Making the most of life

Front matter

COLUMBIA LIBRARIES OFFSITE

HEALTH SCIENCES STANDARD

HX64090000 QP36 .Os4 Making the most of

Introduction

It is the aim in " The Health Series of Physiology and Hygiene " to present in an attractive form for pupils in the elementary school the latest and most accurate knowledge relating to physiology, and especially to the hygiene of daily life. The constant effort of the authors has been to make scientific knowledge so simple, so concrete, and so captivating that pupils can hardly fail to take an interest in the problems of preserving health for the purpose of making the most of life.

Throughout the series, the aim has been kept in view of awakening in the young a normal desire to live in such a manner as to develop strength and preserve health, because in this way the individual will have the greatest success in securing the things which he desires, and in avoiding the disabilities and pains which otherwise are likely to occupy a considerable part of his life. Comparatively little attention is given to anatomy, and only sufficient physiology is presented to constitute a basis for the ■facts of health which are discussed.

Very extensive use is made of photographs and diagrams illustrating every-day life in the city and in the country. There is at least one interesting and practical original exercise suggested for every principle of health presented vi INTRODUCTION

in any lesson, and it is the plan that each pupil should work out each exercise and report upon it during the recitation period. In order further to assist the teacher and the pupil, a list of questions, fully covering the text, has been given at the end of each chapter.

Preface

There is one word which has come to be used very freely by every one to-day — "Efficiency." Men in all walks of life are studying the question of avoiding waste and making their efforts count for more than they did formerly. Suppose a manufacturer has been in business for thirty or forty years ; if he should conduct the business to-day just as he did when he started it, he would probably soon have to abandon it altogether, because he could not compete with his rivals who had adopted more efficient methods. Now, the human body is a kind of manufacturing concern, only it is a more complicated one than any establishment that man can build. Just because it has so many parts and is capable of performing such a variety of acts, there is likely to be a good deal of waste, and it may not be able to produce the right kind and amount of results in work or in pleasure. So the chief thing for any person to do is to study the question of making his body a smoothrunning and effective working machine, so that it will always be ready for any task or enterprise. Only in this way may the most be got out of life.

This last book in the Health Series shows the relation between health and efficiency and discusses all the problems that have to be considered in maintaining bodily vigor, viii PREFACE

poise, and resistance to disease and fatigue. The conditions of living are not the same to-day as they were one hundred years ago ; and if a person desires to get the most out of life, he must adapt his habits to the changed conditions. If his habits are just the same as those of his great-greatgrandfather, he will be likely to be handicapped in practically all that he wants to do. When he ought to feel fine and ready for any task, he may be suffering from aches and pains and not have energy enough for the demands that are made upon him. Then, too, one must have good appearance in these times when he has to deal with so many people. If he has an ill-formed or badly developed body, it will count against him wherever he goes. Further, if he imitates some of the people around him who are constantly putting into the body things which weaken it and lower its efficiency, it will be impossible for him to get out of life what nature intended he should. All these matters are presented in a concrete way in this book.

A great many photographs and drawings have been made for this book in order to impress health principles. Every topic discussed is indicated in a topical heading in the margin ; original exercises designed to apply each principle are given, and review questions covering each point touched upon are added to each chapter. The book is completed with a glossary and an index which will save the time of both teacher and pupil in looking up any word or subject.

Contents

CHAPTER PAGE

I. Taking the Measure of a Man , . . . i

II. The Vital Machinery .

CHAPTER I Taking the Measure of a Man

In taking the measure of a man we will begin with the tape measure. The height varies very greatly. The average height for man is 68 inches while the The averaverage for woman is 64 inches. Great height ^® height, is in some cases due to extraordinary length of legs. For this reason the sitting height is more important than the standing height as a measure of body development. Women as a rule have shorter legs than men, and so approach nearer the male average in sitting than in standing height.

A prehistoric cemetery discovered in Southern France contained bones whose proportions indicated that they must have belonged to men at least eight feet high. The average height of human beings to-day is doubtless less than it was in some former age.

