Newspaper-published advice 1918 Flu: Best:"Do not think you are entitled to special privileges"

[hlthe2b]

“Do not disregard the advice of a specialist just because you do not understand”.
"Do not disregard the rights of a community--obey cheerfully the rules issued by the authorities"
"Do not think you are entitled to special privileges"

This newspaper is from Douglas City, Alaska, btw.

[sheshe2]

1. K&R

[AllaN01Bear]

2. hear , hear.

[randr]

3. There is a clear distinction between privileges and rights

It only takes a small bit of smarts to tell the difference.

[BigmanPigman]

5. Gargle water with salt....haven't heard of that

for Covid. I had to do that as a kid with a cold/flu and my parents used iodized salt.

[Delmette2.0]

6. It works great for a sore throat.

At least for my family.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

8. Yes, it does.

And doctors have verified the soothing effects for a sore throat:
https://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/features/does-gargling-wlth-salt-water-ease-a-sore-throat

I HOPE it's not being promoted as some "cure" for Covid, though, but kooky ideas stopped surprising me long ago.

[hlthe2b]

11. There is a reason it works. The osmotic effects of the salty solution draws out the swelling and

the warmth soothes.

[Delmette2.0]

16. That makes sense, thanks.

[kiri]

27. Isotonic salt

I don't think this is correct. If using plain, unsalted water, the cells would draw in water via osmosis, causing swelling and possibly lysis. The salt is to provide an isotonic solution, that is, equal osmotic pressure so there is no transport across the cell membranes. This is what eye drops do, too. Splashing freshwater in the eyes usually makes them sting, because the cells do not like hypotonic water.

Isotonic in humans is 0.9% salt, that is 9.0 grams per liter.

If the salt concentration in the gargle were much higher than in the (epithelial) cells, it would draw water out from them. I doubt this will help them. 3% saline is definitely hypertonic and is rarely used.

The heat is certainly good; it opens capillaries and allows more antibodies and oxygen to get there. And waste products to be carried away.
---------------------
It is a curious fact that the isotonic concentration in almost all land animals and birds is the same as in the ancient oceans, where multicellular life evolved. The seas have become more salty over time; present day saltwater fish have tonicity about 10% higher than mammals, 10 g/l. Sea water is now actually 35 g/l. Osmoregulation is vitally important in fish and cleverly different in fresh- and sea-water species.

[hlthe2b]

28. No Those advocate salt water gargle do NOT use isotonic solution, but rather create a hypertonic

warm water-salt suspension. That it is supersaturated is why the salt suspends. This is an old "cure" that dates back more than a century. The hypertonic solution thus draws the fluid from swollen tonsills and other oral tissues away via osmotic pressure. This isn't about going to the drugstore and buying a bottle of isotonic 0.9% saline solution as you might for your contact lenses.

[kiri]

29. If a little is good, more is better?

I don't know what most people actually do. My grandmother just added spoonfuls of salt until it tasted "salty" to her. It would not have been a saturated solution. I suspect most home stuff comes fairly close to isotonic, maybe slightly hyper from the well-known principle, "If a little is good, more is better."

Undissolved salt crystals can have no biological effect. But mechanically they would seem like a real irritant.

[hlthe2b]

30. If it tastes salty, it is hypertonic. If you drink from a bottle of isotonic (0.9% normal saline)

you taste minimal salt because that is compatible with the salinity of your own blood, saliva, and other normal secretions.

[kiri]

31. mostly true

You are mostly right. However, it depends somewhat on the temperature. Warmed/hot isotonic tastes distinctly salty to me. Just tried it.

[hlthe2b]

33. I have no desire to continue the argument.

Please think what you wish.

[Delmette2.0]

17. At least it won't hurt anyone.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

18. Yeah, it's not like drinking bleach...

... and the other crazy ideas that have hurt people.

[central scrutinizer]

26. Unless there's a run on salt and people hoard it

And I can’t make any sauerkraut or dill pickles

[orleans]

36. yep. i still do that. (if i think of it -- lol) learned about it when i was a kid nt

[tclambert]

22. Back then they hadn't invented hydroxychloroquine or ivermectin.

or Donald Trump. But back in 1918 they did have deniers and people who opposed wearing masks. In that way they were as "enlightened" as we are now.

