Diabetes
Sources: Papers On HealthThere are two more or less distinct stages of this serious
trouble; the first stage is generally curable, the second stage
generally incurable. Yet good natural means of cure will very much
alleviate even the incurable stage. The earlier as well as the later
stages are marked by extreme thirst. This, in the case of some poor
sufferers, is enormous. Gallons of water are taken, and the more is
taken the more is wanted. B
fever thirst is. It cannot be quenched by means of cold cloths often
changed over the stomach, as fever thirst can. A sufferer in this
disease will set a large pitcher down at the bedside to serve for the
night, and drink it all before morning; but there is no extra heat
anywhere to account for this. The thirst is more like that which is
caused by eating very salt food. It points to the character of the
juices which are affecting the stomach, and not to any heated condition
of the stomach itself. The drinking is a desperate effort to dilute
these juices; and, at least by cold water, that cannot be done. A
wineglassful of hot water taken every ten minutes for an hour, or two
hours, or three, or ten hours, as is felt to be comfortable, will do
wonders in the early stages of this disease. This water, when taken at
the right heat, at once mixes with the strongly concentrated juices of
the stomach, and causes them to be easily managed by that and other
organs. It is truly wonderful what this very simple remedy will effect
by itself alone. The next thing to be noticed is the excessive hunger.
The food, whatever it may be, fails to quell this hunger. Here, again,
it is clearly the stomach with which we have to do. When the hunger is
developed we should think the case further advanced than when thirst
alone is experienced. The hot water meets this symptom as it meets the
other. It is also of the very greatest moment to give right food.
Oatmeal and buttermilk steeped together for a time and then moderately
boiled, a very little salt or sugar being added, produces a food which
we do not expect to see excelled by the most costly that can be got
anywhere. Wheaten meal, or barley meal, will do as well as, and perhaps
in some cases better than, oatmeal, but these may be chosen according
to taste. The chief thing is the ease with which this food is converted
into a large supply of the best of blood for all purposes of
nourishment. Food containing much starchy matter, as white bread, rice,
and all sugar, must be forbidden. To make up for this, an abundance of
fat should be consumed. The bowels should be kept open by a suitable
diet and exercise.
Now we come to the excessive urinary discharge which is so strong a
feature of this disease. The body seems as if it were melting away in
this.
We can benefit the kidneys vastly through acting on the liver, as well
as on themselves. By a large hot bran poultice over the liver we can
add new life to that, and whatever does so tends to benefit the
kidneys. After using this large poultice, with plenty of oil rubbed on
before and after, say three or four times, place it over the kidneys
and use it as often there. If the heat is well kept up for an hour at a
time, one poultice a day would do, but, if the patient desires it,
twice a day will be all the better. It is good to do the best that can
be done with the skin. By means of soap and oil rubbing, and the
cleansing effects of diluted acetic acid, very considerable help may be
gained. Good can be done by a hot fomentation of the feet and legs to
the knees, with oiling after, so as to have these extremities in a
comfortable state. Tea, coffee, and sugar must be avoided.
