BACTERIAL CONTENT 165 



or will not enter them: all homes and all places in which 

 food is prepared or sold should he effectively screened. 



Diphtheria and scarlet fever. Diphtheria and scarlet 

 fever are also spread by means of milk. The opportunities 

 for the contamination of foods by the causal organisms of 

 these diseases are not so varied as in the case of typhoid 

 fever. It is probable that the infection is largely from 

 mild cases that are not recognized, or through the agency of 

 a person acting in the dual capacity of nurse and milker. 



The influence of bacterial content on healthfulness. 

 The question concerning the effect of the growth of sapro- 

 phytic bacteria in food on its healthfulness is an important 

 one, since a large proportion of the food materials that 

 reach the market are in an incipient state of decomposition. 

 Frequently it has progressed to such an extent as to be 

 evident to the senses. The value of such food is lessened 

 thereby. The question as to its absolute rejection as human 

 food will depend on whether it is intrinsically dangerous, 

 rather than on the impression it may make on those whose 

 economic condition is such that they can afford to reject it. 

 Tin -re is little reason to believe that decomposition pro- 

 cesses in ordinary foods are capable of producing disease. 

 This is especially true of fruits, and possibly less true of 

 meats, fish, and certain vegetables. 



Many common foods are used only when they have under- 

 gone certain types of decomposition. The same type of 

 decomposition in another food would cause its rejection 

 for esthetic rather than for hygienic reasons. In a general 

 way, it may be said that the control of foods with reference 

 to their bacterial content is an economic rather than a 

 hygienic matter, and there would seem to be little reason 

 for not allowing the sale of foods that show evidences of 

 decomposition to people who wish to purchase them at a 

 fair price. 



