The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1878-12-19
"llcat is Lil'c-C0ld is Death.
Scientific American,

Ntlehllnr American,
There is no greater iallacy than the
opinion OF many, particularly the young
and strong and vigorous that winter -
especially a sharp, frosty one, with plenty
OF snow - is the most healthy season OF
the year. Very few persons seem to
realize the fact that cold is the condition
Of death, and that in both warm and
cold climates II is our unconscious effort
to maintain our bodily heat at a temp
crature of 9S deg that wears out, To
this temperature, called "blood> heat,"
every cubic inch Of oxygen that serves to
vitalise our blood mus. be raised by our
own bodily heat, or life ceases. Since in
cold weather the maintenance of a SUIT
ticicntly-elevated bodily temperature be-
comes very often too great for our
strength, the advent of a severe Winter
is really more to be dreaded than the
visitation of a pestiIence, The saying,
Heat is lie-Cold is dealh;" has a strik>
ing illustration and confirmation in the
reports now regularly submitted by DR..
Russell to the Glasgow Sanitary Com.
mittee The death-rate rises and falls
with the regularity of the thermometer.
- many degrees less heat, so many more
deaths, and Vice UerSG. In one of his fort
nightly reports, DR., Russell says: "The
death>rate in the first week Of the fort
night was twenty-One, and in the second
week twenty-five. Themean temperature
in the former week was 40 deg. Fahren
heit, in the latter 80 deg" He attrib-
utes the low rate of the first week to the
high mean temperature OF the preceding
fortnight, which was II .03 deg, and adds:
"rhis is a good illustration OF a law which
we frequently observe to these reports of
t. mperature and death-rates that week
OF low temperature produces \ rise in
mortality the week following" In orr
climate 1t would probably be difficult to
lind a more frequent cause OF serious
ailments than taking cold. Whatever
weak place we have, whatever coustitu
tlonal disorder we be subject to, cold will
surely discover. We take colds because
our vitality is too low to ward off the
effects of the reduced temperature around
u. AS matter OF first importance,
then, to resist cold and the various de.
rangements o. the system consequent, ii
is necessary by proper nutrition to main
tain our natural animal heat second, to
retain this heat by sufficient quantity
of clothing; third, to regulate with care
the temperature of the air we breathe.
Contrary to the opinion current among
lovers of cJld weather, n fire in bed
room in the winter is cheaper and better
than a DEBTORS bill; for, owing to our
inactive condition during sleep, the cir
culation OF the vitalizing blood is both
slow and imperfect, and hence the danger
of taking cold by breathing cold air is
greatly increased. A cold il the begin
ing of everything that is bad. IT any
one conscious OF having caught one feels
cold chills c.eeping up the back, let him
apply a mustald-plaster to the bottom of
tn spine and lower part OF the back at
once; and by 80 doing he may avert a
dangerous illness before it is too late and
medical advice can be procured 1t
should never BE- forgotten that cheat is
Ii cold is death"