Human feet have it much tougher than feet belonging to four-footed animals. Just two human feet must support the weight of the entire body. And both feet must be in good working order for a human to be able to walk or run. A four-footed animal manages to get along even if one of his feet is out of
commission for a while.

Mothers often think that something is wrong with their child’s feet when actually they are perfectly normal. But it doesn’t do any harm for them to think so, because it leads them to take their child to a special doctor, called an orthopedist, for an examination. And it is a good thing for a child to have his feet examined once in a while.


Here a flat foot and a foot with an abnormally high arch (pes cavus) are compared to a normal foot. Flat feet are extremely common in children. Pes cavus is the opposite of flat feet, and doesn’t become noticeable until the child reaches seven or eight years of age.

There are several abnormal conditions of the feet with which a child can be born. Here are a few of them:

1. Flatfoot. This is the most common condition affecting a child’s feet. It means that the normal arch of the foot is not strong and, as a result, the whole undersurface of the foot touches the floor when the child is standing. (See the diagram.)

Flatfoot usually results from weak muscles and ligaments in the foot, but it may also be caused by spasm of foot muscles, or by faulty development of some of the bones of the feet.
Wearing the wrong kind of shoes won’t give a child flatfoot, but it may make a case of mild flatfoot get worse.

There are things that can be done to help flatfoot:

A. With bare feet, try to pick up marbles from a carpeted floor with your toes. (See the diagram.) Hold the marble with your toes and place it in a bowl.

B. Stand several inches away from a wall and gently push back and forth from the wall while keeping your soles and heels flat on the floor.

C. Flatfoot can also be helped by wearing arch supports inside the shoes, or by getting special shoes advised by the orthopedist.

D. Children with flatfoot may have no pain at all, or their feet and legs may hurt from the condition. Whether E. such children have pain or not, they should be encouraged to run and play like other children. Exercise helps flatfoot, as it will strengthen weak muscles and ligaments.

2. Pes cavus. This condition is the opposite of flatfoot. In other words, the arches are too high. Pes cavus doesn’t usually become noticeable until the child reaches seven to eight years of age. Then calluses (hard, thickened skin) will develop on the soles of the feet and the toes will appear to be pushed backwards over the top of the foot. Also, the heel bones look larger than normal.

Pes cavus is not nearly so common as flatfoot. It is treated by stretching the tight tissues of the sole of the feet and by wearing special shoes that have a leather bar across the sole just where the toes join the main part of the foot.

In a few cases, it is necessary to operate upon a foot with pes cavus, and this usually controls the condition.

3. Pigeon toes. In this condition, the front of the feet turn inward and the child walks with the heels of the feet turned out. Some children with pigeon toes have something wrong with the bones of their legs or hips. If the hips don’t fit into their sockets properly, an operation to correct the condition will have to be done. When the bone condition is corrected, pigeon toes disappear. However, most youngsters with pigeon toes have no serious bone condition and all that is necessary is a pair of special orthopedic shoes. These shoes will make the child walk with his feet pointing straight out.

Flat feet may be improved by the proper exercises. One exercise involves picking up marbles from the floor with the toes and placing them in a bowl.

Years ago, parents used to have their pigeon-toed children wear their right shoe on their left foot, and their left shoe on their right foot. This forced them to keep their feet straight. Try it, and see how funny it feels.

Most children enjoy running around barefoot, both indoors and out. It is perfectly all right to go barefoot, except under these conditions:

1. Don’t go barefoot indoors if there are wooden floors from which you can get splinters in your feet.

2. Don’t go barefoot indoors when the house is cold. This may make you catch a cold.

3. Don’t go barefoot outside in places where you might step on broken glass or nails, or get splinters in your feet.

4. Don’t go barefoot in places where animals soil the ground. Animal droppings may contain germs or parasites (tiny worms that can be seen only under a microscope) that can get into
your body through the soles of your feet and cause disease.

5. Don’t run barefoot on very hot streets. You may burn your soles.

Ingrown toenails are most easily avoided if children are taught to cut the nail on the big toe straight across so it does not grow into the skin groove.

Here are some more things children should know about taking good care of their precious feet.

1. If shoes feel too tight, you have probably outgrown them. Let your parents know, and stop wearing shoes that no longer fit.

2. If you are getting irritation of the skin of your heels, it may mean your shoes are too big for you. That’s easy to correct by inserting a pad inside the heel of the shoes.

3. If you are developing a corn on one of your toes, it probably means you need a wider-sized shoe. Let your parents know.

4. Toenails, especially the big toenail, should always be cut straight across, not down in the corners. (See the diagram.) This will avoid ingrown toenails and other infections around the nails.

5. Feet must be washed thoroughly every day. Dirty feet may contain germs that can get into the body and cause sickness.

6. Toes get frostbitten very easily. Therefore, in cold weather, make sure to wear warm socks and heavy shoes.

Except for our eyes, our hands are probably our most valuable possession. We use our hands for so many different things it’s almost impossible to think how we could manage without them. As an experiment, try not using your hands for an hour and see how handicapped you feel. Have your mother or dad wrap both your hands in napkins and tie them so you can’t use them for a while. You’ll see.

People who study nature tell us that one of the greatest reasons man has developed more skills than the apes is that man can touch all his other fingers with his thumb, and the apes can’t. This means that man can grasp things and use his hands much better than the apes. Try writing without bringing your thumb over to your index finger. Try throwing a football without bringing your thumb around to your other fingers. Try sewing a hem on a dress without bringing your thumb toward your other fingers. Or, try buttoning your coat without using your thumb.

We are also told that primitive man made tools and weapons with which to hunt because he could use his hands better than any other animal. It is strange, isn’t it, that even though the apes are so highly developed, they never made tools or weapons or clothes to protect themselves from bad weather.

Now that we realize how precious our hands and fingers are, doesn’t it make sense for us to take good care of them? One would think so, but it is surprising how careless some children are! They take all kinds of risks with their hands and fingers. And some children never stop to think how bad it could be if they seriously injured even one finger.

We never realize how valuable each and every finger is until we hurt one of them. Our hands are very precious possessions and we should never put them in places where they can get hurt.

Here are some good rules everyone, including grown-ups, should follow in the care of their fingers and hands:

1. Hands get dirtier than any other part of the body and should therefore be washed frequently.

2. Dirt collects quickly beneath fingernails and looks terrible if left there. Everyone should clean his fingernails whenever they are dirty.

3. Loose skin around the nails is called a hangnail. Don’t pull or bite a hangnail, as it may lead to a nasty infection. Hangnails should be cut carefully with a scissors.

4. Fingernails should not be cut far down in the corners as this may lead to an infection.

5. Sooner or later everyone gets a splinter in a finger, often beneath the nail. Splinters should be removed as soon as possible in order to avoid an infection. It is always best to have a grown-up remove a splinter so that it doesn’t break off, leaving some of it behind. Deep splinters should be removed by a doctor.

6. We don’t know why children like to stick their fingers into the necks of bottles, but they do. This is a foolish thing for them to do as the finger may become stuck. When this happens, it might be necessary to go to a hospital and have the situation brought under control by a surgeon. This can be painful, so don’t put your fingers into bottlenecks or other tight places.

7. Curiosity is great. It teaches us many things we would not otherwise know. But never be so curious that you put your fingers into machinery that you don’t fully understand.

Many children have suffered serious injuries to their fingers and hands by sticking them into washing machines, washer-dryers, blenders, lawn mowers, and other appliances. Let your mother or dad fix these machines if they get out of order. Don’t you try to do it yourself!

8. Many homes have work rooms with electric saws and drills and lathes. These are wonderful instruments, and when children grow up, they will benefit a lot by knowing how to use them. But young children, and even children below the teen ages, should not tinker with electric tools unless one of their parents is there and gives permission for them to do so. Unhappily, many a child has had a serious hand or finger injury while trying to operate these tools.

9. Knives are valuable tools, too, but they must not be used as playthings. Throwing knives or fooling around with them can lead to bad cuts. More over, children should get instructions from their parents about how to use sharp knives before they try to cut with them. They should also learn how to open and close a penknife so as to avoid cuts to their hands and fingers.

10. Many children like to sew at an early age, and this is good for them to do. However, it is important that they learn to avoid sticking themselves with sharp needles. And they should also be taught how to use a thimble properly so that they don’t injure their fingers while sewing.

