Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-05-13
Why Drafts, Cold
Weather andWet Feet
DON'T Cause These
Respiratory Diseases
land Why Y on Should
Keep Your Body
Cool to Keep We'll
RU William Rr1db M n
BY William Brady, M. D.

T BELIEVE that all of the respiratory dis
eases vulgarly known as "colds" are
bacterial infections in exactly the same
sense that dlphtheria is; that weather, damp
ness, exposure, chilling of the body. climate,
drafts and sudden barometric or thcrmomet-
TIC chan geS have no more o do with colds
than with bunions or obesity.
This is surely radical from the old-wife
viewpoint, but it is mighty comfortable.
sit in drafty place quite easy in mind
get my feet wet almost with pleasure well
come sudden changes--not because they
boost business, but because they make fell
low feel so good. I wear or leave off what
ever like and whenever / wish, regardless of
the consequences. | go out right after hot
BATH or shampoo or an illness, and have
no fear of suffering any penalty.
In fact, | place the utmost confidence in
old Mother Nature, and / have yet to find
her unworthy. No one can convince me that
Nature is an enemy of mankind, though man
kind certainly gives her just cause
The Public Heal,n Reports, Vol. 81, No. 43,
Oct. p. 1916, Washington, D. c., give dis
eases Of the respiratory tract as one of the
cher causes of sickness and death in the
Philippines. They are caused the reports
say BY faulty personal hygiene. lack Of
ventilation, failure properly to dispose Of
sputum ovcrcrowding i'll houses, particularly
III sleeping quarters.
Are there no drafts in the Philippincs9
Don people go out and get their feet wet
there? The climate is tropical What bust
ness have people living in tropical climate
taking "cod'Y
The Philippines may be rather damp eli
mate, the old wives will think Tropical, hot
and dry, but damp Mt times. The dampness
must be the bad feature. Well let us try
nice, moderately warm. fairly dry climate
like that Of Panama
On the lsthmus the canal lahorcrs were so
unconsiderate as to have pneumonia alto
gether too much to suit the desires of DR.
Gorgas. SO he undertook to determine who
was to blame. After a thorough investisa
ton he concluded that the prevalence of
pneumonia was not due to the following fan
cled canses-sleepng in swcaty damp cloth
ing, sleeping in draftv hunks. wet feet get
ting chilled. On the contrary, he found that
men who carefully avoided all these sup
posed causes OF taking cold were lust as sus
ceptible to pneumonia as the poor fools who
gave such things no consideration at all. Fin
ally he made up his mind that crowdinc was
the real cause
The aborers were then spread out over
a larger territory only a few in each ind
vidual shack. instead Of large numbers in a
great barrack. Whcrenpon the pneumonia
suddenly ceased 10 be a problem of tho sani
tary administration.
1t now began to look as though Gorgas
was right-that atmospheric conditions are
insignificant, but that contact as in crowded
quarters presents the essential opportunity
Tor the cold germs 10 effect landing. Tn
other words, these two remarkable exhibits
of intelligent sanitation go to strengthen the
faith that is in use. Colds come, not from
exposure" in the vulgar sense, but from
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