Fig. 66 —This man is curing himself of tuberculosis by sleeping at night, and sitting by day, on this porch.
Many years ago when the Indians lived in tents and often slept outdoors none of them had this dirty air disease of tuberculosis. Since they have formed the habit of living in houses nearly one half of some tribes have become sick with this catching disease.
Making the Lungs Strong.—It requires over three quarts of air to fill your lungs. When you breathe quietly, less than one pint of air passes in and out of your lungs. This shows that a large part of the lungs is not used. The air sacs at the top and in the bottom part of the lungs are seldom filled completely. It is in these places that disease begins.
Several minutes should be spent two or three times each day in exercising the lungs. Fill them completely with air many times. Learn to breathe deeply while you are walking in the fresh air. Hold the head up and the shoulders back so that every part of the lungs can be filled. Sit straight. Your life depends upon your lungs. Give them a chance to do their work and teach them to do it well.
Fig. 67 —Unhealthful position which squeezes the lungs so that they cannot work freely.
Tobacco and Pure Air.—There is poison in the smoke of tobacco. This is shown by its effect on insects. Owners of greenhouses often buy the stems and other waste parts of tobacco. They pile it in a pan and after closing the doors and windows of the greenhouse tightly, set fire to it. The smoke rises and fills the whole house. In less than an hour it has killed many of the bugs and beetles which were destroying the plants.
A person not used to tobacco will sometimes be made sick by sitting only an hour in a room where persons are smoking. It is wrong for smokers to poison the air which others must breathe. For this reason a smoking room should be well ventilated.