140 



DIGESTION AND ABSORPTION 



tract with a film of oil. The oil tends to soften and increase the 

 bulk of the intestinal content. 



The best ways of preventing and overcoming constipation are : 

 to act on the desire for defecation, to have a regular time for 



As digestion takes place, food is gradually absorbed until the wastes only enter the large in- 

 testine. When these wastes reach the rectum, they are ready for elimination. It takes about 

 twenty-four hours for digestion to be completed and for the wastes to reach the rectum. 



doing this, and to eat plenty of fruit and vegetables, as these tend 

 to promote peristalsis. 



Some investigators think that one of the contributing factors to 

 old age is the toxins absorbed from putrefaction in the large intes- 

 tine. The toxins affect the arteries causing the hardening of the 

 arterial walls. The bacteria of putrefaction work best in an alka- 

 line medium. A Russian physiologist, Metchnikoff, conceived the 

 idea of introducing an acid into the large intestine. He thought 

 this would check putrefaction and possibly postpone old age. He 

 observed that Bulgarians who used a great deal of sour milk, live 

 to a greater age than other people. He knew that the acids from 

 most foods are neutralized before they reach the large intestine, 

 but that unlike ordinary sour milk the acid in Bulgarian milk 

 does reach the large intestine. Different strains of bacteria in 

 milk cause the two different reactions. Bacillus bulgaricus and 

 bacillus acidopholus which is a related strain of microorganisms, 

 have been cultivated in America. Experiments are now being 

 made with acidopholus milk to determine whether it does have a 

 beneficial effect although there is as yet no definite proof. 



People should not become faddists in eating. Nutritional 



