The Eugenic Marriage, Volume IV | Page 3

to cause moisture
of the skin. Health demands a dry skin at all times. The necessary
degree of body heat should be attained by the quality of the outer

clothing, not by the quantity of the underclothing. Many men and
women wear heavy underclothing which causes moisture when indoors,
with the result that they get surface chills when they go outside if the
weather is cold and as a result catch cold. The underclothing should be
just heavy enough to be comfortable indoors and the extra warmth
necessary when outside should be supplied by a good overcoat or furs.
F. Direct Infection.--A baby may catch cold if kissed or "hugged" by an
adult who has a cold.
Catching cold while bathing is possible, but scarcely probable, if
ordinary precautions are taken. It is very bad practice to permit children
to use one another's handkerchiefs or the handkerchief of an adult.
Certain children are predisposed to attacks of "cold in the head" or
acute coryza or nasal catarrh (these being the medical names for this
condition). Sometimes this is an inherited characteristic. There is no
doubt, however, that most of these children acquire the habit by bad
sanitary and hygienic surroundings. These children do not as a rule get
enough fresh air. They are kept indoors most of the time in stuffy,
overheated, badly ventilated rooms, unless the weather is absolutely
perfect. The windows in their bedrooms are always kept closed,
because they are "liable to catch cold." They are overdressed and
perspire easily and as a result "catch cold." These conditions all tend to
create an unhealthy condition of the nasal mucous membrane and of the
throat, and this is rendered worse if the child lives in a damp,
changeable climate, such as that of New York City. In these susceptible
children the exciting cause of an attack may be trivial; exposure, cold
or wet feet, inadequate head covering (as already pointed out), a
draught of cold air even may excite sneezing and a nasal discharge;
hence we have:
Acute Nasal Catarrh (Acute Coryza, Acute Rhinitis, "Cold in the Head",
"Snuffles").--Acute nasal catarrh may accompany measles, diphtheria,
influenza, and whooping cough.
Symptoms.--The onset is sudden with sneezing, and difficulty in
breathing through the nose. In a few hours, or it may be not for a day or
two, a mucous, watery, nasal discharge appears. There are redness and

slight swelling of the nose and upper lip, caused by the discharge.
There is no fever as a general rule except in very young infants, in
whom the fever may be very high. The discharge interferes with the
nursing and the child suffers from lack of nourishment. The
inflammation may extend to the eyes and ears, causing painful
complications, or to the throat and bronchi, causing hoarseness and
cough. Less frequently we have disturbances of the digestive tract with
vomiting, or diarrhea.
The mild form of the disease lasts for two or three days, the severe
form from one to two weeks.
Repeated attacks are said to contribute to the production of adenoid
growths.
An acute attack of this disease is seldom a serious affliction in older
children; it may be, however, very serious and even dangerous in very
young infants. The tendency of the disease to extend downward,
causing bronchitis or pneumonia, explains in part the possible danger to
a baby. Another reason is because it may seriously interfere with
suckling and with breathing in these little patients. It may even cause
sudden attacks of strangulation. An infant, therefore, suffering with an
acute attack of rhinitis requires constant attention. It may be necessary
to feed it with a spoon, and if necessary mother's milk should be so fed.
Plenty of fresh air should be provided. It may be essential to keep the
mouth open in order that it may get enough fresh air. Every effort
should be made to keep the nostrils open. The secretions must be
removed from time to time. Causing the child to sneeze by tickling the
nose with a camel's hair brush will clear the nose for the time being.
The physician may be compelled to use a solution of cocaine for this
purpose.
Treatment of Acute Rhinitis ("Taking Cold", Nasal Catarrh, Acute
Coryza, "Snuffles").--A child suffering with an acute attack of "cold in
the head" should be kept indoors in a room with a constant, uniform
temperature; the particular reason for this is, that, if a child is exposed
to cold at any time during an attack of "cold in the head," it may cause
the disease to invade the chest,--a tendency which it has at all times.

The bowels must be kept open; if they do not move every day of their
own accord they must be made to move by means of an enema of sweet
oil