Army manual of hygiene and sanitation, 1934 / [War Office].

Date:
1941
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Army manual of hygiene and sanitation, 1934 / [War Office]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    and diphtheria by inoculation, and the reduction of food deficiency diseases by vitamin-containing foods. Hygiene is a progressive science which calls for continual investigation. Sanitation. is the practical application of the science of hygiene to the varied conditions of life. The laws of hygiene are the same everywhere but the practical application of them, i.e. sanitation, varies with the local conditions under which they have to be applied, and the method of application will depend largely upon these con- ditions. It is a law of hygiene, for example, that a supply of water for drinking is necessary for health and life, but the method by which water is supplied varies from the rain-water barrel collecting water from the roof to the elaborate municipal systems made for the supply of water to the occupants of towns. . Conservancy is the collection, removal and disposal of waste products such as excreta and refuse. It is, therefore, only a part, but a very important part, of sanitation, although there still exists in the minds of some people the idea that hygiene and sanitation are concerned solely with latrines and drains. ; Cleanliness is closely associated with the preservation of health and the prevention of many diseases, but hygiene and sanitation include far more than cleanliness alone, for it is possible to have spotless cleanliness of person and surroundings and yet at the same time to have a considerable amount of preventable disease such as malaria, which is spread by mos- quito bites, and undulant fever, which is spread by drinking the milk of infected goats. The objective of sanitation The aim of sanitation in the Army is military efficiency and therefore everything that will maintain or improve the health of the soldier and thereby aid his military efficiency must be regarded as coming within the scope of hygiene and sanitation. The Medical Services help by instruction, advice, super- vision and precept, but these are of little avail if the rest of the Army do not play their part. It is the duty, therefore, of every one to take his share in looking after, not only his own health, but also that of his comrades. The objective is two- fold, first, to prevent actual disease, and, secondly, to promote and increase the health ; these are by no means the same, for men may not actually be ill but may be in such a poor physical and. mental state that when any extra strain is put upon them they break down. They may be compared with a second-rate football or cricket team which just succeeds in drawing games but never wins.