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Show jfc ,s !. , -ji jit a';- fc & I Let Our Motto Be I GOOD HEALTH ( I BY DR. LLOYD ARNOLD 1 I Professor of Bacteriology and Pre- I I ventive Medicine. Universilv of 1 I Illinois. College of Medicine, j ir-8f -v.- '.f.' -k' w -s - THE INFECTIOUS COLD A good many Infectious diseases give you immunity when you have had one attack, p but not a cold. I v You can be just ! over one, and Is contract anoth- tj 1 er the next day. i v( So far, medi- v - caI science ,as ' x 3 not been able to ,"?'55 isolate the germ fe"' j that causes the k " "s infectious cold. i 1 Tlie eerm ls s0 - si infinitesi m a 1 1 y ; small that It goes through every bacterial filter we have In our laboratories, and It cannot be seen with the microscope. But some day some scientist will be able to "catch" it in some kind of net, and then when we can isolate It from other germs, we will be able to work on it, and tlie same scientist, or some others, will be able to discover dis-cover the way of killing it. Let us liope these discoveries come soon. The common cold is certainly the cause of an amazing amount of discomfort in this world. Medical science, however, has learned that there are two types of colds one that is contagious and one that is not. The non-contagious type is the one that most cronic head cold sufferers have. The infectious type is the one that most of us get. It is the one that comes in "waves." Medical science;, too, has determined deter-mined pretty well that we all have the cold virus (a germ is called a virus when it Is so small that you cannot see it with a microscope) in our noses and throats constantly. When we are well the cold virus doesn't bother us any more than a dust spot on healthy skin bothers us. But let us get below par, then-well, then-well, the cold virus is there ready to attack, and loses no time "getting "get-ting in its work." In experiments which we have been carrying on in the University of Illinois, we have learned that the temperature of the lining of the nose has a great deal to do with whether or not we are resistant to a cold. Briefly the action is this : In a normal healthy person, when cold water or cold air strikes the body anywhere, the temperature of the lining membrane of the nose drops instantly below normal, and before the temperature of the skin drops. Then within the space of a few minutes, the temperature of the lining of the nose rises above normal nor-mal and stays there long enough to counteract the bad effect of the below be-low normal period. Then It settles back to normal. In other words, a healthy body machinery has the ability to adapt itself, within reason, rea-son, to exposure to cold, and to ward off its 111 effects. But now supposing the body is below be-low par. Then when cold air strikes the skin at any spot, the temperature tempera-ture of the nose goes down Instantaneously, Instan-taneously, but Instead of going up again immediately as it should, it stays down for perhaps half an hour or longer. And when the blood holds away from the surface for longer than ten minutes, we have found, the cold germs seize the chance to get in their work, and in a very short time our noses are running and we are sneezing. The cold germs are multiplying by the millions mil-lions and ready to fasten themselves on any person that comes in contact con-tact with our wet handkerchiefs or the spray from our mouth. It is in this beginning stage that the common com-mon cold is most infectious. But it ls now that quick work on our part can often stop the cold. If we can get the temperature of the nose to rise above normal for a while so that we can sweat and the blood in the nose can come to the surface to battle against the germs, and we can rest our bodies for a bit, the chances are pretty good that we can conquer the cold within a few hours. The best tactics to use at this time are those grandmother used a steaming hot foot bath while wrapped in blankets, a hot lemonade to drink, a warmed bed to get Into, and then rest there. But If the soft underlying tissues of the nose become water-logged with serum filtered through the walls of the blood capillaries, the cold will run Its normal course. The best way to prevent infectious head colds is to keep the lining of the nose and its underlying vascular network in a normal state of function. func-tion. The skin of the whole body must be kept in "tone," and this can be done by a warm morning bath followed fol-lowed by a cool shower, or at least a washing of the face, arms and hands with cold water and a cool rundown of the rest of the body. Then be out in the open air at least an hour a day. Eat plenty of fruit, vegetables, dairy products, lean meats, and go easy on starches and sweets. And avoid as yon would a pes! I lonce, the person who is in the sneezing stage of a cold anil who is showering the air Willi jiernis. ,, one is resistant eni:iiyh lo with stand a too hi dose oT I'l'esh nih: genus. Icj. IVi'ak-rn Nrw-ja (n'l Union. |