THE HEALTH OF THE SKIN 119 



My niece who does not like the " smelly boy " takes 

 her cold bath every morning in five minutes. This sort 

 of quick bathing helps the body resist disease; it gives 

 the nerves of the small blood vessels such vigorous, 

 healthy gymnastic exercise that they get into good 

 habits of controlling the flow of the blood back and 

 forth, and the better they do this the less likely we are 

 to take cold. If possible, before taking the cold bath, 

 spend five minutes in giving vigorous exercise to arms, 

 legs, and body. This will help immensely in making the 

 quick, cold bath useful to you. 



For warm bathing, remember two points : 



1. If you take the bath in the daytime, 

 always dash the body with cold water after- 

 wards. This will keep you from taking cold. 



2. If you bathe in warm water just before 

 getting into bed, you do not need the cold 

 dash, for the bedclothes will keep you from 

 taking cold. 



Give yourself a clean, healthy, vigorous skin, and you 

 will grow faster, be in better health, and be less likely to 

 take cold. 



QUESTIONS 



1. How many layers are there to the skin? 



2. Give the names of the skin layers. 



3. What is the use of the epidermis? 



