OCR Text |
Show HOW TO BATHE. He Clean and lu All Likelihood V uii Will l Healthy. The first and common object of tho bath is cleanliness. The great importance import-ance of abstersion, and the necessity of keeping the skin clean and in' its normal activity will bo more fully appreciated when we consider the importance of tho function which tho skin has to perform. One-third of all the morbid matter in tho system arising aris-ing from tissue change is thrown off through the skin, tho other two-thirds being excreted by the kidneys and lungs. The excretion through the skin is j accomplished by tho action of about , J 2,600,000 of little sweat glands. Each 1 of these glands is surrounded by a plexus of blood vessels, and has a duct ( Bxtenmnar to the auifnce, tho avempre ' ' length of which Is one-fourth of an ' ' inch. The aggregate length of these '-v ducts as computed is about ten miles. -v Tlllb- rt i A . . ' It - " system or Human ' sewerage ten miles in extent! The deleterious effect upon the organism caused by a stoppage of this great system of drainage will be perceived at a glance. The effete matters of the body, which in a state of health are I excreted by the skin, nature now en- ! deavors to get rid of through tho kidneys and lungs. j The effort on these organs of the great increase of functional activity necessary to maintain the harmony between be-tween tissue waste and tissue repair results in their di - Luu untire system becomes deranged from the poisonous effects of this accumulated matter. Then, too. in health respiration respira-tion is carried on, in a measure through tho skin by the absorption of oxygen and the giving off of carbonic acid, thus aiding the lungs in their interchange of gases; in this manner a direct effect is produced upon these organs by a checking of the normal activity of the skin. |