262 THE VITAMINES 



experiments to clear up this point. From what has been said in 

 this chapter, it is evident that we are not yet fully informed as to 

 the nutritive value of milk, and that this foodstuff still presents some 

 riddles for us to solve. 



MEAT 



The significance of meat as a component of our diet is threefold. 

 First, as an important source of protein; second, as a source of vitam- 

 ines when it is used as a sole food; and third, for its "vitamine- 

 sparing" action. The last characteristic will be treated more fully 

 later. In accord with our own experience, we know of no single food 

 which requires so little vitamine addition as does protein material, 

 especially meat. 



When we speak of meat in this chapter, we have in mind muscle 

 tissue only, since glandular organs like liver, kidney, etc., are charac- 

 terized by a special richness in vitamines. Vitamine B was first 

 demonstrated in meat by Cooper (I.e. 535). Osborne and Mendel 

 (776) investigated the value of dried meat and did not find it par- 

 ticularly rich in vitamine; on successive extraction with water, the 

 amount of vitamine B decreased considerably. According to Osborne 

 and Mendel (777), dried meat contains sufficient vitamine A, while 

 pig's brain and heart has enough of both A- and B-vitamines. Cole 

 (778) reported that powdered meat contains a sufficient amount of 

 A- and B-vitamines. 



Pertaining to the vitamine C content of meat, practical experience 

 and laboratory findings do not seem to go parallel. Naturally, the 

 discrepancies are only apparent, since practice has shown that fresh 

 meat contains small amounts of vitamine C. This is evident from 

 the report of Nansen (779) on his polar expedition, as well as from the 

 report of Stefansson (780). The latter stated that scurvy was cured 

 by an addition of fresh meat. However, we already knew from the 

 work of Curran (781) that 2 to 4 pounds of raw meat are necessary, 

 since he observed cases of scurvy on a daily consumption of 500 grams 

 cooked meat. Willcox (782) stated that in the English army in 

 Mesopotamia scurvy developed because the Indian troops refused 

 to eat meat. He was of the opinion that meat could function as an 

 antiscorbutic. Pitz (I.e. 365), in his studies on guinea pig scurvy, 

 found that an increase in the protein proportion of the diet definitely 

 prolongs the life of the animal, which may perhaps be regarded as 



