Never force the appetite. Food that is neither relished nor
digested will do more harm than good.

It must never be forgotten that the blood of the child is being
directly derived from that of the mother, consequently if the diet is
of such a nature as to induce over-abundance of fat, the child will be
born too fat. This does not mean a healthy child by any means, and it
may mean considerable extra pain for the mother. A mother inclined to
thinness need not fear that this diet will reduce her. The taking of
cream, eggs, bacon and other fat foods often has the opposite effect
from that desired. A thin person adopting the above light diet will
generally get into good condition.

Under the head of _exercise_, the first we would recommend is general
housework, provided windows are kept open, avoiding the more laborious
parts, and always being careful not to get over-fatigued. Light
gardening, walks, if not too long, and light gymnastic exercises are
all beneficial. The exercises described in the appendix, practised for
ten minutes at a time, once or twice a day, are quite suitable for the
expectant mother, while deep breathing (_see_ Breathing, Correct Method
of) is most valuable.

The subject of _dress_ should be particularly studied. Garments which
are light, warm, porous, and which in no way impede or restrict the
movements and natural functions of the body, should be worn. It has
been found that those who wear no corset nor tight band or bodice will
suffer but little, if at all, from morning sickness. Corsets, by
holding immobile the waist muscles, prevent their getting strong.
Anyone who is accustomed to corsets, when she leaves them off for a day
will complain of "such a tired feeling, as if she would break in two."
This is easily accounted for, the muscles, unused to the task of
holding up the body, are flabby and useless. These same muscles when
called on, at the moment of delivery, are totally unfit for their work,
hence comes a large amount of the unnecessary suffering. The remedy
is--discard the corsets, bear with the tiredness for a week or two and
regularly practice the exercises recommended above, especially the
waist exercises of bending and turning. The muscles will soon gain
strength, and the corset be found to be quite unnecessary and most
uncomfortable.

In the commencement of pregnancy, when there is sickness and vomiting,
we have seen it cured, even when so severe as to threaten life, by
spreading