11. The kitchen is a great place to help in the cooking or cleaning up. But you have to be pretty careful in the kitchen if you want to avoid injuries:

A. Always use a potholder when taking a pot off the stove.
B. Always make sure you know how to light a stove or oven before trying to do it yourself.
C. Never wear loose, tong-sleeved clothing when working near the stove.
D. Never try to lift a pot or platter with hot food that might be too heavy for you to handle.

12. When you turn on the faucets to wash your hands, always turn on the cold water first, and always turn off the hot water first when you are finished washing.

13. Matches are not toys. Don’t play with them. You might burn your fingers, or even start a serious fire.

14. More children get finger and hand injuries from slamming doors than from anything else. Car doors, doors in your home, revolving doors, all can catch fingers if used improperly. Most doors have knobs which should always be used in opening and closing the door. People should push a revolVing door by the bar that is provided for the purpose. They should keep their fingers away from the edges of a revolving door.

Children should remember that they have two hands and that they must be careful about both of them. While slamming a car door with one hand, a child must watch out that the other hand is not caught when someone is closing the other door.

15. A good many cuts happen when opening soda bottles or pulling the tabs on cans carelessly. If these tops seem to be on very tight, it is a much better idea to let a grown-up open it for you.

16. Children who help out washing dishes should be sure to rinse all the soap or detergent off their hands, and then they should be sure to dry their hands thoroughly when they are finished. Cracking of the skin can lead to painful hands if they fail to do so.

17. Everyone should wear gloves when out in the cold. Chapped hands are not only ugly, but they can hurt quite a lot, too. Also, frostbite can result if a child fails to wear gloves when out in the cold.

18. Children frequently skin their knuckles while playing or roughhousing. If this happens, the skinned area should be cleaned with soap and water and then covered with a Band-aid. Skinned knuckles usually take a long time to heal, but they’ll take longer if they get infected or aren’t protected by a Band-aid.

Remember, some day you may be earning your living with your hands, so take especially good care of them while you are young.

In the first set of teeth that a child grows, there are twenty teeth, sometimes called “baby teeth.” These first teeth must be taken good care of, even though they will eventually come out and will be replaced by thirty-two permanent, or second teeth. If we neglect our first teeth and develop cavities and infections in them, our second teeth may not develop properly, Also, infected baby teeth can damage our general health. In some cases, infection from a tooth, or from the gums surrounding a tooth, can get into the blood and cause an infection elsewhere in the body.

Most boys and girls learn to brush their teeth by the time they are three to four years old. And their parents usually take them to see a dentist twice a year for a check-up, even when nothing seems to be wrong with the teeth.

During the dental check-up, the dentist looks to see that the teeth are growing in straight, that there are no holes—most people call holes cavities— in the teeth, that there is no infection surrounding the teeth, and that the gums are healthy. If the teeth are growing in crooked or the teeth of the upper jaw don’t meet the teeth of the lower jaw the way they should, the dentist may recommend treatment for the condition. If there is a cavity in a tooth, the dentist will fill it in with silver or some other substance. And if there is an infection around a tooth or in the gums, the dentist will suggest special medicines to clear it up.

There are many reasons why young people may have cavities or other things wrong with the teeth. Here are some of them:

1. Cavities may develop because bacteria in the mouth eat into the hard substance called calcium, which makes up a good part of the outer part of a tooth.

2. Eating too much candy and drinking too many sweet sodas are thought to cause cavities in the teeth.

Loss of a tooth frequently throws the remaining teeth out of alignment and leads to malocclusion. This means that the upper and lower teeth don’t mesh and come together evenly. To correct this condition, dentists often place a “retainer” in the empty space.

3. Insufficient fluorine in the drinking water is thought by most dentists to lead to cavities. Most towns and cities now add fluorine to the water in their reservoirs if it is necessary. As a result, cavities from too little fluorine don’t happen as often as they used to years ago.

4. A child who has an improper diet, with too little calcium and iron and vitamins, is more likely to get cavities than a child who eats properly and drinks a lot of milk. Remember, milk has plenty of calcium, and meats and fruits and vegetables have plenty of iron and vitamins in them.

5. Children who don’t brush their teeth regularly are much more apt to develop cavities and mouth infections.

6. If the upper and lower teeth don’t come together properly, a child has greater chances of getting cavities.

7. If a boy or girl is in poor health because of some illness that has lasted for a long time, he or she may develop more than the usual number of cavities and mouth infections.

Some children take excellent care of their teeth but get cavities anyway. We don’t know why this happens, but we do know that certain children just have better teeth than others. Besides, cavities aren’t terribly serious unless we neglect them. Actually, after a cavity has been filled, the tooth is as good as new again. Cavities don’t cause toothaches unless they grow big because we have neglected them, and a child who visits his dentist every few months won’t get into too much trouble.

Here are some good ways to have as few cavities as possible, and to avoid infection of the gums surrounding the teeth:

1. Have your doctor check your general health two or three times a year. A healthy child tends to have healthy teeth.

2. Always eat a good diet with plenty of green vegetables, fresh fruits, meat and fish, chicken and eggs, and, of course, three to four glasses of milk each day. In that way you’ll get all the vitamins and minerals you need to maintain strong, healthy teeth.

3. Brush your teeth after every meal. naturally, if you eat lunch in school, you may not be able to brush them there. But certainly, you can always brush your teeth after breakfast and before going to bed at night.

4. Don’t eat more candy or drink more soda than your parents allow. )One piece of candy and one soda a day ought to be enough.

5. If you have a toothache or your gums hurt, let your mom or dad know about it so they can make an appointment with your dentist.

6. See your dentist twice a year, even if your teeth and gums feel fine. By doing this, he may be able to give you hints on how to prevent infections or cavities.

Here are some other things children should know about their teeth:

1. If a first tooth has to be pulled, this will not hurt the second tooth that will come in. However, when a first tooth has been removed before it is ready to come out by itself, the dentist may put a device called a space-retainer in your mouth so that there will be room for he second tooth when it comes in. If an empty space between teeth is not kept open, the teeth on either side tend to drift toward one another. Then, there might not be enough room for the second tooth when it is ready to come in.

2. If a first tooth is broken—and this happens once in a while from a fall or accident—the dentist will file it down so hat the rough edges will not scrape or cut the lining of the cheek.

3. If a second tooth is chipped or broken, the dentist may file it down and put a cap over it. The cap looks exactly like a real tooth, and when the dentist is finished, no one is able to tell that there is a broken tooth beneath the cap. The cap stays there permanently, or until a new cap is made when the child has grown up.

4. If a child looses a permanent tooth, a space-retainer is placed in the empty space and is kept there until the child is old enough to have a permanent false tooth put in. And today, false teeth are made so well that no one can tell them from real teeth.

5. If the upper teeth don’t meet the lower teeth properly, special braces, wires, or plates are used to bring the teeth into proper line. This kind of dental work is called orthodontia. Orthodontia is usually done when a child reaches twelve years of age, or older. Once in a while, if the need is very great, orthodontia is started in a child as young as ten years of age.

It may take two or three, or sometimes more, years to correct teeth that are badly out of place. However, this kind of dental work is very worthwhile because it can get the teeth almost perfectly in line, where they should be. And orthodontia often improves the child’s appearance tremendously.

Orthodontia is not painful, although the wearing of braces and wires and plates in the mouth may be uncomfortable. And while wearing braces, a youngster may have to stop eating such things as gumdrops and caramels and chewing gum and other stuff that might get caught in the braces.

Many of us pay no attention at all to our ears and to our hearing. We take it for granted that we will hear well at all times and that our ears require no special care. This is certainly not true. Since the middle ear is connected to the nose and throat through a channel called the eustachian canal, it is simple for an infection to travel from the nose and throat to the ear. And when an ear becomes infected, there may be loss of hearing. Quite a few things can be done to protect our ears and our hearing. Here are some of the important ones:

1. Tell your parents if you don’t think you are hearing as well as your playmates or schoolmates. Many conditions that cause loss of hearing can be corrected if they are treated quickly.

2. Tell your parents whenever you have an earache. It may be a simple thing to overcome, or it may mean the beginning of an ear infection. The sooner an ear infection is treated, the greater are the chances that you will avoid damage to your hearing.

3. Don’t blow your nose too hard when you have a cold. This can spread the infection from the nose to the ears.

4. Don’t keep sniffling up mucus when you have a cold, as this, too, may cause the spread of an infection from the nose to the ears. Blow your nose gently instead of sniffling.

