Obesity : the indications for reduction cures / by Carl von Noorden.

Date:
1903
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Obesity : the indications for reduction cures / by Carl von Noorden. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    ent, they stop drinking water during meals, for in- stance, or eliminate soup from the bill of fare, or eat only bread crust and none of the inside of the loaf; others take an occasional sweat bath or a cold rub or go to a gymnasium for half an hour’s or an hour’s exer- cise every few days, or employ a masseur, etc. All these measures, though only sham weapons, nevertheless en- joy a great reputation with the general public. Good results are, of course, never obtained from such half- way measures. Some five years ago thyroid prepara- tions were recommended for the reduction of fat and it is characteristic for the class of people I have described, (and I may add that they are chiefly women who lack the energy and perseverance to carry out a systematic reduction cure,) that they embraced this method of treatment with enthusiasm because they believed it to be a simple and convenient method of getting rid of fat without any exertion on their own part. The laest method of treatment to adopt in this class of cases and the one that has been employed for a long time is to institute short courses of treatment lasting some four or five weeks at varying intervals; the result of these interrupted courses is a loss of weight of a few kilos (usually between three and eight kilos) ; during this period, that is after this small loss of flesh has been brought about, the patients should be induced to take advantage of their comparative lean- ness and to strengthen the muscles by systematic ex- ercises and at the same time also to strengthen the skin by appropriate measures. As a rule this good
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