The Monmouth inquirer., 1922-07-13
N0AMAL rEMpERArURE oF MAN
Il le ss.5 Degrees When Taken Un-
der the Tongue, No Matter Where
He Lives.

re LIVES.
The normal temperature Of human
being is generally given as 1876 de-
grees but the statement must be
slightly qualified. It is the normal
temperature when taken by placing
the thermometer under the tongue or
in the armpit or the groin.
The surface temperature of the
head, hands or abdomen varies from
SO degrees to SO degrees or even low
er. That Of the internal regions may
60 up to 1922 degrees, that being the
average heat of the blood circulating
in the liver and some other organs.
But 9S.6 degrees is called the nor
NAL temperature Of human being,
and it doesn't mater whether he lives
in the desert Of Sahara or in Green
land. according to a writer in the
Technical World. Awake or asleep,
at work or just loafng, a mans tenn
perature remains practically at this
level.
When it varies more than the frac-
ton Of a degree it is because the heat
regulating mechanism is disarranged
by disease or by abnormal conditions
of some sort. Excessively high meas
ures of heat may be borne for several
minutes by an individual without
raising his temperature more than a
fraction Of degree. Person who
sometimes are styled human sasaman-
ders have given exhibitions of their
ability to stand high temperature.
There is an authentic case recorded
Of Martinez, the so-called French sal
amahder--a baker by trade-who ex-
posed himself to high temperatures
from boyhood He remained in an
oven erected in the Tivoli Gardens for
fourteen minutes when the tempera-
ture in it was SSS degrees. His pulse
on entering was rs minute and had
reached 1870 when he came out He
often duplicated this performance.
Chamouni, a celebrated Russian sal
amander, who called himself 'gThe In-
combustible,' used to go into an oven
and stay while leg of mutton was
roasted there. not coming out until
the meat was we'll done. He event
ually lost his life in one of these per-
formances.
Fever is a rise of temperature above
the normal level. This rise is seldom
beyond 106 degrees. Mental and ner-
vous influences may So act for time
as to disorder the control of the ther-
motaxic nerve centre and cause fever.
It Is interesting to note some of the
high temperatures which are ON med
ical record as having actually occur
red in certain diseases. Guys hospital
in London records the case of hys-
terical woman afflicted with tubereu-
losis of one lung who showed degrees.
At meeting OF the Association Of
American Physicians in 1895 DR.. Jac-
obi of New York reported a patient
in whom fever reached the almost in
credible figure Of 14S degrees T. This
case occurred in hysterical fireman
who had suffered a severe injury from
a fall.
In the discussion which followed the
report Of this case among the mems
bers of the association DR.. WEIGH Of
Baltimore referred to a condition of
hyperthermy that had come to his
knowledge in which the temperature
was recorded as III degrees F. OF
course such exceedingly high tenn
peratures are. of only short duration or
death would ensue.
Fever is not the only disturbance
which may altar temperature. Certain
conditions-e especially those due to
diseases like tuberculosis, acute al
coholism, melancholia, convalescence
from fevers, poisoning from various
drugs and so forth-may cause the
bodily warmth to become subnormal.
Injuries and surgical shock also origi-
nate the same effect. Starvation al
ways induces a gradual fall.
Low temperatures are always dan
gerous and unless reaction quickly
ensues. by aid Of relief measures, a
fatal termination may be expected.
The lowest recorded life that may be
regarded as reliable is one reported
by Duffy in which the thermometer
registered S4 degrees f. Death en-
sued the following day.
The body, however, can Withstand
extreme cold more readily than it can
extreme heat before the regulating
centre becomes disordered; and 50,
other things being equal, freezing to
death is not as common in cold cli-
mates as sunstrokes is in warm.