TUBERCULOSIS 465 



are about 130,000 fewer persons dying from tuberculosis each year 

 in the United States than would have died if the tuberculosis 

 death rate for 1900 still held for this area. 



Tuberculosis is caused by the growth of bacteria, called the 

 tubercle bacilli, within the lungs or other tissues of the human body. 

 In the lungs they form little tubercles full of germs, which close up 

 the delicate air passages, while in other tissues they may cause 

 hip- joint disease, scrofula, lupus, and other diseases, depending 

 on the part of the body they attack. Tuberculosis may be con- 

 tracted by taking bacteria from people who have the disease, or 

 by drinking milk from tubercular cows, for the germ that affects 

 cattle causes some of the tuberculosis in children. Dr. William 

 H. Park, a noted authority on bovine (cow) tuberculosis, states 

 that in a large number of cases investigated by him 57 per cent of 

 abdominal tuberculosis in very young children and 47 per cent of 

 such tuberculosis in children under five years of age were of the 

 bovine type. Fortunately, the germs of bovine tuberculosis can 

 be killed by pasteurization of milk of doubtful purity. 



Practical Exercise 6. Name some ways in which tuberculosis might be 

 passed from one person to another. 



Most of us probably take into our lungs at one time or another 

 bacteria causing tuberculosis. Yet the bacteria seem able to gain 

 a foothold only under certain conditions. It is only when the 

 tissues are in a wornout condition, when we are " run down," as 

 we say, that the parasite may obtain a foothold in the lungs or 

 other organs. The disease may be arrested, and a permanent 

 cure is often brought about, by a life in the open air, the patient 

 living and sleeping out of doors, taking plenty of nourishing food, 

 and very little exercise. The object of this kind of life is to build 

 up the body resistance, so that the germs are rendered incapable of 

 doing harm. 



Tuberculosis is a serious disease to combat, because of the con- 

 ditions which help to cause it. Contrary to common belief, it is 

 not inherited ; but unfortunately in families where there are tuber- 

 cular persons, it is difficult to prevent giving the germs to people 

 living with them, especially if they live in small crowded homes 



