CHAPTER XXXVIII 

 Rational Feeding of Men 



500. Similarity in the Principles of Human and Ani- 

 mal Feeding. The rational feeding of men is founded 

 upon the same principles as the rational feeding of ani- 

 mals. It is the object in each case to supply the body 

 with the right kinds and amounts of nutrients to meet 

 all of its demands. It is not possible in either human or 

 animal feeding to establish inflexible standards. 



50 K Dietary Standards. The standard rations which 

 have been proposed by Atwater, Voit and others call for 

 about one- fourth of a pound each of fat and protein and 

 a pound of carbohydrates in the ration of a man at aver- 

 age muscular labor. Such a ration should yield about 

 3,200 calories. The actual amount of nutrients consumed 

 by laborers does not always conform to this standard, 

 For example, studies have shown that the negro laborer 

 in the South often, by choice, consumes less than o. i 

 pound per day of protein, while a well-fed mechanic fre- 

 quently consumes over 0.5 pound per day. While only 

 tentative standards are proposed, experiments and 

 dietary studies have shown that the best results are ob- 

 tained in the feeding of men, as in the feeding of ani- 

 mals,, when the ration conforms within reasonable limits 

 to the standard. By a dietary standard is meant the 

 approximate amount of nutrients which the daily ration 

 should contain. Such a standard as proposed by Atwater 

 is as follows : 



