The Relation Of Food To Health And Premature Death | Geo. H. Townsend, Felix J. Levy, Geo. Clinton Crandall
This is an age of wonderful strides in production, but we fear that man, in improving everything else, has, in a great measure lost sight of himself. To the scientist who understands something of the wonderful development of nature, when free from hindrance, there is nothing so utterly astonishing as the weakness and folly of the human race. Believing that ignorance of self is the mother of our devouring evils - disease, vice and crime - the author, with the assistance of his collaborators, has undertaken to blaze out a road to a better and higher life, and however painstaking the effort, it would be too much to expect that our labors would produce results that approached the ideal. It is hoped, however, that this book will be of service in pointing out the devious windings into which appetite and surrounding influences often allure the thoughtless - resulting in their discomfiture and premature death.
| Title | The Relation Of Food To Health And Premature Death |
| Author | Geo. H. Townsend, Felix J. Levy, Geo. Clinton Crandall |
| Publisher | Witt Publishing Company |
| Year | 1897 |
| Copyright | 1896, Geo. H. Townsend |
| Amazon | Clean Food: A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source with More Than 200 Recipes for a Healthy and Sustainable You |
By Geo. H. Townsend, LL.B.,
With the collaboration of Felix J. Levy, A.M., M.D. H. G. Nicks, M.D., Lecturer on Hygiene, Marion Sims College of Medicine; Attending Physician Woman's Hospital; Director Physical Department Y. M. C.A., St. Louis.
And Geo. Clinton Crandall, B. S. M. D, Professor of General Medicine, Marion Sims College of Medicine, St. Louis .
Preface- This is an age of wonderful strides in production, but we fear that man, in improving everything else, has, in a great measure lost sight of himself. To the scientist who understands something of the ...
- Chapter I. Afflictions And Premature Death Result From Ignorance
- Each age has its philanthropists, those who toil not merely for their own aggrandizement, but for the bettering, the uplifting of the human race. These make the world better for having lived in it. Su...
- Afflictions And Premature Death Result From Ignorance. Part 2
- But It Is A Fact, Which I Will Prove. Let Me Ask You What Would Happen If You Were To Drive Recklessly Through The Streets And In Doing So Run Over Several People And Maim Or Kill Them? I would be a...
- Afflictions And Premature Death Result From Ignorance. Part 3
- What Is The Chief Factor In Producing The Physical And Moral Imperfections Of The Race, Doctor? Well, part of our present social evils are no doubt due to false economic conditions, but if every ind...
- Chapter II. Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion
- Doctor, in beginning the study of any subject, it is of course very important to start right. That is true, and if we are to understand the source of health as well as disease, we must know someth...
- Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion. Part 2
- Is There Anything Else About The Mouth That Aids Digestion? Nothing that aids it, but something that doesn't aid it. What Is That? Filth. Some people keep their mouths like garbage boxes. They a...
- Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion. Part 3
- When Does The Contents Of The Stomach Pass Out? Under normal conditions, some of it passes out, or rather is ejected, as soon as it becomes sufficiently liquefied. Just what governs the expulsion of...
- Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion. Part 4
- Has Any Person Ever Lived With The Stomach Removed? There is no such case on record, although the pyloric end of the stomach, (i. e. the end on right side) has been cut out and the intestines sewed ...
- Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion. Part 5
- Then You Don't Attach Much Importance To Statements That Certain Articles Of Food Are Digestible In A Certain Time? No, although something like an ordinary average might be estimated, for instance, ...
- Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion. Part 6
- Is There Any Other Secretions Found In The Intestines That Affect Digestion? There are numerous small glands throughout the intestinal canal. These secrete an alkaline fluid but so far as has yet be...
- Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion. Part 7
- O, I See, Eating Between Meals If The Stomach Is Not Empty, Is After All A Bad Practice? Yes, it is very bad, for it keeps food in the stomach too long and very likely causes it to decay, because pa...