They also did not have a vaccine. Hell, they didn't even know flu was caused by a virus yet.

[COL Mustard]

25. Idolized Salt

As my Dad used to say. I was never sure if he was serious or not.

[Ford_Prefect]

7. Imagine...Common sense published in printed ink on paper. What will they think of next?

[Dreampuff]

9. Interesting. Thank you for posting this.

Like many people, my ancestors lost family members to the Spanish Flu. You could wake up feeling fine in the morning and be dead by sunset.
My mother's family lost two on the same day.

Many families suffered from this since it was Infamous for taking young, healthy men. They were generally the breadwinners and there were no social programs to lean on at that time.

I think people did try to obey the advice of the medical professionals since people seemed to be much more humble at that time. Smarter in many ways, too.

[hlthe2b]

12. If you go to rural cemeteries, especially in the MidWest, you will be amazed at how many tombstones-

that are still readable-- reference a death in 1918. I did so a few years back (in VERY rural farming areas of Northwestern Missouri and was just amazed. My grandparents never even mentioned it, though they surely had to have lost many friends and probably extended family to it. It was very poignant to see, especially the children's headstones. WWI and the first of two major economic crashes seemed to render the pandemic far less important in retrospect, I guess.

[rickyhall]

34. I've toured a few 19th Century cemeteries. Amazed at how many teenaged girls died of childbirth.

[monkeyman1]

10. the world just came to a end in 1 sentence !

[Orrex]

13. WHen the current pandemic started

I lamented the fact that some people absolutely refuse to wear masks.

A long-time DU'er waggled a finger at me and assured me that masks don't work, because "1918 saw near-universal mask use, and they did nothing to quell the pandemic."

Three points about that:

1. I'm 100% certain that mask use was not "near-universal"
2. A homespun doesn't offer quite the same protection as a modern N-95
3. That time period saw self-important assholes who refused masks, just like our time

This newspaper clip makes the point quite nicely.

[smb]

35. A Fourth Point

Unless the finger-wagger has statistics for otherwise similar populations who did and did not practice widespread masking during the pandemic, there is no basis for the claim.

[Hekate]

14. Sensible & accurate public health precautions that have been known for much longer than a century

I swear I thought this country would be able to get a grip on handling the 2020 pandemic in 3 or so months — not a vaccine or a cure, but rallying the public and governing bodies to preventive measures that would save lives.

It never occurred to me that murderous malice had taken hold of us like a cancer.

[kairos12]

15. Problem. People are stupider today.

[Joinfortmill]

19. 👍

[niyad]

20. KNR

[IronLionZion]

21. Was it a global conspiracy to take away freedoms back then too?

Did the US and European deep state implement sharia law or is 5G necessary for that? Either way, these 1918 guidelines were all Hillary's fault, before she was even born.

[Grokenstein]

23. Plug "anti vaccine smallpox" into Google Images and see

some crazy, crazy shit. (Note: Some images may be 'shopped for the current "debate." )





But not everyone was an idiot.

[bullwinkle428]

24. Aside from the gargling, I've been following this advice to the letter since

the beginning of this pandemic, and of course, was vaccinated at first opportunity. So far, so great for me!

[fescuerescue]

32. I'm surprised that someone used a highlighter on such an old clipping

[Texaswitchy]

37. All of us must have lost a relative to the flu back then.

I visited my baby Aunt's grave many times in Central Texas.

I was named after her.

She died at 6 months old in 1920.

I have replaced her headstone. Her old one was not in good shape.

I have two pictures of her alive.
Then one in her little casket.

My Grandmother said her death broke my Grandfather' s heart.

I miss not have two blood Aunt's.

[Dreampuff]

38. Yeah.

I lost a half Uncle to the pandemic. He was 5 years old and my grandmother lost him the same day her first husband passed away from it. A couple of days later, her husband's brother passed away and the list goes on.

[Texaswitchy]

39. Not everyone knows their family history.

It was not that long ago.

Now little kids will be remembering family members who passed back in 2020's.