WAR ON COLDS.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXIX, Issue 5274, 14 May 1928, Page 4

WAR ON COLDS.

COST TO THE COMMUNITY. AMERICA’S NEW CRUSADE. The medical correspondent of ths “Observer” writes : America, we are tohl, has declared war—systematic, organised, relentless war—against the common cold, and large sums are being raised for research into the best means of exterminating what is described as one of the greatest and most insidious: enemicis of mankind. A grant of 195,000 dollars has already been made to the John Hopkins University in the hope that intensive study will overcome the medical ignorance which has allowed the community to suffer so long. And' this is only a. beginning, for it is pointed out that a malady which causes the average man to lose 1.4 days’ work per annum, and the average wojrnan 2.1 days, is responsible for an annual loss of something like £200,000,000 in wages.-; whilst the expanses of any No More Colds crusade would be negligible compared with the sums’ spent -by pptimistic citizens on the 4'5,000 preparations at present on the United States drug market. .That dll this enthusiasm is justified will be admitted by anyone who has lately had a cbjd. AU the same, it is hard to resist a feeling that the America.n public— andi not perhaps the Americans alone—are nowadays inclined to expect a little too much from science. The universal demand for “cures” is reminiscent of the primitive demand for signs from Heaven, and there is reason to think that many w-bo insist on the discovery otf unknown rivers of healing, would avoid- most of their troubles by a daily dip in Jordan,. The common cold —the far too common cold! —4g. not a single diease with -olne cause. It is the product of many different factors whose importance varies in each individual ease, and tin's makes: generalfeaton difficult; Much may be learned, nevertheless, by considering the principal theories of its causation.

The oild idea that it is ; due to cold must be modified, since Arctic expl.or,ers remain free 'from catarrhs until their return to civilisation. Some authorities even maintain that the sense 'of chill associated- with catching cold is only a result of infection and never its cause ; but, if so. it is hard to explain why many people caninot wallk barefoot across.- a floor, or sit in a draught, withjoiut beginning to run at the nose. Their susceptibility suggests that local cooling of the shin is indeed responsible for-starting the disease in some cases ; but this cooling can only do harm iff, the skin fail.- to resist ami neutralise the cold at the surface. Such resistance is part of tlic normal function of the skin, which is an elaborate mechanism for keeping the body’s temperature constant. Cl'othcg were originally intended for use in places and at times when man’is. environment was unbearably- frigid, and they thus extended his sphere df, action. But unfortunately their function has been perverted, and from being ail auxiliary they have become a necessity, so that our skinsj, deep in layers of wool, too often lose the power of reacting in an emergency. This is probably a edmmoni reason for catching cold. . For young and healthy people the remedy is theoretically simple ; cold baths, thin clothing, and exposure will eventually develop an all-weather skin that laughs at minor! draughts and dampings. But any attempt to prevent colds on these links niuis + be cautious, and- the hardening regiment is utterly' unsuitable for small children or the aged, who generally need warm .surroundings. This brings up the important subject of. indoor ventilation.

Stephen Leacock, whilst strongly supporting the use of fresh air, says that aftgr a. hqiise> has been filled with it the doors and windows should be carefully shut, so as not to let any escape ; properly enclosed, it will last for years. In this he follows Bacon, who says that “air accustomed to the body doth less prey on it than new air, and often changed.” These writers, ,however, are not supported by modern investigators, who concltide that warm stagnant air, by producing congestion in the nose, is the commonest cause of colds in the head. . The, transition 'from a stuffy sitting room to a cold.Jjedi'Ojom is apt to bring on the attack, whilst the cold feet and- hot heads that develop in ill" ventilated- rooms—the House of Commo|iis has been placed in this category —are the. exact reverse of w'hat is.desirable to ward off bacterial infection-. ~ So far nothing has been said about the nature of this infection. The significance of its role seems- to be variable, for in some forms of catarrh—hay fever, for example—the bacterial element is lacking altogether, and dust or proteins directly cause thei inflammation. \ At the oilier extreme there are epidemics in wliicji the common cold'becomes' exceedingly infectious and spreads like - influenza. Under such conditions, and.- indeed, in most forms of coldi, there may be myriads of microibes. in the nose, and several: kinds have received names indicating that they are the principal cause of the disorder. But many well-known organisms may be associated' with the symptoms of a cold, and it is as yet uncertain which, Bf. a,tiy, of them I s usually the first invader and' which arc mere, .camp-followers. • Large numbers of people arc so unfortunate as to have a, perpetual c-ojld-set up by germs which have found a convenitnt resting-place in. t'hqir nasal cavatici-. and sometimes their' aifliction requires special : measures. Vaccines appear to be useful occasionally, whilst sprays, electric: heat, and other devicqs may be employed. For the average occasional Sufferer, however, the best chance lies in an attempt to keep a healthy nose .in a healthy bQdy, in which ta.sk therei is no better ally than an. open window. When in the grip of infection it is a sound policy to gc> to bed at once--1-t may be heroic to remain “at work.” but the path of glo.ry. here as elsewhere. leads quite ojften to the. grave — though Ihir, is generally ".o’mebody elfe’s.