The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-07-19
NdrcOmdnia TObdccuH1
Written for the Palladium and Sun
Telegram

The influence of tobacco upon the
muscular system is that of destroy
err of muscular tonicity; the whole
great voluntary muscular system, over
four hundred muscles in all, besides
an ineStimable muscular network in
the involuntary system, is constantly
in a sort of pulling and drawing state
of activity; even in soundest sleep
| the voluntary muscular system is not
J in a state of absolute relaxation. Only
a severe blow OH the head will pro-
duce complete muscular relaxation.
when the victim falls IN limp mass.
remaining unconscious for a longer
or shorter time, until nervous reaction
sets in, when, if not fatal, the muscu-
| lar tonus is restored and the injured
becomes conscious and can sit or
stand erect. Now because of it's spe-
cial inimical influence on this muscu-
lar tonicity, what is commonly called
tobacco-heart is we'll known in medi-
cal practice and much oftener met
with in the physicians daily work
than many doctors, who themselves
use tobacco, are willing to admit
When we remember that the heart
| is a dense-walled hollow muscular or
gan, contracting on an average of 70
| times per minute, and ejecting from
| its lower cavities about four ounces of
| blood each pulsation, sending it out
with force of about 43 pounds to the
square inch, surface pressure, force
adequate to send the whole quantity
of blood in the body the entire round
of circulation, in normal or healthy
state, every A seconds. One may cas-
lily learn the vast work of the heart
by considering a few physiological
facts and figures: The total quantity
of blood in a healthy body is estimat-
ed to be one thirteenth of the body
weight, for instance a person weigh
ing 1856 pounds would have ~ pounds
of blood, about l gallon quarts of
circulating blood. never still a second
while life lasts in the healthy body;
and about 4 ounces is thrown out Of
the cavities of the heart at each con-
traction on an average of 70 times ev-
cry minute; in order to do this great
work of sending 1 gal, quarts of
blood the entire round of the circula-
ton, that is from the heart to every
minute tissue of the body and back
again to the heart every 43 seconds, it
| is estimated that this great muscular
organ must exert an energy at each
contraction sufficient to raise 2SS GINS.
(about 9A lbs.) meter lover 3 fet.)
| high. Now take a pencil and figure;
| the amount of work, muscular. energy,
exerted by the heart in "a hours. it is
more than necessary to raise ga
pounds 81, O4O feet high.
Now tobacco, having as it does a
peculiar influence on muscular tissue,
degenating it's tissue-elements, thus
for energy and endurance, causes the
| we'll known tobacco-heart
| For this same reason, also for it's
pernicious effects on the muscular
I system generally, athletes, especially
professionals, cannot use tobacco to
any extent, if at all, and must, if one
would excel, abstain totally from the
use of tobacco, alcoholics, and all 9TH
er narcotic poisons; in other words,
it is a physiological as we'll as physi-
cal impossibility for a narcomaniac to
become any sort of an athlete.
| Any physician tolerably expert in
diagnosis, and such a one must nee
essarily carefully investigate the per
sonal habits, family history and here
dity of the patient, we'll knows the
alarming increase of narcomania, and
the sad outlook of tobacco narcoma-
mia on coming posterity.
| In the next article will be discussed
the influence of tobacco on society to-
day and its hereditary entailment
| J. NJ. T.