FOOD. 23 



acid is lessened, the temperature lowered, the muscular powers impaired 

 and the resistance to depressing external influences diminished. When 

 taken through a long period of time, alcohol impairs digestion, produces 

 gastric catarrh, disorders the secreting power of the hepatic cells. It also 

 diminishes the muscular power and destroys the structure and composition 

 of the cells of the brain and spinal cord. The connective tissue of the body 

 increases in amount, and subsequently contracting, gives rise to sclerosis. 



A proper combination of different alimentary principles is essential 

 for healthy nutrition ; no one class being capable of maintaining life for 

 any definite length of time. 



The Albuminous food in excess promotes the arthritic diathesis, mani- 

 fecting itself as gout, gravel, etc. 



The Oleaginous food in excess gives rise to the bilious diathesis, while a 

 deficiency of it promotes the scrofulous. 



The Farinaceous food, when long continued in excess, favors the rheu- 

 matic diathesis by the development of lactic acid. 



The Alimentary Principles are not introduced into the body as such, 

 but are combined in proper proportions to form compound substances, 

 termed foods, e. g., bread, milk, eggs, meat, etc., the nutritive value of each 

 depending upon the extent to which these principles exist. 



PERCENTAGE COMPOSITION OF DIFFERENT FOODS. 



The amount of food required in 24 hours is estimated from the total 

 quantity of carbon and nitrogen excreted from the body in 24 hours; these 

 two elements representing the waste or destruction of the carbonaceous and 

 nitrogenized compounds. It has been determined by experimentation that 

 about 4600 grains of carbon and about 300 grains of nitrogen are elimi- 

 nated from the body daily; the ratio being about 15 to i. That the body 

 may be kept in its normal condition, a proper proportion of carbonaceous 

 (bread) to nitrogenized (meat) food should be observed in the diet. 



