3O APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY 



and a great deal of sugar ; but all fruit is hard to digest, 

 and little food is obtained. It is sometimes thought that 

 the acids and flavors of fruit give some needed substances 

 to the cells of the body, but their main use is their taste. 

 Fruit is of use mainly because it is not digested ; but, in 

 passing down the intestine, it sweeps along food and waste 

 substances, and thus keeps the intestine clean and in good 

 condition. A great danger in using fruit is that it may 

 sour and decay in the intestine just as it does outside the 

 body. 



51. Sweets. Candy and sweet things of all kinds con- 

 sist mostly of sugar, which is digested and carried to the 

 liver. Thus, by eating too much of them, one eats too 

 much sugar, and then the liver is overworked, and a bilious 

 attack is produced. Nuts contain a great deal of albumin 

 and oil, but both are in a form hard to digest. 



Green vegetables, such as cabbage, lettuce, and beets, 

 are like fruit, but contain even less food matters. They 

 are of value mainly for their taste. 



52. Spices. Spices, such as mustard and cloves, burn 

 the stomach just as they burn the mouth. They have no 

 value as food, while by covering the taste of bad food they 

 may be harmful. Still a little may improve the taste of 

 food and so assist digestion. 



53. Salt. All the foods named have more than enough 

 mineral substances, excepting salt, to supply the needs of 

 the body. Salt is a great aid in the digestion of food. It 

 also gives an agreeable taste to food. Food which has 

 no taste can hardly be eaten, and after it is eaten it is as 

 disagreeable to the stomach as it is to the mouth. Salt 

 gives food an agreeable flavor. The saliva flows so that 

 the mouth waters. In the stomach the gastric juice flows 

 in the same way, and so the meal 'is easily and quickly 



