HOME HEALTH GUIDE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 19 November 1941, Page 6

HOME HEALTH GUIDE

EYES REPAY ATTENTION. (Prepared and Issued by the Health Department.) Few people realise how easily eye trouble arises through some internal disorder, like bad kidneys, septic teeth or tonsils, tuberculosis, and other infectious diseases. Whether there seems to be anything wrong or not, regular examination of the eyes during childhood, and later in middle age, will prevent much of the eye trouble which exists today. A healthy body means a healthy eyesight. The delicate eye tissues can easily be damaged by poison carried to them from some other part of the body. A tired body will make the eyes tired; an infected body will infect the eyes. Proper reading habits will preserve the eyesight. A light of about 80 to 100 watts, set about three feet behind and to one side of the printed page, which is held about 18 inches from the eyes, is ideal. Discourage children from reading on the floor. It brings the eyes too close to the reading matter. Direct infection causes a number of eye troubles, the most common being the stye, which is an infection that gets down into the root of an eyelash and causes a red and painful swelling. Cleanliness will prevent a stye, just as it will prevent conjunctivitis, a common complaint that is recognisable as inflammation of the delicate mem-, brance on the inner side of the eyelids. Dirty towels, handkerchiefs and hands are the source of this form of infection. If you have a cold in the eye that does not clear up quickly, see a doctor. The changes that come from high blood pressure can be seen in the blood vessels of the retina, and, although the eyes may seeni perfectly healthy, the specialist knows that the patient’s blood pressure is too high, and that his general health will suffer unless he gets proper treatment. This is an instance where a regular examination of the eyes can lead to timely correction of major bodily faults.