- Chapter III. Classification Of Foods
- The food we consume serves us in two ways; first it supplies material for tissue and also for the bones; second, it furnishes us fuel for bodily warmth and action. What Foods Are Required For These...
- Chapter IV. Water The Principal Element Of The Body
- The human system is made up of many chemical elements, the principal part of which is water. The second largest element is carbon and next to it is nitrogen, while calcium is the largest element of t...
- Water The Principal Element Of The Body. Continued
- Doctor, Did I Understand You To Say That No Cold Water Or Cold Drink Should Betaken Soon After Meals? Well, not only should no cold water be taken, but no cold drink of any kind should be taken at m...
- Chapter V. Bread
- Doctor, You Say Water In Some Form Or Other Is The Most Indispensable Of All Foods, I Suppose That Meat Is Next In Importance? No doubt the Esquimeaux would say so, while those who style themselves ...
- Bread. Part 2
- Why Are They Taken Out Of The Flour? The bran is bolted out because it is unpalatable, and the phosphates are unavoidably taken out because they adhere to it. The gluten also adheres to the bran, bu...
- Bread. Part 3
- Doctor, You Said A While Ago That Bread Was A Great Source Of Indigestion. On What Ground Do You Make The Charge? Well, bread may be very easily dissolved in the stomach, or may be very difficult. I...
- Bread. Part 4
- Then, I Suppose You Mean That They Are Objectionable Only When They Are Not Well Made? Not exactly. They may be very palatable, yet very unwholesome. There are two serious objections to biscuits - a...
- Bread. Part 5
- What Is Their Product Like? It is a meal. They call it Ralston Health Club Breakfast Food, and though badly named, one can hardly say too much for it as a wholesome food. It is made from the very be...
- Bread. Part 6
- That Is Very Interesting. What Particular Diseases Are Benefited By Granose? Granose is the nearest a specific for constipation of anything yet discovered, and it will do more to smooth an irritable...
- How Many Different Kinds Of Bread Are There?
- Probably the first and most common is ordinary yeast ^read. The next in importance, or at least the next best known, is brown bread, or Graham bread. Recently the entire wheat bread is becoming much ...
- Chapter VI. Rye And Corn Bread
- Rye bread has never been extensively used in America, although it is more or less used in cities having a German population. It does not differ greatly from wheat bread, except that it is darker, of a...
- Chapter VII. Oats
- Doctor, Are There Any Other Cereals Used For Making Bread? Not to any extent. Buckwheat is used for making pancakes and oatmeal for crackers. In the tropical regions, there are fruits that are used ...
- Oats. Continued
- I Don't Understand You. Do You Mean It Should Be Eaten Hot Or Cold, With Or Without Sugar, At The Beginning Or The End Of A Meal? Well, if proteid food (tissue formers) are eaten with starchy food...
- Chapter VIII. Potatoes
- How Did The Irish Potato Get Its Name? I do not know. It was introduced into the Old World from the New by Sir Walter Raleigh and probably because it became so extensively cultivated in Ireland (for...
- Chapter IX. Peas, Beans And Lentils, Known As Legumes
- Doctor, of the foods discussed so far, the starchy element seems to predominate, and, with the exception of wheat and oats, the per cent of starch is much too high for perfect foods. Are There No Veg...
- Peas, Beans And Lentils, Known As Legumes. Part 2
- Then Fruits May Be Eaten With Them? Yes, acid fruits, vegetables, cereals, butter, cream and bacon, but no lean meats. What Would Be A Sufficient Quantity Of Beans For One Meal? Well, a saucer f...
- Peas, Beans And Lentils, Known As Legumes. Part 3
- What Harm Do They Do, Doctor? Well, if they are cooked until they are soft, cabbage is likely to be swallowed in large stringy lumps as the fibers or strings are not easily dissolved, and it is very...
