Evening star., 1941-02-15
Vitamin Medicine
Is Seen as Remedy
For Bad Tempers
Deficiency Makes People
Cranky Specialists
Report Says
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

nicotine acid, vitamin B1, and pos
sibly several other vitamin ingre-
dients may be the next step in
vitamin medicine.
This appeared from reports of DR..
Tom D. Spies of the University of
Cincinnati one of the country's
foremost vitamin experts, before the
post graduate clinic of George
Washington University School of
Medicine today.
1t has long been observed, he
said, that both human beings and
animals kept on vitamin deficient
diets are cranky" The condition
is vague. impossible to measure and
never has been included among the
symptoms of either pellagra or
beriberi in humans or black tongue
in dogs-the diseases most closely
associated with lack of these vita
minis In the diet
Will Be in New Bread.
But. DR.. Spies said, the condition
undoubtedly exists and patients be-
come much better -natured when
the vitamins are given them. 1t is
proposed to place both these in the
new fortified bread which soon will
be on the market.
RenCently, he said, he was visited
in Alabama where he was working
with pellagra victims by very
distinguished American medical
scientist. He seemed deeply wor-
ried and finally conflded that he
was on the point of getting a di-
Vorce from his wife, with whom he
had lived happily for 20 years. He
was relatively wealthy man, HIM
self an expert on diets, who prided
himself on his own table. But of
late his wife had gotten unendurably
ill-tempered both with himself and
the children
He was not at all convinced by DR..
Spies bad temper syndrome" as
sociated with pellagra and thought
it was only an accident that cranky
folks sometimes happened to get the
disease
Troubles Patched Up.
n lt" NCthS dIIt llt ltlJ LII
Spies received a letter from him to
the effect that the family troubles
had all been patched up. On the
way home he had reflected that it
might be true and that. while his
wife was getting plenty Of vitamins
to eat there might be some organic
condition which prevented her from
absorbing them properly.
She had often complained of
severe headaches. Secretly he knew
she had been taking aspirin tablets
several times a day. He found
where she kept the bottle. emptied
it when she was away from home
and substituted pills containing
mixture of nicotine acid. and B-1.
She never knew the difference. In
a few days the headaches stopped
and she became as easy to get along
with as when they first were mar
ried
Two hitherto unsupported possible
functions of the two vitamins were
described by DR.. Spies today. Nico-
tinic acid is essential because it
forms part Of substance known as
co-enzyme l, which is necessary for
respiration of cells. B-1 forms
part of a similar substance, CO.
engine 2.
1t has Just been noticed, DR.. Spies
said, that in pneumonia these CO.
engines disappear rapidly from the
blood. but come back to normal con-
centration almost Immediately after
the crisis is over-regardless of
whether this comes naturally or is
induced bv pneumonia serums or
sulfapyridine. In some way the
fatalities Of pneumonia may be tied
up with rapid depletion of the two
substances.
Persons undergoing ray treat
ment often develop an extreme
nausea known as "X-rav sickness. -
Here also. he said. the two CO.
engines disappear from the blood
and it has been found that the
sickness does not occur if heavy
doses Of nicotine acid are given be-
fore the treatment.
Use of blood plasma in surgery
was described by DR.. Charles S.
White, George Washington profess
sor of surgery. and diseases of the
colon by DR.. Charles M. Mavo of
the Mayo Clinic of Rochester. MINI.
Little pink pills" one of medi-
cine's newest weapons against a
variety of specific maladies of wom-
en-, were described by DR. M. Ed
ward Davis of Rush Medical College,
Chicago.
They contain stilbeStrol. a svn-
thetic hormone which replaces two
of the normal feminine hormones.
which can be made cheaply in large
quantities, and which is several
times as powerful as preparations
of the natural hormones in the same
quantities.
Medicine Brand New.
1t is so new that it still is not
available to the medical profession
in general.
BY means of it, DR.. Davis said. one
of the greatest trials of women, the
menopauSe, can be passed comfort
ably. 1t also has the remarkable eff
feet of changing tall, "gangling"
girls into well-proportioned women
in cases where, due to hormone de-
f1ciency, the long bones of the body
continue to grow.
Paraldehyde. drug first used by
Prof. Howard F. Kane and George
F. Roth of George Washington Uni
versity few years ago as child
birth anaesthetic, is proving the
most potent remedy yet found
against the condition known as
eclampsia, convulsions which some
times develop during the last three
months of pregnancy, it was re-
ported by Dr. Louis H. Douglas of
the University of Maryland.