THE BENEFICIAL QUALITIES OF 
TOBACCO 
In the previous chapters the possible harm- 
ful effects of using tobacco have been dealt with 
at length. In this chapter we shall deal shortly 
with some positive beneficial effects. 
There is very little doubt that tobacco is a 
strongly protective agent against infection 
from disease. Its germicidal qualities are well- 
known and recognized. It is now recognized by 
medical writers that the mouth is one of the 
principal, if not the principal channel of in- 
fection for many infective diseases. The cavi- 
ties of the teeth are the breeding places of hosts 
of pathogenic bacteria, of which there are about 
100 different varieties arising from decaying 
food and other sources. These destructive 
agents, many of them highly pathogenic, easily 
find theiy way from the mouth through various 
channels to the inside of the body. Many in- 
fective organisms floating in the air are drawn 
into the mouth in the act of respiration and this 
is a common method of falling a victim to con- 
‘tagion. : 
The effect of tobacco juice on the bacteria of 
the human mouth was investigated by Dr. W. 
D. Fullerton and is reported by him in the 
Cleveland Med. Journal 1912, page 585. 
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