THE LIVING ORGANISM 239 



does not undergo destruction in the process 

 of digestion. Its exact chemical nature is 

 unknown, but it appears to be a colloidal 

 substance rich in iodine. 



When disease causes the secretion to 

 decrease after adult life is reached, as it often 

 does, dwarfing cannot, of course, be produced, 

 but the mental symptoms are the same. The 

 patient loses in intelligence and becomes 

 abnormally forgetful, so that no continuous 

 mental process can be carried out. The 

 mind becomes inert, the heart-beat is slowed, 

 the face becomes vacant and expressionless, 

 and there develops a striking slowness of 

 thought and motion, and a heavy, slow gait. 

 Like the opposed condition of goitre, the 

 disease, known as myxcedema, is much more 

 prevalent amongst women than in men. 

 If the disease be not promptly treated by 

 administration of thyroid gland, the mental 

 symptoms become exaggerated, the patient 

 becomes irritable, and suspicious of the 

 motives of relatives or attendants, and there 

 may be hallucinations leading to dementia. 

 Feeding on thyroid gland is the only really 

 beneficial treatment, and often produces 

 remarkable results. 



Sir William Osier describes the results 

 of thyroid treatment in such cases as follows : 



