The location of the headache also points to its cause. Ask yourself the following questions; I’ve provided the possible causes after each question.

1. Does the pain start in my neck and radiate up through my head? Do my headaches tend to appear when I’m stressed? The headache is probably due to tension.

2. Do I have a pain in my forehead that’s accompanied by sinuses that feel blocked? It’s probably a sinus headache.

3. Does the top of my head feel as though it’s pounding? Elevated blood pressure may be the cause, but this is also a sign of tension.

4. In addition to a headache all over the head, do I feel numb in the arms or legs, am I vomiting, and/or has my vision changed? It’s probably a migraine.

5. Is this the worst headache I’ve ever had, and am I vomiting as well? The cause may be a brain aneurysm—call the doctor immediately.

6. Do I have a fever, and am I experiencing seizures? The cause may be an infection of or tumor in the brain.

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Description and Possible Medical Problems

The story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde may or may not have been true but to watch a relative change from a self-assured, coherent person into’ a confused, insecure person can be scary for everyone involved. When an elderly relative sometimes calls you by your sister’s name, it’s certainly annoying and troubling, but most people consider it as part of the process of growing older.

On the other hand, if you’ve recently witnessed an elderly relative become confused and incoherent within a matter of days or even hours, it’s a sign that she needs immediate medical attention. Acute confusion tends to be accompanied by serious physical symptoms that usually point to a direct cause of the confusion.

For instance, when acute confusion is coupled with other Body Signals such as losing control of the bladder, losing the use of a limb, or slurring words, it can be a sign of a stroke, which is caused when the blood supply to a part of the brain is interrupted by a blockage or clot. Typically, a stroke affects only one side of the body, like one arm, or an arm and leg on the same side, or even the face, arm, and leg. A person who has a stroke may also lose consciousness for a while, and her breathing may have also been altered by the stroke, since a stroke can affect the area of the brain that controls breathing.

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Therefore, the first thing you must do to understand the complexities of our current health care system is learn how medicine developed and expanded in the United States after World War II. For centuries before the war, the physician’s role in maintaining the health of a community was actually quite limited. In this country, medical training was almost nonexistent until the late 1700s. To make a diagnosis, doctors were mostly limited to the use of elementary medical tools like the stethoscope, neurological hammer, and tongue depressor. A physician’s role was first to diagnose an illness and then to prescribe various medications, many of which would be considered to be homeopathic today, like herbs. The diagnostic skills of a physician were limited to what his five senses were able to detect, and a diagnosis often required surgery that many times was more dangerous than the illness itself.

In those days, however, the relationship between the doctor and the patient was quite close, and many times was itself the primary form of treatment, since comfort and supportive care were frequently all a physician could offer in the case of a terminal illness like cancer or heart disease. The price of medical care was also relatively low. In the early part of this century, office visits and house calls often cost only a few dollars, depending on the region of the country and the doctor. Most of the time, a patient paid for the doctor’s fee and any tests, medications, and hospital stays out of pocket. The family doctor was a generalist, caring for pregnant women and their babies, sick children, and adults as well as elderly members of the family. In this situation, a doctor couldn’t help but develop close relationships with each family he cared for over the years. On the rare occasion when it became necessary to refer a patient to a specialist, many patients refused, feeling that “Doc” could do as well as any fancy-pants specialist. Then, in the early part of this century, medicine began to change.

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As you know, the heart pumps blood into the arteries, which distribute it throughout the body. As the blood is forced through the arteries, it presses against the walls of these tubes. The pressure is highest when the blood is being forced ahead by the pump (the systolic pressure) and the lowest between beats, when the heart relaxes (the diastolic pressure), hi typical normal children, the systolic pressure, which is the one people usually have in mind when they think about blood pressure, is from 75 to 100. In young adults, the pressure ranges from 100 to 120; in older people, from 120 to 140.

