Fisher — The Effect of Diet on, Endurance. 5 



controlled in their selection of foods by many other circumstances, — 

 as, conventionality^ or the desire to eat what others eat and the unwil- 

 lingness to appear "different"; politeness, the desire to please one's 

 host and. hostess \foo(l notions, the opinion that certain foods and cer- 

 tain amounts of food, are " wholesome " even if not palatable and that 

 certain foods should, be avoided as injurious even if delicious to the 

 taste ; narrowness of choice, as at a boarding house table, which 

 often supplies what is not wanted and withholds what is ; and 

 habit, by which the particular kinds and amounts of foods which 

 have become customary thi'ough the previous causes— conventionality, 

 politeness, food notions, and narrowness of choice — are repeated day 

 after day without thought. The subjects of the present study were 

 given a wide range of choice, the menu including fruits, nuts, cereals, 

 puddings and pastry, vegetables, milk, meats, etc. Meat if desired 

 was available three times a day. 



The object of the experiment was to find what effects on diet and 

 endurance would follow from a strict obedience to the taste-instinct, 

 when this instinct was given a longer chance to act b}^ prolonged 

 mastication and attentive tasting. Each man was therefore encour- 

 aged to choose his own food out of the menu for the day. Nothing 

 was set before him until it was ordered, and even after a food was 

 ordered it was not eaten if taste did not so dictate. The men were 

 specially warned, during the fii'st half of the experiment, against any 

 conscious effort to decrease their food, proteid, or meat ; and while it 

 is possible that subconscious suggestion played a part, so far as could 

 be observed they were freer from its influence than any ordinary 

 experimenter who might take up the same experiment after reading 

 Mr. Fletcher's or Professor Chittenden's books. 



That this conclusion as to the relative absence of subconscious suw- 

 gestion is correct was evidenced by the experiences both before and 

 after this j^art of the experiment. For a month prior to its actual 

 beginning (Jan. 14), the experiment had been fully decided upon, 

 and its plan and scope understood by the men. Had subconscious 

 suggestion played an important role, it would probably have shown 

 itself in a reduction of proteid during this month ; but determinations 

 of the grams of nitrogen daily excreted in the urine, taken at the 

 beginning and end of this month, indicated no substantial change, as 

 the following table shows. (M. does not appear in this table, owing 

 to the absence of any specimen for December.) 



