Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1883-07-19
THE FAMILY PHYSICIAN.
HOT WATER AS 4 MEDICINE.

A young man, who was compelled TO
resign his position in one of the public
schools Of this city because he was
breaking down with consumption, and
who has ever since been battling Tor
life, although with little apparent pros
pect Of recovery, was encountered In o
Broadway restaurant.
Il see,s he said, shat Won seem sur-
prised at my improved appearance. No
doubt you wonder what could have
caused such a change. Well, it was a
very simple remedy-nothing but hot
water
"Hot water?"
@That's all You remember nv tell
ing you that had tried all of the usual
remedies. consulted some of the
leading specialists in affections of the
lungs in this city, and paid them large
fees. They went through the usual
course of experimentation with me un-
der all sorts of medicines. / went to
the Adirondacks in the summer and to
Florida In the winter; but none of these
things did me any substantial good.
/ lost ground steadily, grew to be all
most skeleton, and had the worst
symptoms of consumptive whose end
is near at hand. At that juncture a
friend told me that he had heard of
cures being effected by drinking hot
water.
II consulted physician who had
paid special attention to this hot-water
cure, and was using it with many pa
tients. He said: There is nothing, you
know, that is more difficult than to in
troduce new remedy into medical
practice, particularly if it is very SIM
pie one, and strikes at the root OF err
roneous views and prejudiees that have
long been entertained. The old-school
practitioners have tried for years to cure
consumption, but they are as far from
doing it as ever. -.
Now, the only rational explanation
of consumption is that it results from
defective nutrition. It is always ac-
companied by mal-sssimilation OF food.
In nearly every case the stomach is the
seat of fermentation that necessarily
prevents proper digestion. The first
thing to do is to remove that fermenta-
ton and put the stomach into condi-
tion to receive food and dispose OF it
properly. This is effected by taking
water into the stomach, IS hot as it can
be borne, an hour before each. meal.
This leaves the stomach clean and pure,
like boiler that has been washed out.
Then put into the stomach food that is
in the highest degree nutritious and the
least disposed to fermentation. No
food answers this description better
than tender beef. A little stale bread
may be eaten with it. Drink nothing
but pure water, and as little of that at
meals as possible. Vegetables, pastry
sweets, tea, coffee and alcoholic liquor
should be avoided. Put tender beef in
to clean and pure stomach three times
a day, and the system will be fortified
and built up until the wasting away,
that is the chief feature of consumption,
ceases and recuperatlon sets in.
"This reasoning impressed me. be-
gan by taking one cup of hot water an
hour before each meal, and gradually
increased the dose to three cups. At
first it was unpleasant to take, but now
I drink it with relish that never
experienced in drinking the choicest
wine. l began to pick up Immediately
after the new treatment, and gained
fourteen pounds within two months. I
have gained ground steadily in the try
ing climate of New York; and I tell
you, sir, feel on sure way to recov-
cry"
Here an old gentleman, who had been
standing near, and evidently listening
to the conversation, turned to the
teacher and said: "This remedy of hot
water drinking has attracted my atten-
ton for some time. 1t has beensof i'm
mense service in relieving me of terri
bic dyspepsia that tormented me for
many years. / tried numerous able
physicians, and there is probably no
medicine that is prescribed for such an
ailment which was not given to me; but
none of them gave me any permanent
benefit. But the simple remedy of
drinking hot water, accompanied by a
rational regulation of my diet, has en-
tirely cured me, advanced though am
in life. 1t was not the dieting alone
that did it. tried that before. 1t was
ohO use VI liot water tildb CuTeu me, ZOE
that made it possible to derive benefit
from a judicious diet. I have also
found this treatment of great benefit in
kidney diseases, which are largely due
to mal-assimilation of food"
The teacher listened very attentively
to the old gentleman's remarks.
II am glad to learn that your expe-
rience," he said, agrees so fully with
mine. have become acquainted with
various cases in which this simple
treatment has effected permanent
cures after all the efforts of the physi-
clans had failed. / am convinced, sim
ply from what have seen, that almost
any disturbance of the human system
that results from disorders of the stom-
ach can be alleyiated, and, in most
instances, cured in the same way. The
very simplicity of the thing may cause
some to hesitate about attaching much
to it, but, like the proper
ventilation of your dwellings, it may
prevent disease and effect cures where
all the drugs of the pharmacopoeia win
will fail. "-Neac York San.