DIGESTION 237 



' It appears to me,' says Pawlow,* * that . . . instinct 

 has often made out a brilliant case when brought before 

 the tribunal of physiology. Perhaps the old and 

 empirical requirement that food should be eaten with 

 interest and enjoyment is the most imperatively empha- 

 sized and strengthened of all. In every land the act of 

 eating is connected with certain customs designed to 

 distract from the business of daily life. A suitable time 

 of day is chosen ; a company of relatives, acquaintances, 

 or comrades assemble. Certain preparations are carried 

 out (in England a change of raiment is usually effected, 

 and often a blessing is asked upon the meal by the oldest 

 of the family). In the case of the well-to-do a special 

 room for meals is set apart ; musical and other guests 

 are invited to while away the time at meals in a word, 

 everything is directed to take away the thoughts from 

 the cares of daily life, and to concentrate them on the 

 repast. From this point of view, it is also plain why 

 heated discussions and serious readings are held to be 

 unsuitable during meal-times.' 



The above quotation shows the importance attached 

 to the ' appetite juice ' by the distinguished Kussian 

 physiologist even in a state of health, and in abnormal 

 conditions it is of still greater importance to bear it in 

 mind. In cases, for instance, in which it is necessary to 

 introduce food directly into the stomach through an 

 cesophageal tube or a gastrostomy wound, care should 

 be taken, whenever possible, to call out a flow of ' appetite 



* ' The Work of the Digestive Glands, 5 English translation, 1902, 

 p. 133 (Griffin and Co., Limited). 



