TONIC AND MEDICATED BATHS
Tonic baths are usually given to older children when they are able to enter into the sport and frolic of a cool bath. Baths are called tonic because they call forth from the body a reaction—a sort of circulatory rebound. This rebound or reaction brings the blood to the skin, increases the circulation, and tones up the nerves. The room should be properly warmed and, if necessary, some form of exercise be continued after the bath to prevent the chill that sometimes follows a poorly administered bath.
In the case of the anemic child, after six months of age, the mother's hand dipped in cold water may briskly rub the chest and back until it glows or becomes red. The child should enjoy this bath. Never frighten a child by throwing cold water on it or by giving it a too sudden cold plunge; great harm may be permanently done by these efforts to "toughen the baby."
The simple medicated baths may be administered according to the following directions:
Salt. Use half a teacup of common salt or sea salt to each gallon of water. The salt should first be dissolved in a cup of warm water to prevent the sharp particles from pricking the skin. The doctor sometimes orders a salt bath.
Starch. Add a cup of ordinary, cooked laundry starch for every gallon of water in the bath.
Soda. A soda bath requires two tablespoons of ordinary baking soda to a gallon of water, dissolving it in a little water before adding it to the bath.
Bran. Make a cotton bag of cheesecloth or other thin material, six inches square. Fill loosely with bran. Soak the bag in the bath water, squeezing it frequently until the water becomes milky.
Starch, soda, and bran baths are often used in place of the ordinary soap and water bath when the skin is inflamed, as in cases of chafing or prickly heat.