5. Tell your parents if you are collecting a lot of wax in your ears. It may be necessary to visit a doctor who will remove it for you.

6. Don’t stick anything into your ears; you may damage the eardrum. The smallest thing a child should put in his ears is his elbow. See if you can do that!

7. Protect your ears whenever you can from extremely loud sounds. It has been found that damage to hearing can result from continued loud sounds. Did you know that musicians in bands that always play loudly can lose some of their hearing, and people who work in factories where the machinery constantly makes loud noises sometimes suffer loss of hearing?

Sound waves received by the external ear are transmitted through the ear canal and the middle ear to nerves in the inner ear, which send impulses to the brain. When the brain receives these impulses it translates them into words or sounds that we understand.

Some children lose a great deal of their ability to hear because of an infection that damages the bones in the middle ear. Others lose hearing because their nerve of hearing (the acoustic nerve) is damaged by disease. Such children should be taught lip reading. By watching other people’s lips as they speak, many unhearing people—children as well as adults— learn to “hear” with their eyes!

Classes in lip reading are given in special schools in almost every city in our country. The results of study in lip reading can be so remarkable that many people “hear through their eyes” almost as well as if their ears were perfectly healthy.

Unfortunately, children who are born without hearing cannot benefit from training in lip reading. Since they have never heard the sounds of talk in the first place, they cannot be taught what the lips are saying when they make their movements during speech.

Our eyes are so precious that we should always take good care of them. And even though they are pretty well protected by our eyelids and eyelashes, and by the bones of our skull that surround them, we must remember that our eyes are right on the surface of our bodies where they can be rather easily inflamed or injured.

There are a great many ways to make sure our eyes are kept in the best possible shape, and all boys and girls should follow these rules:

1. Wash your eyelids when you wash your face every morning and every during the day when you think they might be dirty. Keeping your eyelids clean will help to prevent the conjunctiva—the lining in front of the eyeball and under the eyelids—from getting inflamed or infected. It will also lessen your chance of getting inflamed eyelids (blepharitis).

2. Tell your mother or father whenever your eyes feel itchy. This may mean that you are getting conjunctivitis, an inflammation of the conjunctiva. Early treatment of this condition with special eyedrops or eye ointments will clear it up quickly in a couple of days.


A parent may syringe a child’s eye to remove a foreign body, but should not touch the eyeball. If syringing is unsuccessful, the child should be taken to a doctor.

3. Let your parents know whenever you get something in your eye that irritates you. Sometimes an eyelash drops into the eye, or a speck of dust or dirt flies in. Most such things can be easily washed out of the eye or wiped out by your mom or dad with a piece of moist cotton. However, if a speck of dirt or an eyelash doesn’t come out easily, a doctor can remove it without any trouble.

It is not a good idea to allow something to stay in your eye for more than an hour or so. Certainly, we should never go to sleep with something in our eyes. Do you know why? Well, if you leave it in overnight, or for more than a couple of hours, the conjunctiva may become all red and irritated. And, every once in a while, the conjunctiva may become infected. But more important, it will take the doctor much longer to remove the dirt or hair if it has been in too long. And, probably, he would make you wear a patch over your eye for a few days, and you wouldn’t like that too much, would you?

4. It is a bad idea to rub your eyes too hard at any time, but it is especially bad to rub them when your hands are dirty. When you rub your eyes, there is a great chance that some of the dirt from your fingers will get into the eyes and don’t forget, when you play outdoors, loads of germs may be on your hands and they would just love to get onto your eyelids where they can form a sty, or get into your eyes where they can give you conjunctivitis.

Do you know what a sty is? Well, it is a painful little pimple that forms on the edges of the eyelid. It sometimes hurts like the dickens for a few days until it bursts and the pus comes out.

Conjunctivitis is just as bad. Since certain types of conjunctivitis, like pinkeye, are very catching, you will have to stay home from school and won’t be able to play with your friends for a few days. Also, because conjunctivitis makes the eyes irritable and itchy, you won’t be able to watch television until they get better.

So, don’t rub your eyes with dirty fingers.

5. Never run and play with a pen or pencil, a stick, or any other sharp thing in your hand. You may slip and the sharp point may injure your eye. And even though you feel pretty sure of yourself, just think how often you do slip and fall each day. All kids do, and you are no exception.

It is just as important to remember not to poke or point anything sharp at another child. Even when you are only fooling, an accident might happen and you would feel terrible if you hurt the other child’s eye.

Did you ever notice that athletes always protect their eyes against all possible chances of injury? Football players wear face masks attached to their helmets to help protect their eyes,and fencers, who use swords, always wear special eye masks.

Remember, too, when you roughhouse with a playmate or a brother or sister that you must be careful not to poke your fingers into their eyes. Did you ever accidentally poke your fingers into your own eye? If you did, you sharp point may injure your eye. And even though you feel pretty sure of yourself, just think how often you do slip and fall each day. All kids do, and you are no exception.

It is just as important to remember not to poke or point anything sharp at another child. Even when you are only fooling, an accident might happen and you would feel terrible if you hurt the other child’s eye.

Did you ever notice that athletes always protect their eyes against all possible chances of injury? Football players wear face masks attached to their helmets to help protect their eyes,and fencers, who use swords, always wear special eye masks.

Remember, too, when you roughhouse with a playmate or a brother or sister that you must be careful not to poke your fingers into their eyes. Did you ever accidentally poke your fingers into your own eye? If you did, you know how much it can hurt.

6. Let your parents know if you aren’t seeing as clearly as you usually do. You may need eyeglasses. You can be tested to see if you need glasses within a matter of a very short time by going to an eye doctor or optometrist.

7. Reading in a good light is important so you won’t strain your eyes. Some boys and girls are quite careless about this, and they will pick up a book or magazine and read it almost anywhere, without thinking about how good the light is. If you do strain your eyes, they get all red, and you may even get a headache. And it may take a couple of days for your eyes to feel good again. Here are a couple of things everyone should know about lighting:

A. The light should always be behind you and should come over your shoulder when you read. It will strain your eyes if you read while a bright light is glaring into your face. This is also true if you are reading outdoors. If you are, turn your back to the sun while reading.

B. Make sure the lights are bright enough in any room in which you are reading. The print on the page should be clear and easy to see without straining.

Rubbing your eyes, especially when your hands are dirty, may cause the conjunctiva, the membrane covering the front of the eyeball (left), to become irritated and red, or the glands under the eyelids to become infected and form a sty, (right).

8. The retina in the back of your eyes is very sensitive and can be damaged by staring too long into the sunlight. Children should never look for more than a few seconds directly into the bright sun, even if they are wearing sunglasses.

9. Everybody should wear sunglasses if they are going to be out in bright sunshine for long periods of time. It is especially important if you are lying on a sand beach, or sailing or taking a long ride in a boat on a bright day, or skiing, or playing in the snow on a sunshiny day.

Did you know that your eyes can get sunburned? Well, they can, and quite easily, too. When it happens, the conjunctiva becomes swollen and red, and the eyes hurt, become itchy, and the sight is kind of blurry. And so, all of us must protect our eyes from too much sun by wearing sunglasses.

Sunglasses should not be worn in dim light. They do no good at all unless the light is very strong. As a matter of fact, no one sees nearly as well with sunglasses when they are worn in the shade or in poor light.

10. Whenever you think anything is wrong with your eyes, tell your mom or dad about it right away. Don’t forget that it is simple to make an appointment with an eye doctor who will be able to tell very quickly what needs to be done to fix you up. And best of all, examination and treatment by an eye doctor won’t hurt. Even if you have something in your eye that he is going to remove, it won’t hurt. All he does is to put a drop or two of a special medicine in your eye, and all the pain disappears. You will feel nothing while he removes whatever it is that has gotten into your eye.

11. Anyone can strain his eyes by concentrating for too long a period of time on anything. Women who embroider for hours at a time may strain their eyes; men who repair watches and handle fine parts of the watch for hours at a time may strain their eyes; doctors who perform delicate operations all day may overtire their eyes; scientists who peer into a microscope all day long can strain their eyes; and children who watch television for hours at a time may strain their eyes.

Watching television will not cause eyestrain in children if they do not watch it excessively and if they sit at least six feet away from the screen.

