Medicus tells us, "If you would preserve your eyesight and have it strong and good, you must live well and regularly, avoid cold and damp either in the feet or the body, rise early, and do not forget the bath; in fact, obey all the rules that regulate the health of the human frame." He has other tips for preserving eyesight (cod-liver oil seems to work for nearly anything). This advice reminds us that Victorian doctors like Medicus saw the body not as a collection of discrete parts, but as an interconnected system, where anything that adversely affects one member will adversely affect others as well.

Caring for Vision

The Toilet: The Eyes (Peterson's, 1856)

How to Preserve Eyesight and Hearing (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1876)

Bright Eyes and Teeth Like Pearl, by "Medicus"* (Girl's Own Paper, 1880)

The Preservation of Eyesight (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1880)

The Eyes and the Eyesight, by "Medicus"* (Girl's Own Paper, 1881)

A Few Words About Colour-Blindness, by B.G. Johns (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1882)

How to Choose a Pair of Spectacles, by Dr. Litton Forbes (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1882)

The Human Eye and Some of Its Defects, by Albert Westland (Girl's Own Paper, 1884)

My Eyes Are So Bad (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1889)

The Care of Our Eyesight (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1893)

Spectacled Schoolboys, by Ernest Hart (Atlantic Monthly, 1893)

An article urging the increase of eye exams and corrective lenses for young people.

The Eyes: Their Strength and Beauty, by "Medicus"* (Girl's Own Paper, 1895)

How to Take Care of Our Sight, by "The New Doctor" (Girl's Own Paper, 1898)

Caring for Hearing

How to Preserve Eyesight and Hearing (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1876)

Hard of Hearing (Cassell's Family Magazine, 1888)

Be Warned in Time! Or, Walking the Hospital with "The New Doctor" by "The New Doctor" (Girl's Own Paper, 1898)

The warning is about the serious consequences that can arise from neglecting a seemingly trifling "ear affection" -- a problem that will surely resonate with parents today!

*"Medicus" was the pen-name of Gordon Stables, M.D., R.N., health columnist for The Girl's Own Paper. Read the complete collection of Medicus Columns from 1881-1902 in chronological order.