London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1921
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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30
Although minor fluctuations take place each year in the figures, the results of medical inspection
viewed broadly over a period of years, show a steady and continuous improvement in the general social
and physical condition of the children. The following tables exhibit the general state of the children
in regard to clothing, nutrition and cleanliness as found in the years 1913-1921.
General
conditions.
ENTRANT INFANTS.
| clothing and Footgear. | n utrition. | Cleanliness (Head). | Cleanliness (Body). | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year. | Good. | Fair. | Poor. | Excellent. | Nor mal | Sub norm10al | Clean. | Nits | Verminous. | Clean. | Dirty | Ver minous. |
| Boys 1913 | 53.9 | 42.5 | 3.6 | 30.7 | 58.5 | 10.8 | 86.6 | 12.8 | 0.6 | 77.7 | 20.6 | 1.7 |
| 1914 | 56.3 | 40.4 | 3.3 | 31.2 | 60.7 | 81 | 88.0 | 11.6 | 0.4 | 81.7 | 17.3 | 1.0 |
| 1915 | 57.8 | 39.9 | 2.3 | 32.1 | 62.4 | 5.4 | 90.0 | 9.7 | 0.3 | 82.0 | 17.2 | 0.8 |
| *1917 | 55.7 | 42.2 | 2.1 | 31.1 | 64.1 | 4.8 | 90.0 | 9.8 | 0.2 | 82.9 | 16.3 | 0.8 |
| 1918 | 580 | 40.3 | 1.7 | 31.4 | 63.9 | 4.7 | 92.9 | 7.0 | 0.1 | 89.7 | 9.8 | 0.4 |
| 1919 | 59.6 | 38.3 | 2.1 | 29.3 | 64.6 | 6.1 | 93.4 | 6.4 | 0.2 | 91.5 | 8.2 | 0.3 |
| 1920 | 60. 3 | 379 | 1.8 | 26. 1 | 67. 5 | 6.4 | 93. 8 | 5.9 | 0.3 | 90. 9 | 8.7 | 0.4 |
| Girls 1913 | 55.1 | 42.3 | 2.6 | 32.7 | 57.5 | 9.0 | 73.4 | 24.9 | 1.7 | 77.0 | 21.3 | 1.7 |
| 1914 | 56.7 | 40.7 | 2.6 | 32.2 | 60.6 | 7.2 | 73.5 | 24.7 | 1.8 | 81.3 | 17.7 | 1.0 |
| 1915 | 58.0 | 40.5 | 2.0 | 32.3 | 62.5 | 5.1 | 76.2 | 22.4 | 1.4 | 81.1 | 18.0 | 0.9 |
| *1917 | 55.5 | 42.8 | 1.7 | 31.3 | 64.1 | 4.6 | 74.7 | 24.4 | 0.9 | 81.6 | 17.6 | 0.8 |
| 1918 | 57.5 | 40.9 | 1.6 | 31.3 | 64.3 | 4.4 | 79.6 | 19.8 | 0.6 | 88.6 | 10.9 | 0.5 |
| 1919 | 59.6 | 38.9 | 1.5 | 29.2 | 65.1 | 5.7 | 80.5 | 18.3 | 1.2 | 90.9 | 8.8 | 0.3 |
| 1920 | 60.7 | 38. 0 | 1.3 | 26. 6 | 67.5 | 5.9 | 82.2 | 16. 5 | 1.3 | 90. 6 | 9. 0 | 0.4 |
| INTERMEDIATE AGE GROUP (AGED 8). | ||||||||||||
| 47.5 | 45.4 | 7.1 | 22.0 | 62.2 | 15.8 | 87.1 | 12.3 | 0.6 | 72.0 | 25.1 | 2.9 | |
| 1914 | 47.8 | 45.9 | 6.3 | 19.9 | 70.1 | 10.0 | 86.9 | 12.6 | 0.5 | 75.3 | 22.9 | 1.8 |
| 1915 | 51.4 | 44.6 | 4.0 | 21.1 | 69.8 | 9.1 | 88.4 | 11.4 | 0.2 | 76.6 | 22.0 | 1.4 |
| 1916 | 52.4 | 44.1 | 3.5 | 23.6 | 67.0 | 9.4 | 89.2 | 10.6 | 0.2 | 79.3 | 19.7 | |
| 1917 | 51.7 | 44.8 | 3.5 | 20.9 | 70.6 | 8.5 | 89.4 | 10.4 | 0.2 | 79.8 | 19.1 | 1.1 |
| 1918 | 51.3 | 45.6 | 3.1 | 19.7 | 73.1 | 7.2 | 91.6 | 8.3 | 0.1 | 85.6 | 13.8 | 0.6 |
| 1919 | 53.9 | 42.8 | 3.3 | 20.3 | 71.8 | 7.9 | 93.1 | 6.7 | 0.2 | 89.2 | 10.4 | 0.4 |
| 1920 | 55 .8 | 40.6 | 3.6 | 16.8 | 74.2 | 9.0 | 93. 4 | 6.4 | 0.2 | 88.5 | 11.1 | 0.4 |
| Girls 1913 | 51.4 | 43.9 | 4.7 | 25.1 | 61.4 | 13.5 | 67.3 | 30.3 | 2.4 | 73.7 | 24.2 | 2.1 |
| 1914 | 51.6 | 45.0 | 3.4 | 22.8 | 68.2 | 9.0 | 66.3 | 31.6 | 2.1 | 77.8 | 20.8 | 1.4 |
