Clean living movement
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In the history of the United States, a clean living movement is a period of time when a surge of health-reform crusades erupts into the popular consciousness. This results in individual, or group reformers such as the anti-tobacco or alcohol coalitions of the late twentieth century, to campaign to eliminate the health problem or to "clean up" society. The term "Clean Living Movement" was coined by Ruth C. Engs, a Professor of Applied Health Sciences at
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...
in 1990.


Background

Cycles of social reforms have been observed in religion, politics, the economy and other areas of human endeavor. Reforms to clean up society in regard to issues related to health also appear to come in cycles. Reform campaigns during Clean Living Movements include
temperance Temperance may refer to: Moderation *Temperance movement, movement to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed *Temperance (virtue), habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion Culture *Temperance (group), Canadian danc ...
(anti-alcohol), social purity (sexuality), diet, physical exercise,
eugenics Eugenics ( ; ) is a fringe set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter human gene pools by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior o ...
(heredity),
public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...
, and anti-
tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
and drug campaigns. Interest in these issues rise and fall more or less simultaneously and often follow a religious awakening in which both evangelical sentiments and the development of new sects emerge. The movements also coincide with episodes of
xenophobia Xenophobia () is the fear or dislike of anything which is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression of perceived conflict between an in-group and out-group and may manifest in suspicion by the one of the other's activities, a ...
or
moral panic A moral panic is a widespread feeling of fear, often an irrational one, that some evil person or thing threatens the values, interests, or well-being of a community or society. It is "the process of arousing social concern over an issue", us ...
in which various minorities are targeted as undesirable influences for medical or moral reasons. In the
United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
, and to somewhat of a lesser extent in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and other Western
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
an cultures, these health reform movements tend to come in approximate 80-year cycles, ranging from about 70 to 90 years for individual issues. However, the campaign to eliminate
polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...
would not be considered a clean living movements as it was a single issue crusade. Reformers in these movements first attempt to convince individuals they should not drink, smoke or engage in behaviors or lifestyles harmful to health. When this does not work, public policies to prohibit the behaviors are instituted. After the main thrust of the movement, when reformers have failed to change behaviors even by legislation, a hereditarian, or eugenics movement reaches its prime. Reformers may reason that the root causes must be in the genes. During the cycle's ebb, popular changes or reforms that make sense, such as
personal hygiene Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
or
sanitation Sanitation refers to public health conditions related to clean drinking water and treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap. Sanitation syste ...
, become institutionalized. On the other hand, a backlash often emerges against unpopular or restrictive reforms, such as
prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...
of alcohol. In the United States, widespread health agitation and subsequent reforms have, within a decade or so, coincided with the religious awakenings of the Jacksonian (1830-1860), the Progressive (1890-1920), and the Millennial (1970-) reform eras.


Jacksonian era (1830–1860)

During the Jacksonian era and out of the second great awakening, a crusade against "Demon rum" and other spirits ensued in states east of the Mississippi River and north of the
Mason–Dixon line The Mason–Dixon line, also called the Mason and Dixon line or Mason's and Dixon's line, is a demarcation line separating four U.S. states, forming part of the borders of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia (part of Virginia ...
. This resulted in statewide prohibition of alcohol in this region beginning in the state of Maine in 1851. However, rampant smuggling across the Ohio River and down from Canada soon ended these state laws as they were unenforceable. Various ethnic, cultural, and religious minorities such as
Irish immigrants The Irish diaspora ( ga, Diaspóra na nGael) refers to ethnic Irish people and their descendants who live outside the island of Ireland. The phenomenon of migration from Ireland is recorded since the Early Middle Ages,Flechner and Meeder, The ...
and Roman Catholics were held up as moral examples during the period, thought to be responsible for both excessive drinking and the spread of diseases such as cholera. During this era a focus on exercise, non-use of tobacco, and the elimination of coffee, tea, sugar, meat and spice from a diet, called "Grahamism," – named after reformer Sylvester Graham – was promoted. Eugenic or "hereditarian" concerns that masturbation would lead to
insanity Insanity, madness, lunacy, and craziness are behaviors performed by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity can be manifest as violations of societal norms, including a person or persons becoming a danger to themselves or t ...
and that choosing sick or feeble spouses would lead to further degeneration were discussed. Out of this era Phrenology – the study of shapes and bumps on the head – used to select a healthy marriage partner was popular. New religions that promoted wholesome lifestyles, such as
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...
and
Seventh-day Adventists The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and i ...
emerged.


