The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-01-14
DR.. Andrew
NJ. Morrison
and His Wifo

DRoBABLY nobody ever ssw . Fl
centenarian, Fat people do not i've
to very great age.
Except IN rare Instances, persons who
i've to ripe old age ore thin. says the.
Official report made from recent careful
survey BY one Of the great American lie
Insurance. companies.
The report says that American men are
getting fatter, and thereby reducing their
prospect Of longevity the cause being
Overeating and indulgence n sweets. Den
fiyation Of alcohol has had the effect 0f
sharpening their appetite Tor candy and
other sweet things. Men who used %
treat their friends 1t bars now invite
them to meais, at which much rich and
fattening food q served.
These are conspicuous among the rear
. sons why the waist-lines Of American men
are gaining inch after inch.
The human body Is machine, and, Ike
an automobile, II things are not II good
balance and accurate adjustment Il does
not work well, and sooner Or later comes
to stop.
The fat person l., from the Doctors
point Of view, . diseased person. There
is normal weight for human beings ct
every period Of their lives. II the weight
of an individual q above normal then
something & out Of order in the balance
of the human machine in his case. And
when one part Of the machine h out Of
order it throws strain upon other parts,
and sooner or later serious trouble or
complete collapse follows.
It is easy TO see how, for instance, IN.
necessary fat puts strain on the human
heart. Everybody knows that even an
ordinary twelve-quart pail of water il
quite burden to carry around. But Q
twelve-quart pail of water only weighs
about twenty-five pounds-and thousands
Of people are twenty-five pounds over
weight.
." President Taft is said to have weighed,
while he was President, $50 pounds. In
some way or other he has managed to cut
his weight down 100 pounds, and~this has
relieved his heart from a tremendous
strain and increased the length Of his life.
A pint Of water weighs about pound.
A quart, therefore, weighs two pounds.
A hundred pounds Of fat ID the equivalent
of about fifty quarts of water, or four
tweIve-quart pals full to the brim.
?" While Mr.. Taft was at his maximum
weight. he was, therefore, carrying around
with him an equivalent of four full pals
of water. Every time he got up out of
chair, every time he stepped into an auto
mobile, every time he walked upstairs it
was the same as If he lifted not only his
own normal weight, but also must lift and
carry around four twelve-quart pals Of
water.
1t is easy to see what relief to Mr..
Taft's heart IL must have been when the
President got I'D of that unnecessary 100
pounds of flesh. Il Is said that Mr., Taft
accomplished some of his reducing by rid
ing an artificial hobby-horse while he was
in the White House. There ID no better
exercise than horseback riding, and the
machine which Mr.. Taft Is said to have
used was devised to duplicate, IN all neces-
sary essentials, the exercise which is ac-
complished by good stiff ride on a
horses back.
The United States Public Health Ser
vice has this 70 say about fat:
"Undue accumulation Of fat Is handi-
can. Not only does it reduce bodily activ-
ity and physical efficiency because of the
dead weight of surplus tissue that must
BE carried around, but it engenders slug
Rishness and thereby impairs the power