Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1888-02-03
FACTS ABOUT BADNESS.
Valuable Information as to How 1t Come,
and How to Treat 1t.

hculcdl society on badness and Its
treatment. He described four varieties
IF badness. or alopecia: l. Alopecia
adnata, the congenital form; .. A.
Senilis; 3. A. premature; 4. A. areata.
A. senilis is that form which occurs in
odd age. or after the age of fortv-fve.
and is often preceded or accompanied
by grayness of the hair. Its cause is
gradual hardening of the subcutaneous
tissues of the scalp and a diminuton of
blood supply, followed by an oblitera-
ton of the hair follicles. 1t is bat one
expression of that general lowering of
nutrition incident to advancing years.
When the scalp is atrophied nothing
can be done in the way of treatment,
but prophylaxis may do great deal in
postponing those changes.
A. premature Is that form of badness
which occurs before the forty-ffth year.
OF this there are two varieties the idio-
pathic and the symptomatic. The
former occurs most commonly between
The age OF twenty-five and thir;y-tive.
and is not due to any antecedent or
concomitant disease. 1t differs from
the senile form in occurring ut an ear
lier age, and in being unaccompanied
bv other signs of diminished physical
vigOr, such us loss of teeth, dullness of
/ sight and hearing The chief cause of
this variety is heredity. Every one has
known of families in which the fathers
and sons have become bald at a very
early age. Another cause is improper
or deficient care of the scalp. 1t is a
common practice for men to souse the
head daily in water Ellinger has noted
this habit in eightytive per cent of his
cases of badness. Thinkers and brain
workers are very often bald. Eaton
found. in the audiences attendant upon
churches and operas in Boston, that
were bald while in cheap museums and
at prize fights the percentage was only
twelve to twenty-five. Stiff hats may
cause badness by COMPRISING the ar
teries that supply the scalp. Tight and
unventilated hats make the scalp warm
and cause it to perspire, thus favoring
badness. King says that badness of
the vertex is due to compression by
stiff hats of the arteries which supply
hat part. The little tuft of hair often
observed on the top of the forehead is
lourished by arteries which escape
pressure.
That women do not become bald SO
often as men is probably because they
preserve the cushion of fat under the
scalp longer than men do. They do
not wear their hats as much as men;
nor are these so closely-ftting, or made
If such impermeabe material. They
llso give more attention to the hair
nd do not wet the head so often. OF
I'll these reasons DIR. jackson regards
he preservation of the fat and connec-
live tissue of the scalp, and the greater
care OF the scalp, as the most impor-
tant.
The treatment of this variety of bald
ness is mainly one of prophylaxis and
hygiene. In families where it is hered-
itary this should begin at birth and
continue through life. The scalp should
be kept clean by an occasional sham
poo OF soap and water, borax and water,
or some such simple means. This
should not be repeated oftener than
once in two or three weeks; and after
the washing the scalp should be care
fully dried. and vaseline or sweet-al-
mond oil applied. Women should dry
the hair by the fire, or in the sun, and
not dress it until dry. The hair should
be thoroughly brushed and combed
daily, for five or ten minutes, with
vigor sufficient to make the scalp
glow. For this brush should have
long and moderately stiff brstles, set
in groups widely separated from each
other. Such Il brush will reach the
scalp, and brush out the dust. A comb
with large. smooth teeth should be used
with the brush, to open up the hair to
the air. Pomades should not be used,
: and the daily sousing of the hair dis
continued. Women should not use
bandoline, nor pull or twist the hair,
nor scorch it with curling irons, nol
smother it under false hair Easy fit
tino, light and ventilated hats should
he worn. and working under hot arti-
: licial light should be avoided. Mr..
) Goninlock, writing on badness, gives
it as his opinion that it is due principally
to the high hat and the hard felt hat,
and to any other covering that con
strcts the blood vessels which nourisl
the hair bulbs. Few, he says, will es.
cape the evil effects of twenty or thirt,
, years OF rigid tight-ftting hats, the
destructive process being delayed only
J by the length and frequency of respite
: from this tourniquet of fashion. :
J Science.
, "A nameless professor relates the
following: During the after-dinnel
talk. the man for whom l was survey
ing remarked that mathematics Away.