- Chapter X. Tomatoes
- Doctor, Would You Call The Tomato A Vegetable Or A Fruit? The tomato is classed as a vegetable, although in reality it is a fruit. It is used much more extensively in this country than in any other....
- Lettuce
- Will You Please Describe The Uses And Advantages Lettuce May Have? Cases of diabetes have been reported cured with lettuce, although this is a matter in which mistakes might easily be made, but inas...
- Celery
- Doctor, As celery Is Such A Favorite With The People,No Doubt You Will Will Be Able To Say Something Very Good About It? Then You Would Have Me Treat The Subject According To What The People Believe...
- Greens
- Doctor, What Are The Various Kinds Of Stuff That Are Used For Greens? Beet tops, onion tops, dandelion, sour dock and spinach. The latter is much more commonly used than any of the others. It is the...
- Onions
- The onion is sometimes facetiously called the Irishman's fruit and whether this be a good name or not, it will not likely ever be called lover's favorite. Why So? Because of the odor of a volatil...
- Pumpkins
- What Property Has The Pumpkin That People Should Be Called Pumpkin Headed? That is probably because they are big and hollow, with nothing inside. I have often heard it said of them that they were al...
- Radishes
- Some People Say That Radishes Do Not Agree With Them, Why Is This? The radish is sufficiently pungent to irritate the stomach; besides this, it is tough, solid and stringy. It is therefore difficult...
- Rhubarb
- What Are The Properties Of Rhubarb? Well, the rhubarb plant, including wine plant, is a stringy stalk containing a very large amount of acid and some gum. What Kind Of Acid? The acid of rhubarb ...
- Cucumbers
- Why Do Cucumbers Make So Many People Sick? There are several reasons for this. It is possible that the aromatic oil which gives the cucumber its flavor, has some peculiar effect on the stomach, but ...
- Watermelons
- The watermelon has a very significant name, because it is more water than any thing else, and the season never gets so dry but what the watermelon is still composed mostly of water. Doctor, What Is...
- Mushrooms
- Mushrooms are not used extensively in this country, because not much effort has been made to cultivate them and those found in the woods or field are difficult to gather, besides there is great dange...
- Chapter XI. Sugar
- Doctor, I Suppose That Most People Know What Is Meant By Sugar? Yes, they understand that it is some substance extracted from plants and crystallized. They also know that it dissolves very readily a...
- Chapter XII. Vegetable Vs. Animal Foods
- Doctor, Is There Any Enlightened Country In The World Where The People Eat As Much Meat As In The United States? 'I don't think there is. Then If It Be True That Americans Eat More Meat, And Are, ...
- Chapter XIII. Animal Foods
- What Is Meant By Animal Foods ? Animal foods are not the foods of animals as some might suppose, but they are the food products that are derived from animals. In What Way Are The Animal Foods Diff...
- Animal Foods. Part 2
- Does Gelatine, Or Gum, Make Milk More Digestible? Well, some recommend mixing gelatine or some of the gums like gum arabic. If white gelatine, such as the Keystone, be soaked until dissolved and the...
- Animal Foods. Part 3
- This Is Merely A Process Of Boiling? Yes; the reason why people do not succeed better with these processes is from the fact that after sterilizing the milk they put it in vessels that are not steril...
- Chapter XIV. Meat
- The propriety or impropriety of slaughtering- animals for food, according to the altruistic views of vegetarians, does not come within the proper scope of this book; hence, we have nothing to say on t...
- Meat. Continued
- Why Is It Worse To Fry It Than To Cook It In Other Ways? Well, a very important part of the digestion of meat should take place in the stomach, while fats are not digested there at all. Now, to coat...
- Chapter XV. Pork
- Doctor, You Are Not Going To Forget The Hog, Are You? No, I see him too often for that; but I guess you mean pork. Yes, I mean the porker. Pork probably forms the most important part of a meat...
