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THE PROTEIN ELEMENT IN NUTRITION 



of excellent quality, and sufficient in quantity to render them 

 equal, if not superior, to the standard dietaries generally accepted 

 in Europe and America. Further, it may be again insisted on 

 that animal food in some form practically always enters into the 

 composition of the dietaries of the great mass of the people. 

 Milk is very cheap, except in the large towns, and, in its various 

 preparations, forms an important element even in the food of 

 the poorest. Ghi butter that has been boiled and allowed to 

 cool is partaken of by all except those actually in absolute 

 want. 



Study 8. As it is the custom in India for all mothers to suckle 

 their offspring for at least the first year, it is of importance to 

 know the composition of the Indian mother's milk. It would be 

 very desirable if this could be obtained for the different tribes and 

 races in India, and thus be able to determine if the difference in 

 physique, stamina, etc., so evident amongst the several races, 

 is accompanied by variations in the nutritive value of the infant's 

 food. Such differences, other things being equal, would be 

 expected that is, a well-developed, well-fed mother would be 

 more likely to be able to secrete milk of high nutritive value 

 than a poorly developed, ill-fed woman. Owing to the many 

 difficulties blocking the way, so far as we are aware, no statistics 

 are available on this point. A certain number of analyses 

 of the milk of Bengali women were made in the Physiological 

 Department of the Calcutta Medical College with the following 

 results :* 



Too much reliance cannot be placed on these differences in the 

 several constituents, as it is well known how great the variations 

 are in the composition of human milk from day to day, and 

 even from hour to hour, even in the same woman. However, 

 after making due allowance for this, it is evident that the milk 

 secreted by Bengali women is considerably poorer in its different 

 * Dr. Lai Mohan Ghosal, " Food and Drugs," 1911. 



