Confidential Chats with Boys

by William Lee Howard

You should not delay nor try to attend to your teeth aside from keeping them clean. At the least sign of decay or the appearance of color on them, go to a dentist. There is no pain or distress in the dentist’s chair if you attend to the matter at once.

Drink plenty of water before breakfast, then when possible, fruit. Remember that there are about thirty-three feet or more of piping in your body. Through this piping—the intestines—there is a constant flow of food-stuff undergoing a chemical process. It leaves a lot of dirt—useless stuff—in the pipes. Now if you had a series of lead pipes through which flowed constantly some fluid which made a deposit on the sides, you would naturally flush out the pipes, every once in a while—wouldn’t you? Of course you would.

Well, do the same with your system of piping. In the morning there is a lot of useless matter containing germs left in your thirty-three feet of intestines. Flush them out by large drinks of water, plenty of it. This will also keep your bowels free; the principal thing to observe if you wish a healthy body.

Shall I drink water with my meals or after—or when?

Again watch your dog; he drinks when he is thirsty; do the same. It is better to drink some water just before meals, and if your meal has been somewhat a dry meal, drink water during that meal; if you desire it—just do as your system demands.

Do not attempt any training through a regular system of diet. If you prefer a lot of meat and like it, it is going to do you good; if you force underdone meat down against your liking, it is going to weaken your muscles instead of strengthening them.

Is candy or other sweets harmful?

No; not a bit—the normal boy often needs sugar—his system demands it. But here is the trouble with all sweets—they are too often eaten between or just before meals. This destroys the edge of a good appetite and hence the habit is injurious—not the candy itself. After meals if you crave sweets they will do you good. Chocolate is beneficial to all boys if eaten only after the second or third meal of the day.

But there is so much adulteration of all candies and chocolate that in order not to injure yourself you should avoid all cheap stuff, and especially that rotten mess sold on the street stands. Then think of the dirt and germs which have accumulated upon these adulterated sweets. Get the best or leave sweets alone.