- Pork. Part 2
- Doctor, Fish Is Ordinarily Considered A Much Lighter Diet Than Meat; Is There Good Reason For This Belief? Well, there is an occasional person with whom fish does not agree, although fish is far les...
- Pork. Part 3
- In What Way Do They Differ From Meat? Well, eggs have about fifteen per cent tissue-forming substance, and twelve per cent fat. This is only a trifle below that of ordinary steak, with which they fa...
- Chapter XVII. Fruits
- Doctor, I cannot remember a time when I did not hear about the healthfulness of fruit, and yet it is claimed that it often makes people ill. Yes; the people believe that fruit eating is conducive ...
- Fruits. Part 2
- How Are We To Determine These Different Conditions? Excessive acidity of the stomach is indicated by one of the most common expressions, 'heart-burn.' This is really not a condition of the heart as ...
- Fruits. Part 3
- Under What Other Circumstances Would Fruits Aid Digestion? Well, fruits to a certain extent supplement the natural gastric secretion, especially in the digestion of tissue-forming food, such as me...
- Fruits. Part 4
- Have Not A Great Many Writers Unduly Extolled The Healthfulness Of The Apple ? Perhaps they have; it certainly will not correct all the abuses that may be inflicted upon the system. It is only an ai...
- Chapter XVIII. Plum
- The plum is a nice fruit, makes most delicious preserves and jam. But Doctor, A Good Many People Think Plums Very Unwholesome? Doubtless a good many disorders have been produced by the plum, beca...
- Cherry
- Doctor, How Does The Cherry Rank As A Fruit? The cherry is a favorite of many people, but it ought not to rank very highly, because a large per cent of it is tough skin and water, and it is rather s...
- Strawberry
- Doctor, It Rather Seems As Though You Had Slighted Our Berries? Well, the berries are in such great favor, especially the strawberry, that some enthusiasts have said that the 'Lord could have made a...
- Berries
- The raspberry is one of the most palatable of the summer berries, but it is sc much like the blackberry and blueberry they may all be discussed together. In What Way Are These Different From Other ...
- Bananas
- Doctor, What Is The Leading Fruit From The Tropics? Well, it is difficult to say whether the banana or lemon. For A Food, Which Is Best? The banana. It is the only green fruit extensively used i...
- Lemons
- I Suppose, Doctor, That You Consider The Lemon More Of A Medicine Than A Fruit? The lemon has long been used for its flavor, and in a medicinal way, but modern chemistry so perfectly counterfeits al...
- Oranges
- Has The Orange The Same Uses? No, it is more of a food, because the orange contains a little gum and some sugar. What Acid Does The Orange Contain? Mostly citric and malic acid, and citrate of l...
- Pineapples
- The pineapple is one of the most delicious of all tropical fruits. It contains all of the fruit acids and some other substance very similar to papain, which is a digestive agent for all kinds of food...
- Dates And Figs
- Are There No Important Fruits, Other Than What You Have Discussed? Yes, dates and figs. The dried dates and figs of commerce are the richest of all the fruits. What Is The Average Composition Of T...
- Preserving Fruits
- Olives are only used for two purposes in this country; that is, we use the oil made from the olive and the green olive for pickles. The oil is valuable, but the pickles are tough, and have no use as ...
- Peanuts
- Which Do You Consider The Most Important Of The Nuts That Are Used In This Country? The peanut. The consumption of peanuts has grown to be enormous, and is destined to be many times greater than it ...
- Cocoanut
- Are There No Other Nuts That You Think Worthy Of Notice? None, unless we except the cocoanut, which is becoming quite an article of commerce, especially its oil. It is now used extensively for makin...
- Nuts
- What About Other Nuts? All nuts contain a large per cent of oil. The chestnut is the only one that contains a great amount of starch; probably the hickory nut is really the most palatable of all, an...
- Chapter XIX. Condiments
- Doctor, What Do You Mean By Condiments? Well, the word has a general and well-understood meaning', but, for my use, I would explain it by saying that it should be pronounced by emphasizing the secon...