Sometimes, because of illness, tension, or some other cause, the walls of the arteries are constricted, narrowing the space through which the blood must flow. When this happens, the blood pumped through the arteries presses harder against the walls to force its way through. This strong pressure is called high blood pressure, or hypertension.

In a very high percentage of cases, the cause cannot be determined. Such cases are called essential hypertension, idiopathic hypertension, primary hypertension, or hypertension of unknown cause. The other cases can be traced to definite diseases or to coarctation of the aorta (a congenital narrowing of the main artery).

Because high blood pressure places an increased strain on the heart and blood vessels, persons who have such a condition may suffer from headache, weakness, fatigue, or shortness of breath.

Malignant hypertension

In some instances, fortunately infrequent, ordinary forms of high blood pressure develop into the malignant form. When this happens, the destructive action of the high blood pressure on the body is speeded up. If malignant hypertension is not checked by prompt treatment, it may prove fatal in a matter of months or a few years. The blood vessels in the retina of the eye, the kidney, the heart, and the brain are the hardest hit in the malignant form.

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Most sore throats, swollen glands, and severe upper respiratory infections in childhood are caused by viruses.

Tonsillitis. This infection produces a high fever that lasts several days. The child may vomit and have headaches. His throat may become so sore that he can barely swallow. A doctor is needed.

The tonsils are situated at the back of the mouth and are made up of lymphoid tissue. They are like the lymph glands and are considered to have the same purpose: to waylay and destroy germs. Sometimes these glands get overloaded by a heavy invasion of germs and cannot do the job properly.

The removal of tonsils will not decrease the frequency of respiratory infections and is not recommended for that purpose. Adenoids. These may be considered to be small tonsils located in the part of the throat behind the nasal passages. When they enlarge, they can block the outlet from the nose so much that the affected child breathes chiefly through the mouth. Also, the enlarged adenoids may block the Eustachian tubes, which connect the middle part of the ears with the back of the throat. This Condition may cause pain in the ears or a sense of pressure. It can also cause infections in the middle ear and, occasionally, interference with hearing.

Adenoids are ordinarily removed along with enlarged tonsils. Occasionally, only the adenoids are removed.

Middle ear infections. The illustrations on pages 570 and 586 show the Eustachian tube that leads into the middle of the ear. Through this highway travel germs from colds, sore throats, and infected adenoids and tonsils. Middle ear infections are usually terribly painful. A discharge from the ear is occasionally the first sign. Fever, vomiting, headaches, and drowsiness may accompany middle ear infections. A doctor should be notified at once, or the child taken to the hospital if the doctor is not available.

Sinusitis. The sinuses are air-filled cavities in the bones around the nose. They are very subject to infections, although less so in children than in adults. A tiny opening connects each sinus with the inside of the nose. During a cold, the infection may spread to the sinuses, which will get clogged up with pus. The pus drips out from the back of the nose into the throat, causing a postnasal drip. This drip may cause the child to cough when he lies down. In a more severe case of sinusitis, the child will have fever and headache.

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Broadly speaking, a couple is sexually normal if each derives the highest sexual pleasure and satisfaction from the insertion of the male genital organ into that of the female. This does not preclude experimenting in obtaining satisfaction by other means. For example, there is certainly nothing abnormal for a man who has reached his climax rapidly, if his wife has not yet reached hers, to make it possible for her to do so by manual manipulation. There is nothing abnormal about any caress that both partners find pleasurable.

In adults the oral zone (mouth, lips, and tongue) is, to a greater or lesser extent, a sexual one. Some couples find the genital kiss important for the fullest realization of sexual satisfaction. Without attempting to draw an exact line defining the normal limits of this practice, psychiatrists tend to agree that maladjustment is indicated only when actions involving the mouth rather than the genitals are the main or only source of sexual pleasure and climax.

