i8o 



How a Complex Annual Uses Food unit iv 



111 M msfM 



Fig. 198 The x-ray to the left was taken on Feb. 5. This child had a bad case uf rickets 

 as shown by the fuzzy edge of the two boTies in the arm. Treatment was begun. The 

 second x-ray was taken Jime 25. What dijfere?ice can you see in the ends of the arm 

 bones? What treat?nent was probably given the child? (general baking co.) 



There are other vitamins in the vita- 

 min B complex: riboflavin, pyridoxin, 

 pantothenic acid, and others. All of them 

 dissolve readily in water and are often 

 lost in boiling. Thiamin may be added 

 to foods such as flour and bread. Add- 

 ing vitamins to food is called "enrich- 

 ing" it. 



Vitamin C. This vitamin, associated 

 with scurvy, is now generally known as 

 ascorbic acid. It is not only sailors on 

 long voyages who have sufi^ered from 

 scurvy. Throughout the ages there have 

 been outbreaks of scurvy wherever and 

 whenever there have been wars, famines, 

 or minor shortages of fresh growing 

 foods. At all times mild deficiencies of 

 ascorbic acid are very common. It seems 

 to be needed for the fomiing of connec- 

 tive tissues in the walls of the blood ves- 

 sels. 



The best sources of ascorbic acid are 

 grapefruit, oranges, and the other citrus 



fruits. Parsley, tomatoes both canned 

 and raw, peppers, and raw cabbage are 

 particularly rich in it. Dried seeds like 

 peas and beans have no vitamin C, but 

 if they are allowed to sprout they form 

 it and become a good source. It is com- 

 pletely lacking in eggs and meat, though 

 very small amounts are found in liver and 

 milk. Spinach and broccoli contain large 

 amounts but much of the vitamin C is 

 lost in cooking. 



Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) is the most 

 easily lost of all the vitamins. It dissolves 

 readily in water and is therefore lost if 

 the water in which vegetables are cooked 

 is thrown away. In the presence of acids, 

 however, heat and oxygen of the air 

 have less effect on the vitamin. For this 

 reason tomatoes, which contain much 

 acid, keep their ascorbic acid after being 

 exposed to the high temperatures of can- 

 ning. In commercial canning, and most 

 canning in the home, oxygen is excluded 