That the average height is decreasing is shown in the fact that the minimum height required for enrollment in the army has of late been considerably lessened in different countries. France has lowered the standard three times in fifty years, making a total difference of four inches. The English government has been obliged to lower the standard as much as six inches in fifty years, and the United States Government has also recently lowered its standard.

That there is some advantage in height may be shown

in the fact that we all wish to be tall. A person of tall stature has (other things being equal) a more commanding presence and greater physical power.

Low stature is often a handicap in the race of life. Nevertheless, some of the world's greatest men in all lines have been men of small stature. Alexander jhe Great, Napoleon, Lord Nelson, Lord Roberts, and many more of the great military geniuses of the world were men of It may be that the advantage is not all on the side of the tall man. Energy, alertness, and quickness of thought and action are more frequently the qualities of the small man than of the man of great stature.

Taking the measure of a man.

small or medium stature.

That systematic physical exercise tends to increase the height is shown in the fact that young men who enhst in the army sometimes increase several Exercise inches in height as a resuh of the military ^'^ height, drill. An English trainer reports the case of a young man twenty-one years of age who had not grown perceptibly for two years, but who took a new start and grew four inches as the result of systematic exercise after entering military service.

The height depends primarily upon the length of the bones. The bones are nourished by the arteries supplying the overlying muscles. We know that the blood supply of an active muscle is several times as great as that of an inactive one. (Illustrate this by an experiment.) The growth of the bones depends much upon muscular activity and is likely to be increased by vigorous exercise. The time to work for an increase in height is while the growing bones still contain more or less cartilage. Why ^ After the bones become hardened, not much change can be made in the height. When do they become hardened ^

During the years of growth there should be a steady increase in height, though the rate of growth varies at different ages, and in this respect there is a difference between boys and girls. Measurements made of a great many thousands of children in different countries show that the average height of boys and girls is almost the same until about the eleventh year, when the girls become taller and keep ahead up to about the sixteenth year. Then the boys not only catch up with the girls,

but even surpass them in height.

Of more importance than height is symmetry, which means Symmet- ^ goo^ general developricai de- ment of the whole body, veiopment. According to Dr. Giovanni, of Milan, the proper proportions of the human figure are as given in the accompanying table. You may use the tape line on yourself to see how nearly you approach his standard of the ideal proportions. In this way you may find out what are your deficiencies and what parts of your body need special development.

Symmetry is of greater importance than height.

1. The height of a person is equal to the greatest stretch of the

arms ; that is, the distance between the tips of the middle fingers when they are extended laterally as far as possible.

2. The circumference of the chest is equal to one half the height.

3. The length of the sternum or breast bone is equal to one fifth

of the circumference of the chest.

Represented in inches, these measurements work out as follows for a man and woman who closely approach the ideal type, although a particular man or woman might vary considerably from these measurements, and still be normal :

Man

Woman

Height

Extreme stretch of arms Circumference of chest .

Length of sternum . .

Height of abdomen Width of pelvis

34 6

12 lO

8 inches 8 inches 5 inches

9 inches 4 inches

64 inches 64 inches 31.8 inches 6.4 inches 12 inches 10. 1 inches

The waist of the ideal woman is a Uttle larger in proportion to her height than that of the ideal man. According to the famous Venus de Milo, a woman's waist measurements should be 47.6 per cent of the height. In women, the organs which lie in the waist zone, — the liver, stomach, kidneys, spleen, and pancreas, — are normally larger in proportion to the body weight than they are in men. This is necessary on account of the function of motherhood, when these organs have to do work for two. A very small waist is an evidence of weakness and usually means internal deformities.

A small person who is well proportioned and wellpoised has a much better appearance and makes a better impression than a tall person who is not well developed and has not a good carriage.

Here is a test you may make as to the habitual attitude of your body: A plumb line dropped Good poise from the tip of your nose should fall one inch ™°^® ™" in front of your big toes. Your shoulders and than hips should touch a straight vertical line. If stature. you fail to come up to this standard, take a look at yourself sideways in the glass. It is quite certain that you are round-shouldered, your chest caves in, and your abdomen sticks out. You need to practice exercises for obtaining the correct standing and sitting positions until they become habitual.

It is very important to remember that the position habitually taken in standing or sitting is a mold into which the body grows. A person who sits in a drooping attitude becomes round-shouldered and flat-chested.

You know what happens to the internal organs of such a person.

The lungs have not space for proper development, and the depression of the ribs crowds down the stomach, liver, and other abdominal organs, which are not sufficiently supported by the relaxed and weakened abdominal muscles. The breathing is inefficient, the circulation is interfered with, the vital organs become congested with stagnant blood, and various disorders are likely to result.

While we are speaking of symmetry, we may notice something which is closely associated with it, — The beauty beauty. This is one of the characteristics of the body. Qf ^ wcll-ptoportioned, healthy human being.

Try iHis Tiisr on your

SELF.

Human beauty consists in regularity of features, clearness of skin, intelligence of expression, symmetry of form, and grace of motion. Beauty is more than skin deep. Beauty without is born of health within. A beautiful skin, without pimples or discolorations or eruptions of any kind, depends upon a healthy condition of the blood. A skin fed by healthy blood has a fineness of texture, a clearness and cleanness of tint, and a glow of life, that are always pleasing.

In the ideal form, the layer of fat beneath the skin is just sufficient to round out the corners and pad out the form and features, leaving no unsightly hollows or disfiguring lumps of superfluous tissue.

If the skin were removed, it would be seen that nearly all the surface of the body is composed of muscles. It is readily seen that beauty of form, as well as grace of motions, depends very much upon the proper development of the muscles. Even the regularity of the features depends to a great degree on the rounded and perfect outline of the muscles of the face. And the expres-

Beauty of form depends very much upon the development of the muscles.

sion of the face depends upon the sort of muscles that are brought oftenest into action. Those that contract oftenest become the strongest, and give the index to the face, making it grave or gay, smihng or frowning, pleasant or morose. These muscles are

attached to the skin, and they pull the skin around in different ways to make it conform to the varying states of the mind.

So the face is a mirror of the mind, and a beautiful expression is not possible without good, pure, and beautiful thoughts.

In measuring our man we shall next use The weight the scales or of the body, weighing machine. The weight of man varies far more than the height, on which, of course, it largely depends.

History tells us of a Mr. Lambert, of Leicester, England, who "in corporeal greatness had no competitor, having reached the enormous weight of 628 pounds." Think how heavily handicapped one would be with such a load to carry !

The beauty of the face depends very largely upon the muscles that are habitually most active.

It has been estimated that a perfectly proportioned man weighs from two to two and a half pounds for each inch of his height.

The following table gives us the average weight for boys and girls of different ages and heights.

Age s

Boys

Height in inches

Weight in lbs.

41.09

45-17 49.07

84-85 94.91

Girls

Height in inches

41.29

Weight in lbs.

57-07 62.35 68.84

78.31

Weigh and measure yourself and your classmates to see how closely you all come to these averages. One's nationality determines to some extent his height and to a less extent his weight. See if you can tell from observing the people in yourcommunity whether American men and women are taller or shorter, heavier or lighter, than people who have recently come from Germany or Italy or Ireland or Sweden or England or Russia, and so on.

The following table shows the relation of height and weight at different ages.

lO

Table of Relation of Height and Weight Compiled from Life Insurance Records

Men — Ages 15 to 24

Women — Ages 15 to 19

Height

Weight

Height

Weight

5 feet 0 inch

1 inch

6 feet 0 inch

1 inch

120 122 124

138 142 146

165 170

4 feet II inches

5 feet 0 inch

1 inch

9 inches 10 inches

III 113

117 120 123

128 132 136 140 144

The weight, hke the height, should steadily increase during the years of growth. These tables show us that even after adult life Is reached, there is usually some increase of weight with advancing years.

The chief medical director of one of the largest life insurance companies of New York said that, in collecting statistics of weight, the average weight had been taken as the normal standard, so that it seemed natural for people to grow more stout as they grew older. But when he came to study the death rate, he found that

TAKING THE MEASURE OF A MAN ii

the average mortality was lowest among those a little below the average weight. This indicates that the average weight is not the normal weight, and that though the average weight increases with years the normal weight does not. That is, for a man of a certain height there is a fixed normal weight close to which he should keep through life.

In a healthy person there are usually slight changes from time to time in the weight, but any considerable deviation from the normal should be given attention. A rapid loss in weight may indicate the development of tuberculosis or disease of some internal organ. Fever causes a rapid loss in weight, as does also any disease which interferes with the digestion or assimilation of food.

Athletes or others in special training to reduce their weight may acquire a very rapid loss without injury. Jockeys sometimes lose more than twenty pounds in a week.

Loss of sleep will invariably cause loss of weight. Stock raisers know that it is no use to try to fatten an animal that becomes restless and will not sleep. A baby that sleeps most of the time, as a normal infant should do, is usually plump, while a restless, crying baby is always puny. So a sufficient amount of sleep is of great importance during the growing period to keep one up to the normal standard of weight.

On the other hand, a rapid gain in weight above the normal also calls for attention. The statistics of insurance companies show that persons who are ten per cent over weight are on the average shorter Uved The evil of than those who are ten per cent under weight, too much Very fleshy persons are seldom long lived, flesh. When a sheep becomes very fat the butcher

knows it must be killed or it will decline and die. The fat is likely to accumulate not only beneath the skin upon the outside of the body, but also upon the inside about the internal organs. Then the vital machinery becomes clogged, and the action of the lungs, heart, and other organs is interfered with. This naturally has the effect of lessening the mental energy. That this handicap may be overcome, however, is shown by the fact that some of the most eminent statesmen have been men of great bulk.

It is not the amount but the quality of one's flesh that counts. Exercise hardens the muscles, and gives firmness and solidity to the body, increasing its specific gravity. (What does this mean .?) Athletes and others who are physically active weigh more in proportion to their size than those whose flesh is soft and flabby from lack of exercise. Why, do you think ?

In ancient Sparta, whose people were a race of warriors, the State required of every citizen a high standard of physical efficiency. Among them corpulence was treated as a crime. The citizen who grew too fat or too soft for military exercise was punished by whipping. One offender was brought before the council at a meeting of the people of Sparta, and his illegal fatness was publicly exposed. He was then threatened with perpetual banishment if he did not reduce his proportions to the Spartan standard. Was this a good plan to follow.? Why.?

The tape measure and the weighing machine do not, after all, tell us very much about the man ; they do not even tell us whether he is alive or dead. Here -pj^g is another measuring instrument — the dyna- strength mometer — which will give us an accurate °^™^- description of the living, active man. By it we are able to measure the energy of the body and the ability to manifest that energy through the muscular system as a whole, or through each particular group of muscles. It tests the strength of the hand grip, the arm pull, the trunk pull, and so on (about twenty-five groups in all) unassisted by any of the other muscles.

Since the muscular system is actuated and controlled by the nervous system, the dynamometer tests not only the muscles but the nerves and nerve centers as well, and so gives us a precise measure of the condition of a man's motor apparatus, or his ability to exert power. For this purpose it is used in the United States government military training schools and in the university and other gymnasiums, to find out the strength capacity, to bring to light any weakness in special groups of muscles, and so to indicate the kind and amount of exercise needed to bring the individual to a normal state.

From an examination of two hundred healthy young

TESTING THE MUSCLES

7. Leg a. Leg 9. Thigh 10. Thigh I I. Thigh 1 2. Thigh

Flexors Extensors Flexors Extensors /Adductors /Abductors

13. Arm IH. ,Arm

Flexors Extensors mus Dors

5.L».-tissi- 16. Pronators 17. Supinators I?. NecK 19. Neck

/Interior Posterior

KiT^-h2j

?0, Neck 2L Shoulder 22. Pectorals 23. Inspir- 2M. In-spir- 25. Trunk 26 Trunk

A-ti on Chest ^.tion WAist (=\nterior L6.ter&l

Lateral Retra^ctors

WITH THE DYNAMOMETER men between the ages of twenty to thirt}^ and an equal number of healthy young w^omen of the same -^i^^t one's age, the following table showing their com- strength parative strength expressed in pounds avoir- ^^°^^^ ^®- dupois has been made.

Men

Strength of trunk Strength of chest .

Strength of entire body

Women

Strength of arms 1530 pounds 865 pounds

Strength of legs ! 2265 pounds 1325 pounds

1040 pounds 515 pounds

365 pounds 165 pounds

5200 pounds I 2870 pounds

From a study of these tables we may learn some interesting facts. The total strength of the average woman as compared with that of the average man is .55, or a little more than half. The weight of the average woman as compared with that of the average man is .86, or about four fifths. The height of the average woman as compared with that of the average man is .94. It thus appears that the average woman is even more inferior to the average man in strength than she is in height and weight.

In a comparative study of tall men and short men, it has been found that tall men are at nearly every point stronger than short men. The total strength capacity of the short man was found to be ninety per cent of that of the tall man.

The total strength capacity of the muscles in a welli6 developed man is about 10,000 foot pounds, that is, the abihty to Hft 10,000 pounds one foot high. This represents, of course, not the weight that the man could actually lift, but the aggregate strength of all the muscles of the body.

T0N6

This shows the total amount of work that may be done in one day by

a laboring man.

The total amount of work that may be done in a day by an ordinary laboring man is estimated by competent authorities to be about equal to 1,800,000 foot pounds, or the lifting of nine hundred tons one foot high. This is equivalent to the lifting of a hundred pound weight one foot high, thirty times a minute during ten hours.

A man could not, of course, accomplish this with his arms alone, but by employing both his arms and his legs he may accomplish this enormous amount and even more. Indeed, the body has such a wonderful capacity for work that it is possible for a strong man to put forth this amount of effort in a fraction of a day by taxing his energies to the utmost, as in such violent exercise as a rowing or swimming contest.

1. Find out whether the leading men in your community are above the average in height or below it.

2. If you can do so, find out whether the tall men in your community belong to some particular profession.

3. Have the presidents of the United States been above the average height, or have they been below it ?

4. Are there some kinds of work which can be done by short as well as by tall men ^ If you think so, mention the kinds of work you have in mind.

5. Is it as necessary that men should be tall to-day as it was thousands of years ago, when they worked with the muscles mainly, and when there were no railroads, telephones, automobiles, or such inventions ?

6. How many of the people you meet seem to you to be symmetrical and well poised ? What is the trouble with those who are not so ?

7. What is the chief reason why people become unsymmetrical, do you think ?

8. Which would you rather be, if you could not be exactly normal — too lean or too fleshy ^ Why .?

9. Do you know many people who are too fleshy .? What habits of living make them so ?

c

10. Are the people in your community who are "doing things" lean people, or are they fat ?

11. Show by taking some object in the room what a foot pound means.

12. How much work would you do in one minute if you should lift a classmate weighing fifty pounds three feet high twelve times in the minute f

13. Try to calculate in foot pounds how much work you would do in one day if you should walk fifteen miles on a level road.

1. What is the height of the average man .? Of the average woman ?

2. Why is sitting height more important than standing height .?

3. Is the average height of men and women increasing or decreasing ^

4. Are the greatest men as a rule the tallest men ? Can you name a great man who is quite short ?

5. How may height be increased .? At what time in life does a person increase the most in height .? Why ?

6. What is meant by symmetry ? Why is symmetry more important than weight .?

7. According to Doctor Giovanni, what are the ideal proportions for the human body ?

8. What habits of sitting and standing may spoil the symmetry of the bod}^ .?

9. Describe a beautiful person.

10. What does a rapid loss in weight often indicate ?

11. Is a rapid gain in weight a good thing ?

12. Which live the longer, usually — lean people or very fleshy people ?

13. How were people who were too fleshy treated in Sparta }

14. What is a dynamometer ^ Describe its use.

15. How does the average woman compare with the average man in height ? In strength ? In weight ?

16. What is meant by a foot pound ? The work done by the average laboring man in one day is equal to how many foot pounds ?