The comfort and efficiency of my days depend fundamentally upon the
condition of this physical machine I am housed in. I would look out
for it as carefully as I attend to my automobile, so that it might
perform its functions smoothly and with the minimum of trouble.
To this end I would note the four X's. They are Examination,
Excretion, Exercise, Excess.
EXAMINATION: I would have my body thoroughly inspected by
intelligent scientists once a year. I do not believe in thinking too
much about one's health, but I believe in finding out the facts, and
particularly the weaknesses, of one's mechanism, before one proceeds
to forget it.
EXCRETION: By far the most important item to attend to in regard to
the body is the waste pipes, including the colon, the bladder, and
the pores. Most diseases have their origin in the colon. I would see
to it that it was thoroughly cleaned every day. In addition, I would
drink plenty of water, and would take some form of exercise every
day that would induce perspiration. Most of my sicknesses have come
from self-poisoning, and I would make it my main care to eliminate
the waste.
EXERCISE: I would, if I were twenty-one, take up some daily system
of exercise that would bring into play all the voluntary muscles of
the body, and especially those which from my occupation tend to
disuse. I would devote half an hour to an hour daily to this
purpose.
EXCESS: I would take no stimulant of any kind whatsoever. Whatever
whips the body up to excess destroys the efficiency of the organism.
Hence I would not touch alcoholic drinks in any form. If one never
begins with alcohol he can find much more physical pleasure and
power without it. The day of alcohol is past, with intelligent
people. Science has condemned it as a food. Business has banned it.
It remains only as the folly of the weak and fatuous.
I would drink no tea or coffee, as these are stimulants and not
foods. Neither would I use tobacco. The healthy human body will
furnish more of the joy of life, if it is not abused, than can be
given by any of the artificial tonics which the ignorance and
weakness of men have discovered.
If I were twenty-one, all this!