Your hands take lots of abuse. Detergents strip away natural oils, and water and weather alone can cause chapping. Rubber gloves are a good idea, but if you already have splits in your skin or some sort of dermatitis, they should not be put directly on your hands. [A pair of cotton gloves beneath the rubber ones will absorb perspiration and prevent re-infection.] Also, do not use cornstarch in the gloves; it can promote the growth of micro-organisms. If you want to use something to absorb the moisture, try plain, unscented talcum powder.

As for toenails and fingernails, the best remedy for problems is diet. Gelatin is commonly accepted as the cure for weak nails, but this is a misconception. The nails do need protein, but gelatin is a poor supplier. Not only are two essential amino acids missing, but another amino acid, glycine, is supplied in amounts you do not need. Foods rich in sulphur, such as egg yolks, should be part of your diet, and desiccated liver [powder or tablets] should be taken as a supplement.

Supplements

Multiple-vitamin and mineral complex – 1 daily

Take after any meal. Promotes general skin health and growth of nails.

В Complex, 100 mg. [time release] – 1 daily. Take after any meal. Helps build resistance to fungus infections and vital to nail growth.

Vitamin A, 25,000 IU – 1 daily 6 days a week

Take after any meal. Helps to prevent splitting nails.

Vitamin E, 10O400 IU – 1-2 daily Take in a.m. and p.m. Necessary for proper utilization of vitamin A.

Multiple chelated minerals – 1 daily Take after any meal. Iron helps strengthen brittle nails; zinc gets rid of white spots.

*101/134/5*

GENERAL HEALTH

The main message for married people boils down to the standard advice: Preparation helps! Emotional preparation is particularly important. Don’t depend on your immediate family for everything in your life. While you are married, try to develop other interests and, in particular, at least a few friends. Understand, even though you naturally feel closest to your children, that they have their own lives. There is danger in entering widowhood with the expectation of depending just on a son’s or daughter’s visit or call.

Particularly if you are an older married woman, you are being prudent, not ghoulish, to plan ahead. If you are a man, planning is even more important because you are at higher risk for coping poorly. Don’t push the thought “my husband (or wife) could die” out of your mind. Mentally take stock of how you would manage in case the worst did occur. Imagine your daily life. Who would you depend on for company and support? Would there be satisfying things you could do other than ‘ ‘being with my mate?” If your answers are unsatisfying, cultivate a more independent life now.

Consider practical issues. Women in particular must know whether they will be provided for financially. Don’t stick your head in the sand and then discover to your horror when your husband dies that your savings are minimal and his pension doesn’t cover you. Ask and insist on being let in on his financial arrangements for you and the family, and educate yourself in the particulars of the family finances now.

Men too can benefit from educating themselves in the practical side of being alone. Become competent at shopping, cooking, and cleaning, and if you have not already done so, periodically give your wife a rest by taking over these jobs. Not only will you be preparing for being widowed (and possibly learning some interesting new skills), you will be making your wife feel appreciated and loved.

This brings up another essential way of preparing for this blow. Make sure that if your husband or wife died tomorrow you would not be eaten up by guilt about what you did not do. Demonstrate your love now!

*100/159/5*

GENERAL HEALTH