﻿FOOD 
  PROBLEMS 
  IN 
  WARTIME 
  — 
  COWGILL 
  595 
  

  

  profuse 
  sweating 
  may 
  lose 
  so 
  much 
  salt 
  through 
  the 
  sweat 
  as 
  to 
  de- 
  

   velop 
  muscle 
  cramps 
  and 
  pains 
  ; 
  the 
  administration 
  of 
  tablets 
  of 
  table 
  

   salt 
  has 
  been 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  remedy 
  here, 
  and 
  has 
  become 
  an 
  estab- 
  

   lished 
  practice 
  in 
  industrial 
  medicine. 
  Recently 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  learned 
  

   that 
  appreciable, 
  amounts 
  of 
  various 
  water-soluble 
  vitamins 
  may 
  also 
  

   be 
  lost 
  from 
  the 
  body 
  by 
  way 
  of 
  sweat. 
  Just 
  how 
  significant 
  this 
  loss 
  

   can 
  be, 
  remains 
  to 
  be 
  determined 
  by 
  research 
  directed 
  to 
  this 
  specific 
  

   end. 
  For 
  the 
  present 
  any 
  bearing 
  that 
  this 
  fact 
  may 
  have 
  on 
  the 
  

   soldier's 
  need 
  for 
  vitamins 
  can 
  doubtless 
  be 
  met 
  by 
  having 
  the 
  basic 
  

   ration 
  contain 
  amounts 
  of 
  these 
  factors 
  that 
  are 
  really 
  liberal 
  and 
  

   appreciably 
  greater 
  than 
  the 
  known 
  minima. 
  

  

  Conditions 
  in 
  the 
  Tropics 
  have 
  played 
  an 
  interesting 
  role 
  in 
  deter- 
  

   mining 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  specifications 
  of 
  certain 
  emergency 
  rations, 
  such 
  

   as, 
  for 
  example, 
  an 
  experimental 
  chocolate 
  bar 
  designed 
  to 
  be 
  carried 
  

   in 
  the 
  soldier's 
  shirt 
  pocket, 
  and 
  to 
  be 
  eaten 
  only 
  as 
  a 
  last 
  resort 
  when 
  

   separated 
  from 
  the 
  troop 
  unit. 
  The 
  size 
  of 
  the 
  bar 
  was 
  determined 
  

   by 
  the 
  dimensions 
  of 
  the 
  shirt 
  pocket. 
  One 
  specification 
  was 
  that 
  the 
  

   bar 
  remain 
  solid 
  at 
  120° 
  F., 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  bar 
  would 
  not 
  melt 
  in 
  the 
  

   pocket 
  under 
  tropical 
  conditions 
  and 
  thus 
  become 
  impossible 
  to 
  eat. 
  

   When 
  a 
  committee 
  of 
  scientific 
  advisers 
  sampled 
  numerous 
  bars 
  sub- 
  

   mitted 
  in 
  response 
  to 
  the 
  advertised 
  specifications, 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  mem- 
  

   bers 
  rated 
  certain 
  bars 
  unfavorably 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  of 
  poorer 
  taste, 
  and 
  

   were 
  surprised 
  to 
  learn 
  from 
  the 
  Quartermaster 
  representative 
  that 
  

   a 
  delectable 
  bar 
  was 
  not 
  desired 
  because 
  it 
  was 
  intended 
  to 
  serve 
  as 
  

   an 
  emergency 
  ration 
  ; 
  if 
  its 
  taste 
  was 
  too 
  good, 
  it 
  would 
  be 
  eaten 
  too 
  

   soon 
  and 
  thus 
  be 
  unavailable 
  when 
  the 
  emergency 
  finally 
  occurred. 
  

  

  The 
  selection 
  of 
  foods 
  for 
  aviators 
  is 
  not 
  without 
  its 
  special 
  problems. 
  

   One 
  that 
  might 
  be 
  mentioned 
  here 
  is 
  the 
  advisability 
  of 
  avoiding 
  foods 
  

   that 
  readily 
  produce 
  gas. 
  When 
  the 
  pilot 
  and 
  his 
  crew 
  rise 
  to 
  high 
  

   altitudes, 
  gases 
  expand 
  in 
  corresponding 
  degree 
  ; 
  if 
  much 
  gas 
  is 
  present 
  

   in 
  the 
  alimentary 
  tract, 
  its 
  expansion 
  can 
  cause 
  considerable 
  discom- 
  

   fort. 
  

  

  Because 
  we 
  as 
  a 
  nation 
  have 
  been 
  peace-loving, 
  and 
  have 
  not 
  over 
  

   a 
  period 
  of 
  years 
  planned 
  intensively 
  for 
  the 
  waging 
  of 
  offensive 
  

   war, 
  the 
  food 
  problems 
  mentioned 
  thus 
  far 
  have 
  received 
  our 
  concen- 
  

   trated 
  attention 
  only 
  comparatively 
  recently. 
  The 
  Axis 
  nations, 
  par- 
  

   ticularly 
  Germany 
  and 
  Japan, 
  went 
  into 
  the 
  present 
  war 
  with 
  the 
  

   soldier 
  relatively 
  well 
  equipped 
  for 
  blitz 
  tactics, 
  jungle 
  fighting, 
  and 
  

   the 
  like. 
  The 
  individual 
  Japanese 
  soldier 
  carries 
  a 
  remarkable 
  equip- 
  

   ment 
  suited 
  for 
  penetration 
  of 
  the 
  jungle. 
  As 
  far 
  as 
  our 
  knowledge 
  

   goes, 
  this 
  equipment 
  includes 
  rice 
  and 
  certain 
  other 
  dry 
  foods 
  valu- 
  

   able 
  in 
  supplementing 
  rice 
  with 
  the 
  nutritive 
  factors 
  it 
  lacks. 
  

  

  For 
  some 
  years, 
  Dr. 
  T. 
  Saiki, 
  Director 
  of 
  the 
  Imperial 
  Institute 
  of 
  

   Nutrition 
  in 
  Tokyo, 
  concentrated 
  on 
  the 
  problem 
  of 
  finding 
  new 
  but 
  

  

  