HEALTH OF CHILDREN.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 August 1921, Page 7

HEALTH OF CHILDREN.

ADDRESS TO WOMEN TEACHERS. THE WORK OF DR. GUNN. On Saturday morning, Dr. E. Gunn (schools medical officer) addressed u meeting of women teachers at New Plymouth, taking as the basis of her remarks the prevalence of enlarged tonsils and adenoids among children, and urging the teachers to use their influence with children and parents to get these defects attended to. Dr. Gunn had with her a very fine set of diagrams illustrative of the evils resulting to the organs of the nose and throat from tho presence of these growths. Adenoids, a-s most pepole know, are small fleshy excrescences at the back of the nasal cavities, while tonsils are situated in the throat. It will readily be understood that an enlargement of these growths must inevitably result in obstructed breathing, and in many cases in deafness caused by the blocking of the air passage leading to the drum of the ear. Dr. Gunn showed a diagram depicting the deformity of the nasal cavities due to the presence of axlenoids, and said that often this resulted in catarrh and in the bones becoming diseased. She also referred to the importance of breathing through the nose so as to warm the air before it reached the lungs, and to avoid the narrow palate and protruding upper teeth caused by mouth breathing. Dr. Gunn forcefully combated the arguments brought forward by parents against the removal of tonsils and adenoids. She pointed out, whereas at about the age of fifteen there might be a slight improvement in a child’s condition, a few years later he would be worse than ever; moreover, that delay in a child of tender years might mean permanent deafness or malformation of the mouth and nose. If the tube leading to the ear-drum were blocked by adenoids, then the sides of the tube grew together, after which nothing could be done to restore the hearing. Dr. Gunn also spoke of the importance of clean teeth to a child, and of the necessity of having decayed first teeth removed, otherwise the second teeth, pushing through below them, and nourishing themselves on the first teeth, would absorb the decay from them. She mentioned the statement made sometimes that the fruit acid wash recommended by the Department for use in cleaning the teeth often turned them black, and said thqt if this were so, children should not eat apples or other fniit, as the 'composition of the fruit acid wash was practically the same as the juice of these fruits. It was a formula for the working out of which a world’s prize'had been awarded, to Professor Pickerel!, of Otago Dental University, a man who stood in the front rank of dental experts in the country. The apparent blackness was in reality due to the effect of the acid on a gelatinous film which had previously formed over the teeth, and underneath which was dirt or black specks on the teeth. At the close of her address Dr. Gunn was heartily applauded by the teachers, and a resolution was carried expressing their appreciation of her work among the children. The following resolution, proposed by Miss Pearce and seconded by Mrs. Martin, was also carried by acclamation: “That after a year’s trial of tooth-brush drill, this meeting of Taranaki women teachers wishes to place on record its conviction of the good resulting therefrom. and its appreciation of Dr. Gunn’s action in introducing the drill.”