New Britain herald., 1930-10-08
PUTS HEALTH FIRST INLIFE IMPORTANCE
City Stresses Need Of Freedom
 From All Illness

Advice on the importance of pre- venting the spread of disease is con- tained in the monthly bulletin of the health department, issued today. "The most important thing in the world to us is health," the bulletin states. You walk down the street and meet a friend. The first thing you do is to ask about his health. You say Hello, how are you?' or How have you been?' It is the same salutation in all languages.
 Health, besides being the most important thing in the world, is the only thing we cannot share. We can give our money to the poor, food to the hungry, but our health is all our own. No matter how gladly we would share it with some ailing one, we cannot do it. We do share some of the diseases which lay us low, unfortunately. How fine it would be if just the reverse were it true, if health, instead of disease, were con- municable.
 There are two kinds of diseases, those caused by bacteria which may be spread from tie sick to the well and are, therefore, called commit nicable, and those which are not transmissible. Examples of the com- municable diseases are tuberculosis, diphtheria, the common cold and influenza. Examples of the non- communicable diseases are cancer, diabetes, rickets and scurvy.
 T wish to call to your attention the most frequent communicable diseases and one of the ways in which they may be prevented. It is a particularly pertinent subject of discussion at this season of the year when children get back to the close contacts of school life, and when adults start in on their strenuous household and business activities. Children, like adults, are uncon- sciously generous in the matter of spreading sickness, and it is a wisa mother who watches her children closely from babyhood and trains them to avoid each others candy puIIlllS LIllSS III lllC lllotlIl, 1iu breathing, sneezing and coughing into each others faces.
 "The most important fact about communicable diseases which we must remember is that the germs must leave the bodies of the sick and somehow gain entrance into the bodies of the well in order to spread tn In % cent of all communicable diseases, the germs enter the body through the mouth and nose. That is why 1t is so important to guard the mouth and noise. The mouth and nose, then, need to be guarded against air-borne danger. It is es- pecially important that mothers should teach children the value of the handkerchief. To cover a cough or sneeze with one is much more polite than to say, Excuse me- It will prevent the passing of the germs to ones neighbor.
 "The second way that communi- cable diseases pass from one body into the mouth of another is through water. Fortunately, in this city we have pure water supply. We have to be on our guard, however, when we are off on picnics, vacations or tours. Make sure that the water supply is pure. If you do not know that the water is pure, then boil the drinking water for five minutes and be sure of it's freedom from bacteria. Unless the cups and glass from which we drink are also free from bacteria, the purest water in the world may not be a guarantee of safety.
 Milk is another liquid route to the mouth which needs a great deal of policing. Here again we city dwellers are protected by strict reg ulations which govern the dairy in dustry from the time of milking up to the delivery in bottles on our own doorsteps. But any woman can nullify the whole expensive process by which pure milk was delivered to her, by pouring it into improperly washed containers or by standing it uncovered in dirty refrigerator"