Parents who insist that the television set be turned off aren’t mean. They know it isn’t good to stare and stare constantly into the bright light of a television set for too long. And most children do just that! Oh, an hour-long show won’t do any harm, but there are boys and girls who watch program after program, for an entire morning or afternoon or evening without stop. And if the program happens to be very interesting or exciting, they never take their eyes off the set.

There are even children who don’t want to eat their meals because they might miss part of a program; others gulp down their food in a few minutes so they can run back to their television set. These practices are not good for the eyes or the stomach. So be sensible, turn off the set when you are told to, and get up and walk around when the commercials are on. You’re not going to buy an automobile or a dishwasher right away, are you?

Practically every human being and every animal likes to bathe and to be clean. Did you ever watch birds take a bath? They love it. Did you ever see how happy a cat is when it licks itself clean? Did you ever see a dog that wasn’t happy and proud after being bathed and groomed? The next time you are at a zoo, or see an animal show on television, notice how happy a lioness is when she licks her cubs clean, or how content a mother monkey is when she picks things off her little ones.

It is funny, but children enjoy being dirty and being clean. They love to play in dirt and mud, and at the same time, they love to get sparkling clean after they come into the house and wash up for supper and get ready for bed. There are, of course, youngsters who balk and squawk when told to bathe or wash. They usually complain, “Why should I get so clean, I’m only going to get dirty again?” Well, there’s a good answer to that question. If we left dirt on our bodies when we came into the house, several bad things could happen:

1. We could dirty the furniture and dining table with our unclean clothes and hands.

2. We could put dirty fingers in our mouths when we ate, and that might make us sick.

3. We could allow germs that are on our dirty bodies to enter a little crack in the skin, and give us an infection.

4. We might rub our eyes with our dirty hands and give ourselves an eye infection.

5. And, finally, we would be terrible to look at if we ate at the table or went to sleep without bathing or washing.

Normal children with healthy skins should bathe or shower every day. Oh, there are exceptions. A child who is extremely tired and didn’t get very dirty that day might skip a bath without doing any harm. Or if it is terribly cold in the house and there isn’t enough hot water, a child can miss a bath and merely wash with soap and a washcloth. And, if a child is sick and has a fever, it is best to avoid a bath or shower that day. A sponge bath is all that is needed.


Many children prefer showers to baths, especially at hair-washing time. And no one need worry if a little soap gets in the eyes. The stinging sensation is over in a few seconds at a time during the coldest season. They might freeze if they took off all their clothes to bathe!

There are other exceptions, too, depending upon where a child lives. For example, a child who lives in a hot, tropical climate and perspires a great deal may bathe two or three times a day. This is mainly done to cool off, rather than to keep clean. And, Eskimo children may not bathe for several days

It is a good idea to get into the habit of a daily bath or shower. Most children do it just like brushing their teeth, cleaning their fingernails, getting dressed, or going to school. Bathing should become a natural part of a child’s daily life. There shouldn’t be discussions about whether or not to bathe. Of course, we should bathe. Only in that way will we protect ourselves best against all the germs that are on our bodies. Only in that way will we look our best. Only in that way will we smell nicest. (Did you know that unclean bodies don’t smell very nice, and that clean bodies smell delicious?)

Here are a few other things we should know about bathing or washing:

1. For children with exceptionally dry skin, it may not be advisable for them to bathe more than every other day. The soap might wash away oils that the skin needs to protect itself. However, there are oils that can be put in the bath to replace oi1s lost from washing.

2. For children with certain skin diseases, baths may not be advisable more than every two to three days.

3. No one should use strong soaps when bathing, because they can injure rather than help the skin.

4. It is rarely necessary to scrub hard to clean one’s body, unless paint or grease must be washed off. Scrubbing too hard may injure the skin.

5. Children should not stay in a bath so long that the water cools off and gets chilly. This is a good way to catch cold.

6. Soap in the eyes may sting a bit, but doesn’t do any real harm.

7. It isn’t necessary to splash powder all over the body after bathing, nor to use after-bath lotions. A clean body smells nicer than powder or lotions.

8. Since perspiration causes most unpleasant odors, it is more important to bathe during the hot months of the year when we sweat a lot.

Bathing and washing become a habit very early in life, and those children who develop the habit of being clean grow up into clean adults. Those who neglect cleanliness when they are young often stay that way all their lives. And it is terribly important for people to be clean, because it has a great deal to do with the impression they will make wherever they are and whatever they do. Can you imagine a president of our country, or a judge, or a doctor, or a great moving picture actress or actor, who always looked sloppy and whose body smelled because of not bathing and washing regularly?

People aren’t anxious to make friends with those who are dirty and smell unclean. Even among young children, it doesn’t take long before they shy away from a classmate whose body has an unpleasant odor. And for some funny reason, no one tells a person when he doesn’t smell nicely. Really, they should tell him. Then, perhaps they would decide to bathe more often. It would not only do them good physically, but they would soon find out that other children are friendlier and more willing to play with them.

Although children should not practice first aid when an adult is present and able to do it, there are still occasions when a child is the only one available. It is therefore a good idea for boys and girls, especially older ones, to know where their parents keep first aid supplies. And in order to be ready if an accident should occur, a child should find out exactly what materials are on hand. Many people buy two first aid kits, one for their home and one for their automobile, so that they always have what they need in case of an emergency. People who don’t have a special first aid kit in their home usually have a medicine cabinet in a bathroom where the necessary supplies are stored.

Here is a list of things recommended for every home:

1. A box of gauze pads wrapped in sterile paper. (These are to be placed on cuts, scrapes, or burns.)

2. One roll of one-inch adhesive tape. (A piece of tape will hold the gauze pads in position.)

3. One roll of one-inch and one roll of two-inch gauze bandage. (These are used to cover the gauze pads and to protect a cut or burn so that it doesn’t become infected.)

4. A two-inch elastic bandage. (This is used to wrap around a sprained ankle or wrist.)

5. A large roll of cotton. (Moist cotton is often used to wash the dirt out of a cut or deep scratch.)

6. A box of Band-aids. (These make excellent dressings for small cuts and scrapes.)

7. Cotton-tipped wooden applicators. (When moistened, these are very helpful in cleaning a wound.)

8. A bottle of hydrogen peroxide. (This is often used to cleanse the skin when it has been injured.)

9. A bottle of rubbing alcohol. (This can be used to clean dirt off the skin. It should not be used to clean a cut or a scrape.)

10. One tube of an antibiotic ointment.

11. A flashlight.

12. An icebag.

13. A large rubber pad. (This is placed under a patient in bed when wet dressings are going to be applied and will protect the mattress.)

14. A mouth thermometer and a rectal thermometer.

15. Tweezers. (To be used in removing splinters.)

16. A urinal and a bedpan. (These will make it unnecessary for a really sick patient to get out of bed when he wants to use the toilet.)

17. An enema bag.

18. A steam inhalator. (This can be most helpful if a child has croup or bronchitis.)

19. An enamel basin. (This can be used to wash in, or for preparing wet dressings for wounds. Or, if a bed patient feels sick to his stomach, he can throw up in such a basin.)


Every home should have certain supplies for first aid, and it is a good idea for boys and girls, especially older ones, to know where these supplies are stored.

In addition to the supplies we have mentioned above, every home should have a certain number of essential medicines. Of course, powerful medicines should always be kept separate
from the ordinary medical supplies. It is important that they are placed far out of the reach of small children!

Here are some of the ordinary medicines that will be used often in the home:

1. Aspirin, or some other medicine such as Tylenol, to relieve a headache or the pain of an ordinary minor ache or pain.

2. Bicarbonate of soda, to be used in preparing a wet dressing. A little bicarbonate of soda powder, when mixed with water, can also be used to relieve indigestion or nausea.

3. An eyewash. A little eyewash placed in an eyecup is frequently used to wash dirt out of an eye.

4. A box of epsom salts powder, often used in preparing a wet dressing for an inflamed or infected part of the body.

5. A bottle of milk of magnesia, often used as a laxative when someone is constipated. It can also relieve an upset stomach. However, it should not be used when a child has stomach pain.

6. Salt tablets. These are prescribed sometimes when a child is markedly overheated and has perspired a great deal on a very hot day.

