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This study of a group of healthy preschool children attending the Cornell Nursery School was undertaken in order to determine whether irradiation with ultraviolet rays during the winter months would prove beneficial in lessening illness, particularly colds, in improving hemoglobin, in increasing gains in height and weight or in improving the children's physical condition in other respects.The children in the Nursery School groups ranged in age from 2 to 5 years. They came from superior homes and lived for the most part on very good hygienic regimens with an opportunity for outdoor play. Their diets were carefully supervised and included ample fruit juices and daily doses of cod liver oil. In spite of these favorable conditions it was found each year that these preschool children lost a great deal of time from illness. The attendance rate in the school has never been above 83 per cent and is sometimes much lower. By far the most frequent cause of these absences was infections due to colds.Colds cause at least 50 per cent of the absences, and some years have accounted for as high as 80 per cent. After most of these colds there was a sharp drop in weight as well as a loss of appetite and general well-being. The winter before this experiment started, hemo¬ globin estimates and red blood counts were made on all the children at the beginning and end of the winter. Most of the children showed a sharp drop in hemoglobin at the end, the average drop being 14 per cent. The red count showed no appreciable change. It was decided to investigate whether the addition of ultraviolet irradiation for healthy children who were receiving cod liver oil and outdoor play would lessen these unfortunate effects of winter.The study has been in progress for two winters-1929-1930 and 1930-1931. It is planned to continue it through other winters until a

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