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Medically speaking, a germ is a micro-organism too small to be seen by the unaided eye; usually the term refers to organisms such as viruses or protozoans likely to cause disease. But germs also perform many useful functions. Without them, there would be no bread, cheese, beer, or wine, and nothing would decay in the soil—with consequences it is difficult to imagine!

Germs are also known as microbes. Because of their size, scientists once ignored them. It was not until 1862 that the French chemist Louis Pasteur discovered their importance. He proved that although one germ by itself does not amount to much, the organisms multiply rapidly under certain conditions and produce definite effects upon the substance in which they are growing.

Micro-organisms that spread disease

There are five types of micro-organisms that cause communicable diseases. Knowing something about them will make it easier for you to stay healthy.

Luckily, most bacteria (which are all around us) are more beneficial than harmful to mankind. Bacteria are very important in destroying dead matter—they are our most efficient means of garbage disposal.

They help the growth of certain plants on which all other plants and animals depend. In fact, life without bacteria would not be possible.

Protozoans

These are microscopic creatures which may be 50 times larger than bacteria but still cannot be seen without a microscope. Diseases caused by these organisms are malaria and amoebic dysentery.

Viruses

These organisms are much smaller than bacteria, so tiny they cannot even be seen through an ordinary microscope but require an electron microscope. It is only recently, with the greatest difficulty, that scientists have succeeded in getting viruses to grow elsewhere than in an animal body. Viruses are extremely potent; very small numbers can start a disease. Some are very hardy. They cause a great many diseases, including poliomyelitis, yellow fever, influenza, infectious hepatitis, rabies, smallpox, chickenpox, measles, and mumps. The common cold is also caused by viruses.

Parasitic worms

Some of these parasites can be readily seen by the unaided eye, while others are so small they cannot be identified exactly without a microscope. The smallest are the size of a pinhead, while a tapeworm can grow to a length of 26 feet.

Many of these parasites, including the flukes (one of two types of flatworms), are more prevalent in the tropics. The other type of flatworm, the tapeworm, is taken into the body by eating beef, pork, or fish containing this parasite.

Some roundworms are also quite common. They include the pin-worm, the intestinal roundworm, and the hookworm. Another roundworm, which is found in pork, causes trichinosis, a disease in which the parasites eventually get into the person’s muscles.

Fungi

These growths are related to mushrooms, only they are very much smaller. The green or white mould which forms on stale bread is a tiny fungus. A fungus causes athlete’s foot. Other types of fungi are responsible for various diseases such as actinomycosis and moniliasis Fortunately, most of these more serious disorders are rare in this country.

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Joints and ligaments connect the bones to one another. The joints provide the smooth, gliding surfaces at the ends of the bones so that movements can be carried out easily and painlessly. A joint consists of a fibrous sheath that is attached to the smooth end of the bones. Nature provides a special material, called cartilage, for the ends of the bones concerned in our bodily movements. This material has special resiliency and smoothness so that fingers, arms, and legs can move thousands of times daily without our being actually conscious of their activities.

To bind bones together, or to strengthen joints, nature uses a special type of tough binding cord called ligaments. These are attached to the bones so well that only exceptional strains will tear a ligament away from the bone. A similar type of tough connective tissue that connects muscles to bones is called a tendon.

A final element in the wonderful, smooth, and effective movement of our joints is the bursa. This is a sac, or bag, with smooth surfaces, containing a small amount of lubricating material. The bursa permits the smoother functioning of the joints.

The everyday care of the joints, ligaments, and bursae is extremely important to you. An injured joint, a torn ligament, or an inflamed bursa can interfere seriously with your enjoyment of life—or incapacitate you for work. It is of primary importance that you work with—not against—nature so that there will be no extra stresses on joints, ligaments, and bursae. That means keeping a normal weight; if you are greatly overweight, you are overloading the joints of the knees and feet every time you stand or walk. Good posture also keeps the joints in their best condition, because weight is distributed as nature intended. Good physical condition prevents the joints from being strained by lifting and strenuous sports.

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