7. A mouthwash. (Strong mouth- washes containing alcohol or other antiseptics are not advised.)

8. A bottle of calamine lotion. (This, when applied to an itch or a rash, often brings relief.)

9. A container of a medicated powder to relieve prickly heat, or the itch of a rash.

10. A container of talcum powder. (Talc frequently relieves discomfort when the skin is chafed or irritated.)

Practically any animal who comes in contact with a human being may bite. Most often it is because they are frightened or annoyed or angry. Everyone knows it isn’t a good idea to tease a lion or tiger, but even some animals who aren’t ferocious at all may occasionally bite. I once visited a tiny Indian village high up in the Andes Mountains in South America. There, I saw a mother Indian with two small children and a big llama. The llama had a rope around its neck and a leash which was held by one of the children. As I passed the llama to give some candy to the little Indian children, the llama bent down and bit the back of my thigh. The llama must have thought I was going to harm the children. And so, it’s always smart not to get too close to strange animals, even if they look tame and cute.

Any animal bite should be reported to a child’s parents. Even squirrels have been known to bite, and they, too, occasionally get rabies.

Cardiac massage means massaging the heart. It is done in an emergency when a person’s heart stops because of a heart attack, or because breathing has stopped. Children are seldom able to carry out cardiac massage, but they may be interested to know how it is performed so that they can do it when they grow older.

1. Place the patient flat on his or her back on a hard surface. A patient who is in bed should be placed on the floor.

2. Kneel and straddle the patient. (See the diagram.)

3. Place the palm of the right hand flat on the patient’s breastbone.

4. Place the left hand on top of the right hand and push down so that the breastbone goes down for one to two inches.

5. Lift up both hands, releasing the sterile paper. (These are to be placed on pressure, then press down again. 6. Repeat the pressing down and lifting up every second for at least ten minutes, or until the heart begins to beat again on its own.

7. At the end of ten minutes, the first aider puts an ear to the patient’s chest and listens for heartbeats.

8. If there is even one occasional heartbeat, the cardiac massage is continued.

9. Stop the cardiac massage when the heart is beating regularly, or when it is certain that there are absolutely no heartbeats.

10. If the heart resumes beating, the patient should be kept quiet and not moved until an ambulance arrives.

Although young children are not old enough to carry out artificial respiration themselves, many of them may be interested to learn how it is done. Artificial respiration can save lives in cases of drowning, suffocation from smoke or gas poisoning, electric shock, drug poisoning, cold exposure, or heat exhaustion, and in cases where breathing has stopped because of a heart attack or a stroke. This is the way the mouth-to-mouth breathing method of artificial respiration is performed:

1. The person is stretched out flat on the back with chin up and head tilted backward.

2. All tight clothing is loosened, especially around the neck and waist.

3. With the first aider’s fingers, the victim’s nostrils are pinched together.

4. The first aider’s mouth is placed directly against the patient’s mouth, and the first aider blows as hard as possible. (An opened handkerchief or thin scarf may be placed between the first aider’s lips and the patient’s, although this is not as good as placing the mouth directly against the victim’s mouth.)

5. After blowing as hard as possible, the first aider removes his or her mouth to allow the air blown in to come out. The patient’s nostrils are kept closed, however.

6. The first aider puts his or her mouth back onto the victim’s mouth and this is repeated every five seconds. This means the first aider will blow in about twelve times a minute.

7. The mouth-to-mouth breathing is continued as long as the person’s heart continues to beat. The first aider can tell this by bending down and putting an ear next to the victim’s chest and listening for the heart beat.

8. If the first aider gets tired of the mouth-to-mouth breathing and someone else is around to help out, the other person can substitute for a while.

9. If the person is going to recover, ‘breathing will begin again by itself. Then, and only then, should the mouth-to-mouth artificial respiration be stopped. It should be continued if the victim only breathes once in a while or doesn’t breathe regularly. This may require as much as one half to one hour more of mouth-to-mouth breathing.

10. After recovering and breathing without help, the victim should be kept quiet for at least one half hour, kept covered if it is cold, and should be given nothing to eat or drink or smoke.

The victim should be stretched out flat on his back, with chin up and head tilted backward. All tight clothing should be loosened. The first-aider should pinch the victim’s nostrils together, so that air can’t escape, then place his mouth directly against the victim’s mouth and blow as hard as possible. This action should be repeated every five seconds until the victim responds.

Most nosebleeds stop by themselves within a few minutes. If they don’t, first aid measures may control them without too much trouble. Here’s what should be done:

1. The child should be in a sitting position.

2. The bleeding nostril should be packed tightly with a piece of clean absorbent cotton. If none is available, a clean piece of toilet tissue may be used instead. After the cotton or toilet tissue has been stuffed tightly up into the nostril, the nose should be pressed firmly against it with a finger. This pressure should be continued for about ten minutes.

3. The child’s head should be bent forward to prevent blood from trickling down the back of the nose into the throat.

4. When the bleeding stops, the cotton or tissue should be allowed to remain in the nostril for several hours.

5. If the bleeding doesn’t stop, the child should go to a doctor or to the emergency room of a nearby hospital. The bleeding will be stopped by applying a special medicine to the blood vessel and by packing the nose tightly.

A child with a nosebleed should sit with his head bent slightly forward while cotton is placed inside the nostril and pressure is applied to it.

Some foolish children play so hard and long in the heat or hot sun that they become sick. They perspire tremendously and lose a lot of salt from their body. In some cases, their exposure to intense heat causes their temperature to go sky high. Here is the first aid for these conditions:

1. The child should be placed in a tub of very cold water. This will bring down the high fever.

2. After coming out of the tub, the child should be wrapped in cold, wet blankets.

3. A child who has perspired a great deal should be given salty foods to eat. Also the child should swallow some salt tablets.

4. Rest in bed is important until the temperature remains normal and the child has had plenty of time to drink large quantities of water and to eat plenty of salty food.

Most animals are a great deal smarter than children when it comes to protecting themselves from the heat. Did you ever notice that a dog always manages to find some shade to lie down in when there is a hot sun? Wild animals, like lions and tigers, do the same thing. If you want to be real smart and void heat exhaustion and heat stroke, here are some of the things you should do:

1. Wear a light cap or hat if you tend to be out in the hot sun for a long time.

2. Wear sunglasses. Remember that the eyes can be burned by a very hot

3. Wear a light cotton shirt to protect your shoulders and chest from getting many of the sun’s hot rays.

4. If there is a lake or a pool, or a river or the ocean nearby, take frequent dips in its cool waters.

5. Get into the shade and rest there every half hour or so for at least fifteen to twenty minutes.

6. Don’t play so hard and long in the sun that you become all wet from perspiration.

7. Take plenty of cool drinks and eat some salty crackers if you are out in the sun for a long time.

8. Get out of the sun the minute you begin to feel dizzy or nauseated or weak. Let your parents, or some nearby grown-up, know how you feel so they can get you started with proper treatment.

Overexposure to hot weather and sunshine can cause a high fever. A child suffering from heat exhaustion or heat stroke should be placed in a tub of cold water, then wrapped in cold, wet blankets to bring down the fever.

Human Bite

Perhaps the most serious bites occur when one person bites another. Infection results more often from human bites than from animal bites! That is because we have the type of germs in our mouths that can cause an infection in another human being. Dogs, except for rabies and a few other germs, have many bacteria in their mouths that are perfectly harmless to humans.

Older children are sometimes bitten by a younger sister or brother. Older children know better than to bite a sister or brother, or to bite another child even if they are fighting him. Anyone who receives a human bite that has punctured or torn the skin, should do the following things at once:

1. Wash the wound thoroughly for ten to fifteen minutes with soap and warm water.

2. Iodine, alcohol, or other medicines should not be poured over the wound.

3. A clean dressing should be placed over the area of the bite.

4. The child should be taken to a doctor, who will clean the wound further and will stitch it if necessary. He will then probably give a tetanus booster shot and will prescribe antibiotic medications to prevent infection.

Frostbite

Frostbite is a burn caused by being out in the cold too long. This happens to children, especially young ones, if they play out in the snow on very cold days for long periods of time. The most frequently seen places for frostbite are the tips of the fingers and toes, the tip of the nose, and the ears. This is the first aid treatment for frostbite:

1. The child should be allowed to warm up slowly in a room of ordinary temperature.

2. Warm foods and warm liquids should be taken. This will help to raise the entire body temperature, including the areas that were frostbitten.

3. The frostbitten parts should not be massaged or rubbed.

4. The frostbitten parts should not be placed in either hot or cold water. They should be permitted to warm up by themselves.

