If kind old Auntie Mary does invite the child for a short stay in the country, accept with - gratitude and ask her to keep him a little longer this year as he came back so well last year. The air of the town is thick with smuts; the people of to-day are very wise; they fill the air their children breathe with foul smoke. Germs and smoke together are too much for the noor little lungs. No wonder they succumb to consumption. Keep the rooms as fresh as possible. At least once in the day open all the windows and let the air blow right through. The air in your rooms at the present moment has been breathed by the baby, then by grandma, who has bronchitis, then by father, who already has consumption though he does not know it, then by the cat, then by the canary, then it is burnt by the gas, and then, finally, it goes down into little Alice’s lungs, thoroughly devitalised, completely used up by the other occupants of the rooms and powerless to do her any good. I am not surprised she has anaemia. INSANITY AND CRIME. Much thought is given to the case of a man accused of committing murder, and who puts up the defence of being insane. Lunatics can be most offensive persons. If only they were merely benevolently stupid, we could deal with them. When they become brutal murderers it is another matter. What can we do with them? In these modern times we are getting more merciful; the tendency is to keep the accused man, when found guilty, in a home for mental diseases, if there is any doubt about his sanity. . By sanity we mean responsibility. A£ the outset we are faced with, the impossibility of defining sanity or insanity. The Humane mind cannot be measured with a footrule or a pair of fine compasses. The most experienced men differ when confronted by a man suspected of insanity. For one thing, the same patient differs in his moods from day, and a prolonged examination is necessary before a conclusion can be arrived at. It is most difficult to lay down general rules. Each case must be studied on its merits. The question of crime committed by an insane person places a great responsibility on those who live with the insane person and who must act as his guardians. If a man’s conduct appears to be eccentric, and the condition does not quicklv pass away, medical advice must be sought. Otherwise some tragedy may occur. TROUBLESOME TONSILS. If you have had attacks of tonsilitis before, you ought seriously to consider the question of having the tonsils removed. 3The next attack may be the worst. Our whole aim is to prevent illness by forethought. I have known a man to have six attacks of tonsilitis, and the seventh was complicated by inflammation of the kidneys. He would have been wiser to have had an operation on his throat. Now is the time to make up your mind. The cold and damp of the winter are before us.

BE KIND AND COURTEOUS. At the age of about forty-three every woman passes through a critical time of her life; Women should always be treated with kindness and courtesy, but especially should this rule apply to those of middle age. They cannot always help their hysterical outbursts. The emotions should always be held well under control; there is a bursting point for everyone. Some can stand a high pressure and yet retain full mastery of themselves. The women on whose behalf I am speaking have a low bursting point. They cry at what, to others, seems an inadequate cause; they appear unreasonable, and, their conduct is at times exasperating. We should, however, bear in mind that there may be a physiological reason for their behaviour, and we must be patient and tolerant. OVER-CLOTHING. 1 The most important part of the mechanism for regulating the temperature is the skin; the perspiration should be allowed to evaporate freely. When the skin is tightly enclosed in three or four layers of flannel and cloth the heat of the body is stored up, unable to escape. The consequence is that the temperature of the body mounts up until the heart cannot stand it, and a fainting fit is the result. The fear of a chill is exaggerated. 1 sometimes feel I am writing about the same old things, but you have the same old faults. Over-cloth-ing is very common. REST THOSE SORE PLACES.

The importance of rest in the cure of sore places and ulcers on the feet and legs is not sufficiently well recognised. When the blood circulates through the ulcerated area it performs a double function. It brings nourishment to the diseased tissues to* build them up, and it carries away the poisonous products of ulceration.. The faster the blood circulates, the better are these two functions performed. But the foot, being the lowest point in the circulation, is where the blood stream is most sluggish. In order to get back to the heart the blood has to climb uphill. That is why these ulcers occur always in the foot and leg; you never saw one on the top of the head. If you lie down with the foot raised on a pillow, the foot is no longer the lowest point of the circulation; it is on the level with the heart. Hence circulation is encouraged, <iiid the rapid supply of healthy blood does more to heal the ulcers than any application. Rest is essential for sores in the leg, especially in elderly people.