MEDICAL NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11825, 30 November 1901, Page 6 (Supplement)

MEDICAL NOTES.

PREMATURELY GREY HAIR,. *: Pkematcre greyness of hair- arises from a variety of causes. That it runs in iaraSe, I bare no doubt, for one sees cases hi wbieS the sons particularly follow the fathers lead when be has exhibited grey hairs at a, re, ;: latively tarly period of his existence. \f t also see numbers of comparatively voqqwomen vith grey hair, and J have n"oti3 this condition especially in the case of <arAmerican cousins. Here, where no special cause is known to exist for the jrrevnes* I suspect it will be found that, there is soq*. • thing in the family history which teci to produce the conditions in question, j* any rate, even with perfect health, the ha". may become grey, or even white, a: a reearly age. There can be no remedy for this state of matters unless, indeed, the robkc of the greyness prefers to resort to the use cf a dve.

Hair dyes vary much in .;haract*= There ar* harmless ones to be found prv pared from vegetable matters, such as w-'i nut, but mineral hair dyes should be avoiied. The most common* ingredient in ch«s dyes is had. and the use of such dve* teoii to produce disease. Cases of lead-poisonhg have been known to result from emplovui such lotions, and, therefore, it is well % bear the caution given against them ia mind. There can be no objection to the las of a harmless dye if people desire to hive dark hail- instead of white or grey hrdr. It is here aIL a matter of personal' desire or opinion. tireyness may arise from a poor sate of heaiti. It often occurs after levers, md especially after typhoid fever, and is amnion in many cases of bodily wecLxua. What happens here, I suppose) is thftz j;ss as the skin sympathises with bodily tmullej (and just as in turn the skin's health £- fects the body), so the hair as a skin apperstage is effected by the body's ailments, in many cases we see the greyness to disappear under tie results of treatment of the retenj weakness. A course of tonics will often ai{ in restoring the hair's natural condition while appropriate lotions by way of stimukiting the hair's growth may mat-eria'ilv assist the cure. It is the same with baldness itself, which is often seen as a result- of fevers and other debilitating ailments. The hair may grow after health is ratorei even thicker than before, provided d?e care can be taken to favour its proper condition. I think many cases of premature g*jii*si (and baldness as well) may be prevented bv a little attention being paid to the hair. For example, one source of greyness I am convinced is the daily wetting of the head 31 the course of the morning bath or otherwise. People who boast that they only use =rat*r for their scalps and who yet retain good heads of hair are not many. On th« contrary, if one asks a man who is getting bald or grey, if he wets bis head frequent*-, he will probably answer in the affirmativi. I, therefore, advise my readers against constantly wetting the head. This adviy» U not meant to imply that the hair is never to be washed. A weekly shampoo is an excellent thing, and if a superfatted soap be ised it may easily be done at home. I am a firm believer in the advantage of applying a little oil to the hair. Then is no need to make the hair greasy, but theuse. of a suitable preparation cures baldness aid greyness, and tends also to prevent scar: from forming. Where the hair is weak mi falling I should use the following preparation, rubbing it in each night in the r»ota after brushing the hair: Tincture of cantharides, two drachms eau de Cologne two ounces ; oil of rosemary and oil of laveader, ten drops; castor oil, two drachms. For darkening the hair, and for ordinary use daily as a hair dressing, try this: — Castor oil, four drachms ; t olive oil, twenty->ight drachms : glycerine, twelve drachms; Kctified spirit, four drachms; and perftme, eight drachms. A little should be ruined into the hair roots every morning.— Andrew Wilson.

TESTING THE LUNGS. To ascertain the state of the lungs craw in as much breath as you conveniently tan, then, count as long as possible in a slow and audible voice without drawing in nore bieath. The number of seconds must be' carefully noted. In a consumptive the time does not exceed ten, and is frequently fess than six seconds ; in pleurisy and pneumonia it ranges from nine to four seconds*. "Whtc the lungs are sound the time will range a high as from 25 to 35 seconds. To expand the lungs go into the open air. stand erect, throw back the head {'.nd sloulders, and draw in the air through the nostrils as much as possible. . After having then filled the lungs raise your arms, still extended, and draw in the air. When you have just forced the arms backward vita the chest open change the process .'by which you draw in your breath till the lungs are emptied. Go through the process several times a day, and it will enlarge the chest, give the lungs better play, and serve very much to ward off serious lung troubles.