DRINKING BEER

Hokitika Guardian, 12 September 1929, Page 2

DRINKING BEER

PROFESSOR DIXON

ON ITS SOOTHING EFFECT.

LEADS TO DRUG TAKING.

-CAPETOWN, July 22i

In the Physiological Section of the British Association Professor AV. E. Dixon’s presidential address this morn ing had as its title ‘Physiology as the Basis of Treatment.”

Professor Dixon dealt among other matters with the successes w'hich liaie attended Oliemo-Thcrapy that is specific therapy of infectious disease in erring certain parasitical diseases caused by worms and protozoa, diseases found mainly in the tropics. With parastic diseases caused by bacetria. it had, however, had less success. But, perhaps, the most interesting point of Professor Dixon’s address was contained in his concluding remarks, in which ho said:

Civilisation lias been responsible for many new diseases. Our foodstuffs in great cities are often preserved and important constituent of fresh foods limy be lacking. Civilisation has brought bad sanitation in houses, altd even our windows may bo depriving us of fresh air and fil ering out certain raysj of light, (bringing its attendant tuberculosis- - for tuberculosis is a disease of houses. Science is now engaged in ,endeavouring to remedy the evil effects which it has produced. BFiSJT effect of tobacco.

Civilisation is associated with wealth indoor life, luxury, and sometimes excessive mental exercise. These are conditions which lead to exaggerated nervous sensibility and this is a, much c/vnnmner feature in those engaged in mental indoor life than in those engaged in an outdoor physical life. It is n't difficult then to understand the excessive use of tobacco in some of tliese people, since one effect of tobacco—.and perhaps its most (beneficent effect—is to increase the threshold of sensation in those who are sunersenstive.

It isi these higher faculties of mind which are*, most Responsive to narcotic poisons, which influence these long before those concerned with movement and ordinary sensation so that the supersensitive people under influence of narcotics lose the exaggerated effect of their sensations' and become more like normal people. It is another curious' fact that it is just these supersensitive people who drink the caffeine beverages, like tea and coffee, in excess. Since the seventeenth century the use of the caffeine beverages has 'Slowly increased, whilst that of beer and allied drinks has sloulv diminished.

Beer, from its essential oils and alcohol, is a soothing'‘beverage ; it depresses the higher faculties of mind, it does not exaggerate their activity. Caffeine, on the other hand, relieves drowsiness and fatigue by dirpet stimulation of the brain cells ;- it facilitates sensory impressions and the association of ideas. In large doses the caffeine beverages induce restlessness and nervous excitability, and >• 'they, may produce disturbed sleep, headache, and confusion. '■ * 90 GALLONS OF BEER A YEAR-

Few people no doubt, take caffeine to this extent, but most of us take from 2 to 5 grains of caffeine daily and the effect of this continued as a daily ration throughout life is a factor the signifiance bf which is unknown. ;

England was once a drunken nation and the larger towns contained such notices as “Here you may get drunk for a penny, dead drunk, with clean straw,.for twopence.” Before the revolution the consumption of beer alone in England and Wales was 90 gallons a head per annum: now it is about a quarter of this. With this diminution of beer drinking is associated a. truly enormous increase in tea. and coffee drinking. To me it. seems not unlikely that this substitution of tea for beer is not wholly unconnected with the tendency of highly civilised nations to become supersensitive and neurotic, for this is the groundwork upon which drugs addiction is built