Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-01-19
Catching Cold' or ssCatchias Heats


commonly called ''colds" prevails most ex-
Tentatively Il now upon %, and their Wv
general prevalence at this season may lust
" entitle them to be called fashionable.
for there are fashions in disease, and in
medicine, as well as in other things. OF
course, their being fashionable prevents q
large number from taking precautions
against contracting them, vet, as thew are
troublesome, at least, and by inattention
and ignorance may become dangerous, and
as i is easier to avoid them, we will try to
explain how colds are contracted. and what
they are. There Is q general misappre.
hension Of the true nature OF these affec-
tons, and Qf tbdr.caases, the v6ry phras
es cold and catching cold being often
misnomers, and we propose to show that
in many cases the trouble il caused by
catching heat rather than catching cold.
The parts usually affected by colds are
the lining membranes of the nose. throat
and lungs, or, more properly, of the bron.
chial tubes for, when the lung substance
II attacked, the affection IS of very ali.
fercnt and more severe character than a
common cold Every time we breathe.
the air which We draw into our lungs
passes through the nose, bronchial tubes.
and finally into the cir cells of the lungs.
These are all covered with thin, delicate
membrane similar to that on the inside Of
the lips, plentifillly supplied with blood
that secrete milky fluid called mucus, for
the purpose Of keeping the membrane In
q moist and healthy condition. The mu-
cous membrane of the nose, mouth,
and throat is constantly covered
ing surface is in 9 healthy condition, its
presence IN the air passages gives us no
trouble; it is only when affected by cold, or
BONE other exciting cause, that we know
anything OF the secretion, and then its
presence in increased quantity in the nose
Is manifested by the necessity for, the free
use of the handkerchief, and in the throat
and bronchial tubes by Hawking" and
coughing, produced by the irritating pres
ence of the mucus. These are the most
common symptoms of colds, and we will
not enumerate any others, as these are
the only ones TO be considered in connec-
tionwith the subject we wish 10 speak of
at present, viz: that these pulmonary
may be contracted by exposure
TO. heat as well as to cold. Every. one
knot VS. that in going from hot room to
cold one, or to the outside air in cold
weather, they are liable to get cold, but
very few know that they incur. the same
danger in going from a cold atmosphere
into warmer one. 1t is but short time
since that theory wassfrst advanced, and
it has not received the attention its impor-
lance would warrant, Tor NOBODY likes to.
trouble himself about slight cold, lest
he should be thought fussy," ETC., but it
should be remembered that these affections
do not always remain slight colds, and that
what is apparently but a trifing, attack,
may become prolonged and serious one,
and have dangerous or even fatal termi-
nation !; 30 for the benefit Of those who are
peculiarly susceptible to colds, and desire
10 avoid them, we will try to show how
they may be contracted by heat.
AS before. stated, the mucous membrane
of the air passages are the parts affected in
colds, and are supplied freely with blood
vessels and mucous follicles, which in
health pour out sufficient n,ucus to keep
he membrane moist and healthy when
cold Is contracted, the increase Of this mu-
Gus ZONE OF the most prominent symp-
,oms, and is caused in this way: You
know that when cold is applied
20 the skin in any way it drives the blood
rom it by constructing the vessels, and
hat as soon as the column of blood re-
gains its force, the fluid returns to the skin
n increasee quantity; this fact is well
Illustrated by plunging the hand into hot
water after 1t has been benumbed with
,old the redness of theskh, and the pain
al tingling produced, give pretty good
evidence of the force with which the blood
'eturns. Now this is just what happens
n the mucous membrane Of the air passa-
res; the cold air, passing over the mem
,rane, drives the blood from it Temporal !
lily, but when It returns it comes with
,reater force and larger quantity than is |
natural, distending the blood vessels and
orcing greater amount of fluid to the |
mucous surface, exciting themto increased |
ctiyity. and they then pour out q larger !
mount of the mucous secretion 4
han is'i discharged in health. in
rider to relieve the congested |
tate of the mucous membrane. Suppose q
;ase, to illustrate this point. A man leaves
he office, or workrOOm, where he has
been breathing an atmosphere of 70 to
30 degrees Fahrenheit, plunges at once into
he cold, outside air Of 10 to 20 degrees
and, after an exposure to this
# half an hour, more or less, reaches his
home, and at once encounters as great
change again, passing suddenly from an
atmosphere approaching zero to one 10 or
70 degrees above it. OF course. these sud
len transitions from one extreme of tenn
,erature to another affect the mucous men,
,rane, which is exposed to the air, very
lnfavorably, and the different alterations
If cold and heat to which it is subjected
produce their characteristic results, end
ng in the congested and increased secre-
ion of the mucous surfaces. Now, as
'ou have some idea Of the cause of colds,
md as knowledge is power, you can take
to avoid them; for ian ounce of
prevention is better than pound of cure"
md 1t is much easier to avoid a cold than
o get rid of one, How can we avoid them,
1Ou ask, ifboth cold and heat give us colds
We cannot reduce the temperature Of our
oOms below comfortable degree, nor
'levate that Of the outside air; very true
tut you can very often avoid going imme-
lately from cold room into hot one,
md rice sersa. After coming in from very
;old outside air, linger for minute or two
n the hall, or ON the staircase, before en-
ering the heated rooms-which, by the
way, are much too hot generally-and on |
eaving the house observe the same rule.
Many VIII consider these needless precau- |
iOv,c ,,an1ocs k~~x,.6t~ .<~ 49, /