TROPICAL FOOD MATERIALS 



51 



composition so much as wheat. It will be evident that the old- 

 fashioned household bread, " standard " bread, and the bread 

 prepared from ata in India all of which contain the germ and 

 semolina approximate closely to one another in their proximate 

 principles, and show practically identical percentages of absorp- 

 tion and assimilation. The following table gives the results 

 arrived at : 



It may therefore be concluded that while the protein element 

 of the fine white flours is slightly better absorbed than in the 

 case of real wholemeal or " standard " flour, the decided inferi- 

 ority it shows in the amount of protein presented lessens its 

 dietetic value very considerably, and, in the case of those with 

 whom bread constitutes the main source of nutriment, entails a 

 much lower level of nitrogenous interchange than would be 

 attained on a similar quantity of flour containing the highly 

 albuminous germ and semolina. Thus, for instance, a person 

 living on 1,000 grammes of " patent " flour, and another on 

 1,000 grammes of " standard " flour, ata, or the old household 

 flour, the first, with " patent " flour, would attain a level of 

 nitrogenous metabolism equal to 79 multiplied by 0-88, or about 

 69-6 grammes of protein per day. The second, taking the 

 average protein content at 12-5 per cent., and the coefficient of 

 absorption at 81 per cent., would metabolize 101-25 grammes of 

 protein per day. So that, from the standpoint of protein inter- 

 change within the body, the modern impoverishing methods of 

 milling may affect very seriously the dietetic value of bread, and 

 thus lower the stamina of those largely dependent on it for their 

 nutrition. Leaving out of consideration the harmful effects of 

 bleaching and the addition of so-called " improvers," there can 

 be little doubt of the superiority of real wholemeal bread to 

 ordinary white bread in protein content, and in the level of protein 

 metabolism possible of attainment. But in addition to this there 

 is another factor to be taken into consideration viz., the relative 



