EDUCATION 



1946 



EDUCATION 



adenoid children are often delicate, and prone 

 to contract contagious diseases. No child can 

 suffer long from adenoids without having his 

 health seriously impaired, often for life. 



A simple operation is the only cure for ade- 

 noids, and the time to have it done is just as 

 soon as they are discovered. 



Diseased Tonsils. Diseased tonsils are almost 

 always found with adenoids, for tonsils and 

 adenoids- are composed of the same sort of 

 tissue. 



Frequent sore throat is a danger signal, and 

 so are small white spots over the surface of the 

 tonsils, even when the tonsils themselves are 

 not sore. Healthy tonsils are small almond- 

 shaped structures which are hardly visible in 

 the throat. When they are enlarged so as to 

 project into the throat from each side, they 

 may usually be considered diseased and in need 

 of removal. Diseased tonsils, large or small, 

 have a close relation to rheumatism, heart dis- 

 ease, and to at least one nervous disease, 

 chorea, or Saint Vitus's Dance. 



It sometimes happens that tonsils which seem 

 to give no trouble are the seat of chronic colds. 

 In these cases the tonsils are what are called 

 cryptic, and each little hole or crypt is an in- 

 fected area from which germs spread to the 

 nose and throat and set up a "cold." It is a 

 wise thing for everybody who is subject to bad 

 colds to have the nose and throat carefully 

 examined by a specialist. 



Defective Teeth. Probably no other one 

 part of the body produces so much trouble as 

 bad teeth do. Yet bad teeth are found in at 

 least two-thirds of all school children. Some 

 of the results of bad teeth are the following: 



Indigestion. 



Enlarge^ glands in the neck (kernels). 

 Poor state of nutrition. 



Contagious diseases of several kinds (because 

 germs find lodgment here). 



A serious form of anaemia (deficient blood). 



Headache. 



Nervous disorders. 



Fatigue. 



Mental dullness. 



The prevention of decay of the teeth is easier 

 than the prevention of almost any other dis- 

 order in the body, yet the teeth receive perhaps 

 the least attention. A repaired tooth is evi- 

 dence of an earlier neglect. 



If children's teeth from the very first received 

 proper attention decay could be practically 

 eliminated for a life time. Preventive den- 

 tistry is to-day the most important part of the 

 dental profession. The common impression 

 that first teeth may be neglected without much 



harm is strictly wrong. Sound first teeth are 

 likely to assure sound second teeth. 



The early loss of first teeth causes narrowing 

 of the jaws (the jaws fail to develop), and 

 often very crooked second teeth, for the reason 

 that the jaws are too narrow to accommodate 

 the second teeth. Not only this, but decay in 

 a first tooth often spreads to the germ of the 

 second tooth, and when this finally conies 

 through the gums, it is already decayed. De- 

 cayed teeth, whether first or second, mean in- 

 fected mouths. 



A child should be taught to keep his teeth 

 clean from the time he is three years old, and 

 before this his parents should do it for him. 

 After the first twenty teeth have come in, 

 the child should visit a dentist twice a year at 

 least for thorough cleaning and other preven- 

 tive work. When this method is carefully fol- 

 lowed, decay of the teeth with all the unpleas- 

 ant consequences may be practically avoided. 



The latest important discovery in dentistry 

 is that very many roots of dead teeth, teeth in 

 which the roots have been killed when the 

 tooth was filled or crowned, afterward develop 

 abscesses which may be entirely painless. Yet 

 such accumulations of pus may be absorbed 

 and cause very serious diseases in distant parts 

 of the body. Only the X-ray will make cer- 

 tain whether or not such teeth have abscesses 

 developing in their roots. 



Orthodontia, or the art of straightening 

 teeth, has been developed during the last ten 

 years to such an extent that specialists can 

 now straighten any teeth no matter how 

 crooked, largely by a method of widening the 

 jaws. Children with narrow jaws and crooked 

 teeth should be treated as early as three years 

 of age if necessary. It is much more difficult 

 to straighten teeth as the child grows older. 



Eye Defects. There are a good many danger 

 signals of eye trouble in children which more 

 often than not are unheeded. Of these the 

 following are the most common: 



Frequent headaches. 



Crossed eye. 



Red or painful eyes. 



Peculiar postures while reading, such as hold- 

 ing head on one side. 



Squinting or frowning. 



If a child does not see words on the 

 board clearly from his seat or if words in his 

 books appear blurred or misty or crooked, there 

 is nearly always some definite eye trouble. A 

 good oculist should always be consulted when 

 any trouble with the eyes is suspected. Opti- 

 cians may fit glasses properly in simple un- 



