Physiology and Hygiene for Secondary Schools

by Francis M. Walters

Where one is sick from some contagious disease in the home and there is liability of communicating it to the other members of the family, room isolation should be practiced. Infection cannot spread through solid walls, and where the doors, and the cracks around the doors, are kept completely closed and the usual precautions are observed by those attending the patient, the other inmates of the house can be protected from the disease.

The Physician and His Work.—In combating disease the services of the physician are a prime necessity. The special knowledge which he has at his command enables the conflict to be carried on according to scientific requirements[pg 407] and vastly increases the chances for recovery. He should be called early and his directions should be carefully followed. Everything, however, must not be left to the physician, for recovery depends as much upon proper nursing and feeding as upon the drugs that are administered. Of great importance is the saving of the energy of the patient, and to accomplish this visitors should, as a rule, be excluded from the sick room.

Precautions in Recovery from Disease.—Many diseases, if severe, not only leave the body in a weakened condition, but may, through the toxins which the germs deposit, cause untold harm if the patient leaves his bed or resumes his usual activities too soon. Especially is this true of typhoid fever,[134] diphtheria, scarlet fever, and measles. Rheumatism and affections of the heart, lungs, kidneys, and other bodily organs frequently follow these diseases, as the result of slight exposure or exertion before the body has sufficiently recovered from the effects of the toxins. To guard against such results, certain physicians require their patients to keep their beds for a week, or longer, after apparent recovery from diseases like typhoid fever, diphtheria, and scarlet fever.

Relation of Vocation to Disease.—With a few exceptions, the pursuit of one's vocation, or calling in life, does not supply either the quantity or the kind of activity that is most in harmony with the plan of the body. Especially is this true of work that requires most of the time to be spent indoors, or which exercises but a small portion of the body. The effect of such vocations, if not counteracted, [pg 408]is to weaken certain organs, thereby disturbing the functional equilibrium of the body—a result that may be brought about either by the overwork of particular organs or by lack of exercise of others. Herein lies the explanation of the observed fact that people of the same calling in life have similar diseases.

A Special Problem for the Brain Worker.—Farthest removed from those forms of activity which harmonize with the plan of the body, and which therefore are most hygienic, is that class of workers known as the professional class, or the "brain workers." This class includes not only the members of the learned professions—law, medicine, and the ministry—but a vast army of business men, engineers, teachers, stenographers, office clerks, etc., a class that is ever increasing as our civilization advances. It is this class in particular that must give attention to those conditions that indirectly, but profoundly, influence the bodily well-being and must seek to obviate if possible such weaknesses as the occupation induces.

The Remedy lies in two directions—that of spending sufficient time away from one's work to allow the body to recover its normal condition, and that of counteracting the effect of the work by special exercise or other means. In many cases the first symptoms of weakness indicate a suitable remedy. Thus exhaustion from overwork suggests rest and recreation. The diverting of too much blood from other parts of the body to the brain suggests some form of exercise which will equalize the circulation. If feebleness of the digestive organs is being induced, some natural method of increasing the blood supply to these organs is to be looked for. And effects arising from lack of fresh air and sunlight are counteracted by spending more time out of doors.

[pg 409]Exercise as a Counteractive Agent.—In counteracting tendencies to disease and in the maintenance of the functional equilibrium of the body, no agent has yet been discovered of greater importance than physical exercise, when applied systematically and persistently. This may consist of exercises that call into play all the muscles of the body, or which are concentrated upon special parts. When general tonic effects are desired, the exercise should be well distributed; but when counteractive or remedial effects are wanted, it must be applied chiefly to the parts that are weak or that have not been called into action by the regular work. Unfortunately, health is sometimes confused with physical strength and exercise is directed toward the stronger parts of the body with the effect of making them still stronger. Not only is health not to be measured by the pounds that one can lift or by some gymnastic feat that one can perform, but the possession of great muscular power may, if the heart and other vital organs be not proportionally strong, prove a menace to the health. This being true, one having his health primarily in view will use physical exercise, in part at least, as a means of building up organs that are weak. Since the body, like a chain, can be no stronger than its weakest part, this is clearly the logical method of fortifying it against disease.

Value of Work.—Although there may exist in one's vocation certain tendencies to disease, it must not be inferred that work in itself is detrimental to health. Health demands activity, and those forms of activity that provide a regular and systematic outlet for one's surplus energy and compel the formation of correct habits of eating, sleeping, and recreating best serve the purpose. Work furnishes activity of this kind and serves[pg 410] also as a safeguard against the unhealthful and immoral habits contracted so often from idleness. Even physical exercise which has for its purpose the reënforcement of the body against disease may frequently consist of useful work without diminishing its hygienic effects.

The Mental Attitude.—While a proper thoughtfulness and care for the body is both desirable and necessary, it is also true that over-anxiety about, or an unnatural attention to, the needs of the body reacts unfavorably upon the nervous system. Observance of the laws of health, therefore, should be natural and without special effort—a matter of habit. The attention should never be turned with anxiety upon any organ or process, but the mental attitude should at all times be that of confidence in the power of the body organization to do its work. Fear and morbidity, which are disturbing and paralyzing factors, should be supplanted by courage, cheerfulness, and hopefulness.

Let it be borne in mind that hygienic living requires nothing more than the application of the same intelligence and practical common sense to the care of the body that the skillful mechanic applies to an efficient, but delicate, machine. And, just as in the case of the machine, care of the body keeps its efficiency at the maximum and lengthens the period that it may be used. This end and aim of hygienic living is best attained by cultivating that attitude of mind toward the body that avoids interference in the vital processes and permits the natural appetites, sensations, and desires to indicate very largely the body's needs.