Ellis Edward Sylvester
Ellis's Primary Physiology. Or Good Health for Boys and Girls

CHAPTER III
DRINKING

Many diseases of the body are caused by what we take into our stomachs. You can see, therefore, how important it is that we should know what and how to eat and drink.

TEA, COFFEE, MILK, AND CHOCOLATE

If I say that tea, coffee, and chocolate are poisonous, and that they shorten life, you will smile and shake your head. Very likely some of you have kind grandmothers who have drunk tea all their lives and still enjoy good health. Perhaps your father is fond of his coffee and feels no ill effects from its use.

No doubt it would be better for all if only water was drunk, but it cannot be said that a temperate use of tea, coffee or chocolate and what are known as temperance drinks, are injurious. Milk is a drink of nature, and therefore excellent, though it does not agree with every person.

WHEN AND HOW TO DRINK

If you have formed the habit of drinking while eating, stop it at once. At first your mouth will be dry and your thirst great, but persevere and in a short time you will not feel the least desire to drink until you have finished your meal, when a few swallows will be all you wish.

Nearly every one drinks too much. If you are thirsty, you fill a tumbler and drink its contents and sometimes take even more than that. Now if instead of doing so, you sip the water slowly, your thirst will be gone before half the water is consumed.

An hour or two after a hearty meal, you may feel a slight degree of thirst. This is caused by the digestion going on in the stomach. If you drink, you will soon be thirsty again and will be forced to drink often through the day; but, if you refrain, at first, the thirst will soon depart and will not return for hours.

During warm weather, or when perspiring from exercise, you need more water than at other times. Even if very cold, it will do no harm, if slowly sipped. Many people learn to like warm water, which is more healthful than cold.

LEMONADE, ROOT BEER, SODA WATER, ETC

Pure soda water, lemonade, root beer and similar drinks are not hurtful, but the sugar they contain increases our thirst and leads us to drink more than is good for us. Water is the provision of nature, and though it has no color, taste or smell, nothing in the world is so delicious and refreshing.

Very hot and very cold drinks are hurtful, but much of the ill effects may be averted by sipping them as I have already advised. Few will believe until they make the test, how little water is needed through the day. The less we take the more comfortable will we feel.

How are many diseases caused? What, therefore, is important?

What have you to say about tea, coffee, and chocolate?

What of a temperate use of those and of temperance drinks? Of milk?

What have you to say of the habit of drinking while eating?

What does nearly every one do? What is the best way to drink water?

What should be done when slightly thirsty an hour or two after a meal?

When do you need more water than at other times? In what manner may very cold water be drunk without harm? What of warm water?

What is said of soda water, lemonade, etc.? What of water?

What of very hot and cold drinks? What will be the effect if we drink only a small quantity of water?

CHAPTER IV
EATING

Always eat slowly and do not swallow your food until it is chewed to a pulp. The glands inside the mouth give out enough saliva to moisten the food and fit it for digestion in the stomach. Children love to soak their bread in coffee, or to sip the coffee while eating. By doing so they stop the flow of saliva and weaken a fluid which digests the food in the stomach.

WHAT BOYS AND GIRLS SHOULD EAT

In the way of food, bread and butter, well cooked meat, and fruits not too green nor over ripe, should form your principal diet. Pies and cakes are injurious, and if you eat them, do so sparingly. Never ask for a second piece.

Fat meat and butter cause heat and often make the blood gross. Such diet is improper during warm weather and, therefore, we do not crave it. If we lived in the arctic regions, we would soon learn to drink oil like water, and to eat tallow candles as though they were pieces of crisp celery.

Highly seasoned food should not be eaten. It may be salted to suit the taste, but pepper is harmful.

WHEN AND HOW MUCH TO EAT

Eat nothing between meals, which should always be at regular hours. Partake sparingly of sugar, candy, and sweetmeats. In eating the meat of walnuts, filberts, chestnuts, etc., use salt.

Children, like some grown persons, are apt to eat more food than is good for them. You have heard people say that you ought to leave the table while still hungry, but if that is true, there can be no need of sitting down to eat. The true course is to cease eating, while you still have a relish for food.

CHEERFULNESS AND APPETITE IN EATING

The table is not the place for argument or dispute. The conversation should be cheerful, and all should try to be happy. Do not begin any kind of work, physical or mental, until fully a half hour after the meal is finished.

Eat very little if the mind is excited, and do not eat at all, if you do not feel hungry. Never coax the appetite. Do not eat heartily within a few hours of bed-time.

If your appetite is poor, it is well to omit the last meal of the day. One of the best medicines in the world is a scant diet of wholesome food. Overeating and fasting are hurtful.

Remember that that which agrees with one may disagree with another. Rice is one of the most easily digested articles of food, and yet some persons cannot retain it on their stomachs. Your own sense will soon tell you what best agrees with you. Follow the advice of your parents, who know what is good for their children.

In what manner should we eat? Why? What bad habit are children likely to form?

