72 



patients or attendants on leave of absence. However, from data show 

 ing the average population of the hospital an estimate of attendance 

 was made, allowing for absences, etc., which was believed to be toler- 

 ably accurate. According to this estimate, the total attendance of men 

 for the year was 2,123 and of women 734. Assuming that as regards 

 food consumption the number of women would be equivalent to 0.8 

 as many men, or in round numbers 587, the calculated total number 

 of men for the year would be 2,710, and that number of men for 365 

 days would be equivalent to 989,150 men for 1 day. Dividing the 

 total quantities of each nutrient in the food supplied by this number 

 gives the equivalent per man per day. These data are summarized 

 herewith : 



Table 30. — Estimated amounts of nutrients and energy per man per day in the food issued 



from the storeroom for 1 year. 



It has been explained on page 12 that no studies were made with 

 women patients; hence, nothing is definitely known concerning the 

 relative food consumption of men and women inmates in this institu- 

 tion. The assumption above made that the women would eat 0.8 as 

 much as the men is that commonly made in dietary studies of ordinary 

 families, but in the studies in the New York State hospitals for the 

 insane it was found that with the chronic patients the average amount 

 eaten by women was only about 0.7 of that eaten by men, and with 

 other classes of women patients it was even lower. The results as 

 computed in the present instance are therefore believed to be under 

 rather than over estimates, because if the factor that should be used 

 is lower than 0.8, the equivalent number of men would be smaller 

 than that given above, and the total number of men for one day would 

 be less; consequently the average of nutrients and energy per man 

 per day in the food supplied would be higher than has been computed 

 by the method followed. 



SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION. 



The principal features of the investigations at the Government 

 Hospital for the Insane, reported in this bulletin, have to do with the 

 study of the quantities of food consumed and wasted b}^ different 

 classes of the hospital population. By comparing the data regarding 

 food consumption with those of simikr studies in other institutions, 



