Femina, A Work for Every Woman

by John A. Miller

But in all cases of chlorosis the sexual functions are the seat of the greatest disturbance; amenorrhœa or the suppression of the menses is the most prominent symptom. The ovaries no longer seem to expel ripened ova, for there are no indications that point to their activity, because there is not only an absence of the show, but also an absence of the other signs that were noted when we considered menstruation and ovulation.

There are a great many other diseases of which amenorrhœa is a prominent symptom; these will be referred to when separate diseases become the subject of special inquiry.

The treatment of amenorrhœa is, indeed, in the great majority of cases, the treatment of chlorosis, and that should be conducted on common-sense principles. If the child has vicious practices, they must be corrected, and everything else that has been mentioned as a cause must be abandoned. Children who were once robust and strong require electrical treatment, while those who were naturally weak require nourishing food and tonics. If there is in the entire pharmacopœa a remedy that deserves the name of a specific, it is to that one which I suggest in amenorrhœa due to chlorosis or anæmia. Iron preparations are very numerous; every physician has his favorite prescription; some are to be praised more for their elegance and flavor than for any virtue that they possess. If in these cases any positive and decided result is to follow the administration of iron, it must be given in such a mild form that it can be taken in great quantities without irritating the stomach or interfering with digestion. If the contents of the whole alimentary canal are saturated or impregnated with the ferruginous medicine, there will be astonishing curative effects.

I have often observed chlorotic cases who have made the rounds of the different iron springs, and who have taken the numerous and various fancy elixirs, without the slightest perceptible effect, bloom up, after being fed, so to speak, on some harmless iron preparation, which was astonishing to themselves and surprising to their friends. The following is my favorite prescription for chlorosis or anæmia:

NO. I.

Take:	Powd. Carb. of iron, sacch. (Germ.)	1 ounce
	Powd. Aloes.	20 grains
	Powd. Tragacanth.	20 grains

Mix with sufficient water to make into a hard mass and divide into one hundred and fifty pills, and roll in powdered cinnamon.

Take three pills three times a day and after three days increase to four pills at one dose three times a day, then after another three days increase to five pills as many times a day as before; if these doses are not at first borne, begin with less, and if there is no costiveness or tendency thereto, omit the aloes.

If there is reason to believe that the impoverishment of the blood is partly or wholly due to scorfulous taints, then it is advisable to take fresh, pure cod liver oil in conjunction with the iron pills; three boxes of pills are, as a rule, necessary to effect a cure.

It happens quite often in chlorosis or anæmia that there is a distressing dyspepsia or indigestion with loss of appetite. In these cases I would first advise to put the stomach in order; this is done by first avoiding all indigestible food, such as cakes, pies, and puddings, and taking the following medicine: