GENERAL ITEMS.

Franklin Times, Volume 9, Issue 661, 23 August 1921, Page 7

GENERAL ITEMS.

( RAPID' EATING. There is' a very prova rent urea that tslovr eating is very iavourable to digestion, but we have it oil the authority or a journal devoted to mental and . nervous diseases that this is largely \ fallacious. The important point is not > that we (pit slowly or fast, but that w 1 1 ( m we do cat we chew with energy. Of course, where the haste is due t<» some mental anxiety, this may injuriously inhibit the Slow eating may beget a habit of simply munh bling the food without really masticating it, while the hurried eater is inclined to swallow his food before proper mastication. Hence, hurried eating is bad, but rapid mastication ia , advantageous. It > concentrates our energies on the act 'in question, and , hence more thoroughly accomplishes it. Moreover, energetic chewing stimulates •the secretion of saliva in the most favourable manner. These varioua points are so commonly misunderstood, at least by the laity, that they demand our frequent attention. SHORTNESS OF BREATH. This may be due to serious disease, or to sources of most trivial import. Most of us get it a little as wo grow older ; then merely from the deposit of fat, which makes us look comfortable and' cheery, even if we do not always feel so. Then the best remedy of all is daily, practice on the horizontal bar; or if that he not available, plenty of outdoor exercise. Horse exercise ia good, but can seldom be indulged in except by the rich . Was it not Lord j Palmerston who remarked, “The outside of a horse is the best thing on [ earth for the inside, of a man.” I If there he actual - disease of vital organs, it' is best to consult a doctor ' fit once, and be guide d steadily by bis injunctions; otherwise aiming at a wholesome hygienic diet, and regular habits in every direction. Persons with bronchitis or bronchial asthma derive great benefit from cod liver oil. one or ' two tea spoonfuls twice a day, after 'meals—continued for about six weeks. They should do this at the beginning of every winter. J FATTY DEGENERATION OF THE HEART. J This is a complaint not arways easy to detect, and it is seldom met with until age /is far advanced. Then you find that the victim has been a drinker j —not necessarily a drunkard; for drinking a large quantity of gin or whisky every day without- getting drunk, is far more injurious in tin’s way than any occasional bout of intoxication with complete abstinence between. The first thing, anyone who suspects the above has to do is to stop all akmbolic stimulants'; the second to lead, as far as may be possible, a healthy, regular life—with daily out-o&4loor exercises in til weathers, good ■ food, and early hours. Any form of gymnastic exercise that can be indulged in is particularly useful; cycling, rowing, skating, jhe horizontal bar, etc.; even lawn j tennis and golf are not to be despised, j ! The best tonic medicine anyone who j has (or thinks lie or sheMnts) a weak j heart is 5 drops of liquor st rich moo in j water twice a day after meals. For thjs, in a mixture of the orthodox j fashion, in a bottle having the <losca 1 accurately marked on it, apply to your i ebtnAst. • I i 1