- Drinks
- Doctor, Suppose We Go And Take Something? All right; I will drink a glass of mineral water and then discuss drinks. Doctor, Since You Do Not Drink Anything Very Stimulating, You Probably Have Some...
- Drinks. Part 2
- Has Coffee No Uses? Yes, coffee is useful as a drug, is very pleasant to the taste, and if water and milk are merely flavored with coffee, and it is used as a flavor more than something to tone up t...
- Drinks. Part 3. Cocoa. Chocolate
- Cocoa is a preparation made from the bean or seeds of the cacao tree. What Is Its Composition? It contains a very large per cent, of oil, theobromine, which is very similar to the caffeine in cof...
- Drinks. Part 4. Alcohol
- What Is Ordinarily Understood By The Term Alcohol? Used in a general way, alcohol includes all alcoholic liquors, such as whisky, beer, wine, ale, gin, as well as chemically pure alcohol. Is There...
- Chapter XX. Infant Feeding
- Doctor, You Have Discussed The Processes, Of Digestion And The Properties Of Foods, Cannot The People Adapt Their Diet To Their Needs From The Information You Have Given? Well, the advice ought to b...
- Infant Feeding. Part 2
- Which Of These Diluents Is Preferable? The barley water or gelatine, the bicarbonate of soda for sour stomach, and the lime water in case of diarrhoea; but neither lime water nor soda should be used...
- Infant Feeding. Part 3
- Then It Is Better Not To Use Any Tubing At All? Well, no mother can afford to have disease-breeding tubiner attached to the nursing bottle if she wants her babe to live. The bottle should hold about...
- Infant Feeding. Part 4
- What Foods May Be Given Children Over Two Years Old? I will first speak of some of the foods not to be given them. The worst abused children are those who are indulged by their parents to such an ex...
- Infant Feeding. Part 5
- When May Other Animal Foods Be Added? Soft-boiled or poached eggs may be given children in their second year, and in some cases the first. It would be well to give only one or two teaspoonfuls at fi...
- Chapter XXL. Diet In Puberty
- Doctor, Why Do You Make A Division At 10 Or 11 Years Of Age? The dietary from 6 to 11 was intended to reach to the age of puberty. Then You Regard Puberty As A Critical Period? For girls it is e...
- Diet In Puberty. Part 2
- Are There Not Other Influences Which Affect The Prenatal Life Of The Child? Yes; this is especially true of dress. A well-known author, when asked when a prospective mother should discard the cors...
- Diet In Puberty. Part 3
- Drinks Not more than four ounces of fluid is allowable of one of the following: Hot water, hot water and milk mixed, caramel cereal, cocoa and chocolate in small quantities are permissible where the...
- Chapter XXII. Dietetic Errors And Dietaries
- Doctor In Discussing Digestion And Foods You Have Frequently Spoken Of Dietetic Errors. Would It Not Be A Good Idea To Enumerate Them? Perhaps so, but one scarcely knows what to give the greatest pr...
- Diet For Bicyclists And Athletes
- Athletes desire the greatest strength and endurance, with activity developed in the highest degree. To this end mucles are developed, fat and water reduced. How Is This Accomplished? By a diet ri...
- Force Value Of Food
- Turnips 18 pounds 21 pounds 32 pounds Tomatoes 25 34 45 Celery 30 40 52 Onions 12 16 21 ...
- Roasted Cereals
- If the cereals were treated as described, and then reduced to fine flour, all the phosphates and gluten would be saved without any objectionable bran, as the cooking and roasting makes it possible to ...
- Chapter XXIII. Food Analyses
- The tables of food analysis here given are made up from many analyses, from many sources, but mainly from the Agricultural Department of the United States: The percentages given are exclusive of wast...
- Part II. Chapter XXIV. Idiosyncrasies
- Idiosyncrasy is a peculiarity, in which one person is in some way affected in a different manner, under the same conditions, from ordinary people. It is applied to foods when there is a great dislike ...
