MEDICAL.
Little Dot.—1. The condition of your face is almost for certain due to acne rosacea. The only other disease which we think it likely that you could be suffering from would be lupus erythematosus—a form of lupus which is not due to tuberculosis or scrofula, but which is a highly-developed form of chilblains. Your description agrees so well with that of acne rosacea that there can be little doubt but that it is that complaint. This disease would be in no way dependent upon nor influenced by any disease that your parents may have had. This complaint commonly goes by the name of “grog-blossoms”; but is frequently caused by other things than “grog.” In fact it is not the alcohol itself so much as the indigestion that it causes which produces the “blossoms.” Any form of indigestion may be accompanied by rosacea; and so the first thing in the treatment of the affection is to look to the digestion. Locally use an ointment of sulphur or ichthiol, preferably the latter. You must guard carefully against constipation, as this of itself will produce rosacea.—2. We think it highly improbable that you suffer from stone in the kidney; but of course we could not be certain without personal examination. The only symptom you give us is one which you are very likely to have misinterpreted, whereas you tell us nothing which to our minds suggests kidney disease.
Margaret.—You can test for yourself whether the water supplied to you contains lead; but it is hardly worth your while to do so. Still, if you wish to try, get a glass cylinder two feet long, and place it on a sheet of white paper. Fill it with the water to be tested, and pour into it a few drops of solution of sulphuretted hydrogen, or let a jet of the pure gas bubble through the water. If lead is present a brownish discoloration of the water will occur, varying in depth of tint according to the amount of lead present. Copper and one or two other metals give the same reaction. You must be careful of the sulphuretted hydrogen, for it is poisonous. You could get the water tested for less money than the cylinder and reagent cost to buy.
O Mimosa San.—Certainly all your symptoms can be traced to your bad teeth. You complain of flatulency, headache, constipation, cold feet, and poor appetite. Are not all these common symptoms of dyspepsia? And what is commoner as a cause of dyspepsia than bad teeth? Go to the dentist again and have your teeth thoroughly overhauled. But remember, if you have many teeth extracted, you must have false ones inserted in their place. Have the false teeth made at once, for after a month or two the remaining teeth make an attempt to fill up the gap where bad teeth have been extracted and leave your teeth with narrow slits between them. How few people recognise the value of teeth! Normal digestion is quite impossible without them.
An Irish Reader.—1. Do you wear a straw hat, and do the spots on your forehead correspond to the line where the hat presses? During the summer many girls develop spots on their foreheads from the irritation of straw hats. These spots often trouble girls, who seek in vain for their cause. The real cause scarcely ever presents itself to their notice. If you have thoroughly tried sulphur ointment without success, use ichthiol ointment 2½ per cent. instead. Also see that your hats do not press upon your forehead.—2. The fifth of September, 1877, was a Wednesday.
Lorna Doone.—One would naturally suppose that such a simple subject as the care of the nails was completely understood. But this is, nevertheless, far from being the case, and it often gives more trouble to cure thin or broken nails than it does to cure some of the most deadly diseases to which we are subject. We advise your friend to soak her finger-tips every night in hot water and then to smear them with lanoline or other simple ointment. In the morning she should wipe off the ointment and dip her fingers into pure alcohol for five minutes. She should also be very careful to cut and trim her nails properly. We do not promise to cure her, but we have seen good results from this treatment.
Maori.—The hair frequently falls off in larger quantities in autumn than in any other season. Indeed, it appears that the hair of man “moults” as does the fur of mammals and the feathers of birds. After autumn, the spring is the time of year at which the hair falls out in greatest quantities. This periodical moulting of the hair does good rather than harm, and there is really no call to stop it—if, indeed, it could be stopped, which we question.
Agricola.—“What is the difference between a sprained and a varicose vein?” We really do not know what you mean by a “sprained vein,” so that part of the question we cannot answer. Systematic rubbing or massage is of some value for varicose veins; but it is not altogether safe, and is not worth a trial. Rest with the legs elevated, walking, and the support given by an elastic stocking are the chief items in the treatment of varicose veins. Standing is to be avoided as far as possible.
GIRLS’ EMPLOYMENTS.
L. M. (Employment on Board Ship).—We fear you would find this difficult to obtain, seeing that you are not strong at present. Stewardesses need to be decidedly vigorous people. Such positions are commonly accorded by the steamship companies to the relatives of their own officers. It would seem that the work in a cotton mill, though well paid, is likely to be injurious to your health, and therefore if you could find some more healthy occupation, you should certainly take it. Cannot your employer put you in the way of emigrating to South Africa? It would be well to lay the case before him. You should likewise apply for advice to the Manchester and Salford branch of the National Union of Women Workers, 13, Temple Chambers, Brazenose Street, Manchester. With this Union many of the most important societies in Manchester for women and girls are affiliated, and the secretary could tell you which would be most likely to help you. The secretary could also inform you whether there is in Manchester any active member of the British Women’s Emigration Association, the headquarters of which are at the Imperial Institute, Kensington, W. We imagine that emigration would be best for you; at the same time it is possible that work might be found for you in this country under conditions that would better accord with your health.