478 REQUISITES FOR A PERFECT DIET. 



flesh diet, the excretion of N and S is uniform from hour to hour (Feder and v. 

 Voit). 



duality and Quantity of the Income in a Healthy Adult. 



As far as his organisation is concerned, man belongs to the 

 omnivorous animals, i.e., those that can live upon a mixed diet. 



Requisites. Man requires for his existence and to maintain health 

 the following four groups of foods ; none of them must be absent from 

 the food for any length of time. The}' are : 



1. Water for an adult in his food and drink, 2,700-2,800 grms. 

 daily ( 229 and 247, 1). 



2. Inorganic Substances are an integral part of all tissues, and with- 

 out them the tissues cannot be formed. They occur in ordinary food. 

 The addition of too much salt increases the consumption of water, and 

 this in turn increases the transformation of N in the body (Weiske). 

 If an animal be deprived of salts, nutrition is interfered with ; food 

 deprived of its lime affects the formation of the bones ; deprival of 

 common salt causes albuminuria (247, A, III). 



The alkaline salts serve to neutralise the sulphuric acid formed by 

 the oxidation of the sulphur of the proteids (E. Salkowski, Bunge, 

 Lunin). 



Sodium acetate in large doses causes diuresis, and diminishes the transforma- 

 tion of nitrogenous substances in the body, and the same diminution is caused by 

 sodium sulphate and phosphate ; sodium carbonate (? Ott) increases the trans- 

 formation of nitrogenous substances (J. Mayer), diminishes the uric acid, and 

 increases the urea in the urine. 



Only in times of famine is man driven to eat large quantities of inorganic sub- 

 stances, to extract the organic matter mixed therewith. A. v. Humboldt states, in 

 regard to the inhabitants of the Orinocco, that they eat a kind of earth which con- 

 tains innumerable infusoria. 



3. At least one animal or vegetable albuminous body or proteid 

 ( 248, 250). The proteids are required to replace the used-up nitro- 

 genous tissues, e.g., for muscles. They contain 15 '4 to 16*5 per 

 cent. N. 



Asparagin, in combination with gelatin, can replace albumin in the food 

 (Weiske), while asparagui alone limits the decomposition of albumin in herbivora 

 (Weiske, Zuntz, Bahlmann, Lehmann), but not in carnivora (J. Munk). 

 Ammoniacal salts, glycocoll, sarkosin, andbenzamid, increase the amount of albu- 

 min in the body. 



4. At least one fat ( 251), or a digestible carbohydrate ( 252). 

 These chiefly serve to replace the transformed fats and non-nitrogenous 

 constituents. Owing to the large amount of C which they contain, 

 when they^ undergo oxidation, they form the chief source of the 



