Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-12-11
PREMATURE OLD AGE.
Some Of Its Causes, and How II May BE
Avoided.

The following good advice is given by
DIR. Benjamin Ward Richardson The rules
for the prevention of senile disease are all
personal. They should begin in youth. 1t
should be rule among grown-up people
never to subject children to mental shocks
and unnecessary griefs When, in the sur
rounding OF the child-life, some very grave
calamity has occurred, it is best to make
the event as light as possible to the child
and certainly to avoid thrilling it with
sights and details which stir it to the ut
most, and in the end only leave upon the
mind and heart incurable wounds and OPP
pressions. Children should never be taken
to funerals, nor to sights that ca9se a sense
of fear and dread combined with great
grief, nor to sights which call forth pain
and agony in man OF in the lower animals.
To avoid premature old age in mature
life, the following are important points to
remember:
Grief anticipates age. Dwelling on the
inevitable past, forming vain hypothesis as
to what might have been if this or that had
or had not been, acquiring craze for re-
countering what has occurred-these acts
do more harm to future health and effort
than many things connected with calamity.
Occupation and new pursuits are the best
preventives for mental shock and bereave-
ment.
Hate anticipates age. Hate keeps the
heart always at full tension. It gives rise
to oppression of the brain and senses. 1t
confuses the whole man. 1t robs the
stomach of nervous power, and, digestion
being impaired, the failure of life begins at
once. Those, therefore, who are born with
this passion-and a good many, l fear,
are-should give it up.
JealOuSV aDficipaipS age The facial eK-
preston of jealousy is old age, in however
young a face it may be cast. Jealousy
preys upon and kills the heart. So, jealous
men are not only unhappy but broken
hearted, and live short lives. | have never
known man Of jealous nature to live
anything like long life or a useful life.
The prevention of jealousy is diversion of
mind toward useful and unselfish work.
Unchastity anticipates age. Everything
that interferes with unchasty favors vital
deterioration, while the grosser departures
from chastity, leading to specific and here
ditary disease, are certain causes of organic
degeneration and premature old age. Thus
chastity is preventive OF senile decay.
Intemperance anticipates age. The more
the social causes of mental and physical
organic diseases are investigated, the more
closely the origin of degeneratlve organic
changes leading to premature deterioration
and decay are questioned. the more closely
does it come out that intemperance, often
not suspected by the person himself who is
implicated in it, so subtle is its influence. is
at the root OF the evil.
When old age has really commenced. its
march toward final decay is best delayed
by attention to those rules of conservation
by which life is sustained with the least
friction and the least waste.
The prime rules for this purpose are:
To subsist on light but nutritious diet
with milk as the standard diet, but varied
according to season.
To take food, in moderate quantity, -four
times in the day, including light meal be-
fore going to bed.
To clothe warmly, but lightly, so that the
body may, in all seasons, maintain its
equal temperature.
To keep the body in fair exercise, and the
mind active and cheerful.
To maintain an interest in what is going
on in the world, and to take part in reason
able labors and pleasures, as though old
age were not present.
To take plenty of sleep during sleeping
hours. To spend nine hours in bed, at the
least, and to take care during cold weather
that the temperature of the bedroom is
maintained at coo Fahrenheit.
To avoid passion, excitement, luxury
Scientific american.