DIETETICS. 
due mental labour and exertion. To per- 
sons of tliis character it does not often hap- 
pen that the symptoms they experience are 
the sole result of poor feeding from neces- 
sity : yet it certainly does occur to hypo- 
chondriacs to have their complaints aggra- 
vated from want of regular meals, and 
many persons fall into this disetise in a 
great measure from never thinking of tak- 
ing any sustenance till their very late 
hour of dinner ; and when the disease has 
prevailed for some time, they frequently 
form rules of diet for themselves, or derive 
them from the advice of all whom they may 
have occasionally consulted, and they very 
commonly attend more to the cautions they 
have received against the Icedentia than to 
any encouragement as to the juvantia ; 
they depend for restitution of health on 
avoiding all that has been pointed out to 
them as wrong, and will scarcely believe 
that much benefit is to be derived from a 
good light meal or from taking at intervals 
any small quantity of exhilarating nourish- 
ment. 
Most of the symptoms already enumerat- 
ed under acidity of the stomach, make 
their appearance in the present disease, 
though varied in every diversity of combi- 
nation : in addition to which there is gene- 
rally costiveness, and a peculiar affection of 
the head, a dead heavy pilin, sometimes ex- 
acerbated to acute distress, and always 
accompanied with that idiopathic nausea of 
the stomach, which is well characterised by 
the name of sick-head-ach. 
The affection of the mind in hypochon- 
driasis is curable, or may be very much pal- 
liated by due care and attention to the 
digestive process ; persons thus affected are 
always disposed to view only the gloomy 
Side of objects : according to the diffei-ent 
circumstances and situations in life of each 
individual, he becomes oppressed with the 
fear of disease, of poverty, of death, of fa- 
tuity, of loss of memory, or has other 
groundless fears of misery awaiting him; 
such paroxysms will sometimes occur seve- 
ral times every day, and are often found to 
depend on indigestion and flatulency, which 
being removed by the means to be pointed 
out in the plan of treatment, these ideas of 
apprehended evils will gradually subside, 
or, at least, be very considerably dimi- 
nished. 
In all cases of this kind, whether of origi- 
nal affection of the primae vi®, or sympto- 
matic of chlorosis, or any other affection, 
little good can be done witliout unremitting 
attention to the regularity of evacuation 
from the bowels, which is essentially neces- 
sary to the subduing of acid when habitu- 
ally formed in the stomach, and towards 
gaining any ground in the removal of pain, 
flatulency, and etery other dyspeptic symp- 
tom, and the means of attempting to affect 
this regularity in different persons, and in 
the same person at different times, must be 
exceedingly varied ; now and then a case 
occurs with an habitually lax state of the 
bowels, and only rhubarb is requisite as a 
purgative, joined with light aromatics, but 
commonly we have to contend with consti- 
pation, and rhubarb by itself does mischief. 
When the stomach and bowels are loaded 
and foul, powerful doses of mercurial pur- 
gatives are occasionally necessary, particu- 
larly in those whose blood-vessels are full, 
aud whose energies are considerable. When 
this state of the system is indicated by la- 
bouring action of the heart, which is perceiv- 
ed by the patient, or by vertigo, depending 
upon repletion of the blood-vessels, it is 
to be relieved by cupping: and if the 
secretion of the bile be deficient or irregu- 
lar, the repetition of a grain of calomel 
daily, or every other day, for a week or 
two persisted in, will be frequently found of 
great utility. 
Yet it often happens that the bile, though 
duly secreted, is an insufficient stimulus to 
tlie intestines, either from its being neutra- 
lised by the acid Which passes from the 
stomach to the duodenum, or from the 
bow'els being in a state too peimanently 
torpid to be excited by it. In such case* 
the repeated use of calomel, as a stimulus 
to the liver, cannot fail to be injurious ; the 
intestinal canal itself should be chiefly at- 
tended to, and purgatives of a liquid kind, 
or those easily rendered liquid, should be 
employed in its stead. About a tea spoon- 
ful of the tincture of senna rendered more 
grateful to the stomach by the admixture 
of a little tinct. of lavend. or of ginger, and 
taken at bed-time without any admixture of 
water, will often cause a more easy night’s 
rest, and operate mildly in the morning ; this 
is very useful in preventing the necessity of 
the too frequent repetition of more bulky or 
violent cathartics. On the same principle, 
electuary of senna and the various domestic 
preparations of that drug and of other mild 
laxatives have their uses ; for it is always to 
be remembered tliat violent purging is not 
the intention to be accomplished, but only 
permanent regularity of evacuation. The 
aid of clysters should sometimes be obtain, 