- Idiosyncrasies. Part 2
- Nothing more strongly illustrates the effect of habit than the universal fondness for foods like mother used to make. This is one of the strongest traits in human character and emphasizes the extrao...
- Idiosyncrasies. Part 3
- The third class of idiosyncrasies are not so common, but much more difficult to overcome. These are both pre-natal and post-natal impressions. The action of the human mind is one of the most unexplain...
- Chapter XXV. Causes And Significance Pain
- Pain is the cry of an injured nerve. It often masks its real intention and plays hide and seek in the human body and should therefore be studied with great care, so that its characteristics may be ful...
- Chapter XXVI. Feeding The Sick
- It was formerly supposed that drugs cured disease, and as a consequence, very little attention was paid to feeding sick people. The modern physician strives to aid nature. Nearly a half century ago, a...
- Diet In Acute Diseases
- Many suppose that feeding in acute diseases is unimportant, because they are usually of short duration. This is a great error; for who knows the duration of any attack of illness? The patient should b...
- Chapter XXVII. Causes Of Indigestion
- The diseases of the stomach and other digestive organs are so nearly universal in this country, and so closely related to each other, it may not be amiss to call attention to a few general facts as a ...
- Causes Of Indigestion. Part 2
- Waste of the Body. The waste of the body is eliminated through the lungs, skin, kidneys and bowels; and whenever it is not promptly removed from the system, disease results. The waste is made up of th...
- Causes Of Indigestion. Part 3
- Bad Cooking Next to overeating, it is somewhat difficult to determine whether bad cooking, folly in drinking, or haste in eating, causes most disease. All are well-nigh universally practiced in this ...
- Causes Of Indigestion. Part 4
- Eating Too Little Food Many people, who are somewhat dyspeptic, eat too little food. Upon finding that many foods disagree with them, they restrict their diet until it barely sustains life. This incr...
- Chapter XXVIII. Diseases Of The Stomach
- Diseases of the stomach are classified as follows: Nervous dyspepsia, neurosis of the stomach, gastric neurasthenia and gastralgia, are names applied to various affections of the stomach that have the...
- Nervous Dyspepsia
- This ailment is not really a disease, only a local manifestation of some nerve derangement. It differs from all other diseases of the stomach in this: it has no anatomical change and is not directly d...
- Acute And Chronic Gastritis, Usually Called Catarrh Of The Stomach, Or Bilious Attacks
- These are the most common of all diseases in the United States, except colds. Very few people escape occasional gastric attacks, although they may not be willing to admit the fact. It is indeed a stra...
- Diseases Of Excessive Secretion. Hyperchlorhydria, Hypersecretion And Ulcer
- These diseases are closely related and usually represent the first, second and third stages, although it is claimed that hypersecretion may commence suddenly. Causes of Excessive Secretion. Excessive...
- Ulcer
- The question is sometimes asked, why don't the stomach digest itself? If an animal or human being be suddenly killed during digestion, the stomach will digest itself to a considerable extent. In the l...
- Ulcer. Continued
- In most cases of dilatation, there will be but very little pain, but where there is stricture of the pylorus, it is usually preceded by ulcer and excessive secretion, which are both painful. Fig. ...
- Chapter XXIX. Diseases Of The Intestines, Pancreas And Liver
- We have heretofore described (Chapter II (Digestive Organs, And The Processes Of Digestion)) the general structure and functions of the intestines, but we might again emphasize the fact that a very im...
- Diarrhoea
- This is also a very common complaint, and a common effect of constipation. When fecal matter is long retained in the bowels it may cause an irritation and diarrhoea nature's way of relieving herself. ...
- Piles
- This is an inflammation of the lower part of the rectum, caused by constipation and over-eating of highly seasoned or fatty food, which produces great fullness of the portal circulation. It is also ca...
