GENERAL CARE OF THE BODY: THE AIR YOU BREATHE
‘Fresh air’ is a frequently misunderstood term. Unless a room is completely sealed up, enough air comes in around doors and windows to provide oxygen for breathing. Whether more air should be circulated through the room is a matter of choice.
A few generations ago, air in itself was considered dangerous, especially night air, which was supposed to carry disease-laden vapours —called miasmas—and draughts, which doctors blamed for any number of illnesses. The result was that many of our ancestors accustomed themselves to wearing several layers of underclothing in all seasons, and to sleeping with their windows tightly closed. Newborn babies were wrapped up like mummies.
With such discoveries as the fact that malaria was caused by mosquitoes and not by night air, the pendulum began to swing in the opposite direction. One of the results of this change was the fresh-air fiend who went around flinging windows open, to the discomfort of his associates. A former patient of mine, a middle-aged woman from a well-to-do family, told me that her parents were so sold on the virtues of fresh air that they insisted on her being out of doors regardless of the temperature. As she was not a very active child, she was cold most of the time, even suffering from frostbitten fingers and toes. Each person needs to find the conditions in which he is most comfortable.
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