igoS] UPON HEALTH AND METABOLISM. 313 



by reason of the regular habits of Hfe which were imposed upon the 

 subjects, the amount of energy developed and the quantity of nour- 

 ishment expended therein are reasonably constant throughout the 

 experimental period. If these factors vary, as they necessarily must 

 to a certain degree, it is evident that they vary uniformly above or 

 below the average, and hence these variations could not possibly 

 produce any notable effect upon the final result. 



There has been a general consensus of opinion among scientific 

 men, including the medical profession, that salicylic acid and its 

 compounds are very harmful substances, and the prejudice against 

 this particular form of preservative is perhaps greater than against 

 any other material used for preserving foods. This is due not only 

 to the belief in the injurious character of salicylic acid, but perhaps 

 is especially due t*o the fact that it has in the past been so generally 

 used as an antiseptic. That salicylic acid should be singled out 

 especially for condemnation among preservatives does not seem to 

 be justified by the data which are presented and discussed in this 

 bulletin. That it is a harmful substance, however, seems to be well 

 established by the data taken as a whole, but it appears to be a harm- 

 ful substance of less virulence than has been generally supposed. 

 There is no doubt of the fact that salicylic acid is a drug which is 

 often indicated in diseases well established and also perhaps in cer- 

 tain conditions which, while verging on disease, might still be re- 

 garded as a state of health. But the administration of salicylic acid 

 as a medicine should be controlled exclusively by the medical pro- 

 fession, and while it is a remedy well established in the Pharma- 

 copoeia and especially prized for its eff'ect upon rheumatism and gout, 

 it does not seem that there should be any warrant in this fact for its 

 promiscuous use in foods, even if it were harmless. 



The data show very clearly that salicylic acid and salicylates 

 appear to exert an exciting influence upon the activities which take 

 place in the alimentary canal, stimulating the organs to greater effort, 

 and this stimulation leads at first to increased solubility and absorp- 

 tion of the foods which are introduced into the stomach. In the 

 light of the data which are exhibited salicylic acid may be said to 

 increase the solubility and absorption of the food in the alimentary 