- Piles. Continued
- Nut or cod-liver oil may be emulsified as follows: Pour the oil in a cup and add about half as much water. Take revolving egg beater, put blades in the oil and water, and then operate as rapidly as po...
- Chapter XXX. Chronic Diseases. Kidneys. Acute Nephritis
- Acute nephritis is an acute inflammation of the kidneys, characterized by albumen, and other pathological elements, in the urine. The disease may develop into chronic nephritis. Chronic nephritis, or ...
- Diabetes Mellitus
- The origin of diabetes has not been satisfactorily determined. It was formerly supposed to be a disease of the kidneys, but modern research has established the fact that the kidneys are merely the int...
- Tuberculosis
- Consumption is one of the greatest enemies of the human race. Its slow insidious attack, has for centuries kept its infectious nature in the background, but thanks to modern research, with the aids of...
- Insomnia
- Sleeplessness is most usually caused by some disturbance of circulation - often the result of nervous excitement. Anything that produces great activity of the mind, such as grief, joy, business cares,...
- Diseases Of The Heart
- The heart is the engine of the human body and its attachments are pipes with valves quite similar to those of ordinary pumps. The valves prevent the return of the blood as it is forced forward. The pr...
- Fatty Degeneration
- In this disease the structure of the muscular walls is changed by part of the fibers disappearing and in their place, globules of fat are deposited. Causes Beer drinking, excessive use of alcoholic ...
- Rickets
- Rickets is a disease essentially due to improper food, but influenced by unsanitary surroundings, such as filth, bad air and water. It is due mainly to deficiency in mineral matter and develops in chi...
- Anaemia And Chlorosis
- This disease has attracted a great deal of attention and besides the medical literature on the subject, short articles have frequently appeared in the newspapers and magazines. These have usually been...
- Epilepsy, Or Fits
- Epileptic fits have many causes. When due to pressure on the brain from injury to the skull, the remedy is only a surgical one. The chief cause, however, is probably due to uric acid in the blood, .an...
- Asthma
- Asthma is the spasmodic contraction of the breathing tubes, which prevents the free entrance and exit of air. The attacks come on more or less irregularly, and may be brought on by a number of causes,...
- Leanness
- The doctor's advice to the fat and to the lean, has long been a target for the humorous paragrapher. It is just possible, too, that they draw a picture too often true, when they describe the doctor as...
- Obesity - Corpulence
- Obesity is the accumulation of an excessive amount of fat in the body. Causes Its most usual cause is over-eating, although some obese people eat very little. In most cases there is a hereditary ten...
- Headache
- This ailment has so many causes that a complete description of them would fill a volume; but they may be briefly described by saying: that headaches are caused by poisonous substances in the blood, an...
- Chapter XXXI. Acute Diseases. Cold
- Cold is an elastic term that is applied to a large number of symptoms, varying much in severity. The most common form is called coryza, but better known as cold in the head. This form of cold is an ...
- Malaria
- It is now generally accepted as a fact, that malaria is a germ disease. Where there is rich land and heavy vegetation, there will likely be malaria about the end of the Summer, and in hot climates all...
- Scarlet Fever
- Scarlet fever is a contagious and infectious disease, and is an inflammation of both skin and mucous membranes of the body. It has three periods: 1st. Invasion, which lasts from 24 to 48 hours. 2nd....
- Diphtheria
- Diphtheria is a specific infectious disease caused by a microbe known as Klebs-Loeffler bacillus. It is locally manifested by an intense inflammation of the throat, with constitutional symptoms, due t...
- Haemoptysis - Haemorrhage Of The Lungs
- Haemorrhage of the lungs or blood-spitting, has many causes: 1. Rupture from external violence, as from blows or falls. 2. Violent exertion, as an attempt to perform some extraordinary feat, and inf...
- Pneumonia
- This disease is an acute inflammation of the general structure of the lungs, which may invade any part of the entire lungs. Causes It is probably due to a germ, but as it cannot find lodgment in a h...
