(4.) THE OCCUPATION OF THE INDIVIDUAL AS IT AFFECTS HIS DIET. 



The proportion of food needed is actually more affected by work and rest than 

 by any other factors. The harder the muscular labour, the more food must be eaten. 

 A man performing very severe labour will require nearly twice as much food as the 

 clerk in an office, and a third more than a man who is doing light work, such as a 

 gardener. If the work is mental, not muscular, a very light diet meets the case. 

 It should be of a specially digestible character, with a strictly moderate use of fats 

 and carbohydrates. In these two points lie 



THE ONLY REAL DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE FOOD OF A MANUAL 

 AND OF A MENTAL WORKER, 



the food of a labourer or of a student. The question is one mainly of quantity 

 rather than of quality of the diet. The old idea, for instance, that fish was a 

 " brain " food is without foundation, beyond the fact that whitefish is easier of 

 digestion than meat. The brain and muscles both derive their nutriment from the 

 lymph and blood, which circulate impartially over the whole body. 



LIGHT FOOD ONLY AND IN SMALL QUANTITIES SHOULD BE THE RULE 



when at rest, either on the train or steamer, or when in bed for some slight 

 indisposition or trifling injury, or when taking a respite from work. In such cases 

 also it is wise to consume fats and carbohydrates very sparingly. 



Perhaps this point will be best illustrated by the following table, which shows 

 the amount of body-fat utilized under different conditions of life; it brings out 

 forcibly 



THE RELATION BETWEEN WORK AND DIET. 



One hour of sleep consumes 0.31 oz. of fat. 



One hour of lying awake consumes 0.46 oz. of fat. 



One hour of standing consumes 0.55 oz. of fat. 



One hour of walking two miles an hour consumes 1.1 oz. of fat. 



One hour of walking three miles an hour consumes 1.6 oz. of fat. 



One hour of work on treadmill consumes 2.75 oz. of fat. 



Toast, eggs, whitefish steamed, clear soup, light farinaceous puddings, and 

 stewed fruit are advantageous foods for brain-workers, sedentary livers, or tem- 

 porary invalids; remembering always that he who would gain the mastery must 

 be temperate in all things. 



(5.) THE FINAL CONSIDERATION IS THAT OF INDIVIDUAL 

 IDIOSYNCRASIES, 



the most inconvenient and unwelcome of all the requirements which the housewife 

 is called upon to meet. 



Fortunately, though we all have special favourites in flavours, there are very 

 few healthy people who cannot eat and enjoy most plain fare. It may be that pork 

 or goose are too rich for one; then let him eat more apple-sauce and less meat, he 

 will be none the worse. 



It is possible that boiled mutton does not appeal to another, or that parsnips 

 are distasteful to a third. Such objections mean shorter commons at one meal, 

 which will hurt no one. 



BUT THERE ARE RARE CASES 



where porridge or mackerel lead to subsequent vomiting; where eggs or shell-fish 

 cause a rash, or where roast mutton acts like a poison. These idiosyncrasies cannot 

 be overcome and must be humored ; that is to say, provision must be made for that 

 member of the family to ensure sufficient nutrition from other sources. To force 

 down really hated food, far from overcoming the dislike, will only 



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