THE HYGIENE OF NUTRITION 361 



for much acute poisoning. Neither does it seem that 

 much damage has been done by metals and preserva- 

 tives. Ice cream sometimes becomes excessively poison- 

 ous; it may be vomited almost instantly. Those who 

 have studied poisonous ice cream most carefully do not 

 believe that the metal from the freezer is concerned, but 

 rather that it is a true bacterial alteration of the milk. 



In times past, more or less illness has been caused 

 by the consumption of meat from diseased animals. 

 Unscrupulous men have hastily slaughtered and marketed 

 animals which were about to die. (One is reminded of 

 the permission conveyed in Deuteronomy, xiv, 21.) 

 Such criminal acts are more effectively guarded against 

 in these days. When we consider the possibility of 

 damage being done by such meat we see that two dis- 

 tinct results may follow: the same disease that the 

 animal had may be transmitted to man, or there may be 

 a poisoning from the abnormal state of the tissues. 

 Thorough cooking will protect against the infection, 

 but it is not at all certain to neutralize the poisonous 

 properties of the flesh. 



We hear it said that "one man's meat is another 

 man's poison." This is rather an extreme statement as 

 related to the cases it is usually intended to cover, but 

 it may be literally true. There are the most curious 

 idiosyncrasies toward particular foods on the part of 

 individuals. Some cannot eat eggs, others are made 

 sick by lobster or crab meat. Certain persons are 

 poisoned seriously by potato. Strawberries cause skin 

 eruptions in many subjects. It has been surmised that 

 some of these unfortunate reactions are due to suggestion, 

 the painful memory of a past illness making a fresh trial 

 with normal confidence out of the question. It is certain 

 that some are of a more fundamental sort, the food pro- 

 ducing its effect however perfectly it has been disguised. 



Constipation. Much is written of this condition. 

 A great part of that which comes before the average 

 reader is designed to promote the sale of cathartics. 