- Skin Diseases
- Skin diseases are caused by parasites (such as itch), contagious and infectious diseases, diseases of the heart and blood vessels, nervous disorders, but most commonly by some form of starch or fat in...
- Acne
- This is an eruption of red pimples on the face, that do not readily disappear. Causes Excess of fats or starch, doughnuts, sausage, fried meat, buckwheat cakes, or griddle cakes, pastry, excess of s...
- Eczema
- This is the most common of all skin diseases not of a transient nature, and begins with an inflamed patch which often spreads. There are usually red pimples, but the red spots may only be swollen vesi...
- Yellow Fever
- Yellow fever is an infectious disease of a violent character that is caused by a specific germ which thrives in animal and vegetable matter. It is essentially a disease of the tropics, and is rarely o...
- Laryngismus Stridulus - Spasmodic Croup
- Spasmodic croup is the ordinary croup, in which the spasm affects the muscles of the larynx and makes breathing difficult, causing a wheezing sound at each respiration. The disease seldom affects any ...
- Septicaemia (Blood Poisoning)
- This is a constitutional disease due to poisoning from the absorption of pus into the blood. Bacteria are always present and enter the system from some local injury or decomposing tissue in the system...
- Scrofula
- Scrofula is a disease which manifests itself in various parts of the body and is doubtless a blood disease. It most usually breaks out on the skin, but may affect the mucous membranes, bones, tissues,...
- Pleurisy
- Pleurisy is an inflammation of the investing membrane of the lungs. It is caused by some functional derangement of other organs of the body. Symptoms Pleurisy usually begins with some sharp, stitch-...
- Erysipelas
- Erysipelas is a contagious and infectious disease caused by micro-organisms. It usually first appears in wounds, but not always; for parts of the body supposed to be healthy may be first attacked. The...
- Apoplexy
- Apoplexy is a haemorrhage or stoppage in the blood vessels of the brain. It may be preceded by dizziness, and sense of discomfort, or it may come suddenly. There is loss of consciousness and frequentl...
- Tetanus - Lockjaw
- Lockjaw is a disease of the nervous system due to some specific bacillus that enters through a wound. It has received its name doubtless because of the muscular spasms which first affect the muscles o...
- Typhoid Fever
- Typhoid fever is a continuous fever, caused by an infectious poison, supposed to be due to a micro-organism, known as typhoid bacillus. The fever usually lasts about a month. How Acquired It is beli...
- Influenza - (La Grippe)
- Influenza is an infectious disease characterized by catarrh of the mucous membranes of the air passages, and alimentary canal. It is contagious, and the bacilli are often present in great numbers, ...
- Chapter XXXII. What To Do In Accidents And Emergencies
- When a large blood vessel is opened, death may so quickly result, that it is very important to know what to do to stop the flow of blood, without delay. When there is a cut or wound, the blood may eit...
- What To Do In Case Of Fractures
- By fracture, we mean a break in a bone or cartilage. When the ends of the bone are driven through the skin, or an opening made that permits the atmosphere to enter, it is compound, and where a nerve, ...
- What To Do In Case Of Poisoning
- Poisoning requires prompt and effective treatment, and the patient's life depends largely upon the length of time that has elapsed between the taking of the poison, and the administration of an approp...
- What To Do In Case Of Burns
- Burns and scalds are painful accidents of frequent occurrence. They may vary in extent from a slight burn, destroying or inflaming a small portion of the skin to very extensive ones which destroy all ...
- What To Do In Case Of Hysterics
- Hysterics may be defined as a nervous explosion. It is probably best treated in mild attacks, by taking no notice of it, or by attracting the patient's attention to something in which she may be much ...
- What To Do In Case Of Drowning
- All clothing should be loosened. The patient should be placed over a barrel, or the feet elevated, in fact, stood on his head for a few minutes; this should be done even in the seemingly most hopeless...
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