106 ADVANCED PHYSIOLOGY 



factor in determining its value. Cheese is the most nutritious 

 of our foods, but it is such a condensed food that only a little 

 of it should be eaten at one time. Peas and beans are also 

 very nutritious foods, containing a large amount of proteid; 

 but these again are too difficult of digestion to be used 

 like bread, as a constant article of diet. The digestive 

 tract, however, can perfectly well handle a considerable amount 

 of foods that are difficult to digest and it is better to use some 

 of them rather than to give the digestive organs too easy a 

 task. But in choosing one's diet, it is well to bear in mind 

 that foods like milk, bread, rice, soft boiled beef, mutton and 

 broiled meats are more easily utilized than are beans, peas, 

 nuts, hard boiled eggs, pork, veal, fried foods and cheese. 



ALCOHOL AND INDIGESTION 



Various opinions have been held as to the effect of. alcohol 

 on digestion. That it produces serious troubles when used in 

 large amounts is questioned by no one, but it has been a popular 

 belief that when used in small quantities it aids digestion. 

 The most careful testing of this theory has shown that it is 

 a mistake. Alcohol has two opposite effects upon digestion. 

 It causes increased secretion of some of the digestive juices, 

 chiefly the saliva and gastric juice. To this extent it might 

 be supposed to promote digestion. But, on the other hand, its 

 presence in the stomach tends to weaken the action of the 

 digestive ferments and this serves to counteract the apparent 

 advantage of the increased secretion. As a result, when used 

 in small quantities alcohol neither hastens nor retards diges- 

 tion; when used in larger amounts, its retarding action is al- 

 ways certain. 



With certain alcoholic drinks, the retarding action is 

 especially evident and, oddly enough, this is true of many 

 wines that are not infrequently taken as " appetizers " with 

 meals, under the false impression that they facilitate digestion. 

 Experiments with these wines show that they have a very 



