Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1891-10-04
WHAT Is AGE7
A Highly Interesting and Valuable Sci
entlfc Explanation.
Nan YORK. Commercial

entlfic Explanation.
AsIo York Commercial.
When does q man become elderly?
That Is a question which most men pre-
fer TO answer for themselves. Profess
sor Lagrange, of Paris, In an article
translated into the Popular Science
Monthly for October, establishes stan
dard which seems TO meet the case.
"a man is as old as his arteries" he
says, while discussing the question OF
exercise for elderly people. And what
is the measure Of the age OF his arteries?
The writer tells US briefly and point
eddy. The degree OF sclerosis or indura-
ton OF the arteries marks the phys
ical age of a man as distinguished from
his calendar age. This sclerosis sets in
at about 35 and continues progressively
till the end comes. This is the normal
state OF things. Sometimes a man Is
younger than his years, sometimes
older But the average is we'll marked.
1t is to this hardening Of the arteries,
by which they lose their elasticity, that
shOrtness of breath is due. The less
elastic they become the more work the
heart is called on to do, and this work
is enormously increased when the effort
is sudden. After fve-and-thirty, there
fore, the average of men must cease
participation in those sports which he
could endure we'll In his twenty-ftth
year.
eis no longer fit for the concentrated
exertion of the boat race, the cinder
path and the gymnasium. "Men's ca
pacity to run" says Prof Lagrange,
decreases after he has reached 80
years" Even the famous cOuriers Of
Tunis, who cover large distances in in
credibly short time, retire young.
Those who continue TO run after they
are 40 years old oil finally succumb,
with grave heart affections.
And yet az 40 man Is in the prime of
live. ''At As the bones and muscles
have lost none of their solidity and
vigor." Nevertheless at this age the
induration OF the arteries begins to
manifest itself plainly.
1t is at this period that the morbid
consequences of lack Of nutrition mani
fest Reconsideration obesity, govt, and
diabetes are ascribed TO lack of assimi-
lation of food, not to excess-and at
once a remedy is demanded, one that
will tone up the system and burn up the
rejected nutrlment that he has taken
in. Exercise Is that remedy, and 1t Is
absolutely necessary.
Knowing what forms of exercise are
TO be avoided, namely, those which call
for sudden strains and exertions Of
force, the writer leaves it pretty plain
that exercise for the elderly should be
OF the protracted order. He submits
this formula: "The mature man can
safely brave all exercises that bring on
muscular fatigne, but he must approach
with great care those which provoke
shOrtness of breath"
The personality enters largely into
this subject, for what makes one man
breathe hard only fatigueS another and
80 on. Butt there are some forms Of ex-
ercise which may be adopted by every
body. walking is the type OF bottom
exercise, and is the most hygienic OF all
kinds for the elderly man, provided it is
prolonged enough to represent a sufli-
cient amount Of work. Nothing is so
good for the man OF so years as a gun
ming tramp"
The elderly man who lets the street
car company carry somebody else not
only serves the company right but bene-
fits himself.