5. If the frostbitten parts are very painful, a grown-up may give the child an aspirin or some similar pain-relieving medicine.

6. If the skin is broken in an area of frostbite, it should be covered with a clean dressing.
Fortunately, most frostbite clears up by itself within a short time.

Following overexposure to cold, a child should be covered with blankets or placed in a warm tub. Neither hot water nor snow should be used to treat frostbite.

To prevent frostbite or dangerous exposure to cold, a child should always dress properly when outdoors in very cold weather. Woolen socks and heavy boots are helpful in protecting the feet and toes; woolen mittens give good protection to the fingers; and a woolen cap that can be pulled down will help to prevent the ears from getting frostbitten. However, no matter how warmly a child is dressed, overexposure to cold can result in frostbite. A child must be sensible and come in out of the cold when his fingers or toes or ears or nose begin to tingle or freeze.

Practically any animal who comes in contact with a human being may bite. Most often it is because they are frightened or annoyed or angry. Everyone knows it isn’t a good idea to tease a lion or tiger, but even some animals who aren’t ferocious at all may occasionally bite. I once visited a tiny Indian village high up in the Andes Mountains in South America. There, I saw a mother Indian with two small children and a big llama. The llama had a rope around its neck and a leash which was held by one of the children. As I passed the llama to give some candy to the little Indian children, the llama bent down and bit the back of my thigh. The llama must have thought I was going to harm the children. And so, it’s always smart not to get too close to strange animals, even if they look tame and cute.

Any animal bite should be reported to a child’s parents. Even squirrels have been known to bite, and they, too, occasionally get rabies.

Cats scratch more often than they bite, but some cats bite quite often, too. In many ways cats act a great deal like dogs. They scratch or bite when they are frightened or angry. In addition, they often scratch without meaning to hurt anyone. It seems they just don’t know how sharp their nails are. Also, cats scratch when they play or when they get excited.

If we follow the same rules in handling cats as we do when we handle dogs, we won’t get badly scratched too often. If we do receive a bad scratch it should be thoroughly cleansed with soap and warm water, and a clean bandage should be placed over the area. And if we happen to be scratched or bitten by a strange cat, it is safest to go to the doctor. Cats, too, sometimes get rabies.

Once in a great while, a child who has been scratched will develop cat-scratch fever. This is an illness that comes on anywhere from one to four weeks after the scratch. First, there is a skin rash near the scratch. Then the child may develop enlarged lymph glands, headache, weakness, and fever. The disease us thought to be caused by a virus. Although everyone gets well from cat- scratch fever, it may take several weeks before the glands return to normal size and the fever goes away.

Nobody knows how to prevent cat- ‘scratch fever because it is usually caused by a perfectly healthy cat.


When cats play, they almost always do so with their claws unsheathed—this is their natural instinct. Consequently, children who have pet cats are likely to get scratched. Such wounds should be thoroughly cleansed with soap and water and bandaged.

Everybody, especially children, loves dogs. They are wonderful animals and certainly make great companions. But, unfortunately, children don’t always know what goes on in a dog’s mind, and as a result, they often get him angry without knowing it. Naturally, when a dog is frightened or annoyed or angry, he bites. That’s the only way he knows how to express himself. A child can whine or cry or argue, or even hit someone who displeases him. But all a dog knows how to do is bite. Can you imagine that more than one half million children are bitten by dogs in our country every year? And most of the bites come from friendly dogs who are angry, not from mean or nasty or sick dogs?

Here are some things all of us can do to prevent dog bites:

1. Keep your dog on a leash when outdoors. Then you can control it so that it won’t bite one of your playmates or some stranger who is passing by.

2. Don’t pet or play with a strange dog. You know nothing about it. Something you do in a friendly way, it may think is unfriendly. And it may try to protect itself by biting you.

3. Don’t tease a dog, even if it is friendly. A time may come when it is tired of being teased and it may get angry and bite.

4. Never disturb a dog while it is eating. It may think you want to take its food away, and if it thinks that, it will bite.

5. A sleeping dog should not be awakened suddenly. It may react without thinking and will bite before it is fully awake and knows what it has done.

6. Never pick up a sleeping dog unless you have been talking to it a few minutes and it is sufficiently awake to recognize you.

7. A small child should not be permitted to walk a dog outdoors alone. If the dog has a fight with another dog, the child might get into the middle of the fight and be bitten.

8. Never run up behind a dog and startle it. It may automatically turn around and bite before it recognizes you.

9. Keep dogs away from deliverymen or strangers who come to your house. Many dogs are good watchdogs and they think they are protecting your home when they bite the deliveryman or stranger.

10. Never spank or punish a dog with your bare hands. It may bite to protect itself.

11. Children should never place their faces against a dog’s face unless they know the dog very well and are certain that it is wide awake, friendly, and in good health. Some dogs who feel sick will bite even their friendly masters.

12. Stay away from your dog if it has had a fight with another dog until you can be positive your dog has not caught rabies in the fight. Rabies is a disease that humans can catch from a dog who has the disease.

13. Any dog that bites people repeatedly should be gotten rid of; The ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) will take him for you.

If a child should be bitten by a dog, here is what should be done:

1. The wound should be scrubbed thoroughly for five to ten minutes with soap and warm water.

2. A clean gauze bandage should be placed over the wound.

3. The dog who caused the bite should be found and taken to a veterinarian to make sure it does not have rabies. Rabies is a serious disease that dogs can transmit to people. Anyone who is bitten by a dog that has rabies must receive injections as protection from getting the disease.

4. The child who has been bitten should visit the doctor and in all probability will be given a booster shot of tetanus toxoid and maybe some antibiotics. This may be done even if the child has been bitten by a healthy dog.

If a person is bitten by a snake, a tourniquet should immediately be placed above the bite to slow down the venom’s getting to the heart. The tourniquet must be loosened every 20 minutes to allow circulation to return.

1. A tourniquet should be placed above where the bite has taken place. (See diagram.) This must be done immediately in order to slow down the absorption of the poison into the body.

2. A sharp knife should be used to make two crossed cuts into the skin where the snake’s fangs have entered. It will not hurt to make these cuts, as the snake’s venom (poison) deadens feelings in the area. A penknife can be used to make the cuts. Each cut should be about as long as an eraser on a pencil.

3. After the cuts have been made, the wound should be sucked out thoroughly. If your mouth cannot reach the wound, somebody else should suck it out. This will get rid of some of the poison. No harm can come to anyone from swallowing the snake’s venom.

4. Suction to the bite area should be repeated every five minutes for at least sixty minutes.

5. The tourniquet must be loosened for five to ten minutes every twenty minutes in order to allow circulation in the arm or leg.

6. The child who has been bitten should lie down and remain as quiet as possible until arrangements have been made to take him to the hospital. If he remains quiet, less poison will flow through his body.

7. If ice or cold water is available, it should be applied to the bitten area. This will reduce blood flow, and therefore the flow of the snake’s poison, through the bitten limb.

8. The child should be taken as soon as possible to the nearest hospital where they will give him antivenin which will destroy the poisonous effect of the snake’s venom.

9. In order for the people at the hospital to know exactly what kind of antivenin to give, the snake should be found, killed, and brought to the hospital with the patient.

A poisonous snake bites its victim to inject venom through its fangs, releases the prey and follows it until it dies, then eats it. A nonpoisonous snake has a double row of upper teeth because it must hang onto its prey until it is swallowed.

Sooner or later, every child gets bitten by a mosquito or stung by a bee or wasp, or, occasionally, bitten by a flea, tick, spider, or chigger. As we know most of these stings and bites cause pain and itching and, usually, a good deal of swelling and redness. Here are some general first aid measures that may bring relief when somebody is painfully stung or bitten:

1. If the sting has been left in place, pluck it out gently. Try not to break it as you pull it.

2. Most bites swell and itch more when they are scratched, so try not to scratch. Also, remember that a bite may become infected if you scratch it too much. There are some ointments in the drugstore that relieve the itching caused by insect bites, and these can be put on the bites. If there is no drugstore nearby, soak the stung part of the body in hot water for about half an hour.

3. If a great deal of swelling takes place, the child should be given an anti-allergic pill. Remember, though, a grown-up should give the pill; don’t take one yourself.

