80 THE CHEMISTRY OF FOOD 



9. Salt is usually taken into the system in sufficient quantities 

 in our food. Even the water we drink often has traces of it. 

 The habitual use of much salt in cooking, or as a seasoning at 

 the table, is not wise ; and while it may not lead to consump- 

 tion, as some writers declare^ it is a tad habit in itself, and 

 leads to the desire for other and more injurious condiments. 



10. Lime. This is the mineral substance which we have 

 spoken of before as entering very largely into the composition 

 of the bones. It is the important element which gives solidity 

 and permanence to the framework upon which the body is 

 built. Calcium tri-phosphate, or "bone-earth," is the chief 

 ingredient of the bones and teeth, but is found in the carti- 

 lages and other parts of the body in smaller quantities. (Read 

 Note 6.) 



a propitiation to thee for eternal life.' Everywhere, and almost always, 

 indeed, it has been regarded as emblematical of wisdom, wit, and immor- 

 tality. To taste a man's salt, was to be bound by the rites of hospitality ; 

 and no oath was more solemn than that which was sworn upon bread and 

 salt. To sprinkle the meat with salt was to drive away the devil ; and to 

 this day, among the superstitious, nothing is more unlucky than to spill 

 the salt." Letheby on Food. 



6. Phosphate of Lime and other Inorganic Substances. "All food 

 contains certain saline substances. If we burn a portion of the flesh of 

 any animal, we may drive off the carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen, 

 and ' ashes ' are left. These ashes are the saline and mineral (inorganic) 

 constituents of the animal. They exist in the blood and tissues, and are 

 as essential to the life of the animal as those other elements which were 

 expelled by heat. Like the latter, they are constantly being used up and 

 carried off from the body, and like them must be replaced by means 

 of our food. Cooking, especially boiling, tends to dissolve away some of 

 these salts, and care should be taken to supply them by means of uncooked 

 food, as fresh vegetables and fruits ; milk also contains them. One of 

 the most important of these inorganic substances is phosphate of lime, 

 or ' bone- earth,' as it is called, from the fact that about forty per cent, of 

 healthy bone is made up of it. When it is 'deficient, th'e bones are soft 

 and are liable to be bent by the actions of the muscles attached to them, 

 and a permanent deformity may be the consequence. This form of lime 

 is contained in wheat, barley, oats, and rye, and from these sources the 

 chief supply of it is derived. These plants require phosphate of lime for 



9. Salt, how taken Into the system ? Its use in cooking ? Consumption ? 

 10. Lime in the bones ? What does it impart ? Chief ingredient of the bones and teeth ? 

 Where else found ? 



