632 MISCELLANEOUS FARM SUBJECTS 



SALICYLIC ACID AND SALICYLATES. 



There has been a general concensus of opinion among scien- 

 tific men, including the medical profession, that salicylic acid and 

 its compounds are very harmful substances, and the prejudice 

 against this particular form of preservative is perhaps greater than 

 against any other material used for preserving foods. This is due 

 perhaps to the fact that it has in the past been so generally used as 

 an antiseptic. Its being regarded as the most injurious of all, is 

 perhaps to a certain extent undeserved. Like other ordinary pre- 

 servatives, it is not one which can be classed as a poison in the usual 

 sense of the word. When used as a medicine in many cases of de- 

 rangement of health it is often highly beneficial when properly 

 prescribed by a competent physician. It is, when used in the food, 

 at first an apparent stimulant, increasing the solubility and ab- 

 sorption of the common food elements from the alimentary canal. 

 It soon, however, loses its stimulating properties and becomes a de- 

 pressant, tending to break down the tissues of the body more rapid- 

 ly than they are built up. It disturbs the metabolic processes, in 

 most cases producing conditions which are not normal and which 

 apparently are not beneficial. It has a tendency to dimmish the 

 weight of the body and to produce a feeling of discomfort and 

 malaise which, while not marked, is distinctly indicative of injury. 

 In some cases these symptoms of malaise approach illness. When 

 added to foods even in small quantities, exerts a depressing and 

 harmful influence upon the digestive and health and the general 

 metabolic activities of the body. Further, there appears to be no 

 necessity for its use, as food can be preserved in unobjectionable 

 ways without its aid. (Bur. Chem. Bui. 84, Pt. II.) 



SULPHUROUS ACID AND SULPHITES. 



The use of these is more general than that of borax or salicylic 

 acid. In the preparation of foods fumes of sulphur are often ap- 

 plied either to the foods or to the containers. As sulphurous acid 

 in some forms is almost universally employed in the manufacture 

 of wines, molasses, and sirups, and in the preparation of desiccated 

 fruits, it is evident that the prohibition of its use would necessitate 

 a radical change in methods of manufacture. 



When sulphurous acid is used as a preservative for food prod- 

 ucts after the manufacture has been completed, it is usually em- 

 ployed in the form of bisulphite of lime or a preparation somewhat 

 similar. The use of sulphurous acid and sulphites never adds 

 anything to the flavor or quality of a food, but renders it both less 

 palatable and less healthful. Every fact which has been brought out, 

 therefore, in the investigation tends to accentuate the justness of the 

 conclusion, namely, that the use of sulphurous acid in foods should 

 be suppressed. 



These data clearly show that the administration of sulphites 

 and of sulphurous acid in a free state in the quantities employed 

 produces harmful effects. A tendency is manifested in practically 

 every case to produce headache and digestive disturbances. In 

 many cases uneasy sensations and even pain were developed in the 



