St. Tammany farmer., 1905-11-25

Incorrectly, Cannot Have Health
| NO Excuse for slip-shod Manner
Of Professional Men-Don't Abuse
Your Spinal Column: Most Vital
| Part Of Man His Backbone-Re-
move Headaches and Kidney
Troubles by Correct Standing
In Walking Keep an "Active
Chest"-Sit Correctly and Prevent
Indigestion.
Health depends upon correct position
Of the body. Anyone who stands, sits or
walks habitually, in an incorrect posi-
ton, does not and cannot possess health
SO long as the habit continues
Harmony is the law of the universe.
Correct position is one of the funda-
mental laws Of health. Violate the
law and you must, sooner or later, pay
the penalty. There is no exception to
this rule. l am well aware that many
persons are engaged in certain pur-
suits that are Of such q nature as to
compel them to violate this law dur
ing working hours. This does not,
however, weaken the force Of the argu-
ment. They are not well nor can they
be well unless they counteract the ill
effects, physically, by some means or
| methods outside of those hours of daily
toll.
This class, for whom reasonable
allowance may be made, does not. for
tunately, represent the majority. What
about that vast army Of lawyers min
listers. teachers, clerks. doctors, etc.,
who have no reasonable excuse for the
! ungainly and unhealthful positions as
| sumed in standing and sitting, to say
nothing of the careless, slip-shod man
ner SO generally employed in walking?
It is fundamental principle that
the structure must be right or the
functions cannot be right. How inn
portant then that we should look to
the cause and not resort to drugs.
When the organs of a mans body re-
fuse, from any cause, to do their work,
nature does not intend that he should
force them to action with drugs. but
that he should restore them to normal
condition by right living, by strength
obtained from nourishing foods, and
by obtaining and retaining correct
position and carriage of the body.
should like to impress upon the
readers of this series of articles the
fact that we are not punished for our
physical sins. but by them; and, "the
wages of sin is DEATH Whatever ma
ture gives you over the counter you
are expected to pay for at the cashiers
window, and if you evade payment she
will charge you double.
What Is the Correct Positione
Whether standing, walking or sit
ting there is one rule that invariably
holds good, viz: the position of the
spinal column must be such that no
one part infringes or unduly impinges
upon any other part. Man is a ma
chine, and the most vital part of the
human machine is the spinal column
with it's wonderful spinal cord and the
81 pairs of spinal nerves. There
fore, look to it, that the most delicate
and vital part of the anatomical struc-
ture is not abused by incorrect posi-
tions. Whatever may be the slogan OF
war, the slogan of health is-look out
for your backbone.
To give you definite idea Of correct
position I will ask you to note the
perfect poise of the perfectly articu-
lated skeleton that you will find in the
museum or in the Office of the physi-
clan. That little word poise is very
significant.
How to Secure Correct Position
Standing.
Seek the center OF gravity. This is
done, when standing, by having the
weight Of the body over the center of
the feet, about equally divided between
the ball of the foot and the heel. The
upper portion OF the body should be
erect, but not rigid; neither too far
back nor too far forward. AS a rule,
when you ask man to "brace up" he
braces back. BY SO doing he throws
the body as much out of poise as when
he leans too far forward.
Avoid extremes. In leaning back
ward and standing heavily upon the
heels tan almost universal position)
there is an undue pressure over the
kidneys and a congestion at the base
OF the brain; the latter causing a
most violent headache. Therefore, to
remove such headache remove the
cause; In other words, secure the corr
rect position of the body. AS this is
easier said than done / propose pre-
scribing simple means whereby any
one can attain it and by a little care
and watchfulness can retain 1t.
stand against the wall Tor a door,.
with the feet near together touch the !,
heels to the wall, then the limbs, then
as much o. the body as possible this
brings the shoulders to a natural posi-
tfon and prevents throwing them too
far back-a grievous FAULT, then place
the back of the head against the wall
without raising the chin. You will
observe that the drawing IN Of the
chin raises the chest to a high. firm
position and it is held in that position
through the aid of the chest muscles I
and not by initiating the lungs. This /
will acquaint you with what call an
active chest; the chest raised and fixed /
of the breathing.
While holding the position against
the wall Tor door, you have the cor
rect position OF the body in every re-
spect save one, viz: your weight is
upon the heels, but you are prevented