Martinsburg W Va evening journal. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1913-1920, 1916-10-26
74O BILLION LOSS
YEARLY BY ILLNESS
And At Least Halt Of This Can
Be Prevented, Says Expert.
by international News service)

Cincinnati, Oct. 26.-The United
States loses s7400Oooo0o year
through illness Of workers and at
least half of this can be prevented.
DR.. John F. Anderson of New York.
president OF the American Public
Health Association declared in his
address TO the association here.
American workers number 10000,
600 he said, and they lose an aver
age of nine days a year by sickness. F
or a total of 100000 working years.
Assuming wages to average s. a day
and medical care 81. the lose would
reach the figure named In this sum
is not included the lose and suffer
ing in the families of workers be
cause of diminished productivity. and
curtailment of the years Of active
work as a result Of previous illness
The Forty Sixth annual meeting oil.
the association opened Yesterday and
continues four days.
Public health workers from an
parts of this country and from Can.
ada. Mexico and Cuba have gathered
here Today the convention viii be
divided into five sections. devoted to
the discussion of laboratory prob
lens, public health administration vi
tai statistics. sociological aspects Of
public health and industrial hygiene
Probably the greatest interest is
shown in the section dealing with i'm
fantile paralysis
DR.. Anderson devoted a large par
of his address to an appeal for bet
ter milk He said:
ut will be generally conceded that
milk is a more important factor ia
the spread of disease than any other
element of our food supply and that
it may even exceed in importance our
water supply as a disseminator of
disease. We know how frequently
milk has been shown to have been
responsible for the spread of typhoid
fever, septic sore throat and perhaps
other diseases.
"Some states and many municipal
titles have attempted to control This
flood of infection pouring into ous
towns and cities from the country
districts by inspection Of dairy farms
and in few instances by compul
sorry pasteurization of the greater
par Of the milk supply Il is famiI
lar to all how unsatisfactory the
present system of inspection has prov
ed, and how costly il has been. w
see in state supplying milk to lis
own cities. and also 10 cities laea'
ed in other states, inspectors not only
from number of cities within the
state. but inspectors from other
states. all travelling back and forth
and crossing the track Of each ozher
in their travels This inspection
could not only be mroe efficiently
conducted but it could be done IL a
corps Of inspectors under a single
head and working under uniform ta
struction
"The Federal Government has ult
up TO this time taken a decided part
in safeguarding the milk sold in JIM
terstate commerce. though There arc
at least two bureaus with iuri die
tion. The Bureau of Chemistry has
authority under the Pure Food and
Drug Act and the Public Health ser
vice under the interstate Quarantine
Act has the power TO prevent the
shipment in interstate commerce oi
milk which may convey contagious
diseases from one stale % another
Under this broad power the Pubic
Health Service can prevent the hp-
ment of milk nom nan-tuhereu'ia
tested COWS aad the shipment oz m.1E
from localities in wa.ch contagious
diseases. the injection Of which may
be transmitted by milk. are prevail
ing 10 such an extent a. 10 render
possible The spread Of these diseases
from one state 20 another
Later DR.. Anderson said:
Investigations into the working
and living conditions of the 81 1940 900
wage earners oil the United States
has revealed many things which a-=
deplorable specially among ,..e= Ms
skilled low-psid group os worEe- IF
spite Of recent Improvement s.
industrial e-tabliz .rTav-s tE- r-rt