218 



ism, and the still larger number of cases ol diseases which 

 would not presumably be fatal without the existing condi- 

 tion of chronic alcoholic poisoning of the system, are very 

 many cases among both infants and adults in which life is 

 undoubtedly saved by the prompt resort to this food and 

 stimulant, and its energetic use. So long as man is ex- 

 posed to hardships and conditions arising from improper 

 and deficient food supply, as well as to the numerous in- 

 fectious diseases to which he is heir, alcohol must still be 

 regarded rather as a blessing than a curse ; for there is no 

 form of stimulant and food combined, or stimulant alone, 

 which, taken all in all, can be so completely relied upon in 

 cases of emergency. Alcohol, when taken alone, will pro- 

 long life beyond the period at which it terminates from 

 starvation." 



BEVERAGES CONTAINING ALCOHOL. 



[RoHfe, Text-Book of Hygiene.} 



" The physiological action of alcohol has been pretty 

 fully worked out by Binz and his pupils and by other ex- 

 perimenters. From these researches it appears that the 

 first effect of taking alcohol, sufficiently diluted, into the 

 stomach is to increase the flow of saliva and gastric juice. 

 This effect is probably reflex, and results from a stimula- 

 tion of nerve terminations in the stomach. The alcohol is 

 rapidly absorbed, and is carried in the blood, without un- 

 dergoing chemical change, to the nervous centers, lungs, 

 and tissues generally. In the brain the alcohol probably 

 enters into combination with the nervous tissue, modifying 

 the normal activity of the various centers, either increasing 

 the activity, if the alcohol is in small quantity (stimulating 

 effect), or diminishing it, if in larger quantity (depressing 



