-o I I Bl ll I LOSIS \- \ DISI \H OF 1 III. M\ 



Natural 

 Means of 

 Defense. 



CHAPTEB XI 



Wl!\T PROTKrix -mi; Hi \|.nn I\|>|\||> 



iv, Ti i '.sis? 



After all that we have said !' the contaginu-ne><. or rather 

 ommunicability. and consumption in par- 



ticular, our must not think that a breath in an atmosphere 

 accidentally laden with bacilli would certainly render a healthy 

 individual consumptive, or that by a swallow of tuberculous 

 milk or a little injury from a broken cuspidor one nuM ; 

 sarih ilous. The tubercle l.;icilli which may be 



inhaled are taken in with the dust. Thi< du>t i d by 



countless fine hairs in the nasal cavities, and during the act 

 of blowing the nose this bacilli-laden dust is usually expelled 

 with some of the nasal mucus. When, as it may happen, 

 bacilli are not caught up by the line hairs, the very secretion* 



of the na>al membrane^ bein- bactericidal, th.: . say, 



liaving germ-killing projKTtios, can ivnder the bacilli han 

 Mven if the germs should have passed these two barriers and 

 have entered the deeper respiratory tracts the bronchial 

 tubes these in turn are lined with cilia, very fine hair-like 

 organs which are in constant motion, and which expel f 

 bodies with the mucus that the bronchial tubes 96CTete< La-tly. 

 even should the bacilli enter the lung tissue it>elf. t! 



will meet the white blood corpuscles, and if the latter are 

 plentiful and in good condition, they will overcome the enemy 

 the bacilli by swallowing them. The secretions nf tlie 

 stomach of a healthy individual, have, doubtl 

 cidal properties; these gastric juices kill the dangerous germ> \- 

 fore they have a chance to do harm. Therefore, the healthy 

 man and woman should not have an exaggerated fear of tul 

 losis; they should, nevertlni , not reckl-- ly e.\|xj.sc tln-m.-elves 

 to the danger of infection. 



CHAPTER XII 



How MAY A HEREDITARY DISPOSITION TO CONSUMPTION BE 

 SUCCESSFULLY OVERCOM 



In connection with the precautions which should be taken to 

 combat a tendency to tuberculosis, we must say a few words 

 concerning the curability of consumption or pulmonary tuber- 



