The Arkansaw traveler., 1889-03-23
HOW TO PRoLoNo LIFE.
British Medical Journal.


question of personal interest to every
man, and the duty of attempting tC
do so is one that particularly rests
with the medical profession. WheI
an individual has attained to full
development and sound health-say
at forty-the expectancy of life may
be twenty-five or thirty years fol
the individual there are great risks
but with the aggregate of mankind
such questions may be calculated with
business-like accuracy. There are two
great factors which concern the pro-
longation of human life-the inheri-
lance and the conditions which make
up life of history of the individual
The inheritance of longevity from one
or both parents is powerful factor
and one that carries great weight with
life insurance offices. This is more
important factor than an infancy free
of weakness, provided that the infan-
tile ailments be dependent upon tenn
porary conditions of defective nutri-
ton, or conditions incident to the
stages of development only. The late
Emperor William and many other
public men Of great age and useful life
illustrate that feeble youth may be
followed by a robust and prolonged
life. Even conditions of infantile
msrssmus may be followed by subse-
quent good development, as in the
case of Sir Isaac Newton. We now
proceed to speak of average people
for "a perfect man" can hardly be said
To exist we shall consider average
people, especially as we see them In
town life, and the special conditions
we desire to note are the habits, diet
and wear of life. There Is no doubt
as TO the importance of the habits oil
life affecting longevity; temperance
in right things, in activity and In
restraint, in regularity in morning
rising and in work as well as in resting
and sleeping uniform industry Is az
conducive to health as is regularity
in diet. The acquisition of regularity
in habits Is largely due to early train
ing, and in this way a wisely directed
school discipline probably does much
to form q sound and steadily acting
nerve system, such as gives a man the
power OF resisting adverse influences
and prolonging physical health
From the period of infancy upward
sound and well-knit brain has
much to do with the performance of a
healthy constitution. The relation OF
diet to longevity has often been dis
cussed ; we can only say here that the
diet should be adapted, in quality and
in kind, to the work of the individual
while such articles as alcohol, tobacco
and tea, If used at all, should be en-
ployed in moderation by those who
wish for stable constitution and
prolonged life. Passing over such i'm
portant considerations as being famil-
lar to most members of the profession
we come to the great question of the
causes of wear in life-the outcome OF
the frictions of life which all must
meet with more or less. The various
factors at work, especially In q town
life, make impressions on the brair
which lead to fatigue and premature
wear. The strong Drained Individual
may not be hurt thereby the weaker
man 10 exhausted by such impressions
from without, and Q second generation
under such influences Ia likely t.
suffer through loss of tone and vitality
In cell structures rather than aetna