STATE OF NUTRITION. 193 
POPULAR BELIEFS REGARDING THE STATE OF NUTRITION. 
Two decades ago people who were highly colored and plump, even to 
excess, were popularly regarded as looking healthy and vigorous. 
More recently, the general trend of popular opinion has been somewhat 
away from the earlier point of View, and to-day there is reasonable 
doubt in the minds of the laity as to whether or not a stout person is as 
healthy as one of average weight. On the other hand, there is a strong 
belief that to be thin is a Sign of ill health. Such individuals are con- 
sidered as undernourished or half-starved, less efficient, and less able to 
withstand either severe work or disease than their better-nourished 
competitors. 
One of the difficulties immediately experienced in attempting to 
classify individuals as ''underweight" or "undernourished" is the fact 
that even in the language of medical experts the differences are not 
clearly indicated. Personal conferences with eminent medical exam- 
iners and actuaries lead us to the belief that there is no sharp distinc- 
tion between these two stages. Individuals who are underweight 
would have been, a decade ago, classified as undernourished, but with 
the increasing belief that underweight is not necessarily disadvanta- 
geous to health, medical examiners are rather disinclined at the present 
time to consider mere underweight as an index of undernourishment 
unless supported by other evidence. Still, it is the popular belief that 
the best efficiency is obtained from men who are well nourished rather 
than from those who are underweight; thus the distinction between 
''undernourished" and "underweight" is not readily made. 
It is likewise difficult to state quantitatively what is meant by a fat, 
medium fat, thin, or moderately thin person. The best practice at the 
present time uses the average weight of individuals for a given height, 
age, and sex, and ordinarily indicates differences of 5, 10, or 15 pounds 
over or under weight, without statement as to whether or not the per- 
sons are undernourished. It is quite clear, also, that the general build of 
the body must be taken into consideration, for if an individual is tall and 
extremely thin he might be classified as undernourished, particularly if 
the frame is very broad. Still, in the absence of a more exact classifi- 
cation, it is sufficiently satisfactory to use the average weight and indi- 
cate, in accordance with the best actuarial usage, whether the person is 
over or under weight in terms of plus or minus 5 or multiples of 5 
pounds. 
BODY-WEIGHT AS INDEX OF FOOD REQUIREMENT. 
The body-weight is dependent upon the food intake on the one hand 
and the oxidation of food or body-material on the other. The majority 
of adults retain their body-weight almost without change for years, if 
not decades. This is the more surprising when one considers the great 
number of foods available and the variety in nature, quality, and quan- 
