Charlevoix county herald., 1914-04-04
SICKNESS is A
PSYCHOLOGICAL SIN

Ephraim Cutler, M. d., of New York
says: sickness is a physiological
SIM" that If we eat or cause others to
eat food which make them i'll we have
done wrong. He says that there are
laws of eating, the violation of which
become physiological sin and the
sooner this is understood the better
for the race. Physical punishment is
the result of such violation of the
laws of health, and quickly calls gen.
eral attention to the fact that many
medical men say that the habit Of
overeating is at the bottom of most
troublesome diseases. This habit is
often contracted in childhood under a
faulty school and household regime.
By this l mean an irregular method
of providing appetizing food at only
one or two meals during the day, in
stead of at each meal. This is fire.
quentiy done, especially where there
are school children, when luncheon is
merely a makeshift. Many cases of
so-called overwork among school chill
dren are in fact cases of late hours,
irregular and unappetizing meals and
unhygienic living. The question of
school lunches alone is one Of i'm
mense Importance when considered
from the standpoint of the influence
for physical good or evil this meal
may direct. School children rarely
have time to reach home for the noon
day meal, and in consequence eat a
"pick up" lunch that is in no way
calculated to give them the nourish-
ment required at the time. On their
return home, half famished, they i'm
mediately rush to the other extreme
and eat much more than they require
or than is good for them, and prob
ably in few hours consume hearty
evening dinner. In one such case I
begged the mother of very delicate
7-year-old child who was attending
school too far away from home to re-
turn to dinner to refrain from giving
him meat at night, because it was do
ing him harm. Her reply was: What
can do? He must go to school," /
felt that nothing could be done for
child whose mother felt that at even
his health came second in her thoughts
to the fact that he must go to
school," School methods should in
some way be made to fit the needs Of
children in this important particular,
not only to prevent contracting the
habit of overlooking later in the day,
but to allow for the provision of prop
er nourishment at the proper time of
dav. Much of the Generalization
arising in family life at meal time is
caused by either the irregular coming
and going of school children or the alb
sence of this part of the family at
luncheon hour. The Fastening away
in the morning without time or care
to appreciate a well-prepared break
fast is an equal source of evil, but this
lies in the hands of the home-maker
alone to control, the luncheon habit
does not, when children are old enough
to go regularly to school. Perhaps in
this as well as in other talked of and
looked for school reforms, the parents
are chiefly to blame for not asking
school boards for assistance in this
important matter. Boston, Philadel-
phia and New York have something in
this direction, and it is highly prob
able that If the subject of school
lunches or q longer MONDAY interim
for meals were brought practically to
the notice of those in authority, some
thing effective and systematic would
be done. A request even from each
parent interested, sent directly to the
central authorities, might work Won
derful changes.