GOITRE.

Hokitika Guardian, 12 February 1926, Page 4

GOITRE.

CAUSE AND CURE. A SUGGESTION DISCUSSED. AUCKLAND, Feb. 10. The suggestion that the cause of gotire is drinking cold artesian water, such as that in the natural supply in Christchurch, is made by Air Oswald Coates, who writes as follows: “The Health Department is reported as stating that whatever may he the ultimate cause of goitre, the immediate cause of enlargement is iodine deficiency. I would like to ask how the Department would explain the following facts:—A sou of mine, while we resided in Christchurch, developed plainly visible goitre and still bad it in increased size when lie joined the Wellington Mounted Rifles and went with tho Main Body to Egypt, Gallipoli and Palestine, with the result that in Egypt the goitre decreased isi size and disappeared entirely while he was on the desert in Palestine. It is well known by all who have lived in Egypt or on the desert, for a lengthened ~,-iiod (liar, all vegetables grown there are entirey wanting in iron, as the desert sand does not contain it. 1 have reason to believe that in my son’s case and in many others the immediate cause of goitre was drinking very cold artesian well water, and that the cure in li.is ease was the result of the absence of iron in bis food. This matter appears to be worthy of investigation.”

This letter was referred to Dr T. .1. Hughes, .Medical Officer of Health. He concurred in the opinion that the drinking of very cold artesian well water may have boon responsible for the development of goitre as stated, as the disease was prevalent in places where the water supply had its source in snowy regions. This theory was borne out by the large number of cases of goitre to lie found in Christchurch. It could not he held, however, that this was the priucioal cause of goitre, for chemical analysis of water in goitrous regions had failed to show any relation between dissolved salts and goitre. The disease had been found endemic in regions of both hard and soft water. The use of hard water seemed to favour development of goitre, hut was not its cause. Dr Hughes described some interesting experiments carried out in this connection some years ago by Dr AfacHarrison in New South Wales. He confined his observations to a village in which goitre was extremely prevalent and where the water supply was derived entirely from tanks. He carried out tests which indicated that the disease was due to bacteria- which he found in a deposit at the bottom ol the tanks. When iodine was added to the water there was a marked decrease in the disease. An experiment on the same lines was carried out in a stream in a certain part of which fish were found to lie affected with goitre. It was ascertained that sewage found its way into the stream, and when the fish were moved to a portion of the stream above the source of infection they 10covcred.

The work carried on in New Zealand by Dr Horens seems to show that there is less goitre in disl riots where the iodine content is abundant,” eon tinned Dr Hughes. “Todine lias always been looked upon as tile most effective measure of treatment lor simple goilrc, anil results in New Zealand and elsewhere have demonstrated beyond doubt Hull Ibis treatment is a correct one. As the addition of iodine acts as a cure, inferentially its absence is an important contributing cause. 1 lie disease has also been attributed to the presence of iron pyrites in drinking water, hut results of investigation do not point to Hie presence ot iron as a contributing factor as suggested hv Air Contes. It is a well-known fact that a person who moves from a goitrous to a non-goi Irons area is frequently cured uf the disease. V change in the water mii)ol v has also furnished the same results.' I should, therefore, he inclined to think that: in the ease in question the change of drinking water and diet generally was responsible for the disappearance of the trouble.”