How to Live | Page 9

this is not to shut out the night air, but, when necessary, to shut out the mosquito by screens. The experiment has been made of sleeping out-of-doors in screened cages in the most malarial of places and no malarial infection resulted, though those who were unprotected and were consequently bitten by mosquitoes contracted malaria as usual. The truth is that night air, especially in cities, is distinctly purer than day air, on account of the fact that there is much less traffic at night to stir up dust.
[Sidenote: Protection From Cold]
It is very important, in any sleeping balcony, to be protected from the wind by a sash on one or two or--in very windy places--three sides. But of course sleeping out-of-doors does not reach its maximum efficiency if there is too much protection, that is, if the sleeping-out place is so shut in that very free currents of air are not secured. An outdoor porch really ceases to be an outdoor porch, when enclosed on four sides.
A roll curtain (preferably rolling from the bottom) can be arranged on the open side or sides, to be used in case of storms only. In cold weather a thick mattress, or two mattresses, should be used. It is not only what is over the sleeper, but also what is under him, that keeps him warm. The body should be warmly clad, and the head and neck protected by a warm cap or helmet or hood. To prevent the entrance of cold air under the bedclothes, one or more blankets should be extended at least two feet beyond the head, with a central slit for the head. Early awakening by the light may, if necessary, be prevented by touching the eyelids with burnt cork, or by bandaging the eyes with a black cloth or stocking. Sheets should be well warmed in the winter-time before being used. They can easily be warmed with a hot-water bag, flat-iron, or soapstone. Blankets next to the skin are not hygienic.
[Sidenote: Sleeping-tents]
Sleeping out is really much easier than most people imagine. In fact, few, if any, of the other cardinal rules of hygiene are so easy to obey. Where a sleeping-porch is not available, an inward window tent can always be had which puts the sleeper practically out-of-doors and at the same time cuts off his tent from the rest of the room.
[Sidenote: Outdoor Tents]
An outdoor tent must be kept well opened. Otherwise it fails of its purpose. The common opinion that a tent is ventilated through the "meshes" of the canvas is erroneous. Canvas is a tightly woven fabric and impervious to air. That is why it makes good sails. One of the most modern boys' camps has given up the use of tents altogether, employing instead open wooden "shacks," because of the difficulty of keeping the tents sufficiently open, especially in rainy weather.
Complete directions for convenient out-of-door sleeping will be furnished, upon application, by the Life Extension Institute.
Section?V--Deep Breathing
Ordinarily breathing should be unconscious, but every day deep breathing exercises should be employed. "A hundred deep breaths a day" is one physician's recipe for avoiding tuberculosis. A Russian author, who suffered a nervous breakdown, found--after trying many other aids to health without success--that a retired life for several months in the mountains in which simple deep-breathing exercises practised systematically every day formed the central theme, effected a permanent cure. Deep breathing is a great resource for people who are shut in most of the day. If they will seize the chance, whenever it offers, to step out-of-doors and take a dozen deep breaths, they can partly compensate for the evils of indoor living.
In ordinary breathing only about 10?per?cent. of the lung contents is changed at each breath. In deep breathing a much larger percentage is changed, the whole lung is forced into action, and the circulation of the blood in the abdomen is more efficiently maintained, thus equalizing the circulation throughout the body. The blood-pressure is also favorably influenced, especially where increased pressure is due to nervous or emotional causes.
[Sidenote: Breathing Exercises]
Breathing exercises should be deep, slow, rhythmic, and through the nose, not through the mouth. A certain Oriental deep-breathing exercise is particularly valuable to insure slowness and evenness of the breath. It consists of pressing a finger on the side of the nose, so as to close one nostril, breathing in through the other nostril, breathing out of the first nostril in the same manner and then reversing the process. Attention to the slight sound of the air, as it passes through the nose, enables one to know whether the breathing is regular or is slightly irregular. Such breathing exercises can be taken at the rate of three breaths per minute, and the rate gradually reduced until it is only two or even less per minute.
[Sidenote: Muscular