GENERAL CONCLUSIONS. 



From a careful consideration of the data in the individual cases 

 and the summaries of the results, it appears that the administration 

 of sulphurous acid in the food, either in the form of sulphurous acid 

 gas in solution or in the form of sulphites, is objectionable and pro- 

 duces serious disturbances of the metabolic functions and injury to 

 health and digestion. This injury manifests itself in a number of dif- 

 ferent ways, both in the production of clinical symptoms which indi- 

 cate serious disturbances, malaise, or positive suffering, and also by 

 inducing certain changes in the metabolic processes which are not 

 manifested in the way of ordinary clinical symptoms, and are only 

 detected by careful chemical and microscopical study of the excretory 

 products. It can be safely said from the evidence adduced that the 

 administration of sodium sulphite and sulphurous acid as above indi- 

 cated produces a marked influence of an unfavorable character on 

 metabolism. As a result of this action an assimilation of food mate- 

 rials containing organic phosphorus is retarded, while there is evidence 

 of increased sulphur katabolism. The sulphur balance sheets show 

 what an immense burden has been added to the already overworked 

 kidneys, which are called upon in this case to remove nearly all, if not 

 quite all, of the added sulphur from the body, previously converted, 

 in great part, to sulphuric acid. It is not possible that placing upon 

 the kidneys this increased work of excreting sulphur can result in 

 anything but injury. The fact that the microscopic crystalline and 

 amorphous bodies in the urine are increased in number under the 

 influence of the added sulphur, is another indication of the extraordi- 

 nary demands made upon the kidneys in such circumstances. 



This increase is interesting in respect of the effect which the con- 

 tinued exhibition of sulphurous acid must eventually have upon the 

 structure of the kidney. It is reasonable to suppose that the con- 

 tinued use of a body which* produces such results would cause lesions 

 of a histological character that eventually would develop conditions 

 which would give serious apprehension. In the nature of these exper- 

 iments it was not possible to examine the organs of the body histologi- 

 cally and hence the above conclusion is only based upon experience of 

 a similar character where the organs in question have been subject to 

 such examinations. While there might be no distinguishable lesion 



1039 



