104
Healthful Living
proper provides for the protection and development of every part of
the body.—
Testimonies for the Church 4:635
.
539. Woman’s dress should be arranged so loosely upon the person,
about the waist, that she can breathe without the least obstruction. Her
arms should be left perfectly free, that she may raise them above her
head with ease.... The compression of the waist by tight lacing prevents
the waste matter from being thrown off through its natural channels.
The most important of these is the lungs.... If the lungs are cramped,
they cannot develop; but their capacity will be diminished, making it
impossible to take a sufficient inspiration of air.... The compression
of the waist weakens the muscles of the respiratory organs. It hinders
the process of digestion. The heart, liver, lungs, spleen, and stomach
are crowded into a small compass, not allowing room for the healthful
action of these organs.—
The Heath Reformer, November 1, 1871
; see
also,
Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, 88
.
540. The dress should fit easily, obstructing neither the circu-
lation of the blood, nor a free, full, natural respiration.—
Christian
Temperance and Bible Hygiene, 89
.
541. Our Creator made no mistake in fashioning the human body.
He gave appropriate space for the free action of every organ, and
formed us in such a way that every muscle could come into play
[123]
without trespassing upon the function of any other muscle.—
The
Youth’s Instructor, September 14, 1893
.
542. Lacing causes displacements, and this form of disease is
increasing with each successive generation.—
The Health Reformer,
November 1, 1871
.
543. Many have become lifelong invalids through their compli-
ance with the demands of fashion. Displacements and deformities,
cancers and other terrible diseases, are among the evils resulting from
fashionable dress.—
Testimonies for the Church 4:635
.
544. Half the diseases of women are caused by unhealthful dress.—
The Health Reformer, February 1, 1877 par. 2
.
Heavy Skirts
545. The hips are not formed to bear heavy weights. The heavy
skirts worn by women, their weight dragging down upon the hips,
have been the cause of various diseases which are not easily cured,