Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-02-20

HOW T0SAUN COLDS
Some HintSas4o Their Causes
al Effects.
CARE OF SKM NEEDFUL
CHILL cHEc1s Outflow OF I'M
PURIrIEs THROUGH THE PORES.
Improper Clothing, Wet Shoes and
Quick Changes Of Temperature
May Lead to Influenza.

"A-chew! There I am catching cold!
Where in the world could have taken it?'
These are expressions one may hear al
most any day, and they indicate an idea
lurking in the minds Of many people that
| a cold Is something which overtakes a per-
son clandestinely, through no fault of the
victim, and often despite the best care to
avoid it, The notion is very widespread
that cold Is due to something without
the body accidental in character and in
sidious in it's unexpected and sudden COM
| ing.
Colds are common enough since nearly
all have them, but their causes are imper-
fectly understood. Nine persons out Of ten
would say that an attack of influenza was
due to some exposure whereby the body Is
chilled by dampness or low temperature.
yet under precisely similar circumstances,
at another time the same person does not
contract cold. indicating that this all
ment is due In some measure to the physi-
cal condition of the victim.
The dictionary defines cold as IA NOR
| bid condition produced by cold" Medically
speaking, this condition is Of con-
gestton, accompanied perhaps by fever. with
infamma ton in the nasal passages throat,
lungs or other part of the body. The def
milton also fits the popular idea that this
! Is brought about by exposure or indiscre-
! ton such rs venturing out Of doors with
! out wraps, sitting in a draft of air or get
! ting chilled in any of the numberless ways
| incident to modern life. 1t is probably
! true in most cases that the morbid condi-
! ton Of the definition is an antecedent to
the chill, and that the true cause OF the
cold lies quite as much within the system
as without. A few scores or hundreds OF
J the millions of capillaries OF the skin,
through which the insensible perspiration
| of the body is carried off. are closed, and
| the effete and poisonous matters which
! should escape freely are retained. resulting
| tn ha inf IA MN a
cold.
Felt in the Weakest Part.
When the pores Of the skin are closed the
| Ill effects are likely to be felt in the weak
! est parts of the body. Some suffer from
colds in the head. some In the lungs; In
some the cold affects the joints, causing
rheumatism: in Others the digestive organs
| are affected; in others the kidneys, and SO
on The vital forces seek temporarily to
expel from the system the poisons accumu-
lating within through fother channels than
| the skin, and the weakest link in the chain
| bears the hardest strain All the lurking
impurities in the body seem to concentrate
| there and often much suffering ensues.
More people die of pneumonia and other
| pulmonary disorders in the winter and
| spring than In other seasons. Shut up
| In close and heated rooms the impurities
| of the body quickly accumulate therein.
| More food is taken aad this adds to the
| load the physical system must carry. The
1
| weight of heavy clothing becomes clogged
| and it's pores inactive, The lungs from In
| haling impure air assume an unhealthy con-
| dition which invites the Infection Of germs.
| From lack of exercise In the open air there
| is general stagnation of the animal forces,
/ and the body sinks fnta an Impoverished
| state. in which the blood is poorly oxyge-
| mated and is impregnated with poisons
| These are the natural precursors of cold,
| vigor degenerates, health breaks. there is
| chill and serious Illness and sometimes
| death follow.
| Care Of the Skin.
The surest way to avoid colds Hes in the
scrupulous care Of the skin. Strangely
| enough, this avenue of escape for internal
! impurity Is most neglected in winter, when
| it is most needed. In summer. when the
body is thinly clad, when houses are open
| to every breeze, when perspiration flows
and the cleanly person resorts TO the
sence of colds. The skin performs to the
full the function intended by nature. In
| winter. when rooms are chilly and water
| cold the bath is suspended, the skin is
smothered beneath heavy Undertaking
and thick outer garments, and the capll-
laries. after vainly struggling against the
outside pressure, lay down the burden ana
turn a million poisonous streams back into
the blood. Bathing, such delight IN sum-
mer, is essential to health in winter. and
should not be neglected. Once each twenty
four hours resort should be had to the tub
the shower or the sponge, as personal bent
may dictate This Is needful II the skin Is
to perform its functions properly. per
son in fair vigor will undoubtedly be bene,
flied by the tonic of the morning cold
| bath. At least the daily bath-hot, tepld
or straight from the hydrant-with vlgor-
Gus friction of the skin under a towel
welded by a strong hand Is a prime pre-
caution against colds and other Ills that
| flesh Is heir to. 1t is cheaper ana peter
than doctors.
OF course thick underwear, overcoats
IL fy, 0n16 XyAQ -
One should be warmly clad, because scant
| covering subjects the body to rapid rddla-
ton of heat, as dangerous as II Is uncom-
Portable. But In the habit OF sltuhg IN
overheated rooms and donning heavy wraps
! many people vastly overdo the matter. Too
much coddling is as serious menace to
health as too little clothing.
A familiar figure in the city OF Rochester
some years ago was a man whose proud
boast that he never slept In room
with a. fire and never wore an oVeecca,.
In the coolest weather he could be seen
about town dressed in medium weight
suits. and his broad expanse or shirt 'front.'
with diamond pin. was never confined De-
meath an overcoat He lived past three
score and ten, the picture of health and
manly vigor. and was the victim at last
OF an accident on hunting trip IN the
north woods.
This example Is cited, not for imitation.
but to show that heavy clothing is largely
a matter of habit, and that weighing Inc
body down with it is unnecessary. ether
from the standpoint OF health or comfort.
"Overcoats Cause Colds"
The London Lancet, few winters ago
startled it's readers with this caption. An
explanation followed and the data of some
experiments performed by an investigator
in a British hospital The fact was estab-
iished that those who wore an especially
thick and warm oyercoat easily took cold.
1t was set forth that this garment pre-
vented proper ventilation of the body. It
was like steel covering to keep inside all
the moisture er1anating from the skin
pores, and when removed the temperature
of the body was SO quickly reduced as to re-
suit in a cold -"
The same authority suggests that colds
frequently result. from sudden changes in
the temperature surrounding the body
namely. passing from bverheated rooms into
the cold air outside or the reverse. Much
stress was placed upon the danger incident
to going into a heated room, throwing off
the wraps and stshjettng the body to a
change of perha ps forty degrees from the
air outside to that inside. This was ex-
planned as the reversal of the accepted the
DRY that cold results from going into cold
air. The conclusion reached was that mod
erately thick overcoats or wraps should be
! worn in winter, and that they should not
be removed too suddenly upon entering the