Remember that a horse’s coat of hair corresponds to your skin; it is his complexion. Deprive yourself of water and your skin becomes dull, sticky and malodorous. But we shall have a lot to say about the skin, so nothing more now.
With all this good habit of drinking plenty of water must go the application of water to the outside of the body. This you must do to wash away the dried crystals of all the chemical materials sent out from the skin and glands. Warm SPONGE baths, while you are menstruating, are necessary. I know that you all have been told never to take a bath while your period was on, but you see that you must get rid of these tell-tale odors now that you are out in the world. Of course you must be careful not to take cold; you should not use any but warm water, and then jump into bed warmly covered. Use no scented soap, not even under the arms, just plain castile or a similar PURE soap. After the flow has ceased be certain to wash your external parts with a soft sponge and pure soap. You want to consider this part of your toilet just as important as washing the teeth or ears, and it should be done in the same unconcerned and unthinking manner.
[CHAPTER IV]
THE CARE OF THE SKIN AND COMPLEXION
All girls want a good complexion and a clear skin. The skin and hair are the glories of a healthy woman. Most of you can have this desired state of a clear skin and pure complexion. A good complexion merely means a perfect state of health. A clear skin does not depend on what you apply to it, but what you keep off it.
The clear, satin-like skin, the skin which looks like a transparent piece of silk laid upon a soft cushion of white flesh, and that sheeny skin resembling fine velvet, seen in the pure blonde type of girls, are all the effects of the blood beneath and how that blood is treated by the emotions.
Muddy and contaminating thoughts will cause a muddy skin. Clean and clear thoughts will give you a clear skin. Jealousy and anger will, in time, affect the flow of blood through your tiny skin-veins and give you the appearance of age. Any emotion which causes indigestion will do the same thing. In fact, the state of mind and the manner in which you control your thoughts and temper are reflected in the tone of the skin.
It is during the first few years of menstruating that the girl who does not understand these matters commences to ruin her complexion. While your body is developing, the tiny glands in the skin are undergoing great changes. These changes cause the glands to pour out oily matter, perspiration and other material, all of which naturally bring about a muddy complexion in some girls and redness of the nose, or pimples on the face, in others.
These conditions are natural to the growing girl. The skin is clearing itself of all the little girl’s activities and making ready for the woman’s complexion. It is Springtime with the skin, and this dirt—or what looks like dirt—is the result of all this skin-cleaning. Hair is appearing on certain parts of the body; that almost invisible down which all women possess, is growing on all portions of the body and face. The monthly periods are causing congested blood vessels throughout the whole body and especially the tiny arteries of the skin. Every part of your system is really undergoing a great change and does not get into a state of perfect health until you are eighteen years of age and over. As in all things in which a decided revolution takes place, there is more or less of a disturbance.