HEALTH NOTES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21019, 7 May 1930, Page 9

HEALTH NOTES.

Written for the Otago Daily Times. By R. J. Tebuy. Do the opposite for a change: I believe I have previously endeavoured to impress upon my readers the value of doing the opposite for brief periods, but I have coulined my advice-on this subject chiefly to counteracting the harmful effects of your occupation. But let us go a step further. Inousands of people overeat; let'them for a time under-eat, especially as regards condiments and sugary and starchy stuff them lessen their tea, coffee, and cocoa and sweet drinks. Conversely thousands under-feed especially as regards water and green stuff. Bet them increase their intake of these things. When they do eat green stuff raw sueh as ettuce, they in all probabihty prefer the softer portions or heart of the lettuce. Let them eat the green leaves for a change. . Thousands hold themselves wrongly having their shoulders too far forward* and resting their weight too much upon their fn.Uf - f tlie ' n exaggerate the opposite faults for a time. Thousands are too «;nse or too fidgety, or both. Let . them learn to relax the muscles that are not needed tor any given purpose. Many women turn out their toes; ft used to be considered the right thing to dri-iM* 1 Btl *l by some physical dull books. Well,-let those who turn out their toes practise the opposite exaggeration in private, and soon they will find themselves walking- rightly. Some people when advising exercises, insist .that yoil should systematically exercise every muscle of the body every day. The advice is foolish and wasteful. Why not leavealone the muscles, that get plenty of good exercise already and earn money by the exercise, and devote your spare time to correcting the most obvious faults Most people have at least one kind of breathing undeveloped. With women this is often, the lower or diaphragmatic expansion. Let them take a stock of their Preaching capacity and set themselves to develop or make perfect’this kind I do not wish to appear a faddist, but it is surprising how you can alter yourselt m many ways and give your various oigans and senses a rest or a little recreatum by occasionally doing the opposite to that which you have been used to doing,, in many cases over a period of uiany„ many years. Many acts could be performed slowly, and deliberately, which we perform hurnedly, such as eating, drinking, sneaking, reading, writing, listening (for \v e can listen hurriedly), thinking, washing, dressing, undressing, walking and even sitting, toi when you watch people you find that some of them sit hurriedly. Such little trainings in self control soon alter the whole habit of mind and body for the better. I don t mean that I want my readers to be always leisurely or slow, but it is an advantage if vou can be. because you will it. food strengthens internal organs: ihci’e is no miracle performed because a woman is able to do without supports for internal organs after being on a diet for some few months. There are quite simple and natural reasons for the result. At the same time I do not wish to raise your hopes unduly, as you might not respond to the treatment for various reasons as quickly as your friend did. When you are out of condition by eating the wrong food your tissues often become^somewhat water-logged and heavy, and this is often mistaken for fat The muscles become flabby. In the water-logged condition- some internal oigans would be larger and heavier than normal, and this might be further accentuated by a certain amount of inflamation, and if. we remember that the

supports to those organs have become flabby we will readily perceive that there may easily be misplacements or dropping. With improved health the excess of w r aste matter is expelled from the tissues and carried away in the natural manner. Gradually the tissues become firmer and jnore muscular, and organs are restored to their normal size, which relieves the supports. _ln addition, the supports are improved in their carrying capacity. As a farmer’s wife it would be an easy matter for you to test the effect of foods on internal organs. Take two of your fowls of the same age and condition, say, three or four months old, feed one for three months on sloppy foods, only which \yill bring about indigestion. Remember it is not to have any grain or hard food. Feed the other on hard food only—that is, grain, giving it no soft food. Then kill them, and you will find that the gizzards, in other words, i-« E tomachs. of the two birds are verv different m appearance and condition" Ihe one having soft food only will be large, soft, and flabby, while the other ted on grain only will be bard und muscular, and the bird and its orjans general.y will be in the best condition. You will not get this result under three months, as Nature endeavours for some time to rectify your mistakes. ili-ere is a difference between- bulky and concentrated foods: Green beans, such as scarlet runners, etc., are a very different food from dried beans. The green beans would contain about : 80 per cent, of water. The seed would be practically in solution in the pod of the green bean, therefore the, protein would be in a dilute form. As the seed develops it robs the pod, which might be described as tne mother of the bean. It is quite all right to eat certain substances in abundance when they are in diluted, form, but it is another matter when they are concentrated. For instance, there could be no objection to a child chewing and sucking a piece of ripe sugar cane. There would have to be a great deal of chewing and sucking, before sugar equalling the dmount of a couple or ounces of lollies was obtained from it Dried beans are quite good food, biit they should be eaten sparingly, unless you are doing hard physical work. They should not be_ eatvm in any quantity in conjunction with meat or cheese, especiH r lerc is a tond ™cy to rheumatism. . Goilifes: There is no harm in an occasionally well-made wholesome sweet. Now, remember I said occasional. If the system is overloaded with sugars the liver, kidneys, lungs, skin, pancreas, aud other glands are overwprked, and therefore deranged, and serious results eventually follow. It does' not take a large quantity of concentrated sugar to bring about what might rightly bo termed a diseased condition of the pancreas, in which case all excess sugar is eliminated through the kidneys so that your body does not derive any benefits from the sugar in the form of heat or energy. The u lC v’- s ' arG naturally overworked, and -he diseased condition must eventually occur. There are some substances which can be stored in tire body in fairly large quantities, but evidently sugar is not'one ot them. Possibly Nature recognises that there is no necessity for storing, as sugar is tound in practically all the foods we consume. If not actually in the form of sugar it can be converted into sugar during digestion. This is what, I want to impress upon my readers; it is found in very dilute form, and in such form it is beneficial. Many of you put as much sugar in three or four cups of tea or sprinkle oyer the porridge, etc., as would be found in half a bushel of carrots or parsnips. So you are at fault, not Mother Nature. Ij.HH