The Four Epochs of Woman's Life; A Study in Hygiene

by Anna M. Galbraith

Dr. John Brown, in reviewing the subject, says it must be conceded that the male element has an influence on the female, over and above its fertilizing influence upon the ovum. The limit of this influence is at present unknown.

Heredity.— Girls are more apt to resemble their fathers in mental traits, disposition, and constitution; while boys take after their mothers. Boys procreated by intelligent mothers will be intelligent; while it does not always follow that the sons of intelligent fathers are intelligent. The poets Burns, Ben Johnson, Goethe, Walter Scott, Byron, and Lamartine were all born of women remarkable for vivacity and brilliance of language.

Hygiene of Pregnancy.— The health and perfection of the child depend largely upon the health and perfection of the parents at the time of its conception, as well as upon the condition of the mother during the pregnancy. Even when both parents possess a strong constitution, but one or both of them is suffering from a temporary exhaustion or malaise, the child will be born below the standard of health it ought to possess. Children born during the first year of married life seldom equal in health the children born of the same parents later; they are not only apt to be sickly, but the liability to premature death is greatly increased. For this reason it is better that the first year of married life should be allowed to pass without conception taking place. A child begotten in an intoxicated or depraved condition of a parent may be depraved itself in the same way, and is apt to be feeble-minded or idiotic.

It must be borne in mind that prenatal culture of some sort begins at the time of conception; and that on the mental as well as on the physical state of the mother, the health as well as the disposition of the child will depend to no slight extent. The prospective mother who constantly gives way to her feelings does a wrong to her unborn child. The mother is at this time more impressionable, more nervous, and more irritable than is natural to her; and while her family should make a certain allowance for her condition, she, on her part, should not allow herself to give way to her morbid feelings. The prospective mother should not lead a life of self-indulgence, on the one hand, or, on the other, should not be weighed down with cares; she should interest herself in her usual duties, and be relieved of all anxiety possible.

Dress.— The clothing must be loose, and all compression about the waist and abdomen must be especially avoided. If the woman wears corsets, she must take them off at once, and substitute a Ferris or some similar hygienic waist. The corset prevents the proper development of the abdominal muscles, which play so important a role in the expulsion of the child from the womb, as well as in the proper growth and development of the fetus itself. If the woman has already borne children, and toward the end of the pregnancy the abdomen becomes pendulous, she will very materially add to her comfort by swearing a muslin abdominal bandage.

A woolen undersuit, or undervest and drawers, with high neck and long sleeves, must be worn winter and summer; the grade of the wool to be adapted to the season of the year. The especial necessity for wearing wool next the skin during the pregnancy is because of the intimate relation between the skin and the kidneys. Any chilling of the body at this time is apt to lead to the congestion of the kidneys. If there is already any congestion of the kidneys present, or any abdominal pain, in addition to the undersuit an abdominal bandage should be worn. These bandages come woven in ribbed woolen, and fit the body snugly. This bandage is to be constantly worn, and, of course, changed at night. During the cold weather the stockings should also be of wool. Under no circumstances are garters allowed to be worn, as they form a constriction around the leg and interfere with the return of the venous blood to the heart, and so increase the tendency to the formation of the varicose veins. It is better not to use any means to hold the stockings up; they will be kept sufficiently well in place by the under-drawers. Low shoes should never be worn except in the hottest weather. It is of the greatest importance that the woman should be impressed with the necessity of the avoidance of taking cold, since any lung or kidney trouble is a serious complication of pregnancy.

Diet.— The diet is the same as that at any other time, only it is more necessary to guard against anything which is likely to cause indigestion. In other words, the diet should be plain, simple, and easy of digestion; nutritious and partaken of at regular intervals. In the latter part of pregnancy owing to the pressure of the enlarged uterus on the stomach, the food may have to be partaken of in smaller quantities and at shorter intervals. At this time also the appetite is abnormally large. Where it does not disagree with the patient, milk is the best adjuvant possible to the diet.

Constipation.— Constipation is the rule of pregnancy. This is due to the great pressure that the enlarged uterus makes on the bowel; and as important as it is at all times to keep the bowels regular, it is at this time more necessary than ever that the woman should have the bowels well evacuated every day. A retention of fecal matter in the body causes the reabsorption into the blood of the toxic matters, with the resulting headaches, dizziness, loss of appetite, and intense nervousness. To obviate this tendency to constipation, plenty of fruit and vegetables should be eaten, as well as cereals if the woman is taking a good deal of outdoor exercise, otherwise the latter had better be omitted. The woman should drink plenty of water— at least three pints a day; this acts as a laxative as well as to flush out the kidneys. If, in spite of all these measures, constipation still persists, as it probably will, a seidlitz powder can be taken the first thing on rising in the morning; or from one teaspoonful to one tablespoonful of the effervescing granules of the phosphate of soda in a glass of water, also to be taken on rising in the morning; or one-half grain of the solid extract of cascara sagrada night and morning. The object of these is to keep the bowels open, but purgation must always be avoided.

Bladder Symptoms.— If there is any irritability of the bladder, any scalding on urination, or a very great frequency of emptying the bladder in the early months of pregnancy, a physician should be consulted at once; in the last months of pregnancy there is a desire to evacuate the bladder frequently, and sometimes at the last there is an incontinence of urine, which is due to the descent of the uterus and the great pressure on the bladder; this condition disappears with the confinement.

Leucorrhea.— If this is present to any marked degree, the vaginal douche should be continued throughout the pregnancy; the temperature of the douche should be from 110° to 112° F.; it must never be taken very hot or very cold. The fountain syringe should be used, and the bag should not be hung more than three feet above the bed, so that there shall not be too much force to the stream of water.