The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1943-10-08
Therapeutic Exercises

The general principles Of thera-
peutlc exercises were developed
more or less independently by
DelSarte, in France; Ling, in Swe-
den; and Jain. in Germany. In
America students from the lowest
grades to co.lege-wnen the eXer-
cises are most beneticlal-as well
as athletic Instructors have been
inclined to regard these turn
Vereln exercises as too monOto-
nous and undressing ana have
preferred sports. But reaction
IS on the way, was on the way be-
fore the war, and war with its
setting-u exercises is speeding II.
Sports often produce one -sided de-
velopment, or actually break down
instead Of building up. At any
rate corrective exercises do not
Kill anybody, in contrast with the
mortality Of football.
The best use Of these corrective
exercises Is preventive rather
than curative and lies in the field
of posture. The ideal is a we'll
rounded physical development
which the whole body shares. This
is not entirely an artistic or aes-
thetic ideal because poor posture
alone leads to many functional
disease states. Round shoulders,
lateral curvature of the spine, jut-
ting neck, head carried on one side,
overdevelopment of one leg or
arm, may be factors in chronic
arthritis, neuralgia. eyestrain,
dislocation of the abdominal or
gans and functional dyspepsia Of
many varieties.
Center Of Gravity
The center Of gravity Of the
human being is the second lumbar
vertebra, which is about a hands
breadth below the last rib. The
line Of gravity runs from just in
front of the ankles, upwards
through the front part Of the knee,
through the hip joint, upwards to
a point just at the junction Of the
spine and the skull.
Anything which throws this line
off balance as bad sitting
posture at a school desk, for in
stance-creates a loss Of equilib-
rum. With loss Of equilibrium the
body does not fall, but attempts
to prevent it by muscular activity.
When the line Of gravity is off,
this muscular activity is neces-
sarlly a muscular strain. When
the line Of gravity is thrown back
wards-a very common form Of
faulty posture-the muscles of the
abdomen are thrown into spasm
for correction, initiating various
forms Of digestive disturbance.
This brings up the subject Of
the modern conception Of the erect
stance. Elm Ealk, a Swedish gym
nastic instructor, in 1911 criti-
cized the stiff attention position
with shoulders thrown back and
advocated easy, relaxed, erect
carriage putting no strain on any
group Of muscles. This would
seem to be the logical idea in
striving for the most healthy pos
ture.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
C., V. A.:-What causes rheu-
matte fever? What parts Of the
body does it Affect What is the
safest cure? Approximately how
long is required for the average
patient to get we'll? If cured, does
1t occur again? Is it hereditary?
Answer: Rheumatic fever is
caused by a germ. 1t Is more fire.
quent in cold. damp climates. II
affects the joints and the heart.
Sodium salicylate is the standard
remedy. This relieves the pain
full, swollen joints in about a week,
but after an acute attack the pa
tent should stay in bed for a
month or more to prevent heart
complications. 1t Is extremely
likely TO recur. 1t is not heredi-
tary.