4 BULLETIN 781, TJ. S. DEPAETME^-T OF AGRICULTURE. 



squad should represent an average group of persons of these ages 

 an attempt was made to secure individuals who should represent both 

 the active and athletic type of person and the less active type em- 

 ployed at a sedentary occupation. The subjects were all students 

 with sufficient understanding of nutrition and physiology to appre- 

 ciate the necessity for strict adherence to the directions given them. 

 At the same time they were not informed as to the specific purpose of 

 the experiments in which they were participating. 



In the case of the oils here discussed the quantities available for 

 experimental purposes were insufficient to permit as large a number 

 of tests as it has been the policy to make in such investigations. Ac- 

 cordingly, only four tests were made with apricot-kernel oil, four 

 with cherry-kernel oil, three with melon-seed oil, three with peach- 

 kernel oil, two with pumpkin-seed oil, and three with tomato-seed oil. 



The test periods were of the customary three-day or nine-meal 

 duration, and sufficient time elapsed between test periods so that the 

 diets did not become too monotonous. During the periods which in- 

 tervened between test periods the subjects secured their meals at their 

 boarding places, and were thus afforded considerable variety in their 

 diet. No record was made of body weight, but accurate weighings 

 were made of the food served, the uneaten portion of food, and the 

 feces resulting from the test diet. Both food and feces were analyzed 

 to determine the percentages of protein, fat, and carbohydrate 

 digested. 



The individual oil under consideration was fed in a special corn- 

 starch blancmange flavored with caramel and vanilla to mask the 

 nature of the oil present. This blancmange was served in conjunction 

 with a diet containing a minimum of fat and consisting of wheat 

 biscuit, oranges, and sugar. 



APRICOT-KERNEL OIL. 



Apricot oil, like many other oils obtainable from the pits of fruits, 

 has been used little if at all in this country for edibile purposes. A 

 study reported by Rabak ^ of the commercial possibilities of apricot- 

 kernel oil indicates that the chemical and physical properties of this 

 oil are quite similar to those of the more widely used oils, such as 

 cottonseed, peanut, coconut, corn, and soy-bean oils. Tests of the 

 digestibility of apricot oil seemed especially desirable, as no informa- 

 tion regarding it was found in literature. 



The apricot oil studied in this investigation was obtained by cold 

 pressing dried apricot kernels secured through the courtesy of M. E. 

 Jaffa, of the University of California. The oil so obtained was of 

 light-yellow color and free from any marked odor or taste. It pos- 



iTJ. S. Dept. Agr. Bur. Plaoit Indus. Bui. 133 (1908), pp. 34. 



