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66
In nutrition and in soundness of teeth and vision,
Bethnal Green children are under the average for
London. There can be no doubt this is mainly due
to economic causes, which is certainly responsible for
the fact that only 19.9 per cent. of Bethnal Green
children are well clothed and shod compared with 54.5
per cent, throughout London. The irony of this situation
is that the clothing and boot and shoe trades are
two important local industries, in which there is much
unemployment. Last year, in another part of this
report, I had occasion to comment, with satisfaction,
on the strenuous efforts of the residents in the borough
to eradicate insect vermin. I am, therefore, extremely
gratified to note that this year Bethnal Green has
achieved the record, wonderful considering its housing
conditions, of having a higher standard of cleanliness
of head and body among school children than the
average for London as a whole. The medical inspection
figures as a whole, however, are a plain demonstration
that there is a lack of adequate medical care of young
children in the years immediately preceding their
attendance at school.
To remedy this requires some extension of the
present facilities for the supervision of "the toddler"
and closer relations between the Maternity and Child
Welfare and School Medical Services. The routine
medical inspection of toddlers by Dr. Horton, the
full-time Medical Officer, which has been in operation
since the beginning of 1932 is a small contribution to
the solution of the problem, but much more requires
to be done.