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Telephone:
TEDington Lock 4521
TEDington Lock 4411-5
PUBLIC HEALTH DEPARTMENT,
ELMPIELD HOUSE,
HIGH STREET,
TEDDINGTON.
To the Mayor, Aldermen and Councillors of the Borough of Twickenham.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,
I have the honour to submit my Annual Report for 1960 on the
health and sanitary conditions of the Borough together with the
supplement containing the statistical tables for 1959 as required by
the Ministry of Health. I apologise for this report being so late;
it has awaited my return to duty after my illness; I am very grateful
for the indulgence and sympathy you have shown to me.
The infant death rate continues to be low at 16.78 deaths per
1,000 live births, which shows good care is taken of the infants by
their parents. Mothers attend the clinics in enormous numbers; they
must therefore feel they get good service, good advice, help and
comfort from going there or they would not come. We get our reward
in healthy babies given a good start in life.
The population of the Borough has remained steady this last
3 years at about 103,600. There is little difference in the number
of deaths from cancer each year which remains at about 230. Diseases
of the circulatory system, such as atherosclerosis, coronary thrombosis,
and stroke, continue to be the most serious menace to people grow
ing older. There were 669 deaths in this group. There is good
reason for believing that atherosclerosis may have as a contributory
cause the deficiency in the consumption of linoleic acid which is
contained in the vegetable fats such as maize oil. In the experimental
clinic for older people at Teddington we have been observing the
effects of the part substitution of vegetable fat for animal fat
and have been encouraged to observe that the progress of atherosclerosis
seems at least to be halted if not reversed under this regime.
The day may come when the full cause will be completely known and
we may then be in a position of controlling and preventing this
disease as we have been in the case of so many others.
An important advance has been putting into effect the provisions
of the Clean Air Act which enables us to get rid of smoke in the
whole of the Borough. The Health Committee went to considerable
pains to find out the extent of the problem, and what would be
needed and the probable cost. A special survey was done on a 10%
sample of all types of houses in the Borough which showed that the
estimated total number of grate conversions required was over
20,000. The total estimated cost was nearly £300,000.and the cost
to the Corporation was estimated at approximately £96.000. The
Corporation have faced this problem boldly and have decided to try
to clear the whole Borough within 10 years which is a formidable
and costly undertaking. They are to be congratulated on this wise
health promoting measure.
Once again it is a pleasure to acknowledge and commend the
untiring zeal and devotion to duty of the staff, both those with me
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