Worms are the torment of some children: the symptoms are, an unnatural craving for food, even after a full meal; costiveness, suddenly followed by the reverse; fetid breath, a livid circle under the eyes, enlarged abdomen, and picking the nose; for which the remedies must be prescribed by the doctor.

Costiveness - 229 In Infancy - 229 In Childhood - 231 IV.

Costiveness of the bowels may frequently be removed by changing the food to tops and bottoms steeped in hot water, and a small quantity of milk added, or prepared barley,mixed in warm water and unboiled milk.

And a parent is only justified in giving aperient medicine, when any deviation from these conditions exists; and only then, when what may be called healthy costiveness is present, viz.

Then, again, no purgative can be so much relied on for overcoming habitual costiveness as castor oil; it may for this purpose be given daily for some weeks, gradually reducing the dose until only a few drops be taken; after which the bowels generally continue to act without further artificial assistance.

A liniment to be rubbed on the stomach is another resource in cases of habitual costiveness, and will frequently be attended with great success when repeated purgatives have been resisted.

The same food that agrees perfectly well with one child will frequently cause costiveness in another.

Errors in diet, a want of proper attention to the state of the skin, insufficiency of air and exercise, in fine, a neglect of those general principles which have been laid down for the management of health, and upon the observance of which the due and healthy performance of every function of the body depends, are the sources of bowel derangements, and particularly, at this age, of costiveness.

I feel assured, however, that some children are more troubled with costiveness than others, from the simple but important circumstance of their not being early taught the habit of relieving the bowels daily, and at a certain hour.

All these points must be sedulously observed, and upon the principles laid down in the various chapters upon these subjects, if habitual costiveness is expected to be overcome.

Costiveness must be guarded against; and if at any time the secretions from the bowels indicate the presence of derangement, the medical attendant must be applied to, that appropriate remedies may without delay be exhibited.

Costiveness, in infancy, 50.

Treatment of the various kinds of Indigestion; of Looseness;of Costiveness.

4. Costiveness, hot baths, sweating, issues stopped, Venus in excess, or in defect, phlebotomy, purging, &c. Air; hot, cold, tempestuous, dark, thick, foggy, moorish, &c. Subs.

" Costiveness.]

In the first rank of these, I may well reckon up costiveness, and keeping in of our ordinary excrements, which as it often causeth other diseases, so this of melancholy in particular.

A young merchant going to Nordeling fair in Germany, for ten days' space never went to stool; at his return he was grievously melancholy, thinking that he was robbed, and would not be persuaded but that all his money was gone; his friends thought he had some philtrum given him, but Cnelius, a physician, being sent for, found his costiveness alone to be the cause, and thereupon gave him a clyster, by which he was speedily recovered.

And although they "do eat much, yet they are lean, ill-liking," saith Areteus, "withered and hard, much troubled with costiveness," crudities, oppilations, spitting, belching, &c.

2. Rectification of retention and evacuation, as costiveness, venery, bleeding at nose, months stopped, baths, &c. Memb.

I have declared in the causes what harm costiveness hath done in procuring this disease; if it be so noxious, the opposite must needs be good, or mean at least, as indeed it is, and to this cure necessarily required; maxime conducit, saith Montaltus, cap.

Against Costiveness, &c. In this kind of melancholy one of the most offensive symptoms is wind, which, as in the other species, so in this, hath great need to be corrected and expelled.

If costiveness offend in this, or any other of the three species, it is to be corrected with suppositories, clysters or lenitives, powder of senna, condite prunes, &c. [Symbol: Rx] Elect.

CONSTIPATION, more commonly called costiveness, is also a very common complaint.

There is generally also a deficiency of bile in the motions, and, in addition to simple costiveness, we have more or less loss of appetite, with a too pale tongue, dullness, and sleepiness, with slight redness of the conjunctiva.

They are of considerable service in costiveness accompanied with heat or irritation, which the more stimulating cathartics would tend to aggravate: where prunes are not of themselves sufficient, their effects may be promoted by joining with them a little rhubarb or the like; to which may be added some carminative ingredient, to prevent their occasioning flatulencies.