The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1925-05-22
ricketts, pREvENrABLE AND
DURABLE
From state Dept. of Health.

CIOM OLdIO OCpt. VI AAC1AtAs
From the hospital and labora-
tories all over the world where
scientists have been trying to dis
cover preventive or cure for
ricketts,, the deforming disease of
early childhood, comes the good
news that two simple remedies for
it, have, been found Both are with
in the reach of everybody. They
are sunlight, and cod-liver oil.
Pointing out the far-reaching
benefits of the discovery, DR.. j H.
M. Knox, Jr., Chief of the Bureau
of Child Hygiene of the State De-
partment of Health, said '"rhe ex-
aminations that have been made at
the Child Health Conferences in the
counties have shown that one out OF
every three white children, and seven
out of every ten colored children,
under two years DID, suffer from
this disease, which not only impairs
the health,--hut often leads to per-
manent deformity of the bones,
Babies with ricketts, usually have
large square heads. The soft spot
in the skull does not close at the
normal time; the babies have head
sweats even If not dressed too
warmly; they are often nervous and
restless; teething is frequently de-
layed; there is less resistance to
colds and other, infections: the
bones are softer than normal and are
easily deformed. Many of the cases
of bow legs, knock knees, or mar
row sunken chests are the results OF
ricketts,. The pelvic bones may also
be permanently deformed through
the diesease.
Recent studies have shown that
ricketts, is caused by one or two fac
tors, or in many cases. by both to-
gether: LIST, the absence of sun
Light in the childs environment;
End, diet that fails to supply the
substances necessary for the forma-
ton of healthy bone structure.
Mothers milk contains this sub
stance, if the mother herself receives
La proper diet; consequently babies
who are nursed by their mothers are
less likely to develop ricketts, than
are the bottle-fed babies. 1t can be
prevented in bottle-fed babies by the
use of cows milk, modified to suit
needs of the individual child, with
certain additions. After the baby
is about three months old, a tea
spoonful of orange juice should pc.
given daily, an hour before one of
the morning feelings. Tomato juice
has similar properties, and may be
substituted for the orange juice.
When the baby is six months old,
little vegetable broth, made OF
spinach, asparagus, peas or beans,
carefully chopped and cooked thor
oughly, either with or without
chicken, beef or Mutton, then mash
ed and run through sieve, should
be added to the diet. The green
vegetables are chosen because they
contain the mineral salts that are
necessary for bone making. A very
small quantity of the broth is given
at first-not more than tea
spoonful. This is gradually increas-
ed as the baby grows older.
Babies who are given this sort OF
diet, and who are kept out of doors,
in the sunlight, as much as possible,
are not likely to have ricketts,.
Bright sunny rooms are necessary
for the general health, but indoor
sunlight does not have the same
effect on the bone forming tissues,
that we get from the sunlight out of
doors. That is another thing the
scientists have tested out, and they
have found that certain properties of
the light-the properties that have
something to do with bone-forma-
tion-are lost when the light passes
through our ordinary window glass.
"Cod-liver oil which has also been
found to be effective both as a pre-
ventive and as cure of ricketts,,
also contains certain substances
which help toward proper bone for
nation. Nearly all babies can take
,od-liver oil either with or after
heir other diet. From one-fourth
70 two teaspoonfuls day is suf-
ficient to prevent the disease, and
the same treatment will cure it, in
is early stages"