FOODS AND FOOD HABITS 



47 



Cereals The various breakfast cereals are all excellent 

 foods and rank with bread in food value. They are made 

 mostly of wheat or oats, both of which contain much proteid 

 and starch; Fig. 22. They are somewhat lacking in fat, 

 but if eaten with cream 

 form an almost perfect 

 food. 



Rice contains less pro- 

 teid than wheat and, like 

 it, very little fat. It 

 should, therefore, be eaten 

 with some food contain- 

 ing more proteid, e. g. 

 meats, cheese or beans. 



Beans and peas contain 



Whtat 

 flour 



Oatmeal 



very large amounts of pro- 



FIG. 22. SHOWING THE FOOD VALUES 



OF WHEAT FLOUR AND OATMEAL 



Shading as in Figure 19. 



teid, as much as meats or even more. Although they also 

 hold considerable starch, they are to be looked upon chiefly as a 

 source of proteid. To form a balanced diet they should be 

 accompanied by some food containing starch and fats, such 

 as bread and butter. Peas and beans are difficult to digest 

 and should be eaten somewhat sparingly. 



Potatoes have a relatively small food value. They contain 

 only 1.8% of proteid, 14.7% of starch and little fat; Fig. 20 

 They are very poor foods if used alone, and must be eaten 

 in great quantities to supply the requisite amount of proteid. 

 They do, however, furnish a cheap source of starch and are, 

 therefore, valuable to accompany other foods such as meats, 

 cheese, beans etc. 



Vegetables, as a rule, contain so little real nutriment that 

 we can scarcely consider them foods at all. They are valu- 

 1 able because of their pleasant flavors, which stimulate the 

 action of the digestive glands. 



Fruits furnish about the same elements as vegetables. 

 They have pleasant flavors which excite proper activity in 



