Kansas City daily journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1892-1897, 1895-01-03
A MUCH ABUSED MACHINE.
Every Man shouid Understand the Many
Pccuiiariiies Of Ills digestive
Anna rutus.

To get a correct idea of the digestive
apparatus of man, take n piece OF mus
lin about seven yards long and quar-
ter of yard wide. Run a hem the
width Of this column In one side ana put
"A draw string In the other. Draw the
goods together till 1t occupies only six
inches OF the draw string. The hem on
the edge of this rufiie will represent the
small bowel as 1T hangs loose In the
cavity of the abdomen. The drawstrinE
side Is where IL is attached to the back
bone. The upper end of the small bowel
opens into the right end of the stomach
ZIP under the ribs. The lower end opens
through a valve into the side of the
large bowel near it's beginning In the
right groin. The vermform appendix,
which Is the size of goose quill. and
from three to six inches long. opens into
the blind end of the large bowel, The
large bowel runs up the right side to
the edge of the ribs and then across and
down the left side.
Into the small bowel empty the bile
and the pancreatic Juice. Meats and
other albuminoid substances are digest
ed in the stomach. whilst fats. sugar
and starch are digested In the small
bowel. the large bowel serving simply
as a receptacle for the undigested parts
of the food and the waste products
thrown out from the blood. In order to
permit the waste products to he readily
discharged into the large bowel it is
highly important that ii be emptied once
day.
II a person is irregular in his habits
or does not get sufficient exercise or
does not eat enough fruits or vegetables
the contents of the bowel may be re-
tanned for days and even weeks. The
muscular coat gets weaker and the lin
ing membrane hlunted. The victim has
a headache bad taste in his mouth,
a coated tongue, heaviness of the limbs
and a bilious complexion. In time. how
ever, the bowel. growing tired Of TINS
stagnation gets it's mad up and eXpels
the cause of the disturbance. as the
public did at the last congressional cleo
ton. This process is accompanied by
more or less severe gripping and when ii
is over the patient feels exhausted and
the muscular coat of the bowel is weaker
than ever. This is the diarrhoea of con-
stipation. and is an effort of nature and,
though the discharges are frequent and
copious, il should be facilitated instead
of being checked
Among other causes producing this
condition are change of water, sudden
changes in temperature, malaria. damp
ness drinking water contaminated with
sewage, going about in cold weather
with the coat or overcoat unbuttoned
and giving the abdomen no protection.
If this condition is neglec, cd it may
in time become chronic and well nigh
incurable.
Dysentery or bloody flux is an entirely
different condition. II is an inflamma-
bowel and may be accompanied by ul-
| ceration of the bowel and abscess of the
liver
There is always more or less fever and
gripping pains. The desire to evacuate is
constant. The discharges are frequent
and small. principally bloody mucus.
This disease may be caused by a germ
or by habtual constipation.
| The prevention of these conditions is
far more important than their treat
ment.
To prevent constipation take two cir
cular pieces of muslin about five inches
| in diameter, sew the edges together and
put in about three and half pounds of
| shot. Roll this around over the abdo-
| men for ten minutes every morning be-
| fore arising. Arise at a certain hour,
| drink tumblerful of cold water imme-
| diately after arising. Breakfast at
certain hour on Graham bread and but
| ter and attend to other functions at
certain hour Eat an abundance of veg
etables and fruit, especially apples.
| Raspberries however, are very binding,
as is tea. Take exercise every day,
preferably bicycling. If you can't do
that bend down till your fingers almost
| touch the floor without bending the
knees and then straighten up. Repeat
| this about 100 times, and do ii every
| day. 1t might be well to remark here
| that by the persistent use of the shot
| bag a patient at Edinburgh, Scotland,
was enabled to reduce his waist measure
| just ten inches.
| If the muscular coat of the bowel has
| become weakened by long continued con-
| stipation, take from fifteth to a
| thirty-second of a grain of strychnia
| three times a day for week, then so a
week without it, and then take it for
another week. All cathartics, system
| renoVatOrs, liver regulators, no matter
how small the dose, are injuries, as they
leave the patient worse off than ever.
| In the treatment of either of these
| conditions, the first impulse of the VIC
| tim is to take something to check the
| discharge, and he hastens to dose him
| self with paregoric, carmnatives, black
| berry cordals, etc, This is IA great mis-
take. They simply cause the irritating
| contents to be retained, and prolong the
| difficulty.
| If "A quart or two of warm-not hot
water is slowly pumped into the large
bowel and retained for a half or three
| quarters of an hour ii Will carry with
it, when discharged, all the irritating
| substances and soOthe the irritated
| bowels. In the diarrhoea of constipation
this will often be all that is needed to
effect cure. If the discharges con-
| tinue, however, drink water in which
| wild cherry bark has been stepped, or
| take fifteen grains of subnitrate of
bsmuth every four hours. Above all
| things, keep quiet In sitting or stand
ing the abdominal muscles are pressed
against the tender parts and aGGravate
the difficulty. Talking has the same
effect.
In dysentery, the warm water may
have to be supplemented by dose of
salts. Bismuth should be taken inter-
nally. The patient should have plenty
of cold water to drink. Ice water how
ever is bad. He should be fed on
meats, fowls, eggs, rich broths and
milks but no vegetables or fruits.
Chronic diarrhoea may be relieved by
drinking tea, but will be aggravated by
fruits or vegetables.