THE HEAT OF THE BODY 271 



404. Care should be exercised in changing from the 

 warm clothing of winter to the thinner garments needed 

 in the spring. It is most prudent to make changes first 

 in the outer clothing, retaining the warm inner garments 

 until the mild weather is well established. Often in the 

 Northern states it is necessary to return to heavy winter 

 wraps after a season of high temperature. 



In the early autumn, too, when cold, damp evenings 

 and nights follow hot, sunny days, judicious attention to 

 clothing will often ward off the intestinal and febrile 

 diseases prevalent in that season. It is frequently wise 

 to change the underclothing with the approach of night, 

 putting on the warm wool which was perhaps intolerable 

 at midday. Many physicians advise as a safeguard the 

 wearing of a broad woolen bandage over the abdomen 

 both by day and by night. 



405. The Bodily Heat as affected by Alcohol. The paralyz- 

 ing effect of the use of alcoholic drinks, upon the muscles 

 in the walls of the minute blood vessels, has been men- 

 tioned in connection with the muscles, the circulation, 

 and respiration. It should be referred to also in connec- 

 tion with the subject of this chapter. 



Because alcohol is quickly oxidized, and because heat 

 is produced in the process, it was long believed to be of 

 value in maintaining the heat of the body. A different 

 view now prevails as the result of much observation and 

 experiment. Travelers in Arctic regions and others 

 exposed to intense cold agree that those who use no 

 alcohol whatever are far better able to resist the cold 

 than are those who indulge in it. Physiologists show by 

 careful experiments that though the temperature of the 

 body rises during digestion of food, it is lowered for some 

 hours when alcohol is taken. The flush which is felt 



