Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-01-11
WHERE NATURE SLIPS A COG
Continued from page 5

LSduCQ lIlCil, dllU SuCU dS hSSp llSiitS,
and decided that the lean and hungry Cas-
sius was too active, too alert, he knew his
business; for the Stalled OK and the ex-
cessively fat man are built upon the same
general plan. A brain cannot act when the
greater proportion of the bodily energy is
devoted to attempting to oxygenate mass
of obese tissue that weighs its wearer down,
and chains his feet and his thoughts to the
earth by the very pull of gravity.
The erudite Darwin wrestled with these
questions of normality and growth, and ex-
planned them by saying that "they follow
the law of adaptation" Those organs and
members of a size best calculated to do their
most efficient work would tend toward per-
petuation first, because of the principle of
natural selection man and woman
would choose each other for the absence of
abnormal or monstrous traits, and thereby
permit that particular abnormality to die
out with the individual afflicted with it;
and, secondly, because Nature herself tends
revert to type" The children of patho-
logically fat parents, or giants, are most
likely to run to the other extreme, even to
being Skinny or @runty.'
This explanation Sufficed fairly well, for
want of better; but we insisted on know
ing awi.at is back of this racial return to
normal size? How does it come that freaks
are fortunately deficient in the power to per-
petuate their kind?'
For many years we answered after Dar-
wins formula. We stated fact, without
explaining the reason back of the fact. A
glib answer ofttimes turneth away strong sus-
picions of ignorance. Giantism (4gigan-
tiSm,' some call it, and excessive obesity
where they do not result from gluttony or
some thyroid imperfection-are due to ny
pertrophy enlargement, compression by a
tumor, or atrophy (contraction) of the pitu
itary, and the defect, the pathological cause
is obviously but rarely transmitted; for we
do not transmit tumor, or the physical re-
suits of nervous shock, or a bump on the
back of the head.
But now we know the function of the
gland. We are no longer indulging in ram
bling theories. Scores Of postmortem ex-
aminations of giants, both tall and thick.
have disclosed the fact that in every instance
the hypophysis was atrophied, enlarged, or
otherwise diseased, or pressed upon by
tumor that inhibited the normal functionlng
of the pituitary.
A ND now that we know all this, what do
"A we purpose doing about it? There are
two special lines of treatment that suggest
themselves in @hypopituitarism,' as it is
called for want of a longer name, which
means "too much pituitary The most sat
isfactory and direct method is to open the
skull, go right into the base of the brain, and
remove the pressure of the tumor, or the ex-
cessive part of the enlarged gland, so that it
will stop feeding such quantities of its power
full secretion into the blood. This has been
done many times with overdeveloped pa
tents, and in almost every instance-where
they lved-improveme has been mani
tested. The lengthening of the bones or the
accumulation of fat has been stopped at
once. The mortality from the operation is
about one in eight-rather reasonable, when
we consider the location of the pituitary
body, and the difficulty in gaining access
to it.
A safer method, though less likely to be
followed by success, consists in the admins
tration of pituitary extract. AS it is the
function of the posterior part of the gland
that is usually at fault, the extract of only
the posterior part is employed to correct
the deficiencies and shortcomings more
accurately the excuses and longcomings-
of its insurgent brother within the skull of
the patient. Scores of cases are recorded
where the "fat just melted away and the
patients became mentally and physically
regenerated. Where children, from no ap-
parent cause, begin to gain abnormally in
y,aiobt or HEIGHT tho advice IF a Dhycician