AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



205 



S MlMTS. 



BY F. L. PEIRO, M. D. 



McVicker's Building, Chicago. 111. 



Nervous and Sick Headache. 



Dear Miss GoDFKEY.Chicago:— Your wish 

 to know the causes and cure of nervous and 

 sick headache shall be complied with at 

 once, because I can imagine your anxiety 

 for relief if you are a sufferer from either 

 form of this discouraging affliction. 



The cause of these maladies has puzzled 

 the medical minds for ages, and I am not 

 certain that we of today are much nearer 

 the facts than were our medicinal ances- 

 tors. It is a queer admission for a modern 

 M. D. to make, but "facts are stubborn 

 things." Of course, much guessing has 

 been attempted. One says the liver is at 

 fault; the other, that the stomach is the 

 guilty organ ; and latterly the profession 

 seems pretty uniformly settled in the con- 

 viction that our truant iienm are entirely 

 to blame. But if not certain of the actual 

 cause, there is no doubt that we have learned 

 the existence of various predisposing fac- 

 tors, which if obviated will reward the suf- 

 ferer by comparative peace. 



Some persons are especially precUsposed to 

 these ailments ; others, like myself, have 

 never a twinge. It is not that we are wiser 

 or more considerate of ourselves, but simply 

 because we are not '• built that way" — so 

 to speak. Diet that will nourish one, may 

 prove a very poison for the other — hence, 

 the necessity of stadijiiuj the kinds of food 

 best suited to each particular individual, 

 and, of course, avoiding that which we 

 have reason to fear. 



Constipation is only an indication that 

 the food we eat is not exactly suited to our 

 active requirements, hence it is another 

 "straw" pointing to the sick headache. 

 Sedentary habits is another chief cause, 

 but that can easily be overcome by calis- 

 thenic and other exercises at home, and 

 where better than in a big bathtub with 

 plenty of water and long brush ! O the 

 scrubbing ! What work it entails, and what 

 wonders it performs ! The namby-pamby 

 sponge or wash-cloth is nowhere in com- 

 parison ! 



But to be brief: The less fats or oily 

 substances the better, because illy assimi- I 



lated. Much seasoning of food, especially 

 with pepper, spices, and mustard, is depre- 

 cated—they simply corrode the membrane 

 of the digestive track, and much retard 

 normal functions. Pies, cakes, candies, 

 and confections generally are harmful for 

 practically the same reasons; hence, should 

 be shunned. Meats are not best, though 

 occasional indulgence is not interdicted. 

 Fresh fish, vegetables, fruits, eggs, bread, 

 milk— preferably buttermilk or " clabber " 

 —lemonade, shrubs and ices, give wide 

 range for excellent diet. Coffee, tea, and 

 fermented drinks are to be avoided, but 

 you may literally deluge yourself with 

 xi'ittcr— good, fresh water, hot or cold— you 

 need fear no ill results. The system is 

 flushed thereby, and the impurities of the 

 various excretory organs (the liver, spleen, 

 and intestinal canal) are carried out of the 

 body, and our physiological machinery 

 kept in good working order. Tight-lacing 

 is a fruitful source of headaches— but of 

 course you are not so addicted. 



As to remedies, little need be said. Pre- 

 iM'/itiou must be our sheet-anchor. I fully 

 trust to your intelligent conception the im- 

 portance and the duty of this suggestion. 

 During an attack of sick or nervous head- 

 ache (they are one and the same thing), 

 five or six drops of hydrochloric acid in a 

 glassful of hot water is helpful; or a tea- 

 spoonful of Horsford's acid phosphate in 

 water is often effective. Repeat if necessary. 



If with this treatment perfect quiet in a 

 dark room can be had, so much the better. 

 But remember — to study your needs in eating 

 and drinking, not less in your mode of 

 dressing, and especiaUy see that the shoes 

 are water-proof, and two sizes too big ! 



Cbllls and Ague. 



ChiUs, eh ? Well, that is disagreeable 

 enough ! Happily not immediately danger- 

 ous. 



Intermittent fever (as termed by the 

 doctors) may result from various causes, 

 but chiefly from living in malarial districts 

 where much vegetation decays, as near 

 rivers, ponds, or during wet seasons, or to 

 a debilitated state of the system that nearly 

 all external influences will impress. To 

 coidiiiue to live in such unhealthy localities 

 is, of course, a certain assurance of return 

 of the ' • chills ' ' with more or less frequency. 



Such residents must simply make up 

 their minds to suffer from this form of 