| 1915 | 55.0 | 43.0 | 2.0 | 23.3 | 69.0 | 7.7 | 69.2 | 29.4 | 1.4 | 77.6 | 21.4 | 1.0 |
| 1916 | 55.6 | 43.8 | 1.6 | 26.4 | 65.6 | 80 | 68.8 | 29.9 | 1.3 | 80.5 | 18.8 | 0.7 |
| 1917 | 53.5 | 44.3 | 2.2 | 22.3 | 70.2 | 7.5 | 68.8 | 29.9 | 1.3 | 80.9 | 18.3 | 0.8 |
| 1918 | 54.5 | 43.7 | 1.8 | 21.3 | 72.2 | 6.5 | 71.3 | 27.8 | 0.9 | 85.4 | 14. 0 | 0.6 |
| 1919 | 56.1 | 42. 0 | 1.9 | 22.4 | 70.6 | 7.0 | 74.2 | 24.0 | 1.8 | 89.5 | 10.2 | 0.3 |
| 192 | 58.2 | 39. 8 | 2.0 | 18.2 | 74. 0 | 7.8 | 76.5 | 21.9 | 1.6 | 88.6 | 10.9 | 0.5 |
| OLDER CHILDREN (AGED 12) | ||||||||||||
| Boys 1913 | 491 | 45.4 | 5.5 | 26.4 | 58.9 | 14.7 | 87.3 | 12. 3 | 0.4 | 73.1 | 24.3 | 2.6 |
| 1914 | 52.6 | 41.9 | 5.5 | 26.4 | 61.1 | 12.5 | 88.5 | 11.2 | 0.3 | 75.1 | 23.0 | 1.9 |
| 1915 | 52.5 | 43.4 | 4.1 | 29.0 | 63.8 | 7.2 | 90.9 | 8.9 | 0.2 | 77.9 | 20.9 | 1.2 |
| 1916 | 54.3 | 42.2 | 3.5 | 29.4 | 63.8 | 6.8 | 90.6 | 9.2 | 0.2 | 79.2 | 19.8 | 1.0 |
| 1917 | 51.1 | 45.1 | 3.8 | 27.1 | 66.7 | 6.2 | 90.7 | 9.2 | 0.1 | 79.2 | 19.5 | 1.3 |
| 1918 | 51.2 | 45.2 | 3.6 | 25.2 | 69.5 | 5.3 | 91.8 | 8.1 | 0.1 | 84.0 | 15.2 | 0.8 |
| 1919 | 50.6 | 45.1 | 4.3 | 26.1 | 68.7 | 5.2 | 93.4 | 6.5 | 0.1 | 88.4 | 11.2 | 0.4 |
| 1920 | 53.5 | 43. 0 | 3.5 | 23.5 | 70.2 | 6.3 | 94.2 | 5.7 | 0.1 | 87.1 | 12.5 | 0.4 |
| Girls 1913 | 51.8 | 44.8 | 3.4 | 30.6 | 55.1 | 14.3 | 67.2 | 30.4 | 2.4 | 74.8 | 23.1 | 2.1 |
| 1914 | 55.9 | 40.8 | 3.3 | 29.9 | 58.6 | 11.5 | 68.8 | 29.3 | 1.9 | 78.0 | 20.7 | 1.3 |
| 1915 | 58.2 | 40.1 | 1.7 | 32.8 | 60.9 | 6.3 | 72.6 | 26.2 | 1.2 | 80.7 | 18.5 | 0.8 |
| 1916 | 58.9 | 39.8 | 1.3 | 31.4 | 62.3 | 6.3 | 70.8 | 28.1 | 1.1 | 81.7 | 17.8 | 0.5 |
| 1917 | 55.3 | 43.3 | 1.4 | 28.5 | 65.2 | 6.3 | 70.2 | 28.7 | 1.1 | 81.7 | 17.6 | 0.7 |
| 1918 | 54.6 | 43.7 | 1.7 | 26.9 | 67.8 | 5.3 | 72.8 | 26.4 | 0.8 | 85.3 | 14.2 | 0.5 |
| 1919 | 56.0 | 42.2 | 1.8 | 27.7 | 67.3 | 5.0 | 74.0 | 24.7 | 1.3 | 89.0 | 10.7 | 0.3 |
| 1920 | 58.5 | 40.5 | 1.4 | 25.4 | 69.0 | 5.6 | 75.8 | 22.8 | 1.4 | 88.4 | 11.2 | 0.4 |
Nutrition.
The figures for nutrition require very careful consideration in view of the existing economic conditions.
There were indications of hardship making itself felt in the figures for 1920. Those for 1921
show how the situation has up to the present been met by concerted measures of children's care and
general relief. The general effect of these measures has been to reduce the percentage of children with
sub-normal nutrition in spite of the increasing stringency of conditions. On the other hand there has
been a distinct lowering of the general nutrition and a smaller proportion of children are returned with
" excellent " nutrition. It may be claimed, therefore, that while generally there has been a lowering of
the nutritional state of the children, on the other hand cases of distress have been adequately dealt with
and very few cases of suffering amongst children in regard to want of food occur and these are promptly
dealt with when found.
* The figures for infants for 1917 are for the third term only, when inspection of entrants in detail
was resumed after its discontinuance in 1916.