The Wilmington morning star., 1940-09-04
Medical Care
BY LOGAN CLENDENING, M. D

Medical science is, like the de-
mocracies, a good deal troubled
because, no matter what it does or
proposes to do, somebody-crank
or quaek or ever legitimate critic
starts some more or less active
interference. For a long time about
the only thing medical science had
to offer was some form of medi-
cine: it a only an extract from
a plant or a chemical salt, but this
aroused the cranks, and to hear
them talk, these things were the
very implements of Satan. They
weren't medicines, they yer
drugs, and worse than that, they
were poisons, and they upset the
stomach and did all sorts of things
to the insides and the doctors who
gave them were trying to ruin the
world.
"The Needle"
Then the doctors invented the
hypodermic syringe and began to
give drugs ''parenterally," as il IS
called, and then they got very sci
entific and began to give vaccines
and antiserums. Then by and by
another set of cranks arose and
they were all against vaccines and
SerumS.
This brief excursion into medical
history was suggested by some dis
cussion current in medical journals
concerning the possibility of curing
hay fever by swallowing S IL
amounts of potassium chloride. In
all the schemes for the treatment
of hay fever that have held the
stage for the last twenty-five years,
little has been said about medi-
cines either by mouth or even ap-
piled to the nose. AS described in
the column yesterday, the ap-
proved and successful treatment
is based on the idea of creating
immunity to the pollens which
cause hay fever by injecting vac
cines hypodermically.
Some Success
The results of this form of treat
ment have been quite successful,
but it admittedly is, to say the
least, cumbersome. 1t involves 60
ing to the doctors office every few
days for weeks on end-so that you
get to know the doctor or the
technician in his office almost bet
ter than you do your own family.
This also takes up time, if time is
a factor. And the treatments, while
they couldn't be called painful, dc
involve hypodermics and annoy
ances like that.
So all the while people have been
wondering if there wasn't some
thing you could swallow and the
hay fever would go away-going
back to the good old principle of
getting the right medicine for what
ails you.
The drug suggested is potassium
chloride. Opinions differ as to it's
effectiveness. In Tucson, Arizona,
a doctor reported good results in
cases OF hay fever and chronic
vasomotor sinus trouble. In Chi
cago, on the other hand, practically
no good results were reported. The
same tidings come from San Di.
ego, California. The theoretical ba-
SIS on which the treatment was
first suggested was the finding of
low blood serum potassium in al
lergic states.
This particular attempt may or
may not be successful, but the
hope that allergic manifestations
Will some day respond to sinple
drug therapy is an ENCOURAGING
one.
questions and Answers
j. E.-"Please tell me what 4
can eat in place of meat in a re-
ducing diet. I have always had
an aversion to meat and have nav
er eaten it. In place of it I haua
eaten cheese. I can eat fish"
Answer-Either cheese Or fish
will take the place of meat r.
certain extent. Also some vene.
tables have a high protein contenr
such as beans, peas, wheat az
oatmeal. Nu
M. F.-"Please tell me if naus,.
can be caused by nervousness I"
Answer Nearly any svno.
can be caused by nervousness "a
nausea is one which is most a,a i,o
excited in this way. If by ner11onc
ness is meant any emotional, d:s
turbance or imbalance, it m1,st us, hs
evident that nausea can he s~oe