HOW TO KEEP THE BONES HEALTHY.
~1. Composition of the Bones.~--Our bones, like the rest of our bodies,
are made of what we eat. If our food does not contain enough of the
substances which are needed to make healthy bone, the bones will become
unhealthy. They may be too soft and become bent or otherwise misshapen.
This is one of the reasons why bread made from the whole grain is so
much more healthful than that made from very fine white flour. In making
fine white flour the miller takes out the very best part of the grain,
just what is needed to make strong and healthy bones. Oatmeal is a very
good food for making healthy bones.
~2. Bones of Children.~--Sometimes little children try to walk before
the bones have become hard enough to support the weight of the body.
This causes the legs to become crooked. In some countries young children
work in factories and at various trades. This is wrong, because it
dwarfs their growth, and makes them puny and sickly.
~3. Improper Positions.~--The bones are so soft and flexible when we
are young that they are very easily bent out of shape if we allow
ourselves to take improper positions in sitting, lying, or standing.
This is the way in which flat and hollow chests, uneven shoulders,
curved spines, and many other deformities are caused.
[Illustration: IMPROPER POSITION.]
~4.~ In sitting, standing, and walking, we should always take care to
keep the shoulders well back and the chest well expanded, so that we may
not grow misshapen and deformed. Many boys and girls have ugly curves in
their backbones which have been caused by sitting at high desks with one
elbow on the desk, thus raising the shoulder of that side so high that
the spine becomes crooked. The illustrations on this and the following
page show good and bad positions and also the effects of bad positions.
[Illustration: PROPER POSITION.]
~5. Seats and Desks.~--The seats and desks of school-children should be
of proper height. The seats should be low enough to allow the feet to
rest easily upon the floor, but not too low. The desk should be of such
a height that, in writing, one shoulder will not be raised above the
other. If a young person bends the body forward, he will, after a time,
become round-shouldered and his chest will become so flattened that the
lungs cannot be well expanded.
[Illustration: DESK TOO HIGH.]
~6.~ Standing on one foot, sitting bent forward when reading or at work,
sleeping with the head raised high upon a thick pillow or bolster, are
ways in which young persons often grow out of shape.
[Illustration: SEAT TOO HIGH.]
~7. The Clothing.~--Wearing the clothing tight about the waist often
produces serious deformities of the bones of the trunk, and makes the
chest so small that the lungs have not room to act properly. Tight or
high-heeled shoes also often deform and injure the feet and make the
gait stiff and awkward.
~8. Broken Bones.~--By rough play or by accident the bones may be broken
in two just as you might break a stick. If the broken parts are placed
right, Nature will cement them together and make the bone strong again;
but sometimes the bones do not unite, and sometimes they grow together
out of proper shape, so that permanent injury is done.
~9. Sprains.~--In a similar manner the ligaments which hold the bones
together, in a joint, are sometimes torn or over-stretched. Such an
accident is called a sprain. A sprain is a very painful accident, and a
joint injured in this way needs to rest quite a long time so that the
torn ligaments may grow together.
~10. Bones out of Joint.~--Sometimes the ligaments are torn so badly
that the ends of the bones are displaced, and then we say they are put
out of joint. This is a very bad accident indeed, but it often happens
to boys while wrestling or playing at other rough games.
~11.~ Children sometimes have a trick of pulling the fingers to cause
the knuckles to "crack." This is a very foolish and harmful practice. It
weakens the joints and causes them to grow large and unsightly.
~12.~ When a man uses alcohol and tobacco, their effects upon the bones
are not so apparent as are the effects upon the blood, the nerves, and
other organs; but when the poisonous drugs are used by a growing boy,
their damaging influence is very plainly seen. A boy who smokes cigars
or cigarettes, or who uses strong alcoholic liquors, is likely to be so
stunted that even his bones will not grow of a proper length and he will
become dwarfed or deformed.
SUMMARY.
1. To keep the bones healthy they must have plenty of healthful food.
2. The whole-grain preparations furnish the best food for the bones.
3. Walking at too early an age often makes the legs crooked.
4. Hard work at too early an age stunts the growth.
5. Bad positions and tight or poorly-fitting clothing are common causes
of flat chests, round shoulders, and other deformities.
6. Tight or high-heeled shoes deform the feet and make the gait awkward.
7. The bones may be easily broken or put out of joint, or the ligaments
may be torn by rough play.
8. Alcohol prevents healthy growth.