TUBERCULOSIS
THREATENING
YOUNG MEN
(By Jessamine S. Whitney)
Statistician National Tuberculosis
Association.
“If all the statisticians in the
world were laid end to end," a
friend of mine said, “it would be
... a good thing!” But every
one agrees that statisticians after
all are necessary evils and we do
contribute our bit to help solve
various problems.
One of these problems facing
us today deals with the high death
rate. Leading tuberculosis auth
orities call tuberculosis the “foe
of youth” but it may well be call
ed the foe of girls and young
women. Deaths from this disease
among them are one and a half
times as many as those among
their brothers of the same age.
Moreover,one fourth of all deaths
of young women are from tuber
culosis.
The future of America depends
to a large extent on saving these
lives. The decline in the birth
rate and the inevitable rise in the
death rate in the next generation
or two as the population ages, to
gether with the cessation of im
migration, will bring these two
rates almost to a level, that is.
each year as many persons will
die as are born, creating a static
or stationary population. Young
women, the future mothers, must
be spared from tuberculosis to
fulfiill their function if we are
not to become a dying nation.
Now, then, you ask, “Why is it
that tuberculosis is so much more
prevalent among young Women
as amony young men? As a mat
ter of fact, no one knows. Today
that is an outstanding mystery of
public health. Many people have
wondered why. And they have
rushed into the press and into the
pulpit, too, with their specula
tions. And you have heard them ,
over the air. Do you remember!
how they ranted' about' short \
skirts, and scanty clothing? And
dieting? And do you remember
how cgarette smoking, too, came
in for its share of blame? A few
laid the high mortality from tu
berculosis among youn women to
the fact that the war opened the
doors of industry to women. And
nearly all took occusion to point1
a finger at high school and college
students and to raise an eyebrow
at all extra curricular activities,
including late hours and whoope
in gsneral. Now which of these
was the real reason? None of j
them entirely. It was pure spec- j
ulation.
In an effort to obtain accurate'
facts whioh we hoped would help ;
solve the mystery, the National
Tuberculosis Association made a
careful study of the life histories
of all girls between the ages of
15 and 25 who died from tuber
culosis in a single year in two of
our Largest cities. Detroit and1
New York. As the study was be
gun with no preconceived ideas
of what might be found, we in
eluded every possible factor that
had ever been considered to be a
cause of tuberculosis. To our sur
prise we found that most of the;
reasons usually given had to be j
discarded, as for example, the j
statement that industrialization
of women in general affected
their health. We found that 35
per cent had never been employ
ed outside their homes, and 20
per cent more had been employed
less than a year. Obviously, em
ployment was not a major cause i
of the high tuberculosis mortality
among young women. Likewise,
long distances to be traveled to
worit or school, the length of the'
working day and week, and low
wages seemed to be negligiblej
factors so far as this group was
concerned.
Dietng as a cause of tuberculo-j
sis was given a solar plexus blow
by our data. Where the girl had
dieted .... and such cases
were few . . . the usual ex
planation was, “she dieted by
streaks for about six months,” or
“she would diet about a week,
forget it for a while and then
start again,” even as you and I.
A comparative study of the
clothing habits of a perfectly,
healty group of university girls j
showed there was little difference!
i between the two groups, and that,
| if anything, the tuberculosis girls
I wore more clothing.
The educational level of this
group was slightly above normal,
' and in spite of a large foreign
population, the problem was prim
.inly one of native born Aineri
i cans who had lived in these par
ticular cities most of their lives.
What factors, then, did cau^e
them to contract tuberculosis? In
tne first place, more than half tlu
girls who died had been in direct
contact with another person who
had tuberculosis without e'ther
one taking proper preventive
measures. In fact, a study of one
of the New York City Tubercu
losis clinics recently made, but as
yet unpublished, showed that
young women who lived in house
holds where there was a sick per
son with tuberculosis were very
remiss in getting proper examin
ation of themselves. They failed
in this much more than their
brothers of the same age living
under similar circumstances. Such
a group have a double obligation
to watch themselves very closely
and have a thorough medical ex
amination often, both because of
the heavy incidence among wo
men of their age, and for the ad
ditonal reason that they are more
exposed to infection through the
sick relative.
