Evening Star Newspaper, November 24, 1931, Page 29

) b RAW OYSTERS SEEN * CURE FOR ANEMICS Dr. Paul Bartsech M«Q Copper In Mollusks Will Form Remedy. BY THOMAS R. HENRY. Raw _oysters should have much the same effect as liver in treatment of the pernicious anemias, according to Dr. Paul Bartsch, the Smithsonian Institu- tion’s world authority on mollusks and professor of zoology at George Wash- ington Wniversity. Recent indications, Dr. Bartsch says, are that the potent ciple in liver which bullds up red-blood corpuscles is closely allled to organic copper salts. The ordinary oyster contains more cop- per in a form which will be taken up by the human body tissues than any other food product in nature. Now science is trying to devise methods of getting copper in a digestible form into milk by means of absorption from cop- per plates. Many years ago, Dr. Bartsch said, was & common practice of physicians to prescribe oysters in large quantities for patients in a run-down and anemic ‘condition. ‘This was the result of purely impirical observations that there was something in the mollusk which improved the blood. It was before the days when the pernicious anemias were generally recognized as distinct dis- eases. This dietary prescription gradu- ally dropped out of medical practice, since there was no exact check on re- sults and nobody knew just what hap- pened in the hlood stream. Oyster Came Into Disrepute. A little later, Dr. Bartsch said, the oyster began to be condemned by many physicians because it was found to con- tain considerable copper, then consid- ered as & body poison. Special warn- ings were issued against greenish-col- ored oysters, which were supposed to contain unusual amounts of the dreaded element. So by the time the anemies began to be a vital problem for medi- cine the oyster was somewhat in dis- repute. Then the perniclous anemias were ,Tecognized as almost incurable blood diseases, and took thousands of lives before the discovery about six years ago |that many cases could be cured. or at Jeast held in an arrested state, through large additions of liver to the diet. This was followed by the development of Mver extracts. One result has been that liver, which butchers used to sell for a few u;!].; ! ‘un be prescribed, and some even have specific antipathies which makes it im- jposeible for them. An intensive search gone on for specific thing the liver which sets off the mechanism responsible for blllldln’. the red cor- puscles,. The same thing has been demonstrated to exist in smaller quan- in kidneys and brains. The search has begun to ooncentrate on copper. Urges Experimental Study. An_oyster bed, Dr. Bartsch says, is literally & mine of organic 3 A{- parently little can be accom; with metallic copper, which will not be taken up by the body. are cheap and abundant, com with liver, and will of the medical profession to the enor- mous possibilities of the mollucks and urge experimental verification of his belief that they will arrest the anemias. As an_example of the immense amount of organic copper contained in the oyster, Dr. Bartsch said, a former governor of New Jersey, interested in biology, once plated a silver dollar with the copper from the liver of & single one of these mollusks. The connection was suggested to him this Summer, Dr. Bartsch said, when a controversy arose over the possibility of killing the enormous swarms of sea nettles which were infesting the Middle Atlantic bathing beaches. Fear was ex- pressed that if copper sulphate was used it also would the oyster beds, but he was convinced that the . Amethod was safe because of the oyster's jmextraordinary , capacity for absorbing ‘eopper salts. * Later, he said, when he read of ex- periments to produce absorption of cop- per in milk he was impressed still more with the fact that if the human system needs copper the oyster is the answer to the quest. Besides, the oyster con- tains much glycogen, or liver sugar, which is the fundamental fuel of the buman body. Also Contains Todine. ‘The oyster also contains, Dr. Bartsch inted out, small quantities of jodine, ‘traces of Wwhich in the diet now are ?jncognxud as essential for the preven- ‘tion of thyroid gland complaints. Clams are much richer in this ele- ent. It is noteworthy, Dr. Bartsch id, that not many years ago the oys- er was condemned also because of this odine content, then considered very nous. During recent years spectroscopic hnalysis of the content of human body tissues, & method so delicate that it can etect one part in millions, has shown hat the body contains numerous min- ral elements, of which iron and copper re most plentiful. Both now are con- “ridered essential elements of protoplasm 3itself, and introduces blochemists to a promising field for the explanation of &ome physiological processes which have remained mysterious. It is becoming evident that there must be a copper balance, although when it is introduced into the body in inorganic form in any considerable quantities it is polsonous. It remains for biochemists to work out, Dr. Bartsch said, whether some copper complex peculiar to the liver is essen- tial for the production of red blood cor- puscles, any great diminution of which means eventual death. EGG CANDLING STATION WANTED IN LYNCHBURG Farmer Producers in Area Join in Request to Federal Markets Office. Bpecial Dispatch to The Btar. LYNCHBURG, Va, November 34.— Fgg-producing farmers in this section have'sent a petition to the Federal Dj- vision of Markets asking that an egg candling, grading and crating station be established in Lynchburg. Producers are to be called together as soon as the request has & reply. It is said here that there are 15 such plants in Virginia. County farm agents are to be asked to attend the next meeting to discuss ege_production. W. A. Owen of Concord, Campbell County, was made temporary chairman of the tentative organization. GETS YEAR FOR ASSAULT Prisoner Accused of Pointing. Ofi- cer's Own Pistol at Him. Charged with taking s policeman’s ce revolver from him while the fficer was fingerprinting him in the third precinct station Sunday morning, Willlam Anderson, colored, was sent to gail for a year from Police Court yes- STAR. WASHINGTON, D hen you use ISTERINE _ instantly overcomes odors that ordinary mouthwashes cannot hide in 4 days Are you sure that the mouthwash you are now using keeps your breath sweet? That it rids you of halitosis (unpleasant breath), the unforgivable social fault? Its Results Are Certain Unfortunately for their users, countless mouth- washes are shown by laboratory test to have little or no deodorant power. Against halitosis they are usele Listerine’s switt, positive deodorant effect is a matter of scientific record. For the past fifty years its marked deodorant action has led physicians to employ itin treating suppurating wounds. And now, recent scientific tests show it to be the swiftest and most positive of deodorants for use in the mouth. Odors Present After 4 Days In these experiments, Listerine and four other mouthwashes were tested for deodorant power against twelve unpleasant odors. One of the fore- most analytical chemists of the day conducted the work. He revesled that Listerine almost instantly over- came odors which ordinary mouthwashes could not hide in four days. In other words, Listerine was found to be the only antiseptic mouthwash prac- tical for deodorizing the breath. even ONION ODOR yields to it * Listerine Gets Rid of Onion Odor In a second series of tests to determine the value of Listerine and another antiseptic in overcoming the odor_gf onion on the breath, Listerine’s superi- ority was clearly established. Listerine overcame the odor immediately. While upon the breath of those who used the other mouth- wash,-the onion odor was clearly apparent at the end of 24 hours. Strikes At Cause 90% of all halitosis is caused by tiny bits of food fermenting in the mouth. Another 5% is caused by mouth infections, such as pyorrhea. Other causes are excesses of smoking, drinking, and eating. Listerine succeeds so well as a deodorant be- cause it instantly halts fermentation and infection, the principal causes of odors. And then overcomes the odors themselves. It has a double action—ger- micidal and deodorant. Itis at the same time safe— and therefore preferable to mouthwashes so harsh they must be diluted before they dare be used. Keep Listerine handy in home and office, and carry it with you when you travel. It is your cer- tain assurance that your breath will not offend others. And your protection against infection. Ask for Listerine tonight at your druggist’s and see that you get nothing else. Lambert Pharmacal Com- pany, St. Louis, Mo., U.S. A, THE SWIFT, CERTAIN REMEDY FOR HALITOSIS