Children well and happy

CHAPTER I

PERSONAL HYGIENE

Personal hygiene may be defined as the wise and systematic care of the body. The reasons why every girl should take care of her body are:

First, good health means power to do one’s work in life well.

Second, health is an aid to happiness and personal attractiveness.

Good health helps to give a person an active, cheerful mind, and this makes one alert, capable, and able to work to the best advantage. Good health gives poise and grace to the body and helps to create efficiency.

The following are good rules:

1. Form health-giving habits.
2. Let keeping well and happy be one of your most important duties.

The person who honestly wishes to be useful must begin at once to make good health a certainty.

Rules for Correct Posture

Standing. We should stand correctly in order that the organs of the body—heart, lungs, stomach, liver, and kidneys—may have room and be in position to do their work well. We should stand erect, chin in, chest high, abdomen flat, and with the weight of the body resting on the balls of the feet.

Walking. In walking the weight of the body should be thrown well forward.

It is correct to let the heel touch the ground first, but the weight should very quickly be transferred to the ball of the foot. The correct position of the feet is with the toes pointed straight forward. This straight-foot position is characteristic of our best athletes, our native Indians, and others who are noted for great endurance in running and walking. Two things are essential: stockings should be a little longer than the feet, and shoes should be roomy at the toes and have heels not more than one inch high.

Sitting. As our schoolgirls sit many hours each day, it is vital to their health that they sit correctly. When sitting, one should push back in the chair as far as possible. In the resting position the entire trunk should lean backwards against the back of the chair; the hips should not be allowed to slide forward in the seat. In the active position the trunk is held erect or inclined forward. When leaning forward in a sitting position, the trunk must be held erect or inclined forward, and the bending should be from the hips, not from the waistline. Girls should not sit on one foot nor with the knees crossed, as these positions interfere with the circulation. When a person is sitting, the feet may be crossed if a change of position is desired.

Carrying of schoolbooks. In going to and from school, books should be carried on the right arm one day, on the left arm the next day, or they may be divided and carried partly on each arm. Of course the best plan is not to carry many books home. All pupils should prepare as many lessons during the study periods of each school day as classes will permit.

Position when reading. Children should be taught at an early age not to let the light, either natural or artificial, shine in their eyes. The strongest light should come from the left. Light from above is the best. One should not read too long at any one time without looking up at some distant object in order to rest the muscles of the eyes.

Care of the Skin

The skin is the outer covering of the body. It serves as a protection to the body and as an organ of excretion. Many waste products which would act as poisons if retained in the body are carried away through the pores of the skin by means of perspiration. This perspiration is produced by sweat-producing glands. Closely related to these are the oil-producing glands. The constant presence of perspiration and oily material from the glands makes it important that the skin be kept clean so that the pores may not become clogged.

Handkerchiefs. It is important that the child be supplied with clean handkerchiefs and be taught the proper use of them. A child should be told never to use a handkerchief belonging to anyone else. A handkerchief should be held before the nose or mouth when coughing or sneezing. One should never spit on the sidewalk, in the house, or in any public place.

Baths

Cleansing bath. The most important bath is the cleansing bath of warm water and soap, which should be taken at night or after exercise. After taking this bath one should dash or rub cold water over the skin. The body should be quickly dried and given a brisk rubbing with a coarse towel to increase the circulation.

Cold bath. A cool sponge bath, taken the first thing in the morning, has a stimulating effect on the body. It sends the blood to the skin and quickens the circulation. This bath should be followed by a brisk rubdown with a rough towel. A cold plunge bath should not be taken without the advice of a physician, as cold baths are not beneficial to everyone.

Brushing the teeth. The greatest factor in preventing decay of the teeth is cleanliness. The teeth should be brushed the first thing in the morning and the last thing at night, and, when convenient, should be rinsed after eating. The lower teeth should be brushed with a half-rotary motion up, and the upper teeth should be brushed down. This will assist in removing particles of food from the teeth and will prevent injury to the gums. Dental floss should be used between the teeth. Coarse food which requires much chewing strengthens the teeth and is excellent for the digestion.