What should constitute our principal diet? What is said of pies and cake?

What is said of fat meat, butter, and greasy food? How would our tastes change, if we lived in the arctic regions?

What is said of highly seasoned food? What is said of salt and pepper?

Of eating between meals? Of sugar, candy, and sweetmeats? How should nuts be eaten?

What are children apt to do? What is the true course?

What of argument and dispute at the table? What advice is given?

What should be done if the mind is excited, or you do not feel hungry? Should the appetite be coaxed?

Suppose your appetite is poor? What of overloading and fasting?

Is the same kind of food good for everybody? How can you learn what is best to eat? What advice should be followed?

CHAPTER V
THE HAIR, EARS, EYES, AND FEET

The hair needs little attention. A boy should not wear it long and it should be carefully combed and brushed. Girls who let theirs grow longer should have it frequently clipped, as it gives it vigor.

Never put oil or grease on the hair, for it catches and holds the dirt in the air, soils clothing, clogs the pores at the roots, and tends to produce baldness.

If you will brush your hair vigorously for several minutes every morning, it will soon acquire a gloss and look better than if smeared with pomatum. The odor will be pleasant and the hair will not ruin articles and clothing with which it comes in contact. Now and then it is well to clean the hair with Castile soap, warm water and a strong brush. Shampooing is excellent.

Hair is a non-conductor of heat, – that is, very little heat or cold can be made to pass through it. It serves as a protection to the brain. While a great many men are baldheaded, you very rarely see a woman thus afflicted. This is because they do not wear air-tight coverings for their heads, but the scalp is kept cool and healthy. It is a good thing for children to leave off their hats and caps, except when necessary to protect them out-of-doors.

THE EAR

The ears need even less care than the hair, for that which is called by the name, is only the covering of the true ear. Every boy and girl will make sure that when the face and hands are washed, the neck and ears are not forgotten. The shape of the outer ear causes it to catch many of the particles always floating in the air. These can be easily removed with the end of the forefinger, covered by a portion of a moist towel.

Do not pick the ears. The wax is placed there by nature for a wise purpose. It keeps out dirt and insects and protects from injury the delicate organs of the true ear within. If the wax becomes too abundant or hard, it can be easily removed with the forefinger. If anything more is required, go to a doctor.

THE EYE

The eye is the most wonderful organ of the body, and with simple care can be preserved all through life. Boys and girls who have bright, strong eyes are apt to weaken them by carelessness in their use.

You should never apply water, either warm or cold, to the eyeball. When washing your face, keep your eyes closed, but wash the corners and outer surface. The gummy substance which sometimes collects is thus removed without trouble. It is well sometimes to close the eyes and rub them briskly, just as we feel like doing on awaking from sleep.

HOW TO USE THE EYES

Never strain the eyes by trying to read or examine anything closely when the light is poor. When it becomes an effort to see distinctly, cease the effort at once. A strong glare of light is also hurtful.

In reading or study, do not permit the light to fall on the page from the front. It should pass over the shoulder, the left being preferable. It is well also to wear a shade over the forehead, especially when writing at night, and it is necessary that the light should come from the front, on account of the shadow made by the hands.

When the eyes become weary and the letters or figures begin to dance and flicker, cease work. If a cinder lodges under the lids, do not attempt to remove it by rubbing; that only adds to the irritation. Close the eye and then carefully draw the upper lid over the lower. This will cause a flow of the fluid of the eye which will probably wash away the substance.

If this fails, a friend is not likely to have any trouble in removing the object with the corner of a silk handkerchief. Should he find it impossible to relieve you, go without delay to an oculist.

Sometimes the eyes of children have been weakened by sickness, and it is necessary to use spectacles. When a boy or girl feels any peculiar sensation about the eyes, or they seem to act wrongly, the oculist should be appealed to at once.

FEET

The feet must be kept clean and warm. Some prefer cotton and some woolen stockings. Use whichever are the most comfortable. Never wear shoes that are too tight. If you do you will suffer in after years from corns and bunions. The nails of the feet as well as of the hand should be kept pared and clean, but their surface should never be scraped.

What is said of the hair? What should be done by a boy? By a girl?

What objection have you to oil and grease?

How can the hair be made glossy? How is that superior to pomatum? How should the head be cleaned?

Of what use is the hair? Why are so many men baldheaded? Why is it rare that we meet a baldheaded woman? When only should the head be covered?

What is said of the ear? How should it be kept clean?

What of the wax in the ear?

What can you say concerning the eye? What is often done by boys and girls?

Tell how the eyes should be washed. What is it well to do now and then?

What is said of straining the eyes? What of a strong glare of light?

What rule should be followed in reading or study? What of a shade?

When should you cease using the eyes? What should be done if a cinder gets under the lid?

What should be done if that fails?

When must spectacles be used, or an oculist consulted?

How must the feet be kept? Which are the better, cotton or woolen stockings? What of tight shoes? What should be done with the nails?