MEDICAL NOTES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LV, Issue 16847, 11 May 1918, Page 5 (Supplement)

MEDICAL NOTES.

PLAY AND HEALTH. It has been prophesied that "within the. next ten or fifteen years the doctor will prescribe a horseback ride for his patients where he now prescribes a pill. It is now well understood that in order to keep good health one needs to be shaken tip occasionally, and for that reason play becomes an important health factor. One difference • n play and work is, in work we do only what is required ; in play we do all we can. Another difference is, in play we want to do it: in work we feel it a duty, play is as essential to our health as is work. A man needs to have his heart I beat fast and his face flushed at times, j He needs often to breathe deeply and to ' exert himself to the utmost. Play does | these things. Furthermore, phjr takes one ■ out into the open air and sunshine. It takes him away from his work and worry. It tram? mind along with muscle. It de- : velops jndgtnent arid will power, and makes a tiller, better life. Furthermore, I it makes for a long, happier life. j j EFFECTS OF COLD. j Intense rn 'd no doubt lowers the vitality | and causes an oppression of the action of j the heart by driving inwards so much of , the b'.'>cd by the coldness of the skin sur- I face. Her.ee congestions and inflamma- j tions arise, and hem e active exercise is so | necessary during exposure to ensure a due j circulation of the blood. Many persons think that the effect of great cold is to ! render additional alcoholic drink a neces- ] sity, but tins is a dangerous doctrine, ar.d j Arctic expeditions have shown th.it tern- 1 perate men survived longer than drinkers. ' If after exposure to a day's cold work a j dose of hot alcoholic drink be taken after ! finally coming indoors, no harm may arise. ! but it is a dangerous practice to take hot, drinks of spirits when obliged to repeat ' the exposure again directly after. Tins is i because the skin, warmed and moist with ! perspiration, is even more exposed to the ! effect of chilling than when in its previous ! natural state. Plenty of woollen clothing, j with plenty of good solid food, contain- j ing a large proportion of oils and fats, i are the most trustworthy means of retaining good health during severe cold weather. CAUSE OF NETTLE-RASH. Nettle-rash, or urticaria, is a complaint which always comes from something that has been eaten. In a large number of cases the offending material is fish, especially fried fish, rotted meat, tinned tish, and many other things upset the patient in this way; lobster is a well-known offender. It is curious how certain articles of diet affect different individuals. Food which is freely partaken by all the members of a family results in a nettle-rash for only one. Experience is the only guide ; when you have discovered that something gives you nettle-rash every time you eat it, you must avoid it in future; no one can help you. you must look after yourself. Once bitten, twice shy. The most soothing application for nettle-rash is lead lotion ; pieces of lint may be soaked in Ihe lotion and applied to the face, where the itching and swelling are often most apparent; warm baths, into which a little soda has been put, often relieve, and sometimes bran baths are successful. But the great essential is to give a smart purgative—castor oil is the bestat once. It it most important that the offending matter should be removed from the bodv without a moment's delay. A very light diet should be the rule for a day or two.

THE EYES OF THE YOUNG. That there is a large percentage of young people and children of these days who are dependent upon the use of glasses for good sight is a well-known fact. That there must be a cause for this is equally apparent. Formerly it was a rare sight to see children with spectacles. To-day it is a common thing, and especially among the better class. Specialists assign various reasons for this degeneration—our habits of life as a paramount cause. Plainer food, more out-of-door life, more sleep, and less social dissipation was the rule with our ancestors' children. The living rooms were not overheated, and the ventilation must of necessity have been better because of the ruder construction of the buildings, giving free admission of air through cracks in the walls and about windows and doors. As the child grows older, study by gas or lamp light is a severe tax on the eyes, especially if the print is small. The books used for school work ought to bo printed in clear, large type. The light for reading or study should not be a cross light, or shine directly on the face, nor from the back, but should come from the left side. This is a point which cannot bo too frequently emphasised, as too little attention appears to be given to it by teachers and parents. BLUSHING. Blushing is, as far as the mechanical process is concerned, a mere affair of dilated blood-vessels. But the cause of the dilation is a temproray paralysis of the nervous centres which govern the involuntary actions of. the vessels, and this paralysis is due, in its turn, to the brain and conscious thought. It follows that the cause and the cure of blushing are both mental, and that if the sufferer can only succeed in getting his thoughts away from himself ana his embarrassment he will automatically cease to blush. Conscious and deliberate effort of the will is necessary in the first place, and in the early stages of the cure, but, happily, as the cure progresses, it becomes easier and easier, and as Che self consciousness diminishes the blushing, which both occasions it and arises out of it, will grow less and less frequent until it disappears altogether. One of the most helpful things to One of the most helpful things to reremember is that blushing is far from unbecoming to most people, and that even it Is noticed "ty other it is not considered anything extraordinary or unusual. The best piece of advice I can give to sufferers is really that given me long ago by an old nurse :—" Don't think everyone is thinking about you, my dear. They're not; they're like you; thinking about themselves." ACUTE RHEUMATISM. A patient suffering from acute rheumatism should be carefully undressed and put to bed in a warm, airy room, kept as near as possible to a temperature of 66 degrees Fahr., avoiding draughts. He should be clothed in a flannel gown, nursed between blankets, and a bed-cradle should be placed over the legs to keep the weight of the bedclothes off the painful joints. If fomentations are ordered to Parts affected, they should be fixed with a flannel many-tailed bandage to avoid unnecessary movement. The patient should be gently sponged night and mornlng, using warm water and a warm, soft towel. Care should be taken to expose him as little as possible, as a chill only increases the cardiac affection. As he will nerspire a great deal his garments should be frequently replaced by warm, well-aired ones. His back should be washed with soap-and-water and rubbed with methylated spirit and starch-powder night Ma morning to prevent bed-sores. Care should be taken not to shake the bed or puj. the bedclothes tightly. Temperature Pulse, and respiration should be taken four-hourly, and hyper-pyrexia should be reported to doctor at once. The mouth should be kept clean by swabbing out soda-water and glycerine or borax Wd honey. As the patient is quite helpless everything required must be done for him. He <--hnn!d not exert himself or be a.l lowed to ait up too long a ' first. Trie diet during convalescence should consist of chicken, oysters, bread-and-butter, and no vegetables. To prevent » recurrence of the illness the Patient should always wear flannel next the skin ; to avoid getting wet or damp, and, if this cannot b» avoided, to change clothing as soon at poegibl*,