INFLUENCE OF FOOD. 



809 



The influence of food. The investigations of many observers l show 

 that the effect of food upon the temperature of the body is to cause a slight 

 rise, or, in the case of the evening meals, to postpone for a short time 

 the customary fall of temperature at that time. The rise is often in- 

 appreciable and rarely exceeds half a degree; the maximal effect is 

 seen about one hour and a half after the meal. A draught of cold water 

 (10) lowers the temperature about half a degree. 2 



In the case of the horse the effect of food is to cause a rise of 0'2 

 to 0'8, which persists for three or four hours. 



Maurel 3 states that in the rabbit food is the chief cause of the daily 

 variation in temperature, for if the animal be kept without food during 

 the day but be fed during the night, the temperature shows a rise to the 

 maximum, not at the usual time, in the evening, but in the morning. 

 This is denied by Carter, 4 who observed an evening rise in the tempera- 

 ture of rabbits which had fasted three days. 



Bernard 5 determined the temperature of the blood of the portal and 

 hepatic veins under different conditions as regards the nutrition of the 

 animals, and caine to the conclusion that more heat was produced in the 

 liver during digestion. The following are some of his results : 



The effect of starvation upon the temperature of animals has been 

 studied chiefly by Chossat, 6 and Bidder and Schmidt. 7 The first observer 

 made experiments on twelve pigeons, and he found that the rectal 

 temperature gradually fell until a short time before death ; during the 

 period of inanition the daily variation in temperature became more 

 marked, and towards the end of life a rapid fall in temperature occurred. 

 The results are shown in the table on p. 810. 



On the day of death the temperature of the pigeon fell to 26 0- 2. 

 Similar experiments on turtle-doves, hens, rooks, rabbits, and guinea- 

 pigs gave the following temperatures: 22'9, 28'2, 34'3, 27'0, and 23'9 

 respectively on the day of death. 



Bidder and Schmidt experimented upon a cat, and found that after 



1 Davy, Phil. Trans., London, 1845, pt. 2, p. 319; ibid., 1850, p. 444; Damrosch, 



Hosp. Rep., London, 1866, vol. i. ; Crombie, Indian Ann. Med. Sc., Calcutta, 1873, vol. 

 xvi. p. 581. 



2 Liebermeistev, " Handbuch cl. Path. u. Therap. des Fiebers," Leipzig, 1875, S. 123 ; 

 Wunderlich, "Medical Therniometry " ; Siedamgrotzky, Deutsche Ztschr. f. Thiermed., 

 Leipzig, 1875, Bd. i. S. 87. 



Compt. rend. tioc. de Uol, Paris, 1884, p. 588. 



4 Journ. Nerv. and Ment. Dis., N.Y., 1890, vol. xvii. p. 785. 



5 " Lecons sur la clialeur animale," Paris, 1876. 



6 "Recherches expeYimentales sur 1' inanition," Paris, 1843, quoted from Gavarret, 

 " De la chalenr etc.," p. 394. 



7 "Die Verdauungssafte mid der Stoffwechsel," Leipzig, 1852, S. 322. 



