The Eugenic Marriage, Volume 4 (of 4): A Personal Guide to the New Science of Better Living and Better Babies — John Shaqi
The Eugenic Marriage, Volume 4 (of 4): A Personal Guide to the New Science of Better Living and Better BabiesHague, W. Grant (William Grant)
Science
The Eugenic Marriage, Volume 4 (of 4): A Personal Guide to the New Science of Better Living and Better Babies
Hague, W. Grant (William Grant)
Eugenics; Hygiene; Marriage
If every mother were
educated to the extent as indicated in the above outline the appalling
infant mortality would fall into insignificance. It is not a difficult
task nor would it take a long time to carry it out; it is the work for
willing women who have time and who perhaps spend that time in less
desirable but more dramatic ways.
It is the knowledge that aids in catching disease in its inception that
counts. The worst infections begin as a mild condition and prompt
treatment robs them of their sting. When treatment is delayed and the
child is fed for twenty-four hours too long on milk, the condition which
in the beginning could have been stopped promptly has developed and it
becomes a fight for life.
It will be seen from the above that all we need is education.
Education of the mother primarily, but education of the missionary, the
nurse, the physician, the municipality, and the State, each
co-operating, each willing to work in the interest of a great cause, for
the benefit of the human race and for the brotherhood of man.
ACUTE INTESTINAL INDIGESTION
Causes.--Overfeeding, unsuitable and improper food, irregular and
indiscriminate feeding, sudden change from one food to another, as at
weaning time, a change from a poor quality to a rich food, or vice
versa. Conditions affecting the health of the child, especially the
nervous system, such as hot weather, extreme cold, fatigue, or at the
beginning of any of the acute diseases. Children sometimes are
predisposed to attacks of intestinal indigestion; these children are
delicate in health and have weak digestive ability. The slightest
irregularity or error in diet will cause an attack in these children.
Symptoms.--The attack may come on suddenly or it may develop slowly.
The important constitutional symptoms are fever, prostration, and a
general nervous irritability. The child is seized with pain in the
abdomen. The pain is referred to the region around the navel. It is
sharp, colicky, and severe, causing the child to cry out and draw up its
legs in an effort to lessen its severity. The child is exceedingly
restless and acts as if it were on the verge of a dangerous illness. Gas
in the bowel is not present as a rule as frequently as it is in infants
under the same circumstances. In a few hours diarrhea sets in, the
stools may number from four to twelve or more in twenty-four hours. The
stools are acid, sour, and the odor may be very foul. They are thinner
than usual and frothy from the presence of gas.
In very young infants suffering from a sudden attack of intestinal
indigestion, the stomach, as well as the bowels, is invariably upset. If
the indigestion is the result of a slower process, the stomach does not
participate in the process. The color of the stools in infancy is yellow,
then yellowish-green, and later grass-green. Undigested food is
always present and in infants the curdled casein of the milk appears
as white specks or lumps in the movements.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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