32 THE STOCKFEEDER'S COMPANION 



the circulation and carried to every part of the body, 

 cannot be overlooked. 



Carbohydrates. The carbohydrates of the food are 

 apparently absorbed by the small intestines into the 

 blood in the form of sugar (dextrose). It is then 

 carried to the liver, and the excess stored up as animal 

 starch (glycogen) or converted into fat. The liver acts 

 as a reserve for carbohydrate material. 



The carbohydrates may also be utilised for the 

 production of energy and heat through the carbon 

 and hydrogen being oxidised in the blood. Modern 

 research appears to indicate that carbohydrates may 

 be of much greater importance as tissue-builders than 

 has generally been supposed. 



To understand how " heat " is produced in the body 

 by the carbohydrates, one must remember that carbo- 

 hydrates are composed of carbon, hydrogen, and 

 oxygen, the last two elements always occurring in the 

 proportion of two atoms of hydrogen to one of oxygen. 

 The digestible carbohydrates, after rinding their way 

 into the blood, come in contact with the oxygen which 

 is loosely held by the red blood corpuscles. This oxygen 

 then combines with (oxidises) the carbon and hydrogen 

 to form carbon dioxide gas (CO 2 ) and water (H 2 O). 



" Whenever chemical action takes place, heat is 

 produced"; hence the very fact that the oxygen in 

 the blood combines chemically with the carbohydrates, 

 means that heat will be generated in the body and the 

 body temperature thus maintained. 



Work increases respiration, more air is taken into 

 the lungs and more oxygen into the blood ; hence more 

 carbohydrates are oxidised, more heat is generated, and 

 the animal gets very hot and perspires freely. 



With regard to "energy," it has been found that 



