Friday, January 25, 1924

WINTER TIME AND FRESH AIR

Winter, with its cold days and nights and its snow and rain, takes the human family and keeps it in the home or in the office or under roof. Stove and furnace heat give the sun a “lift” in its effort to warm up the atmosphere. The open spaces, with their call to exercise and fresh air, are not as inviting. Yet fresh air is as necessary now as ever. Fresh, pure air is necessary as fresh, pure water.

Artificial systems of ventilation, often desirable, are but makeshifts and never equal in worth the good outdoor air. There is a certain tonic in cold or cool air never found in that supplied by the so-called systems.

Oxygen and nitrogen make up the mixture we call air. Neither alone will support life, a proper mixture of the two being required.

Man, like animals, originally lived out of doors. Civilization and the habit of house building has made him an indoors product. Most of his life is now spent within four walls. He does not get all the fresh air nature intended him to use.

Mr. Average Man requires every 60 minutes an amount of fresh air equal to that in a room 10 feet long, 10 feet wide and 10 feet high. In other words, he needs 1000 cubic feet of air per hour.

When a number of human beings are in a closed room, the air becomes warmer, oxygen is reduced, carbon dioxide and other substances from the lungs are added to it, the room becomes stuffy and the air reaches an impure status. A person under such conditions becomes sleepy and frequently a headache develops. Mental and physical efficiency is impaired, and it is easier to “catch” a contagious disease.

And open-air life prevents tuberculosis, pneumonia and other lung troubles.

Fresh air is of first importance in the treatment of tuberculosis, pneumonia and other diseases, notably fevers. Ordinarily colds are not common among those who live in the open.

As it is necessary for many of us to do our daily tasks indoors, we should get all the fresh air we can, and particularly at night when the windows of our bed rooms should be wide open. Don’t worry about the burglar, the wind or the rain; keep the windows open and let nature have a chance.

Note: Excerpts and ads from historic issues of The Leader are transcribed from archives in the Collection of the Jefferson County Historical Society. JCHS accession # 1924 Leader, 1999.36.105 was used for today’s column.