The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1913-05-07
NEEDLESS HEADACHES.
Most OF This Suffering Said to BE
Prcventablc.

London Daily Mail.
my mother always has headaches, "
wrote bright little girl in an essay on
Mothers" The child was manifestly
surprised, as if there was something
wrong in having headaches and that
mothers could and should avoid them.
Headaches are not so common now as
formerly, when every woman regard
ed them as part Of her lot in life, but
they still are far more common than
they need be.
Most of them are Of our own maxi
ing. 1t is said that there are 100 caus-
es Of headache and at least three
fourths of those are avoidable with
a liGt,e care.
Want OF open air exercises is one Of
the most prolific of all causes. Nearly
all men go out Of doors every day, but
vast body OF women do not leave
the house for two, three, four and even
six days running.
Now the air in any house is always
less pure than the air outside In the
evening when doors and windows are
usually closed, it becomes more or less
poisonous to the brain and nerves And
q woman who breathes nothing else
but this air for "a hours must be ex-
tremely healthy IL she escapes head
aches.
Added to this unwholesome con-
dition there Is very often want of ex-
ercise. The blood thus not only be-
comes impure but it stagnates more
or less and the tissues Of the brain
are constantly bathed in stale and
tainted fluid. making a headache in
evitable.
Then the housekeeping life and the
bad air combined produce constipation
and an anaemic state. The woman
living under these conditions becomes
pallid. listless and depressed.
To avoid this sort of headache wo-
men should go out at least two hours
every day, wet or fine. If some inter-
esting reason can be found for the
outing so much the better. and there
are hosts of available reasons.
A woman can do her shopping in
installments and spread it over the
whole week; she can find one friend
or another to visit every day, or most
days, she can join q club, visit pic
ture galleries, go out for lunch or tea
in a cafe. meet her husband at the
station, take out the children instead
OF sending them with the nurse. cycle,
play tennis and golf ETC., and as a
last resort may take the dog for an
airing.
This systematic open air exercise
would be half the battle against most
varieties of headache.
And it should be combined with
open windows. 1t is astonishing how
insensitive women are - bad air.
They will sit all the evening in room
with closed doors and windows and
positively deadly air. And then they
will go to sleep in room where the
windows havs probably long ;heen
closed to shut out the misty "un-
night air.
The night air is not unwho;csome;
II Is actually purer than the day air;
and IL the bedroom windows are kept
wide open through the whole "a hours
headaches will be very much rarer
than they are.
There is also the headache which
follows soon after eating. and this is
rather difficult to cure 1t arises from
a combination Of causes: because the
victim eats unsuitable food, perhaps
eats too quickly and perhaps also
bustles about and gets fiurried before
sitting down. Many women make it
a point to criticise the cooking and
find fault with the serving Of din
ner at the very worst time possible
No part of our body is so much dis
turbed by emotion of any kind as the
stomach. II a diner Is irritable, or
angry. or worried. or depressed during
the meal. the stomach responds by re-
fusing to work.
The consequence is that a woman
who does not control her emotions
TT meals is likely to rise from the table
with congested brain. an uncomfort-
able weight in her stomach and short
ly after comes on the headache. Med
icine is not the cure for this, but tran
guilty and cheerful spirit when eat
ing.
The strenuously denied tight lac
ing is hedlpful cause for the after
dinner headache. At meals all cloth
ing should be loose. A good way to
manage this headache ia to take fruit