Confidential Chats with Girls

by William Lee Howard

Fat is poured out in this “insensible perspiration.” Even the finger tips will secrete it. If the palm of the hand is cleansed with soap and then with ether; held in the sunlight and observed with a magnifying glass, you can see little bubbles arising which immediately evaporate, leaving tiny drops of an oily substance—fat.

If this is so—and it is a scientific fact—is not the statement I made to you, that water will help reduce fat instead of making it, easily understood? But, then, why will drinking water also make fat? Because it simply balances the physiological functions, brings about a proper chemical action throughout the whole body and in doing this enables the tissues to extract from your food the elements which go to make up fat, flesh and blood.

In other words, give the body its needed supply of water, air, food and exercise, and it will take care of itself—give you the amount of fat you really need or take off the fat you do not need.

All these matters of controlling the action of the skin are dependent upon special nerves; nerves which have nothing to do but look after the health of the skin. These are the nerves which close or open the pores to let out the “insensible perspiration,” which keep the body temperature equal under all conditions of exposure and rest, which allow the blood to get through the tiny arteries and veins of the cheeks and make for a good or poor complexion.

Don’t listen to those who tell you that your unsatisfactory complexion is due to “bad blood.” There is really no such state in the good girl or woman as “bad blood.” Affections of the skin such as a muddy complexion, greasy looking skin, rough skin, pimples and blotches are not signs that there is something the matter with your blood. Generally speaking these are signs of some faulty adjustment between nerves and blood vessels, sweat glands and the tiny muscles of the skin.

These muscles of the skin are very delicate and sensitive muscles and easily prevented from working properly. When they do not do their work constantly and correctly, what happens? Wrinkles of course, then a tightening of the skin which prevents the outpour of the “insensible perspiration” and the escape of the oily substance. This latter, remaining, causes the greasy skin; the tiny wrinkles keep behind the outer skin some of the inward dirt, and then you have the muddy complexion.

Another way you can see the action of these tiny skin muscles is in “gooseflesh.” “Gooseflesh” is due to the general contraction of these tiny skin muscles. They contract into the little pin-head knobs which make the peculiar appearance we call “gooseflesh.” The contracting or expanding of these skin muscles is absolutely necessary for good health, as the action regulates secretion and excretion and also protects the body from sudden temperature changes. When you jump into bed and find the sheets cold, you immediately have “gooseflesh;” that is, the skin muscles close at once all the pores. If they did not do this, the contact with the cold sheets would reduce your body temperature and disturb the even working of the organs of the body. The reason fear and shock also bring on “gooseflesh” is due to the nerves of the skin being affected by the fright you have had, and so the muscles become uncontrollable. This causes the skin muscles to contract and its bunches are the “gooseflesh” skin. Very often a fright or emotion is the cause for a bad complexion, for as you can readily understand, all the functions of the skin being disturbed, it cannot remain healthy.

It is for this reason you should avoid all thoughts, reading or association which will affect the nervous system, if you wish to have a clear and beautiful complexion.

Proper clothing has, of course, a great deal to do with preventing a disturbance of the nerves of the skin and through these nerves the muscles of the skin. I have warned you about keeping next to your skin any garment soggy with human excretions or secretions—perspiration with its fats and acids—and explained why a daily bath is the only way to be certain of a healthy and hence a beautiful skin. The changing of underwear by a set rule—such as once or twice a week, is barbarous. Undergarments should be changed as often as they have absorbed any unusual amount of perspiration. Always change after exercise, and in the warm weather every day. It is not absolutely necessary that clothing worn during a morning’s walk should be sent to the laundry, but it should be hung where it can dry, then put where the fresh air will go through its meshes. This being thoroughly done it may be used during the next form of exercise. But if it has been soaked with perspiration, then it should be thoroughly washed and dried in the air.

Carelessness in these matters is often the cause of skin diseases; especially of that distressing affection, eczema.