Part 44 (1/2)

666. _Clothing differs in its power of radiating heat._ This is influenced by the color; those articles that radiate heat freely also absorb it readily. A black surface is a good radiator, while a white surface is not, because it reflects the calorific rays. It is obvious that those colors which render the transmission of external heat difficult, must impede the transmission of caloric from the body. Thus it is manifest, that light-colored apparel is best adapted for every season and every climate.

_Observation._ Coach-drivers are practically aware, that in cold weather, light-colored over-coats are warmest, except when they are exposed to the direct rays of the sun, or when seated before a warm fire. On the other hand, when the temperature is elevated, light-colored apparel is coolest, because the sun's rays are then reflected.

667. _The clothing should be of a porous character._ The skin is not only an important agent in separating from the blood those impurities that otherwise would oppress the system and occasion death, but it exercises great influence upon the system, by receiving oxygen through its tissues, and giving back carbonic acid in return. Consequently, the apparel should be made of a material that will permit free transpiration from the skin, and likewise convey the excreted fluids from the surface.

665. What is said of linen as an article of apparel? 666. Why is light-colored apparel best adapted for every season? What is said of the apparel of coach-drivers? 667. Why should we wear porous clothing?

668. The necessity for this is ill.u.s.trated in wearing India rubber over-shoes. If they are worn over boots ten or twelve hours, not only the hose, but the boots will be moist from retained perspiration, and the residual matter left in contact with the skin may be reconveyed into the system by absorption, causing headache and other diseases.

Cotton and woollen fabrics are not only bad conductors of heat, but are also porous; for these reasons, they are well adapted to transmit the excretions of the skin.

669. _The clothing should be not only porous, but fitted loosely._ The garments should retain a layer of air between them and the body. Every one is practically aware that a loose dress is much warmer than one which fits closely; that a loose glove is warmer than a tight one; and that a loose boot or shoe affords greater warmth than one of smaller dimensions. The explanation is obvious; the loose dress encloses a thin layer of air, which the tight dress is incapable of doing; and what is required, is, that the dress should be closed at the upper part, to prevent the dispersion of the warm air, by the ventilating current which would be established from below.

_Observation._ As the purpose of additional garments is to maintain a series of strata of warm air within our clothing, we should, in going from a warm room into the cold air, put on our defensive coverings some little time previous, in order that the layers of air which we carry with us may be sufficiently warmed by the heat of the room, and not borrowed from the body on exposure to the cold.

668. How is the necessity of porous clothing ill.u.s.trated? 669. Why should we wear loose garments? What is the use of additional garments when going from a warm to a cold air? When should they be put on?

670. _The clothing should be suited to the temperature of the atmosphere and the condition of the individual._ The invariable rule should be, to wear enough to maintain an equal and healthy action of the skin. Care should be taken, however, that the action of the cutaneous vessels is not inordinately increased, as this would debilitate, not only the skin, but the internal organs of the system, as the stomach and lungs.

671. No rule as to the quant.i.ty of clothing can be given, as the demand will vary with different individuals. The following are among the most prominent causes of this variation: Those persons who have large, active brains, full chests, well developed lungs, breathe an adequate amount of pure air, and take sufficient food to supply the wants of the system, require less clothing than those of an opposite character, because more heat is generated in the system.

672. _The child and the aged person require more clothing than the vigorous adult._ ”Should we judge from observation, the inference would be, that children require less clothing than adults. This is an error, for the temperature in infancy is not only lower than in manhood, but the power of creating heat is feebler. The same remarks are applicable to those persons who have outlived the energies of adult life.”

_Observation._ The system of ”hardening” children, by an inadequate supply of clothing, and keeping them uncomfortably cold throughout the whole day, is inhuman, as well as unprofitable. It operates upon the child somewhat like the long-continued chill upon a certain portion of the farmer's herd, that are kept s.h.i.+vering under the thatched shed, r.e.t.a.r.ding the growth of their systems, which require more food to satisfy the keen cravings of hunger than when they are comfortably sheltered. To make the boy robust and active, he must have nutritious food at stated hours, and free exercise in the open air, and his system must be guarded from chills by a due amount of apparel.

670. What should be the invariable rule in reference to the amount of clothing that should be worn? What precaution should be observed? 671.

What are some of the causes of the variation of the demand for clothing? 672. Why do the child and aged person require more clothing than the vigorous adult? What is said of the system of hardening children?

673. _More clothing is needed when a vital organ is diseased._ It may be observed that in consumption, dyspepsia, and even in headache, the skin is pale and the extremities cold, because less heat is generated.

Thus persons affected with these complaints, when exposed to cold air, need more clothing than those individuals whose organs are not diseased, and the functions of which are properly performed.

674. _More clothing is required in the evening, than during the day._ In the evening we have less vital energy, and therefore less heat is generated in the system, than in the early part of the day; beside, the atmosphere is damp, the skin has become moist from free perspiration, and heat, in consequence, is rapidly removed from the system. For this reason, when returning from crowded a.s.semblies, we should be provided with an extra garment.

_Observations._ 1st. If there is a chill upon the system after having arrived home, warmth should be restored as speedily as possible. This can be done by friction with warm flannels, and by using the warm or vapor bath. By this procedure, the pernicious effects of the chill will be prevented before any disease is fixed upon the system. Is it not the duty of the parent and the guardian to learn these facts, and to see that they are not only learned, but reduced to practice?

2d. The farmer and industrious mechanic would be freed from many a rheumatic pain, if, while resting from their labors at evening, or taking the ordinary meal after hard toil, they would put on an extra garment. The coat might not feel so agreeable for the first few minutes, but it would ultimately conduce to health and longevity.

673. Why do dyspeptic and consumptive persons require more clothing than those who have healthy vital organs? 674. Why do we need more clothing in the evening than during the day? How can the pernicious effects of a chill be prevented? Give the 2d observation.