4. If a bite is caused by an insect that burrows under the skin, such as a chigger, or by one that attaches itself to the skin, such as a tick, wash the area with soap and water. Place a drop or two of turpentine over the area, and that may dislodge the tick or chigger. Then cover the area with vaseline or a jelly.

The scorpion is one of two insects in this country (the other is the black widow spider) whose bite can make a child very ill. You should know what a scorpion looks like, and stay away from it. It will not bite unless it’s annoyed.

People used to think that some children were more likely to be bitten by insects than others. Actually, it is not the child but his surroundings that influence how often he is bitten. A child who plays where there are uncovered garbage cans or where people are cooking or eating food outdoors is apt to be bitten more often. And if the child is surrounded by adults who use large amounts of perfume, hair sprays or tonics, suntan lotion, or cosmetics, he is more apt to be bitten by insects which are attracted to such smells. The best way to get as few stings and bites as possible is to follow these precautions:

1. Do not eat outdoors or feed pets outdoors when there are a lot of bugs and insects in the area.

2. Garbage cans should always be kept covered, whether they are full or empty.

3. If you have spilled food on your clothing, wash it off before going outdoors.

4. The areas in which you play should be sprayed frequently with one of the insect killers.

5. Adults in an outdoor area where children are playing should be encouraged to avoid using perfumes, hair tonics, hair sprays, and things like that. This is especially important if the weather is warm and a lot of insects are around.

6. The more of the body that is uncovered, the more likely is a child to be bitten by insects. Therefore, when in such areas, wear shoes and high socks and long sleeves.

7. Many insects, especially chiggers, live in tall grass. Therefore, don’t play in tall grass when chiggers are there.

8. Ticks live in forests and in the woods. If a child has been playing in the woods, his body should be inspected each night before bedtime.

9. Before going out to play in an area where there are a large number of insects, children should apply an insect repellent to their skin. There are many good ones being sold in drugstores.

10. A child who has an allergy such as asthma or hay fever, may get quite sick from some types of insect stings or bites. Therefore, allergic children should take very special precautions not to be bitten. And the allergic child’s parents should have plenty of anti- allergic medications ready to give if the child is bitten or stung.

11. Before visiting a strange area, or going to a camp or to a foreign country, it is a good idea to find out what kind of insects inhabit the area. That will help you to take special measures to avoid bites. For example, if you are visiting a place where there are mosquitoes that cause malaria, you must have mosquito nets with you and sleep under those nets. If you are going to a part of the country where there are chiggers, wear long pants and long socks, and stay out of tall grass. Or, if you are camping in a forest where there are ticks that cause Rocky Mountain spotted fever, it would be best to be vaccinated against this illness before going on the trip.

There are two insects in this country whose bites can make a child almost as sick as a snake’s bite can. These are the black widow spider and the scorpion. The pictures of these insects should be memorized, and children should stay away from them when they see them. They usually will not bite unless they are annoyed.

Even though people don’t die from black widow or scorpion bites, anyone bitten by one should remain very quiet, not run around, and should be taken to a hospital. Treatment in a hospital will result in recovery.

When someone is injured severely, it is often difficult to tell whether a bone been broken, or knocked Out of lace, or whether a ligament or muscle as been torn or sprained. Often,, this information must wait until the injured person can be taken to a doctor’s office or to a hospital. Here are three important things to remember when giving first aid for bone or muscle or ligament injuries.

1. Keep the patient quiet and do not permit any use of the injured arm or leg. Damage can be increased by trying use the limb.

2. Try to splint the injured part so it moves as little as possible. (A splint is a piece of wood or other hard material that keeps an injured part from moving.)

3. Try to make sure the patient is g down when, taken to a doctor or a hospital. Then the chances are least t the injured bone will move or be her damaged.

Children usually cannot splint a broken bone by themselves, but they can be helpful first aiders by trying to do the following things:

1. A broken hip, thigh, leg, or foot is best treated by having the patient lie down flat on the back with both legs out straight. The two legs are placed closely together so that the good leg acts as a splint for the injured leg or hip. (See diagram.) The legs can be kept snugly in this position by tying a shirt, or a towel, or a scarf, or a sweater, around both thighs, knees, legs, and ankles.

2. A broken arm is best treated by keeping it as close to the body as possible. The body then acts as a splint to the injured arm. It can be kept that way by tying a shirt or towel around the arm and chest. (See diagrams.)

Many broken bones or torn ligaments or cartilages are treated the same day that the accident takes place. However, if there is a great deal of swelling resulting from the accident, or if the patient is in poor general shape, doctors sometimes prefer to set the fracture or operate upon torn ligaments or cartilages a few days after the accident. Of course, in the meantime, it is important that the injured bones or ligaments be kept absolutely still. In that way, they will be less painful and the swelling will go down.

A dislocated bone is usually put back in place the same day, often just an hour or two after the accident has occurred.

• If gas from a stove or oven has caused the poisoning, turn the stove or oven off immediately.
• If the gas has come from a running car motor, turn the ignition off immediately.
• If the gas has come from a kerosene heater, shut it off immediately.
• If the gas has come from a furnace, shut it down immediately.
• Open windows widely to let in fresh air and to get rid of the gas.
• If the patient still has a heartbeat but is not breathing, mouth to mouth artificial respiration should be started. (SEE ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION).
• Take the patient out of the house or apartment into the fresh air.
• Loosen tight collars or belts or clothing to permit easier breathing.
• Call the Police or have them called by the telephone operator. Be sure to tell them that the problem is gas or smoke poisoning. If they know this, they will bring oxygen and special apparatus to restore normal breathing.

To avoid the most serious results of gas poisoning, it is wise to leave a window open at all times so that some fresh air can get into the room. Even when it is very cold, it is a good idea to have a window open. An extra blanket can keep a sleeping person warm, even in a cold room.

It has been found that most dangerous gas poisoning occurs in rooms where all the windows are closed. And, of course, if you are sitting in an automobile on a cold wintry day and the motor is running, it is absolutely essential that a window be open. Otherwise, carbon monoxide, the same gas that causes so much trouble in the house, may cause poisoning. The main trouble with carbon monoxide is that it has practically no smell.

Most dangerous gas poisoning occurs in rooms where all the windows are closed. To avoid the possibility of gas poisoning, it is a good idea to leave at least one window open so that fresh air can get into a room at all times.

Occasionally people swallow a poison, or take pills that may poison them, or eat food that accidentally contains poison. When this happens, the quicker that action is taken, the better. The very first thing the first aider should do is call the poison control center (or a doctor or hospital) and follow their instructions exactly.

The first aider should be sure to save the poison container so the doctor can inspect it. The doctor must know the exact poison in order to give the specific medicines to counteract it. When a person swallows a poison, it will stay in the stomach for a little while before it moves into the intestines. In some cases, forcing the person to vomit will remove the poison before it can do much damage. But two kinds of poison should not be removed by vomiting because this can cause more damage. The first kind is petroleum products such as gasoline and furniture polish. The second is corrosive, or burning, poisons.

If the container is nowhere to be found, two clues may show the kind of poison taken. Burns on the mouth will reveal a corrosive. Petroleum products can often be smelled on the breath. Corrosive poisons are of two main types, needing different first aid.

1. The first type, alkalipoison, includes drain cleaners, ammonia, and laundry bleach. The person should not vomit, but should be given large amounts of orange juice or lemon juice.

2. The second type, acid poison, includes metal and toilet-bowl cleaners. Again, the person should not vomit.

The best way to induce vomiting is to give syrup of ipecac. If there is none, tickle the back of the throat with a finger.

After giving the person milk, the first aider should give milk of magnesia (1 tablespoon in 1 cup of water). Many poisons are not corrosive, including roach powder, some cosmetics, and most medicines, if a person takes too much of them. If a person swallows one of these poisons, and is wide awake, the first aider should help the person to vomit. First give a cup of water or milk to dilute the poison. Then give 1 tablespoon of syrup of ipecac. Be sure to keep this in the home for a poison emergency. But if there is none, put a finger way in back of the person’s throat. If necessary, give more cups of water or milk or juice.

When vomiting begins, the person should lie face down with the head lower than the body, to prevent any vomit getting into the lungs. Remember, keep the poison control center number right beside the phone!

A foreign body is any substance that doesn’t belong in the body. It can be a speck of dust or a splinter or something a child has stuck into his body, or dirt or a piece of glass, or anything else.

