Worry can even cause tooth decay. Dr. William I. L. McGoniglesaid in an address before the American Dental Associationthat “unpleasant emotions such as those caused by worry， fear，nagging ... may upset the body’s calcium balance and cause toothdecay”. Dr. McGonigle told of a patient of his who had alwayshad a perfect set of teeth until he began to worry over his wife’ssudden illness. During the three weeks she was in the hospital， hedeveloped nine cavities—cavities brought on by worry.
Have you ever seen a person with an acutely over-activethyroid？ I have， and I can tell you they tremble； they shake； theylook like someone half scared to death—and that’s about whatit amounts to. The thyroid gland， the gland that regulates the192 ·
body， has been thrown out of kilter. It speeds up the heart thewhole body is roaring away at full blast like a furnace with all itsdraughts wide open. And if this isn’t checked， by operation ortreatment， the victim may die， may “burn himself out”.
A short time ago I went to Philadelphia with a friend of minewho has this disease. We went to see a famous specialist， a doctorwho has been treating this type of ailment for thirty-eight years.
And what sort of advice do you suppose he had hanging on thewall of his waiting-room-painted on a large wooden sign so all hispatients could see it？ Here it is. I copied it down on the back of anenvelope while I was waiting：
Relaxation and Recreation
The most relaxing recreating forces are a healthyreligion， sleep， music， and laughter.
Have faith in God—learn to sleep well—
Love good music—see the funny side of life—And health and happiness will be yours.
The first question he asked this friend of mine was： “Whatemotional disturbance brought on this condition？” He warnedmy friend that， if he didn’t stop worrying， he could get othercomplications： heart trouble， stomach ulcers， or diabetes. “Allof these diseases，” said that eminent doctor， “are cousins， firstcousins.” Sure， they’re first cousins-they’re all worry diseases！
When I interviewed Merle Oberon， she told me that sherefused to worry because she knew that worry would destroy herchief asset on the motion-picture screen： her good looks.
“When I first tried to break into the movies，” she told me， “Iwas worried and scared. I had just come from India， and I didn’tknow anyone in London， where I was trying to get a job. I saw a few producers， but none of them hired me； and the little moneyI had began to give out. For two weeks I lived on nothing butcrackers and water. I was not only worried now. I was hungry. Isaid to myself： ‘Maybe you’re a fool. Maybe you will never breakinto the movies. After all， you have no experience， you’ve neveracted at all—what have you to offer but a rather pretty face？’
“I went to the mirror. And when I looked in that mirror， I sawwhat worry was doing to my looks！ I saw the lines it was forming.
I saw the anxious expression. So I said to myself： ‘You’ve got tostop this at once！ You can’t afford to worry. The only thing youhave to offer at all is your looks， and worry will ruin them！’ ”
Few things can age and sour a woman and destroy her looksas quickly as worry. Worry curdles the expression. It makes usclench our jaws and lines our faces with wrinkles. It forms apermanent scowl. It may turn the hair grey， and in some cases，even make it fall out. It can ruin the complexion—it can bring onall kinds of skin rashes， eruptions， and pimples.
Heart disease， is the number-one killer in America today.
During the Second World War， almost a third of a million menwere killed in combat； but during that same period， heart diseasekilled two million civilians—and one million of those casualtieswere caused by the kind of heart disease that is brought on byworry and high-tension living. Yes， heart disease is one of thechief reasons why Dr. Alexis Carrel said： “Business men who donot know how to fight worry die young.” The Negroes down southand the Chinese rarely have the kind of heart disease brought onby worry， because they take things calmly. Twenty times as manydoctors as farm workers die from heart failure. The doctors leadtense lives—and pay the penalty.