The suburban citizen., 1902-04-05
AVOID CATCHING COLD
NO NEED OF SNEEZlNc If ONE
ONLY TAKES CARE.

Ia the Lancet, "A chilly man is a sick
man." If that is true the percentage
of invalids in the American public is
somewhat appalling, A New York doc
tor. when asked about his English
confrere's statement laughed, but gave
his Endorsement
'Of course that doesn't mean that
every man who feels cold is seriously
H." he said "but. as a matter Of fact,
only very exceptional exposure is suf-
ficient excuse for a well mans suffer
ing from cold in any climate to which
he is accustomed. If ordinary cold in
this climate can make a person uncom-
Portable cold, there is something
wrong with that PERSONS physical
condition or clothing.
"Taking cold isn't a matter Of tenn
perature. 1t is a question Of physical
condition. Fatigue causes more colds
than all the draughts that blow. A
draught isn't going to harm a man
whose nerves and circulation are in
perfect tone. A man goes home,
tagged and jaded at the end of the
day. He goes to an evening function,
in dress clothes, takes liberties with
his stomach or nerves. He is chilly,
takes cold-and sweaTs It was all a
matter Of temperature or draught. If
his blood was pure, his nerves steady
and his digestion good, the temperature
wouldn't nave affected him.
"Quite aside from the problem Of
what we call colds, the ordinary sensa-
tions Of cold seldom have an external
cause. Their cause Is internal. The
men and women who go shivering
along our streets in winter weather
ought not to be cold unless they have
some disease that explains their chilli
ness They think they can remedy
matters by piling on heavy clothing.
1t can't be done that way. Naturally,
warm clothing will help to Offset a low
temperature, but 1t will not make n
man warm If there is, as is usually the
case, some internal reason why he is
cold.
"I believe that :ully three-fourths
of our people wear too many heavy
clothes in cold weather. They feel
cold and the only thing they think
of doing is to put on another thick
ness Of flannel. Warm clothing is all
right, but heavy clothing isn't, and the
close fitting fannels that are so univer-
sally worn are an abomination. They
keep the skin from breathing, md the
moment the skin gets out of breath,
the owner Of the skin will be cold, even
II he wears flannel and fur a foot
thick.
"It seems queer to me that people
will never learn and put in practice the
simple rules that will insure them com.
fort in cold weather. Putting aside in
valids, wen take the man who consid
ers himself perfectly well. but who
gets blue and shivers on cold day
His circulation is out Of gear. He
must find the cause and remove 1t II
possible. If not, he must offset it, as
far as he can, by simple and rational
means.
Imperfect digestion may have i'm
poverished his blood. Then he mus
forswear gastronomic indulgence and
eat plain food that will make pure
blood. The first plunge into wintry
air, out of a warm house, will always
make the pores gasp, and drive the
blood from the surface to the inner
fortresses in the big veins and arteries
and around the vital parts Of the body
but, If the circulation is good, the
reaction will follow almost immediate
ly, and the blood will flow back to the
surface with a rush, producing fine
tingling glow.
"In order TO bring about this happy
condition a man must take care of hi
body and encourage his circulation
Pure air, wholesome food plenty of ex
ercise, frequent bathing and ventiia
ton of the skin, and avoidance o.
sweltering clothes win put the aver
age man where he can defy any win
ter weather this climate can furnish
II his nose and fingers do get cold tenn
porarily in extreme cases, they viii
warm up quickly and general pro
longed chilllness will be unknown Il
him.
''Our houses and Offices are too hot
We all know that. So far as possible
we should remedy 1t; but, unfortunate
ly. it isn't always possible, especial!
In an apartment house or Office build
ing. When one can't keep the tenn
perature down to some point betweel
sixty and seventy degrees-preferabl.
nearer sixty degrees than seventy de
grees-one must grin and bear it an'
don what one can 10 counteract tn
injury. At least, let the air be pure
Foul air is worse than a draught. In
deed, If a man is in prime condition,
draught ought not to harm him. On
great physician Of the generation use,
to turn cold draughts of air on small
sections Of a patients body until h
got the patient into a condition wher
he could endure the cold current o.
his whole body.
'Few persons understand how dcs
perately the skin needs ventilation. !
large majority Of my patients, yeril