FILTH AND DISEASE

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Mar 26, 1902

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 28, No. 13.

FILTH AND DISEASE.

[From The Nursery, in January Truth.]

FILTH is the home, the food, and the wings of germ life. It has long been noticed by sanitarians that the death-rate of a city is in inverse ratio to the cleanliness of its streets. If this be true, how much more important is the cleanliness of the dwelling where we live most of our time, in an atmosphere that can not be as pure as outside air, even under the best conditions of indoor ventilation; and of what paramount importance is cleanliness in the nursery, where the susceptible, delicate bodies of children are concerned.

The best weapons that we have to fight disease outside of the body are sunlight, fresh air, soap and water. These are the most efficient preventive agents on earth, and they are equally within the reach of all. The room chosen for the nursery should be the one that is most easily ventilated and that receives the largest measure of sunlight. The best exposure for this room is, of course, one facing the south.