The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1932-10-18
Is 1T YOUR LIVER OR
YOUR GALL

One of the numerous things that
dawned on me only after several
years of practice is that when people
speak of weak ankles" they mean
what doctors call pronated feet,
which is the primary or potential
stage of flat feet and eventually de-
velcps into genuine flatfootedness in
many instances if the young person
begins TO wear arch props or shoes
with such supports built in.
A thing that is just beginning to
dawn on me now is that when the
average dumb egg opines its his liver
he probably means his gall. But
then, it doesn't make much differ
ence what he means for he is mere
ly guessing anyhow. So am I, for
that matter But again, there's a
vast difference between a patients
guess and a physicians. The differ
ence is as great as is the difference
between your guess or mine that 1t is
going to rain or be fine day to-
morrow and the guess of the official
weather bureau man about that.
All We know is what We read in
the histories of our patients. From
the peyusal of many thousands of
such histories we know that patients
developing gall troubles, either chole-
cystitiS inflammation of gall-blad-
der) or gallstones, generally have in
definite symptoms of indigestion,
as they call it, and not symptoms
pointing toward liver complaint.
Liver complaint, if it means actual
disease of the liver, generally gives
rise to none of the symptoms
ascribed to torpid liver or lazy liver
or biliousness by old time quacks and
nostrum vendors. That's all we can
say about liver complaint today.
Now. to be sure and get in a little
boost for the doctor business. we had
better repeat here that the wise
course for any adult who begins at
middle age to suffer with so-called
indigestion" especially if this &C.
ours as "gas attacks" is TO go i'm
mediately to his or her family ply
sician-oh, very we'll, then, if you
haven't one you may go to any good
physician-but just the same, any
citizen who has an automobile and a
place he can honestly call home
should have family doctor, too, just
to show he is somebody-and have
the doctor make regular eXamina-
ton to exclude cradiovascular Cheart
or artery disease, cancer or gall
stones.
If it happens that you are develop
ing any such condition surely it is
for your best interest to know it, SO
that you may take in time the nee
essary remedial measures. If there
is no serious trouble, as surely it is
beneficial to your health to know it.
That's why a health examination by
your own physician is worth the
price. 1 warn you to beware of in
stitutes" or other corporations that
offer credulous folk this service
which, being primarily personal. only
your own physician can render.
Once in while We still meet one
who believes calomcl increases the
flow of bile or drives more bile out
of the System" or cXerts some
beneficient influence upon torpid
lazy or inactive" liver, whatever
that may be. This quaint notion be-
longs in the museum along with the
notion that our national sins of over
eating and underworking or under
exercising are mitigated if we refer
to their consequence as bilious
ness
The truth is that precise scientific
observation has shown that no medi-
cine produces more than feeble and
temporary increase in the flow Of
bile, and even If we had potent
cholagogue we can't conceive what
1lSn II would he in treatnen