More
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Children's Teething
See Teething. ... Children's Treatment
This should always be managed so as to soothe and not excite the little patients. They are very sensitive to heat and cold. When these are applied the child often cries, so that the "treatment" is condemned and given up. What should be condemned is th... Chills
(1) Nerve or imaginary chills. These are feelings of cold, where there is no real chilling; the back feels as if cold water were poured down it, or even the whole body feels chilled, when an examination will show that there is no real chill whatever. ... Chloral
Emetic; warm coffee, and even an enema of coffee. Artificial respiration (see Drowning) may be necessary if breathing gets very low. ... Chloroform
See Child-bearing. ... Chloroform Or Ether (inhaled)
Fresh air. Pull tongue forward, and begin artificial respiration. If heart has stopped, strike chest two or three times over region of heart. ... Chloroform Or Ether (swallowed)
Emetic; enema of hot coffee; keep awake. If necessary, artificial respiration. ... Circulation Of The Blood
Nothing is more important for the health or healing of any organ or part of the body than a good supply of arterial blood. Venous blood, collected by the veins after it has done its work all over the body, or blood stagnating in congested organs, is u... Climate And Soil
The soil on which one lives is a matter of primary importance; it may be a matter of life or death for a weakly person, but it is important for every one. First, as regards the subsoil on which a house is built. If this be clay, or impervious rock, th... Clothing
Clothing should be light yet warm, and sufficiently free so as not to interfere with bodily movements. The clothing next the skin should, we think, be linen, as being more porous and absorbent than wool (see Underwear). No woman who values her health ... Club Foot
Children are not unfrequently born with this deformity in one or other of its various shapes. The cause is to be sought in such a defective state of the nervous system as hinders the proper growth of these parts. If the nerves are treated rightly, the... Cold Cloths
See Towels, Cold Wet. ... Cold In The Head
Infants often are prevented sucking by this form of cold closing up the nostrils. In such a case have a small cap of cotton to fit the head. Wring this out of cold water, and fit it on the child's head. Put on over it a rather larger and thicker cap o... Cold Settled
A cold is often easily overcome. At other times it "sits down," as country people say, and refuses to be cured, a hard dry cough continuing for a long time, and causing sleeplessness and general weakness. In such a case first try to secure an increase... Cold Taking
Where cold is easily "taken," it is the skin which is defective in its action. The cure must therefore deal with it. Even spasmodic asthma can be traced to the failure of the skin to throw off waste sufficiently. Men exposed to great heats and chills,... Constipation
This trouble is often only aggravated and made chronic by the use of purgatives. Some simple change of diet, such as a ripe uncooked apple, eaten before breakfast, or a fruit diet for a day or two may put all right. So also with the use of wheaten mea... Consumption Prevention Of
This most insidious and deadly disease is caused by a tiny vegetable growth derived from persons or animals already suffering from tuberculosis. The spit of consumptive patients swarms with such germs, and when it dries and becomes dust the germs may... Consumption Treatment Of
Turning now to the case when consumption has actually shown itself, the above treatment is exactly the course to be pursued. But we would emphasise the fact that unlimited fresh air and good nourishing foods are the only cure. If the patient can affor... Contraction Of Sinews
This often occurs at the knee, bending the joint so that the patient cannot stretch his limb or walk properly. The injury in such a case is usually at the ends of the sinews, where they are inserted into the bone. If the limb be straightened and put u... Convulsions
For an ordinary convulsive attack in the case of a child, hold the child's head over a basin and pour tepid water (blood heat, 98 deg. F.) over the head. This will usually be sufficient. If not, seat the child in a bath of hot water nearly up to the w... Cooking
The cooking of vegetables requires particular care. The valuable salts and other nutritive ingredients they contain are easily dissolved by water, and when they are drained, and the water thrown away, as is usually done, all this nutriment is lost. Do... Cooling In Heating
Often it is difficult to get a sufficient cooling effect by means of cold cloths without unduly chilling the patient. When the head has to be cooled, as in the very dangerous disease meningitis, the effect must pass through the mass of the skull befor... Copper
Emetic, white of egg to follow. ... Coughs
These will be found treated under the various heads of Colds, Bronchitis, Consumption, etc., but some particular cases of mere cough demand special attention. A tickling cough sometimes comes on, and seems to remain in spite of all efforts to get rid ... Cramp In The Limbs
The treatment of this is to apply cold cloths to the roots of the nerves which govern the affected limb or limbs. For the legs, the cold is applied to the lower spine; for the arms or hands, it is applied to the upper part. The limbs affected should a... Cramp In The Stomach
