Health Notes

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 96, 14 July 1927, Page 9

Health Notes

(Contributed by the Department of

GOOD HABITS BUILDING SOUND BODIES (CONTRIBUTED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH.) Civic pride and wealth are generally shown by great buildings, fine bridges, paved streets, and beautiful boulevards and parks. Let us build bodies of flesh and blood as we build structures of steel and stone. Both are needed, but of the two the human structure is the most important, states the Chicago Health Department Bulletin. Great care is taken to put the best and strongest of materials in these things so that they will last indefinitely’. The style and beauty of the buildings are such as to please the eye and excite the admiration. ,Streets are made smooth and straight, free from defects and, wherever possible, are lined with trees and shrubs to add some of the beauty of Nature. Parks are kept in order, protected against defilement, and made attractive for the enjoyment of lovers of the outdoors. Did you ever stop to consider how much thqught is put into all these activities? The foundation of a building is the great essential in the construction of the massive skyscraper, for upon the firmness of its base depends the life of the superstructure. Then the steel girders are put in place to form solid framework which will withstand the stress and strain of storm and temperature. Then brick and stone are added to enclose the building and give protection against the ravages of time and fire. How similar is the building up of the human body? If half as much attention were paid to the building of bodies as is given to structures of steel and brick, public health officials would have little to do. FOUNDATION OF HEALTH What is the foundation of health of the human body’? It lies deep in heredity. Healthy parents furnish a healthy basis to their offspring, barring accidents of birth. The combined health factors of the parents are given to every cell of the child’s body. That is the first essential of vital resistance or protection against disease. Then, given the right foundation, we can build the superstructure of the child’s health. The framework of solid, strong, growing bones and teeth corresponds to the steel skeleton of the building. For these, the right kind of food, containing minerals such as lime and phosphorus, is needed. Milk, fruits, vegetables and cod liver oil furnish vitamins to help use these ingredients in building a strong bony framework. The muscles, fat and skin correspond to the stone and brick work of the building. These are the walls of the human building, which give strength and beauty, and also enclose and protect the vital organs. A tall building, no matter how strong and beautiful it may be, is useless for occupancy without a good heating plant, pump, water pipes, elevators, sewage and ventilation system, and so forth. So it is also with the human body’. The habits of cleanliness, right eating, sufficient rest and sleep, taking plenty of fresh air at work and play, and thinking right, contribute strength, aid growth, and keep the body in good

repair. The well-cared-for body brings efficiency and inspires a smile of health on the face of the owner. There is laughter at his meals and he has ambition to forge ahead and enough contentment to keep him in a happy frame of mind. Beauty is only skin deep. Without properly working lungs, heart, digestive tract, liver, blood vessels, and kidneys, the human body is a poor place to live in. That building is not a paying one for there is no income in rentals. In the case of the human building, it’s a loss if it does not give the happiness that only a good, healthy body brings. Loss of the income of happiness or well-being spells inefficiency and loss in money and time off for sickness. The health building must be built strongly if it is to be safe against the fire hazard of sickness. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS Good janitor service also aids in the upkeep of the building and adds to its value and length of life. In the case of the body, good health habits are the janitors which keep the human building up to par. Continuous, proper use of the human building is also necessary to health. If you use a building but a few months in the year and then shut it down, it soon becomes covered with dust and its running machinery gets out of order. It may be a fine, expensive building, but if not used rightly, will soon lose its value. It is a common mistake to go without exercise for a week or a month and then try to make it up in an afternoon or a week-end. This is harmful, as harmful, in fact, as starving for a week and then over-eating to make it up. One should lead an active but even life, not trying to burn up three-quar-ters of one’s vital energy in the first 35 years, but conserving the vitality, vim and vigour for the years after seventy. In the harmonious working of healthy organs, one need think of nothing except outside matters. The healthy man’s inner organs do not exist in his consciousness. He lives longer and becomes more efficient with age, because he improves everything around him, raising external values to his own standards.