Hygienic Physiology : with Special Reference to the Use of Alcoholic Drinks and Narcotics

by Joel Dorman Steele

THE CIRCULATION.

105. Name the organs of the circulation. Does the blood permeate all parts of the body? What is the average amount in each person? Its composition? The plasma? The red corpuscles? The white?

106. What is the size of a red cell? Are the shape and size uniform? Value of this? Illustrate. Are the disks permanent? What substances are contained in the plasma? What is fibrin?

107. In what sense is the blood "liquid flesh"? What is the use of the red disks? What is the office of the oxygen in the body? Where is the blood purified?

108. What is transfusion? Is it of value?

109. Give some illustrations. What is the cause of coagulation of the blood? Value of this property? Has the fibrin any other use?

110. What organ propels the blood? What is the location of the heart? How large is it? Put your hand over it. What is the pericardium? Describe the systole.

111. The diastole. How many chambers in the heart? What is their average size? What is meant by the right and left heart? What are the auricles? Why so called? The ventricles?

112. What is the use of the auricles? The ventricles? Which are made the stronger? Show the need of valves in the ventricles. Why are there no valves in the auricles? Draw on the board the form of the valves. Name them.

113. Describe the tricuspid valve. The bicuspid. How are these valves strengthened?

114. What peculiarity in the attachment of these cords? Describe the semilunar valves. What are the arteries? Why so named? What is their use? Their structure? How does their elasticity act? What is meant by a "collateral circulation"?

115. How are the arteries protected? Where are they located? Give a general description of the arterial system. What is the aorta? What is the pulse? On which arteries can we best feel it? What is the average number of beats per minute? How and why does this vary?

116. Why does a physician feel a patient's pulse? What are the veins? What blood do they carry? Describe the venous system. What vein does not lead toward the heart? Describe the valves of the veins. What valves of the heart do they resemble? What are varicose veins?

117. Where and how can we see the operation of these valves? What are the capillaries? What is the function of the capillaries? [Footnote: The distinctive function of the capillaries is to offer peripheral resistance to the circulation of the blood. This insures "blood pressure," a condition indispensable to the "heart beat," and also causes leakage (transudation). This leakage brings the nutriment in contact with the tissue cells, whereby they are renewed. In the same way the air passes from the blood to the cells.] What changes take place in this system?

118. Describe the circulation of the blood as seen in the web of a frog's foot.

119. Who discovered the circulation of the blood? How was the discovery received? What remark did Harvey make? What does that show? Name the two divisions of the circulation. Describe the route of the blood by the diagram. 1. The lesser circulation. 2. The greater circulation.

120. What is the velocity of the blood? How long does it require for all the blood to pass through the heart? How long does it take the blood to make the tour of the body? What is the average temperature of the body? How much does this vary in health? Ans. Not more than 2°, even in the greatest extremes of temperature.—FLINT.

121. How and where is the heat of the body generated? How is it distributed? In what diseases is the variation of temperature marked? How is the temperature of the body regulated?

122. In what way does life exist through death? Is not this as true in the moral as in the physical world? What does it teach? How rapidly do our bodies change? What are the three vital organs?

123. Name some of the wonders of the heart.

124-126. What is the lymphatic circulation? What is the thoracic duct? The lymph? The glands? What is the office of the lymphatics? What are the lacteals? Give some illustrations of the action of the lymphatics of the different organs. Should we use care in selecting wall paper? What is meant by the subcutaneous insertion of morphine? How do hibernating animals live during the winter? What is a congestion? Its cause?

127. What is blushing? Why does terror cause one to grow cold and pale? How is an inflammation caused? Name its four characteristics.

128. How may severe bleeding be stopped? How can you tell whether the blood comes from an artery or a vein? Why should you know this? What is the scrofula? What are "kernels"?

129, 130. How may a scrofulous tendency of the system be counteracted? What kinds of food stimulate this disease? What is the cause of a "cold"? Why does exposure sometimes cause a cold in the head, sometimes on the lungs, and at others bring on a rheumatic attack? Why is a cold dangerous? Ans. It weakens the system and paves the way for other diseases. What is the theory of treating a cold? Describe the method. What is catarrh? Cause?

131, 132. How is alcohol produced? Is alcohol present in domestic wines and home-brewed ales? Are they, then, harmless drinks? What is a ferment? (See also pp. 300, 301.) What is the difference between ferments, bacteria, microbes, and fungi? Ans. A few investigators still look upon the microorganisms known as bacteria and microbes as animal existences, but the larger part now concede them to be vegetable.

133. What is the effect of fermentation? What can you say concerning yeast?

134. Explain the process of making beer. Wine. What is distillation?

135, 136. Is there more than one kind of alcohol? What can you say of methyl alcohol? Amyl? Ethyl? Which is the ordinary alcohol of commerce? What is the peculiar effect of fusel oil? Is it often found in wines and spirits? Has alcohol any beneficial properties?

137, 138. Describe one of the striking effects of alcohol. What is the effect of alcohol on plant and animal life?

139, 140. What is the difference between the alcohol present in beer and cider, and that in gin and whiskey? Name another dangerous effect of alcoholic drinks. What business consideration should deter young men from liquor drinking?

141-143. Illustrate the general effect of alcohol upon the circulation. Upon the heart. Is alcohol a stimulant or a narcotic? Describe how alcohol becomes the "Genius of Degeneration." Explain what is meant by "Vascular Enlargement."

144, 145. Describe the effect of alcohol upon the membranes. Upon the blood. Does it render the blood thin or heavy? What is the difference between pure and alcoholized blood?

145-147. Describe the effect of alcohol upon the lungs. What form of consumption does it induce? Are liquor drinkers more or less liable to epidemic diseases?

314. How does the pulse felt by the finger correspond with the beat of the heart? Name some agencies that influence the pulse beat? Which part of the body has the most varied form of pulsation?

315. Compare the pulses of the wrist and brain in the sleeping and the waking states. How do catarrhal colds generally arise? How are they best cured?

316. What is said of the vitality of catarrh germs? What is a popular fallacy with regard to the care of sick rooms? Give Dr. Austin Flint's remarks in this connection.