A diet void of irritation is also most important for children who suffer from nervous conditions, such as St. Vitus’s dance, involuntary urination during sleep, etc.  Alcohol and alkaline and carbonated drinks must also be avoided in all nervous conditions that are combined with hyperaemia of the brain, as meningitis, apoplexia, tumors of the brain, etc., since they produce congestions.

Special dietetic directions cannot be given for all of the innumerable varieties of the various other nervous complaints.  The general principle must always govern, that sufficient food is the natural foundation, not only of the self-healing tendencies of the organism, but also of any effective therapy.

In special cases where neurasthenia and hysteria or nervous dyspepsia prevail, it will be necessary to apply a special diet to be prescribed by the physician, who must understand the underlying cause, which is, 9 times out of ten, the degeneration of the Vagus nerve.  See article on Influenza.

DECH-MANNA-COMPOSITIONS

(Only main compositions, specialities to Doctor’s order)

Acute form, Neuralgia, Neuritis:  =Neurogen=, Plasmogen, Eubiogen.

Chronic form, Asthma, Epilepsy, St. Vitus’s Dance:  =Neurogen=, Plasmogen, Lymphogen, Eubiogen.

Physical: 

Acute form:  Partial packs.

Chronic form:  Partial packs, Massage

IV.  DEGENERATION OF THE BONE TISSUE.

=Rickets, Osteomalacia and similar diseases.=

The condition of the skeleton,—­the solid structure of the osseous frame,—­is of the greatest importance to the maintenance of health.  Its various forms of disease,—­such as deficient development of bone; osteomalacia,—­softening of the bones; flat foot; caries—­molecular decay or death of the bones, especially of the teeth,—­are based mostly upon rachitis (rickets).

Rachitis should be fought at the time the child develops in the womb, by properly feeding the mother and preparing her to give it, after birth, healthy milk, with all the elements necessary for bone structure.

Rachitis is principally lack of lime in the food, which causes parts of the bones to remain soft instead of becoming rigid.

It is a constitutional, often hereditary, disease caused by poor nutrition and by influences of environment, such as marshy regions and humid climates.

The lack of lime in the food is often obvious when children show a tendency to eat chalk, and even to scratch walls in order to eat the lime obtained therefrom.

More solid food, that gives work to the teeth and the digestive organs, is certainly advisable in such cases.