Progressive era (1890–1920)

The
Progressive era The Progressive Era (late 1890s – late 1910s) was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States focused on defeating corruption, monopoly, waste and inefficiency. The main themes ended during Am ...
's health reform movement emerged in the third great awakening. Individual health crusades, as part of an overall Clean Living Movement, included the temperance and the anti-saloon movement, which evolved into the prohibition movement. This resulted in the Eighteenth Amendment, or
prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...
. An anti-tobacco movement was found during this era, and a number of cities had anti-smoking laws in public buildings. Trains, restaurants, and streetcars often had smoking and non-smoking sections. However, these laws by the mid twentieth-century were generally ignored. The first regulation of narcotic drugs were enacted during this period, regulating the contents of
patent medicine A patent medicine, sometimes called a proprietary medicine, is an over-the-counter (nonprescription) medicine or medicinal preparation that is typically protected and advertised by a trademark and trade name (and sometimes a patent) and claimed ...
s. The first
Pure Food and Drug Act The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, also known as Dr. Wiley's Law, was the first of a series of significant consumer protection laws which was enacted by Congress in the 20th century and led to the creation of the Food and Drug Administratio ...
, regulating the labelling of patent medicines and the claims made in their advertising, was passed in 1906. The smoking of opium was prohibited by the
Harrison Narcotics Tax Act The Harrison Narcotics Tax Act (Ch. 1, ) was a United States federal law that regulated and taxed the production, importation, and distribution of opiates and coca products. The act was proposed by Representative Francis Burton Harrison of New Y ...
of 1914 as an exotic vice imported with immigration from China. In addition to these drug prohibitions, further immigration from East Asia was sharply curtailed by the
Asian Exclusion Act The Immigration Act of 1924, or Johnson–Reed Act, including the Asian Exclusion Act and National Origins Act (), was a United States federal law that prevented immigration from Asia and set quotas on the number of immigrants from the Eastern ...
of 1924. Likewise, the prohibition of
cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...
during this period was associated with anecdotes about
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
s committing crimes under the influence of the drug. A "purity" or anti- prostitution and social hygiene (
sexually transmitted diseases Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), also referred to as sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and the older term venereal diseases, are infections that are spread by sexual activity, especially vaginal intercourse, anal sex, and oral ...
) movement went hand in hand with the elimination of other supposed evils, such as alcohol, from society. The purity movement also included the elimination of the
double standard A double standard is the application of different sets of principles for situations that are, in principle, the same. It is often used to describe treatment whereby one group is given more latitude than another. A double standard arises when two ...
of sexuality for men and women. The eugenics movement to improve the human race was intertwined with these other movements. Pre-marital testing to ensure that neither partner had syphilis were passed in many states. In the United States, Eugenic sterilization laws were passed to prevent individuals with severe mental or physical health problems including
alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...
from reproducing were instituted in over 30 states


Millennial era (1970–present)

The Clean Living Movement around the turn of the twenty-first century was characterized by many crusades and counter crusades. Activities that surged in the earlier years of the era were often met with counter-movements about ten years later. For example, "women’s liberation" was countered by a "pro-family" movement; the use of marijuana and other drugs was followed by a "war on drugs"; lowering of the drinking age was followed by a raising of the drinking age; non-marital sexual activity was challenged by a new "purity" movement; and legal rights to obtaining abortions ("pro-choice") were met with agitation against
abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...
("pro-life"). The baby boom generation of the post World War II era had experimented with different behaviors not tolerated by the older generation. By the mid 1970s, more conservative Americans began to react against what they perceived as immoral behaviors. They coalesced into political action that included campaigns against the use of drugs, alcohol, sexual, and other activities. A secular health-reform movement, that to some became a "religion," also surged out of the youthful generation. Fitness and exercise, diet, alternative religions and medicine, consumers rights, smoke-free environments, and other health reforms became prime concerns of the day.


See also

* Clean eating *
Hygiene Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
*
Moral panic A moral panic is a widespread feeling of fear, often an irrational one, that some evil person or thing threatens the values, interests, or well-being of a community or society. It is "the process of arousing social concern over an issue", us ...


References

*''Encyclopedia of American Social Movements'', Edited by Immanuel Ness, 2004, * * * * * * *{{cite journal, last = Engs , first = Ruth C , url = http://www.indiana.edu/~engs/articles/clean.html , title = Resurgence of a new clean living movement in the United States , journal = The Journal of School Health , year = 1991 , volume = 61 , issue = 4 , pages = 155–9 , doi = 10.1111/j.1746-1561.1991.tb01198.x , pmid = 1857105 , accessdate = 2006-04-26 , hdl = 2022/17484 , hdl-access = free Social history Social movements in the United States Ethical schools and movements American culture Health campaigns