munal meals were served. That meant better marketing, better preparing and 

 cooking, and a more economical use of food. At all schools lunches were 

 served; that made certain at least one substantial meal of good quality for 

 every school child. Younger children and mothers received relatively richer 

 meals, with prior rights to limited supplies of milk. Similar methods were 

 developed in the United States, in Canada, and in other countries, demonstrat- 

 ing the value of applying scientific methods to our common but complex 

 problems. 



Government and Microbes A bare list of the governmental agencies 

 and activities related to health will give us an idea of how far we depend upon 

 our environment and upon one another. Many diseases are subjected to 

 quarantine and placarding. Public laboratories provide vaccines, serums, and 

 other special preparations, and supervise the manufacture and sale of such 

 products for profit. Official laboratories examine specimens of blood and of 

 other fluids or tissues obtained from patients for diagnosis. We inspect dwell- 

 ings, schools, factories, camps, theaters, and other places where people live or 

 assemble, to make sure that conditions are sanitary. We exclude sick people 

 from schools, and if we knew how we would exclude them also from places of 

 work and of amusement. We disinfect discharges from the bodies of sick peo- 

 ple and disinfect premises that have become infected. We inspect slaughter- 

 houses and regulate the cleaning of vessels in public eating places. We regu- 

 late drinking-cups in public places and the wrapping of bread before it leaves 

 the bakery. 



In some cities, visiting nurses, ambulance service and public hospitals help 

 to keep down the amount of sickness and to reduce the suffering. States 

 license physicians, dentists, druggists, nurses and midwives, as well as barbers, 

 manicurists and masseurs, to maintain suitable standards of health; and they 

 license plumbers, electricians and automobile drivers to ensure greater safety. 



Prohibitions and Regulations Conditions that made it necessary for the 

 public to regulate its water and food supplies made it necessary to regulate the 

 sale of drugs also. All people are interested in their health, but most people 

 are ignorant in regard to the conditions of health. The vast drug industry 

 has made available to millions of people convenient packages of standard 

 remedies, chemicals and household supplies related to health and cleanliness. 

 But this business has also frightened and deceived the public into buying 

 remedies for "symptoms" which we might better disregard or else bring to 

 the attention of reliable physicians. Men and women have been induced to 

 drug themselves with worthless and even harmful "remedies" while neglecting 

 their actual needs. 



Gradually the public is coming to realize that it has a right to know what 

 it is buying and what merits there may be in the strange products. Moreover, 

 it is coming to feel strongly that people's health is more important than any 



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