Healthful Living

Impaired Action of the Skin

Impure Air

799. The surface of the skin is nearly dead because it has no air to breathe. Its million little mouths are closed, because they are clogged by the impurities of the system, or for want of air.—Testimonies for the Church 1:701. HL 189.3

800. The effects produced by living in close, ill-ventilated rooms are these: .... The body becomes relaxed; the skin becomes sallow; digestion is retarded; and the system is peculiarly sensitive to the influence of cold. A slight exposure produces serious diseases. Great care should be exercised not to sit in a draught or in a cold room when weary or when in a perspiration.—Testimonies for the Church 1:702. HL 189.4

801. For fear of taking cold they persist from year to year in ... living in an atmosphere almost destitute of vitality.... The skin becomes debilitated, and more sensitive to any change in the atmosphere.—Testimonies for the Church 2:526. HL 189.5

Improper Clothing

802. Additional clothing is put on, and the heat of the room increased. The next day they require a little more heat and a little more clothing, in order to feel perfectly warm; and thus they humor every changing feeling until they have but little vitality to endure any cold.... If you add clothing, let it be but little, and exercise, if possible, to regain the heat you need.—Testimonies for the Church 2:526. HL 190.1

803. You have worn too great an amount of clothing, and have debilitated the skin by so doing.—Testimonies for the Church 3:74. HL 190.2

804. The unnatural heat caused by artificial hair and pads about the head, induces the blood to the brain, producing congestion, and causing the natural hair to fall off.—The Health Reformer, October 1, 1871. HL 190.3

Improper Diet

805. With many the poor, tired stomach may complain of weariness in vain. More food is forced upon it, which sets the digestive organs in motion, again to perform the same round of labor.... These become miserable dyspeptics.... If this practise be indulged in for a great length of time, the health becomes seriously impaired. The blood becomes impure, the complexion sallow, and eruptions frequently appear.—How to Live 1:55. HL 190.4

Drugs

806. This is the effect of calomel.... It frequently manifests itself in tumors, ulcers, and cancers, years after it has been introduced into the system.—How to Live 3:59. HL 190.5

807. The disease, which the drug was given to cure may disappear, but only to reappear in a new form, such as skin diseases, ulcers, painful, diseased joints, and sometimes in a more dangerous and deadly form.—How to Live 3:61. HL 190.6

808. Ladies may resort to cosmetics to restore the tint of the complexion, but they cannot thus bring back the glow of healthful feelings to the heart. That which darkens and makes dingy the skin also clouds the spirits and destroys cheerfulness and peace of mind.—The Health Reformer, February 1, 1877. HL 191.1