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Chapter Two.
How to Maintain the Skin in Health

If the skin then, is an emunctory of so much consequence, as we have endeavoured to shew it to be, it stands to reason, that even the impartial performance of its functions, is incompatible with healthful existence. One might go farther and boldly aver, that a person who is a stranger to the bath, is as much to be pitied as a being with only one lung; both may exist, neither live.

On the other hand, it cannot be denied that there are thousands of men and women in these islands, who seem to enjoy a large share of robust health, and who possess what assurance companies would call, “good lives,” but who never indulge in the luxury of either a bath or a bedroom tub. But it will generally be found, that these people belong to the out-door working classes, who take abundant exercise in the open air, people whose pores are kept patent by the toil they undergo, and who, moreover, possess capacious lungs, substantial livers and healthy kidneys. Nevertheless, did these same persons make a practice of constantly using some form of bath, they would throw far less strain upon their internal organs, their blood would be purer, and their minds consequently lighter, and they would stand far less chance of catching cold, and succumbing to inflammation of some vital part. A person whose skin is not in easy working order, and who depends upon exertion and exercise alone, for keeping it up to the mark, must, if thrown on a bed of sickness, have a harder struggle for life than one whose skin is, in every sense of the word, a healthy one.

Everything seems to point to the conclusion that the health of the skin is a matter of paramount importance to the individual, we cannot therefore be wrong if we devote this chapter to the consideration of the best means within our reach, of maintaining it in a sound and vigorous condition.

So intimate is the connection between the skin and internal organs of the body, and so constantly and incessantly do they act and re-act on each other, that the state of the former may generally be taken as a key to the condition of the whole system. If the skin be dry, harsh, hot or in any way possessed of an uncomfortable feeling, the general health is, for the time being, out of order, or if it be cold or rough and chilly, the health must be below par, even although that state of being should be but momentary.

A feeling of warmth, comfort and geniality, pervades the skin of the man who is well; deprived of this feeling he is deprived of health, he is ill, acutely subacutely, or chronically ill.

DIET: – The influence of diet on the skin is very great.

This is a fact which should be borne in mind by all, but especially by those who are subject to any kind of skin complaint, or to gout or rheumatism. The latter disease, from which so many people suffer periodically, is, with a good show of reason, believed to be caused by a superabundance of acid in the blood. This acid is easily got rid of at most times, by means of the sensible and insensible perspiration; but if, through some error in diet, an irritable condition of the mucous membrane of the alimentary canal is produced, and a larger proportion of acid than usual is the result; and if at or about the same time something – a cold, or chill, for instance – interferes with the free action of the skin, it stands to reason that an attack of the old enemy, gout, or rheumatic gout will supervene, and the character of the attack will greatly depend on the condition of the patient’s system at the time. If he be full blooded and robust it may be acute or sub-acute. Thus it often happens that at the very time when a man of rheumatic diathesis is in finest form, he is suddenly laid prostrate by the return of his foe. If, on the other hand, he be not of a full habit, the disease will be less violent in its nature, and this probably accounts for the fact, that men of spare habit are, as a rule, capable of weathering more rheumatic storms than men who have been cast in a larger mould.

No medical man now-a-days thinks of prescribing for a patient without at the same time giving him advice as to what he should eat, drink, or avoid. Some hundred years ago, physicians were, we may presume, not so skilled as we are now-a-days, but neither were they so apt to lose themselves in that labyrinth we may call causae morborum, and they never lost sight of the state of the stomach and bowels. Indeed, the exhibition of aperients was often a kind of sheet anchor with them, with which they held on with determination when everything else failed them, and we can scarcely doubt that they were often right in doing so. Nor is the belief so common with the illiterate, that if a man can eat and drink moderately well, there cannot be much the matter with him, so very erroneous after all. Diet is of paramount importance with all of us, for the simplest reason possible. Our blood is generated from the food we eat, and as the blood is, so will the system be, which it has to nourish. No matter how clever a mania, or how rich, or how eminent, if he is guilty of errors in diet, he is but a golden calf with feet of clay.

But he who lives judiciously in the matter of diet, possesses a truly marvellous advantage over his fellows who do not. A man in health should begin the day early. He ought to have his morning tub by half-past seven at the latest. He ought to dress leisurely, and have, if possible, a five or ten minutes’ walk in the open air, before he sits down to breakfast.

Well-made tea is probably the best beverage for breakfast, and if between meals a man requires some refreshment, a cup of coffee or tea will be found more sustaining and less dangerous than either beer or wine.

The breakfast maybe a moderately hearty one, and the dinner should be an early one, and nothing ought to be partaken of which is known to disagree. Supper should be early and light, but not necessarily sloppy. Solid food is more likely to be quietly digested than slops. A biscuit and glass of milk, or beer, may be partaken about half an hour before retiring, if it is found that sounder sleep is acquired by such indulgence.

The errors in diet which should be avoided are: – First, eating too fast; second, taking stimulants of any kind to provoke an appetite; third, the use of rich sauces and peppers; fourth, eating too much; and fifth, partaking of too many varieties at one meal. A man should eat with regularity and moderation, and frequently change his diet.

DRINK. – Pure water is the best, but water that will not wash is unfit for drinking or making food, withal. Cocoa, coffee, tea, and milk in moderation, and in summer whey and buttermilk are healthful drinks. Iced waters, cooling cups, and too many effervescing mixtures are to be avoided.

Regularity in the times of going to bed and getting up should be studied.

PURE AIR. – One cannot have too much of this. The air in rooms ought to be kept pure and sweet, and that of the bedroom moderately warm. Bedrooms ought to be large, and not overfilled with furniture, especially things likely to collect dust. Curtains about beds do more harm than good.

DRESS AND CLOTHING. – No more should be worn than is necessary to keep the surface of the body agreeably comfortable. It should not be tight, and mackintoshes and goloshes are injurious to health. Bed clothes should be light and warm. People, as a rule, heap their beds with far too much clothing, and sleep is thus often banished.

SLEEP. – Secure it by natural means; never, unless under medical advice, by taking draughts, or “night-caps.” Regularity in living, exercise, and the bath, are the best narcotics, but a pipe of mild tobacco last thing may often do good.

EXERCISE. – Exercise, to be beneficial, should be pleasant, the mind should be free and happy. Exercise does little or no good unless enjoyed, hence work is not exercise. It should never be carried to the verge of fatigue, and if the under-clothing has been damped by perspiration, it ought to be changed before sitting or lying down. As to under-clothing, no one over thirty, who values his health and life, should neglect to wear it in some form, wool is warmer than cotton, silk better than either. The best form of exercise is that which maintains the largest number of muscles in play, and does not over-sweat the body, nor over-heat the head. It ought to be varied, too, but whether it be walking, riding, driving, rowing, playing games, or those most exhilarating exercises bicycling and tricycling, it ought to be taken regularly, day after day, and we may add, all the year round.

While taking exercise, the clothing ought to be as loose as possible, in order to permit of the full play of the muscles, and avoid dangerous contractions of the internal vital organs.