This very severe trouble, though resisting ordinary methods of treatment, is not difficult to cure by right means. If help is at hand, the patient may be placed in a shallow bath, and cold water splashed with a sponge or towel against the back. A bad ... Croup Less Serious Form
The less serious croup proceeds from a nervous closing of the windpipe, the attack being brought on by any causes of irritation in the nervous system. In this case, when the fit reaches a certain stage, the throat opens, and breathing proceeds as usu... Croup More Serious Form
This is caused by an accumulation of material in the windpipe, which is coughed up in pieces of pipe-like substance, and which, if not removed, threatens suffocation. For treatment, first give sips of hot water (distilled water is best) frequently. W... Cures As Self-applied
Often young people in lodgings are in difficulty for want of some one to apply the necessary treatment in their own case. It is often, however, possible to treat oneself quite successfully by exercising care and common sense. Help should always be go... Cures Losing Their Effect
After a fortnight's treatment often matters seem to come to a standstill in a case, and then the attendants are apt to despair. Such a state of things indicate only the need for some change in treatment, or perhaps for a rest from treatment for some ... Damp Beds
An ordinary bed which has not been slept in for some weeks, although perfectly dry to begin with, will become damp, even in a dry house, and, unless properly dried, will be a great danger to its next occupant. This is a preventable danger, and all who... Deafness
See Hearing. ... Decline
See Consumption. ... Declining Limb A
See Limbs, Drawn up. ... Delirium In Fever
The best way of treating this truly distressing symptom is by cooling and soothing applications to the head. We have seen in one case large cool cloths applied to the head for some time every three hours or so. An almost immediate cessation of the del... Depression
This is usually a bodily illness, though often regarded as mental only. It appears in loss of interest in all that otherwise would be most interesting. A mother loses interest in her children, a man in his business, and so on. Students, and children o... Diabetes
There are two more or less distinct stages of this serious trouble; the first stage is generally curable, the second stage generally incurable. Yet good natural means of cure will very much alleviate even the incurable stage. The earlier as well as th... Diarrhoea
Sudden attacks of this, though in a mild form, are very troublesome. An enema of cold water is in such cases often an immediate cure. The first injection may be followed by even an excessive motion, but if a second cold injection be given this will c... Diet
The composition of different articles of food varies. A turnip is not the same as a piece of cheese. It is more watery, and has more fibre in it, and we speak of it as less nutritious. There are, however, in almost all foods certain chemical substance... Diet And Corpulence
A tendency to obesity should always be carefully checked by attention to diet and exercise (see Exercise). The fattening foods are those which contain either fat or carbonaceous substances. Carbonaceous substances are found in bread, sugar, arrowroot... Diet Economy In
Dr. Hutchison, one of our greatest authorities on the subject of Dietetics, has well said-- "The dearest foods are by no means the best. 'Cheap and nasty' is not a phrase which can be applied to things which you eat. A pound of Stilton cheese at 1s... Diet For Middle Age And The Aged
In advancing years when less exercise is, as a rule, taken, a restriction in the amount of food consumed is highly desirable. The increasing corpulence, which often begins to show itself from 30 to 40, is far from being a healthy sign; indeed, is oft... Diet For The Lean
To a large extent the preceding article will suggest what is suitable here, remembering, however, that regular exercise will be also necessary in order to enable the muscles to increase in size. Green vegetables and fruits should be largely used in a... Digestion
Digestion is the process whereby the food we eat is turned into material fit to be assimilated by the blood. It begins in the mouth by the mechanical grinding and crushing of the food, and the chemical conversion of the starchy part into sugar, in whi... Diphtheria
The most striking symptom of diphtheria is the growth of a substance in the upper part of the windpipe, which threatens to close it entirely. Good medical skill is of first importance here, yet much may be done where that is not available. We have oft... Douche Cold
In its most powerful form this is a solid stream of water directed down on the patient's shoulders and spine. It may be applied either by an apparatus fixed up for the purpose, or by merely pouring from a watering-can without a rose. Its power depends... Drinks Refreshing
This is a matter of great importance to the sick. Nor is anything more important to be said on them than this, that the foundation of all such drinks must be water. This water must be pure, and is best distilled, or boiled and filtered. Long boiling ... Dropsy
This trouble is rather a symptom than a disease. It rises from accumulation of watery waste in the body, owing to improper action of the skin, lungs, or kidneys, and sometimes follows scarlet or other fevers and lung affections. By far the greatest da... Drowning
