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7
WATER
The water of the district is supplied by the Metropolitan Water
Board and has been throughout the year of good quality.
DEATH RATE
Sixty males and eighty-eight females died in the year under
review, giving a death rate of 9.9 per 1,000 of the population, as compared
with 11.2 in 1918. The death rate for England and Wales in
1919 was 13.8 per 1,000.
Thirty-two residents died outside the district and are included
in the above figures, while twelve persons belonging to other places
died here and are not included.
Excluding the infectious diseases, which are discussed in a
later paragraph, the principal causes of death were organic heart
disease (19 cases) and cancer (19 cases). Bronchitis, pneumonia, and
other respiratory diseases were responsible for 18 of the registered
deaths.
BIRTH RATE
The number of children born in the district in 1919 was 227, of
whom 39 belonged to other districts and have been transferred. The
net number accredited to Wanstead is 188 (119 males, 78 females),
giving a birth rate of 12.1 per 1,000 as compared with 9.0 in 1918.
I am glad to be able to report an improvement in the birth rate, but it
is still considerably below the figure for the whole country (England and
Wales), which is 18.5 per 1,000.
INFANT MORTALITY
In 1919 four children under one year died, two of the deaths
being from influenza; the number of deaths under one year in 1918 was
six. The death rate per 1,000 births was therefore 21.2 as compared
with 38.4 in the previous year. The figure for England and Wales was
89. The infantile mortality rate has always been relatively low in
Wanstead, and that for 1919 is the lowest of any previous year. This
is of special interest, in view of the work you are doing under the
Maternity and Child Welfare Act, 1918.
INFECTIOUS EASES
A reference to the Table of Notifications of Infectious Diseases
shows that Measles heads the list with a total of 92 cases. The greatest
number of cases in any one month was 26 (in July, just before the
schools broke up for the summer vacation). One of the steps taken to
hinder the spread was as follows : Any school class from which a child
had been notified was closed during those days in which any child
already infected might be expected to show the disease and thus to
become a source of further danger. Closing a whole section of a school
was not resorted to on any occasion. Thorough cleansing and spraying
of the schools were practised, and ventilation between classes was