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 heavy clothing and overheated rooms prevent the nerves from being stimulated by cold air and sunlight. The best way to counteract these weakening conditions is by frequent cool or cold baths. An air bath, which consists of exposing the bare skin to the air for half an hour or more before dressing in the morning, may take the place of a cold bath. Even the lower animals bathe: birds, dogs, and many lower animals bathe in the rivers. An elephant sometimes takes a bath by showering water over his back with his trunk.

Treatment of Burns.—Wet the burn with a little water and sprinkle common baking soda or flour thickly on it. Bind with a narrow bandage. For deeper burns soak a small square of cloth in a strong solution of baking soda, bandage it on wound, and keep it wet with the solution. Olive, cotton seed, and linseed oils are excellent for burns (Exp. 13).

Hygiene of Bathing.—A bath should not be taken within an hour after a meal. Cold baths (1) should never be taken in a cold room nor when the skin is cold; (2) are more beneficial in summer and in warm climates, but are necessary in winter for those who live in overheated houses or dress very warmly; (3) should be followed in winter by vigorous rubbing and a glowing reaction; (4) should usually not last longer than one minute in winter. Warm baths (1) are more cleansing than cold baths; (2) should not be used alone but should always be followed by a dash of cold water; (3) are better than cold baths if the body is greatly fatigued; (4) are more beneficial when going to bed than upon rising.

Cold baths and very hot baths are both stimulants to the nervous system and cause an expenditure of nervous energy. For one whose nervous energy is at a very low