1. Foreign bodies in the eye are best treated by a doctor if they don’t come out within an hour or so by themselves. Rubbing an eye, or trying to remove it with cotton or the edge of a handkerchief, may injure the delicate membranes that cover the eyeball. Sometimes pulling down the eyelid and pouring warm water into the eye may wash out the foreign body, but if it doesn’t, leave it alone and go to the doctor or to the nearest hospital emergency room.

One thing is important; a foreign body should never be allowed to stay in the eye overnight. It may cause inflammation that will require many days to overcome.

If treated properly, most foreign bodies do no permanent harm to the sight. It is only when foreign bodies are neglected that they can cause damage to vision.

2. Peculiarly, some boys and girls stick things into their noses. And once in a great while, a small insect may fly into a nostril. There’s never anything to worry or become frightened about when this happens because foreign bodies in the nose are always easy to remove. Even if they aren’t removed right away, no real harm results.

To get rid of a foreign body or insect in a nostril, it is a good idea to tickle the inside of the other nostril. This may cause sneezing, and in many instances, the foreign body is sneezed out. If tickling the nostril doesn’t work, have the child sniff some pepper. That will probably bring on the-sneeze.

If neither of these methods work, the child should be taken to a doctor or to a nearby hospital. They’ll get it out without any trouble. However, I did know a silly little fellow who stuck a marble way up into his nose, and he had to be put to sleep in an operating room before the doctor could get it out.

3. For some reason, some children stick things into their ears. Or, every once in a great while, an insect may accidentally crawl or fly into an ear. No harm ever results, as the ear canal is a short dead-end street. There’s no place for the foreign body or insect to go, and therefore they can’t do any damage. An ordinary tweezers can usually reach and grasp a foreign body in the ear, but if there’s any trouble removing it, a trip to a doctor or hospital emergency room is the best idea.

Insects can usually be floated out of the ear. The child will lie down, head turned to one side. Then some lukewarm mineral oil, or olive oil, or castor oil, is poured into the ear. And, in most cases, out floats the insect! If it doesn’t come out that way, it is an easy thing for a doctor to remove.

Incidentally, an insect that flies into an ear practically never bites or stings. We guess it’s just as frightened about what happened to it as the child is.

4. Splinters, glass, dirt, and other foreign bodies beneath the skin should only be removed by a first aider when a part of the foreign body sticks out from the skin’s surface. If such is the case, the end that sticks out should be grasped and slowly and steadily pulled out. If a foreign body lies completely beneath the skin, it is best removed by a doctor. A first aider who isn’t experienced in removing foreign bodies may push it in even deeper than it is.

No foreign body should be left beneath the skin overnight.

After removing any foreign body from the skin, the area should be gently cleaned with soap and water, then covered with a bandage or Band-aid. If the foreign body has been removed within a couple of hours after it went in, infection seldom takes place.

5. Swallowed foreign bodies like buttons or coins or paperclips rarely do harm if they go down all right into the stomach. Most of them pass through the stomach and intestines by themselves and are gotten rid of in a day or two when the child moves his bowels.

A foreign body in the nose will often be expelled if the child is made “sneeze. This may be encouraged by holding pepper under the child’s nose.

A) Foreign body such as a button or a coin, or a chunk of unchewed food, can occasionally get stuck in the back of throat, or it may get into the windpipe and bronchial tubes instead of passing down the food pipe into the stomach. This can be serious, as it may cause choking or interfere with breath- Here is the first aid in this situation A Place your finger far inside the mouth and sweep it around the back of tongue and throat. This will frequently loosen the foreign body or food is stuck, or will cause the person to h or vomit it up.

B) The person should be told to take deep breath very slowly and then to cough as hard as he can. This often brings up the foreign body or food.

C) If these measures don’t bring up the foreign body, the person should be turned upside down, told to cough, and should be hit several times quite sharply on the back of the chest. In a great many cases, this will loosen the foreign body.

D) If the patient has any trouble breathing, the Police should be notified so they can send an ambulance to take the patient to the hospital.

Even though most foreign bodies that are swallowed will pass through the stomach and intestines, there are some that do get stuck. In such cases, the person must be operated upon so the surgeon can remove it. Also, some foreign bodies that get into the bronchial tubes are not coughed up but are lodged way down in the lungs. When this happens the patient must be bronchoscoped. This means that a long, hollow metal instrument is passed through the mouth, down the windpipe, and into the bronchial tubes. The foreign body is then grasped by a special instrument and is pulled out through the hollow bronchoscope.

Fortunately, recovery takes place in practically all cases where the foreign body has been swallowed or has gotten into the lungs. But think how much better it would have been if the person had not put such things into his mouth in the first place. And think how much smarter it is to chew food thoroughly before trying to swallow. Then, there is ever so much less chance that the food will get stuck in the throat.

Superficial cuts may bleed a great deal, but simple pressure applied over the cut with the palm of the hand or fingers and a clean handkerchief or piece of gauze is usually enough to control it.

1. Clean the cut or scratch with warm running water and ordinary soap. Let the water run on it for a few minutes to loosen the dirt. Then wipe out the dirt from the wound with a piece of moist cotton, or facial tissue or toilet paper, if cotton is not available.

2. Do not pour iodine, alcohol, or any other medicine on a cut or scratch. They may burn the injured area and delay healing. Besides, the running water will get rid of more germs than the alcohol or iodine.

3. To stop bleeding, press directly on the wounded area with your fingers and hand. (See the picture.) Use a clean handkerchief or a piece of gauze or cotton if it is available. Keep pressing steadily for several minutes without stopping. This will usually stop bleeding in most ordinary cuts.

4. Don’t get frightened even if there seems to be a great deal of blood. Most cuts will slow down and bleed very little after a few minutes.

5. Don’t take any chances, however. It is always best to get help from a doctor. So even if bleeding has stopped. Cover the injured area with a bandage or a clean handkerchief or, indoors, a clean napkin or towel. Go to the nearest doctor’s office, or to the emergency room of the nearest hospital, to get further attention. A wound that continues to bleed, or a wound where the edges are widely separated, frequently will need to be stitched.


After the bleeding from a puncture wound has been controlled by pressure, the child should be seen by a physician, because he may need a tetanus booster.

First aid for bruises

Some bruises are not very severe and merely result in a black-and-blue mark in the skin; others are very serious and may require surgery. All bruises result from bleeding into the skin or into the tissues beneath the skin. Bruises are almost always caused either by a fall or by something hitting the body.

Most bleeding that takes place in the skin stops by itself and needs no first aid or other treatment. Sometimes, however, the bleeding beneath the skin can be quite severe and will cause a big lump to form. Such bruises are called hematomas.

If the bleeding beneath the skin seems to be continuing and the swelling is enlarging, then direct, firm pressure should be applied over the area with the palm of the hand. If this pressure is continued steadily for ten to fifteen minutes, it may stop the internal bleeding. Another way to stop the bleeding is to put ice or an ice bag on the skin surface over the injured area. Ice or an ice bag should not be kept in place for more than fifteen to twenty minutes at a time, for if it is kept on too long, it may cause a burn. If ice is not available, cold compresses may help to control the bleeding.

If the hematoma is still present a few days after the injury originally happened, and if it feels soft and mushy when it is touched, then in all likelihood fluid blood is present beneath the skin. To cure this type of bruise, a doctor may have to stick a needle into the hematoma and draw out the blood with a syringe. If the blood is too thick to come out through the syringe, a surgeon will have to make a cut into the hematoma in order to let out the blood. This will take care of the matter very quickly.

An ordinary black-and-blue bruise may take a few weeks before the discoloration disappears. During that time the black-and-blue mark changes to a lighter blue or a purple, then to a green, then to tan, then to light yellow, and finally the skin looks perfectly normal again.

First aid for burns

A burned area should be held under cold running water for about ten minutes. This is especially important if a chemical has caused the burn.

1. First-degree burns are very much like ordinary sunburns. They usually don’t require a doctor’s care. They should be covered with a sunburn ointment so the skin doesn’t become too dry. Any blisters that form should be left alone and not opened except by a doctor. A burn can become infected if a blister is not opened properly.

2. Second-degree burns are deeper and may be caused by fire, electricity, or even by the sun. The burned areas should be put into cold running water, or the person put in a tub of cold water for about ten to fifteen minutes. The burned areas should then be covered with clean gauze bandages—no ointments—or clean handkerchiefs, napkins or towels. The sooner the burn is placed under running water, or the sooner the patient is put