296 SCIENCE PROGRESS 



Beri-beri does not occur when the offal, amounting to about 

 10 per cent, of the grain, is consumed with the rice. Schaumann 

 attributes the disease to an insufficiency of organically combined 

 phosphorus ; experiments he has made with animals appear to 

 show that whilst the addition of inorganic phosphates has no 

 effect on the disease, substances rich in phosphorus organically 

 bound prevent or cure it. A search for the active principle in 

 rice offal showed that 85 per cent, of the total phosphorus 

 in the offal is ineffective and narrowed the effective agent 

 down to substances soluble in alcohol, amounting to only v6 

 per cent, of the grain. The nature of the active substance is 

 not known : it remains a most remarkable fact that the addition 

 of this small proportion to rice deprived of its cuticle is effica- 

 cious in preventing the onset of the disease. 



Work with wheat on similar lines will perhaps lead to 

 interesting results. Taking Schaumann's and Hopkins's work 

 into account, it would seem that particular combinations ot 

 elements of which perhaps phosphorus is an essential con- 

 stituent may be necessary for the normal nutrition of the body. 



A new field of inquiry is thus opened up for workers in 

 nutrition. 



The results quoted certainly justify Dr. Hamill's final finding, 

 which may be quoted verbatim : 



" Entire wheat flours (including stone-ground flours and 

 4 standard ' flours) are in nearly the same position as ' house- 

 holds,' although when made from weak wheats they will usually 

 contain less available protein than ' households ' made from 

 strong wheats. They possess, however, additional constituents, 

 due to the presence of branny particles and the germ of the 

 wheat, which appear to have a value of their own in nutrition 

 and may as a result of further investigation be shown to 

 comprise phosphorus containing organic compounds or other 

 substances the presence of which in some part of the dietary, 

 even in minute quantity, is important in maintaining good 

 health." 



But it is realised that, after all, the question ol bread is 

 mainly an economic one. In the case of an average liberal 

 mixed diet, the advantages which one variety of bread may 

 possess over another become negligible. The extra cost of the 

 proprietary breads more than counterbalances any superiority 

 in nutritive value, far better value being obtained by applying 