Many valuable lives have been saved by an elementary knowledge of what to do in the case of one apparently suffocated or drowned. Commence treatment immediately in the open air, with the face down, neck and chest exposed, and all tight clothing suc... Dwining
We give this name to a trouble from which we have been able to save some patients, as expressing best the general failure and weakness which sometimes constitute a serious danger, even where all specific symptoms are wanting. Some cases of this kind w... Dysentery
This is an affection of the bowels of the nature of diarrhoea, but much worse, as in it blood accompanies the bowel discharge. It usually begins as diarrhoea, and at this stage may be cured by either warm vinegar and water or simple cold water injecte... Dyspepsia
See Indigestion. ... Earache
In the common form this is purely neuralgic. The nerves are in shape and distribution like some tender plant, the root in the brain or spinal cord, and the ends of the branches in the organs supplied by them with nerve power. They are best affected, a... Ears Running
In this trouble there is indicated a failure somewhere of the clearance of waste from the body. This matter gathers locally in the ear, where suppuration and discharge take place. A cure must not be directed to the ear alone, but first the general was... Ears Singing In The
Partial deafness is often accompanied by noises in the ear, which are very annoying. This is caused by the internal state of the ear, and is often due especially to the state of the aural nerve. Similar noises are heard also when we place our fingers ... Eczema
Skin eruptions, known under this name, have very various causes. Treatment must vary accordingly. Where the cause is a failure of the skin to act properly, the whole skin of the body, especially the chest and back, will be dry and hard. In this cas... Elbow Joint
See Armpit Swelling and Bone. ... Enemas Cold Water
Prejudice often exists against cold treatment of any kind, but it must be overcome, unless the sick would lose some of the most precious means of relief which we possess. The Enema Syringe, or Fountain Enema, may be had from any druggist, and is used ... Epidemics
The key to action in case of epidemics prevailing in the district is found, when we consider that always, many residing amid infection escape it. They do so in virtue of better resisting power, rather than because no seeds of disease ever reach them. ... Epilepsy
The first sign of such an illness is a brief and slight attack of "absence." We notice once or twice that the person "loses himself" for a few moments, but recovers so speedily that we scarcely are sure whether anything of importance has occurred. He ... Eruptions
See Hives; "Outstrikes;" Saltrome, etc. ... Erysipelas
This troublesome disease is also known as St. Anthony's Fire, or the Rose. The skin becomes fiery red or even purplish in hue. A violent heat and pain in the part accompany this, and fever and general disturbance of the system follow in a severe case.... Exercise
Where this is advised medically, it is often taken in a manner far from wise. For weakly people seeking strength, exercise should never be pursued to the extent of fatigue. Up to a certain point it does good; beyond that, harm. The beginning of harm i... Exhaustion
Often very serious trouble takes the form of simple overwhelming weariness. The patient's system has been wrought down till it can no longer respond even to stimulus, and life itself seems ebbing away. In such cases treat as for DEPRESSION (see) avoid... Expectoration
What is commonly called a "cough and spit" is sometimes due to some serious trouble of the lungs, and in all cases a doctor should be consulted at once. Often, however, it is due to the failure of the skin or other organs duly to carry off the waste o... Eyes Accidents To
Three distinct classes of these are to be considered. They require very different treatment. When the eyeball is cut or pierced, if the cut be deep or large, a surgeon must deal with it. But if small, a drop or two of castor oil let fall into the e... Eyes Cataract On
This disease has been arrested, and in earlier stages even cured, by the treatment described in, Eyes, failing sight. By means of this treatment we have seen a totally blind eye restored in a few weeks. ... Eyes Danger To Sight Of
Where inflammation has gone so far as to lead to suppuration, or even to ulceration of the eyes, there is grave danger of blindness, and this is often the case with infants and children who have been wrongly treated or neglected. In such a case, ceas... Eyes Failing Sight
This often comes as the result simply of an over-wearied body and mind, without any pain or accident whatever. It appears as an inability to see small distant objects, or to see at all in dusky twilight. The sight is also variable--good when the patie... Eyes Hazy Sight
Frequently, after inflammation, and even when that has ceased, the sight is left in a hazy condition. The eyes may be in such cases rather cold than hot, and not amenable to the cooling applications. The whole system also lacks vital action. First, in... Eyes Healthy
Cheap, ill-printed literature is responsible for much eye trouble, and it is well worth while to pay, if possible, a little extra for books well printed, especially in the case of those who read much. When reading sit erect, with the back to the light... Eyes Inflamed
For all kinds of burning inflammatory pain in the eyes, the following treatment is most effective. Place a hot BRAN POULTICE (see) beneath the back of the head and neck while the patient lies on the back. Press gently fresh cool damp cloths, frequent...