Pueblo chieftain., 1921-04-17
HAVE YOU A GOOD HEART?
By Frederic j. Haskin.

;. New York City. April 14.-The
''broken heart" SO frequently en-
countered in romantic fiction. is now
declared to be scientific fact. Hearts
actually do break. a famous heart
specialist finds, and such breakages are
by no means uncommon. She died
of broken heart can no longer be
considered a mere figure OF speech.
Perhaps she really did.
h surprising thing about broken
hearts, moreover, according to this
scientist, is that they are more often
caused by. joy than sorrow. Perhaps it
is just as we'll that the worlds sup
ply of joy is limited. In the light of
this new discovery. in fact. the joy
killer. now an unappreciated figure in
our midst, is seen to be in some cases
a public benefactor.
Broken hearts, says this British
doctor, occur not only among human
beings. but among animals. I, myself,
have known an animal to rupture Its
heart thru joy. Indeed. have seen
this as it happened.
THE disaster is not caused by grief.
the emotion. nor by joy, the emotion,
but indirectly. 1t is the result of the
substance poured into 1t as the result
Of one .of those curious reactions OF
which We know so little. Grief. joy,
worry, love-all these emotions and
probably others produce definite chem
ical reactions resulting in the genera
ton of actual substances. Hate, for
example. produces chemical poison.
which affects the blood of him who
hates. And SO for all other emotions.
Those that are produced by Joy
seem most likely to break the heart.
The fatal'result is caused by an over
stimulation of the heart nerves"
This is undoubtedly the most inter-
esting information that has yet been
contributed to the meager data which
exists concerning the heart and its
haps the least understood of mans
organs. It's breakdown. II not its actual
breakage, causes more deaths today
than any other anliction. over a hun
dred thousand persons die of heart
disease in this country, every year.
In New York City alone the annual
death rate from organic diseases of
the heart Is over 10000 or about the
same as the entire national death rate
from automobile accidents. 1t Is esti-
mated that 10000 children in the New
York schools are already Handicapped
by permanently damaged hearts, and
that an even greater number of In
dustrial workers are suffering from
various forms of heart disease. and IL
Ia known that 2 per cent Of the boys
examined in the draft were rejected be-
cause Of damaged hearts.
COMBATING Heart TrsuSIe
While It has by. no means done
enough. New York has probably done
more 70 combat this greatest Of ma
tional aa1ictions than any other city.
It has an Association for the Proven
tion and Relief Of Heart Disease. which
has accomplished splendid work in
promoting the study of heart ailments
and In providing special facilities for
cardiac patients. About Is cardiac
clinics are now operated in connection
with <dtp hospitals. while various con-
va1esccnt homes for cardiacs have re-
Gently been opened.
Yet none of these activities have
thrown great light upon the origin Of
heart disease. Tho association Is in
clined to place most of the responsible
ity upon environment. They point out
is found chiefly among the poor and
those who. by bitter necessity or by
carclessness. live under unfavorable
conditions. II the disease In discovered
IN its early stages and the patient
given plenty of rest. proper food, fresh
air and well ventilated sleeping quart
ers. II Is usually easily cured. they as
sert, but where the disease has existed
for a number of years. tho cure is ex-
trcmcly difficult. While they believe
with the British specialist that emo
tional excitement Is probably con-
tributary cause OF heart trouble bad
living habits have the most to do with
II.
The heart may be damaged by GER
tain infectious diseases or by the con-
stant use OF stimuIants or by insult
able modes of life" reads a pamphlet