It is well to use a simple mouth wash of one-half teaspoonful of soda or salt in a glass of tepid water. Have the dentist clean the teeth twice a year; do not wait until the teeth ache before going to the dentist.

Food

Food is that which supplies nourishment to our bodies. Although many elements enter into the composition of what we eat, food is roughly divided into three classes: proteids, carbohydrates, and fats. Some foods contain all of these elements; others contain only one or two of them.

Proteids. The proteids build and repair the tissues of the body and include such substances as the lean of meat and fish, the white of egg, milk, and parts of vegetables. Dried peas, dried beans, and nuts contain large percentages of proteid.

Carbohydrates (sugars and starches). Carbohydrates form the essential parts of vegetables and furnish body heat and muscular power. Foods containing a large percentage of starch are bread, potatoes, rice, macaroni, tapioca, and cereals. Such foods as candy, maple sirup, honey, and molasses are almost entirely sugar; while carrots, parsnips, and beets contain a large percentage of sugar.

Fats. Fats are the energy-producing part of our diet. They may be of either vegetable or animal origin—as cream, butter, yolks of eggs, nuts, meat, and fish fats.

Mixed diet. A mixed diet consisting of all the food elements in proper proportion is necessary to supply material for the normal growth of the body. Everyone should eat vegetables freely not only because they are good for the bowels (acting as a wholesome laxative) but also because many of them, especially the green vegetables, contain important organic matter, such as iron.

Bread and butter. Bread has often been called the staff of life. In other words, bread and butter alone form an almost perfectly balanced meal. Bread should never be eaten until it is at least twenty-four hours old. Stale bread cut thin and toasted in the oven until it is crisp is appetizing and wholesome. Instead of giving large amounts of bread and butter to children three times a day, mothers should substitute in part vegetables and fruits.

Coarse foods. Coarse foods are especially valuable because they require thorough mastication, which is the real function of the teeth. This helps to keep the tongue and teeth clean. Another reason for giving coarse foods to children is that the circulation of blood in the gums and throat is improved by chewing.

Milk. Milk contains all the essential elements of a well-balanced diet and is one of the most important foods. It should be taken slowly and with other food, such as graham crackers, and should constitute an important part of the diet of every child. Children up to fourteen years of age should take milk, or milk flavored with cocoa, in the place of tea and coffee.

Water. While water is not classed as a food, it makes up three fifths of the total of the fluids of the body and aids in the elimination of the waste products of the body. All foods contain some water, while fruits and vegetables are largely composed of it. A glass of water should be taken before breakfast, in the middle of the morning, and in the afternoon, and two glasses in the evening. One glass may be taken with the meals if it is taken after the food in the mouth has been swallowed. Six or eight glasses of water should be taken during every twenty-four hours.

Candy. Many people believe that candy is harmful. This is because children, and indeed adults, are apt to eat it at the wrong time and to eat too much of it at one time; nevertheless it has high food value, and a little pure candy eaten once a day, after a meal, is healthful.

Bowels. When there is any trouble with the stomach or bowels look for the cause in some mistake or indiscretion in the diet. The family physician should be consulted.

Care of the bowels. The bowels should move at least once every day. A regular habit of bowel movement can and should be formed. The best time is in the morning, after breakfast. Many of the head-aches, muddy, pimply complexions, and bad tempers are due to constipation. This condition may be relieved by exercise, by the eating of coarse food, vegetables, fruits, such as apples, prunes, and oranges, and by drinking plenty of water.

Exercise. Exercise, as either work or play, is necessary because it stimulates the action of all the organs of the body. The blood circulates more freely during exercise, and more waste products are thrown off. One should not take violent exercise immediately after eating; neither should one exercise when unduly fatigued. Work must be wisely alternated with play and rest, because efficiency ends when a person becomes overtired.