320 WILEY— INFLUENCE OF PRESERVATIVES [April 25, 



the sulphur and phosphoric acid, accompanied in the first two in- 

 stances by a decrease in the metabohzed elements excreted and in 

 the last instance, namely, phosphoric acid, by a pronounced increase 

 in metabolism, makes the explanation of the data rather difficult. 

 Attention should be called to the fact that while the variations from 

 normal metabolism are not very wide, the individual data are re- 

 markably uniform and consistent. 



The conditions which are noted in the case of the proteins would 

 lead one to expect a gain in the body weight. This expectation, 

 however, is not realized for either class of subjects, although the 

 losses. in weight are so slight as to be practically negligible. The 

 ratio of the food weight to the body weight was uniformly main- 

 tained throughout the experiment, and, hence, if no variations in 

 metabolic activity had occurred a fair presumption would have been 

 that the body weight would remain constant. That the change of 

 weight was slight in the view of the disturbances of the metabolic 

 functions may be accounted for by the inhibiting or retarding influ- 

 ence of the preservative upon the nitrogen and sulphur katabolism, 

 or by the slight increase in water in the urine and feces. It cannot 

 be maintained, however, that a retarded katabolism is beneficial 

 to health. On the contrary a more rapid renewal of the tissues 

 within the limits of healthy activity would be more likely to pre- 

 serve a normal condition. The old tissues cannot be expected to 

 functionate as perfectly as those which are newer, and hence, within 

 reasonable limits, a change of the tissues of the body must be con- 

 sidered as necessary to a healthy condition, and the maintenance of 

 a normal vitality. 



The medical data indicate plainly that formaldehyde, even when 

 given in small quantities, is an irritating substance to the mucous 

 membrane, and, therefore, the normal organs are at first actively 

 stimulated to rid themselves of the irritating foreign substance. It 

 is not strange, therefore, that this preservative had a marked stimu- 

 lative action on those organs and cells secreting the various diges- 

 tive juices. It is evident that when the digestive and excretory 

 organs of the body are excited to unusual activity by such an ex- 

 traneous body having neither food nor condimental value, they act 

 in self defence, and it would be wholly illogical to conclude from 



