Evening star., 1936-11-19
0VERSECRET|ON
CAUSE OF FEAR
Scientist Also Traces Other
Bodily Manifestations
& to Thyroxin.
BY THOMAS II. HENRY,
Stan Correspondent OF The Star.

as well as their bodily manifestations
are aroused by constant oversecretion
of thyroxin, the hormone Of the
thyroid gland in the neck, into the
blood stream, DR.. Alphone Mcmahon
of st. Louis University stressed before
members of the Southern Medical As
sociation here today.
The thyroid gland, he pointed out,
is one link in complex chain Of
forgans which work together in an
emotional state. The normal starting
point is the thalamus, very old part
Of the brain from the standpoint of
evolution. The sight or sound OF
danger is shot directly to nerve centers
of the thalamus which relays them to
the autononic nervous system which
in turn stimulates the adrenal glands
sand the thyroid.
Other Manifestations.
The heart beats rapidly, the eyes
protrude, the skin is covered with a
cold sweat and other bodily manifes-
tations appear, depending on the
greatness of the danger. This is the
physiological picture of fear but, as
everyone knows who ever has been
afraid, there is a psychic side to the
situation which is the most real part
Of it to the individual.
Experimentation has shown, DR..
Mcmahon pointed out, that stimula
ton Of any part of this chain in the
absence Of any situation which ordi-
narily would arouse the emotion of
fear will produce some of the physical
manifestations. But If there Is any
real sensation of fear, or any other
emotion, it is very mild and vague
But when the thyroid is stimulated to
over-secrete, he said, testimony of
patients indicates that the psychic
state also is present, sometimes in a
quite exaggerated form.
This may throw some light on the
so-called James-Langer theory Of the
emotions which had wide acceptance
until quite recently. This held that
man does not run because he is afraid
but is afraid because he runs-that is
the physical response to an emotion
exciting experience which precedes the
psychic response and is essentially re-
sponsible for it.
DR.. Mcmahon pointed out that this
emotion-chain Of organs also may
explain why an actual thyroid disease
may result from an emotional shock.
1t is apparently very delicately ad-
justed organ and can be thrown out Of
adjustment by extremely strong i'm
pulses coming to it from the thalamus.
~ Breakdown of Home Blamed.
The breakdown of the American
home is in large measure responsible
for the maladjustment of the times,
said DR.. W. w. Young of Atlanta in
a paper presented before the section
on nervous and mental diseases
The home" he said, has ceased
to be a place to 60 to and become a
place to 60 from" A generation ago.
he stressed, the necessary home ac-
tivities consumed the spare time of
the family. They were obliged to
ssan and cook their own food, make
and mend their own clothes, etc.
Now such activities, especially in a
city. would be economically unsound.
Hence for both children and adults
there is too much spare time and
puIpOSeleSS ACTIVITY.
The home as an institution is in
great state of fux out of which
something stable must evolve" DR..
Young said. Women have been
emancipated and now take part in
about every activity of life Once a
woman could either teach school, get
married or be an old maid. She was
either good or bad. Today the old
standards have gone and no new ones
lave replaced them.
= The children are brought up seeing
nothing in continuity. Cause and effect
Is not apparent to them. Pork comes
from the butcher, butter from the
grocer, clothes from the department
store. The children fail to see their
place in life and its relationships
Governments, courts, churches and
schools should be the dominant factors
Tin keeping the social structure in
working order. They apparently have
failed. Education now is accessible to
the great majority. Laws have multi
piled ad nauseum. Churches have
grown in numbers. But crime, insanity
and chronic dependency are increas-
ing"
The possible way out, DR.. Young
said, as in a radical revision of insti-
tutions to meet the need of changing
time instead of remaining chained to
precedent. This is particularly applic-
able to the law, he stressed. which
should be adapted to meet the needs
Of the individual.
& Tick Carries Many Diseases.
The dog tick, now known as the car
rier OF spotted fever in the East, also
Is potential carrier of tularemia, the
very serious human disease which
ordinarily is contracted by handling
diseased rabbits, 1t was reported by
Drs. Adolph Weinzire and c. H. Halli-
day OF the Maryland State Health De-
partment. They reported one case
from Southern Maryland this year in
which man who had no contact with
rabbits or other wild animals came
down with tularemia after finding a
tick buried under his skin. Another
case within the past few months Is
that Of the G. c. C. worker who con-
racted tularemia from the bite of a
aOrSe ny.
The horsefly, they stressed, is not a
Serious threat because it carried the
v tularemia bacillus only few minutes
after biting a diseased animal. The
dog tick carried it in its own blood
stream and may transmit it through
its eggs to another generation.
An X-ray moving picture showing
the body organs from the stomach
to the thorax in actual operation was
, exhibited before the association yes
terday by DR.. william H. Stewart of
New York City. 1t was the first Of its
kind ever made in this country and,
DR.. Stewart stressed, may mark an
important advance in the art of dag
nosis.
In the past the only way for the psy-
sician to watch the inside of the body
in actual operation was by means of