In the matter of sleep the group
of girls that died from tubercu
losis did not measure up to the
standard set by the university
students. Almost a fourth of the
sick girls quite obviously had too
little rest.
Probably the most important
single factor, however, turned out I
to be motherhood at an early age, I
and the physiological changes
during the earlier p:riod in whi
ch physical development consti
tuted a more or less consistent |
strain upon strength and general
health.
We must conclude, then, from
these researches that a partial
reason for the excessive mortal-1
ity among young women lies in
the biological differences between '
the sexes, and particularly in the
profound changes in adolescent
girls.
Our American girls, therefore,
must be carefully watched from
childhood on. Periodic physical
examinations will help to keep
them in good health so they can
resist tuberculosis infection. Let’s
all work together to overcome
this serious situation. Mothers >
and fathers with young daugh
ters.busaness executives in charge
of groups of young women, young
mothers and prospective mothers
all can help. A timely way to
assist this month is through buy
ing and using the penny Christ
mas Seals sold to support the na
tion-wide educational campaign
conducted by the national, state,
and local tuberculosis associations
of the country.
AP Charged With
C-1
V iolation Labor
Relations
WASHINGTON, Dec. 1, —Ag
ainst the Associated Press, the
National Relations Board in Wash
BELGIUM, 20 YEARS AFTER the World War fighting
had laid waste its cities and countryside, took on a warlike appear
ance again recently during manuevers in the District of Namur. King
Leopold of the Belgians (center, standing) is shown inspecting a
field gun.
ington today issued a complaint
alleging the news agency had
violted hte Labor Relations Act
by discharging nine traffic depart
ment employees for union activ
ity. Seven of these employees
were discharged in New York,
one in Washington and one in
Chicago. The complaint asserts
the Associated Press in 12 region
al offices has engaged in actions
constituting interference with
traffic department employees and
resulting in the coercion and re
straint of them.
Traffic employees are those en
gaged in mechanically working
telegraph, cable or wireless eq
uipment in the transmission of
news.
FOR SALE—A Lange kitchen
range, equipped with hot water
coils. A bargain. Inquire at The
Nugget Office.
Miner Sues Pastor
SEATTLE, Dec. 1, — Charles
Wheatly, an Alaska gold prospect
or, today filed suit in court in
Seattle against Rev. William H.
Offiler, pastor of Bethel Temple
in S atlle, for $25,000 damages for
the alienation of the affection of
Bertha Keck. She is a domestic
servant who sings in the Temple
choir.
Wheatly allages that he first j
saw the young woman at church,
that he found she was “a fine
upstanding Christian lady”, that
he woo'd her, that she accepted
the gifts he gave her; that when
he went back to Alaska; that in
his absence she was turned again
st him by the clergyman, and
that now she refuses to wed the
northern prospector.
RIDING TO MEET DEMOCRACY, «. r e a t
Britain's royalty made their first state drive together since the
Coronation. Here is a closeup of the queen as they passed from
Buckingham Palace to the House of Lords where King George VI
opened Parliament for the first time in his reign.
A CARAVAN ACROSS THE YEARS, this picturesque 20-mule team pulling two
wagons and a water tank cart appeared in Death Valley, Calif., as a feature of opening of a new link j
In the Mt. Whitney-Death Valley highway which connects the highest and lowest points in the United i *
States, i-ifco a picture from the colorful history of California’s desertland was this creaking train ! •<
drawn by plodding mules across the hot sands of the valley.
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Here is one of the many
brilliant coiffures designed
by Phyllis. It is to be seen
at my Salon.—Watch This
space for future announce
ments.
PHYLLIS’ BEAUTY SALON §
Licenser! Operator |'i
Located Over Polet’s Branch Store on Front Street 2$
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WINTER SCHEDULE
Nome to Fairbanks ■ Every Mon. & Thurs.
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Radio-Equipped Lockheed Electras
SEATTLE NOW WITHIN FIVE DAYS TRAVELING
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