6 



BULLETIN 1033, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGPJCULTUEE. 



The food eaten per man per day provided on an average 15 grams 

 of protein, 61 grams of fat, and 311 grams of carbohydrate and its 

 fuel vahie averaged 1,860 calories. The average coefficient of digesti- 

 bility of the Java-almond oil, which made up over 98 per cent of the 

 total fat of the diet, was 97 per cent. So far as may be judged by the 

 continued good condition of the subjects, the palatability of the oil, 

 and its high digestibility, there is good reason to conclude that it 

 compares favorably with other nut oils used in this laboratory. 



TEA-SEED OIL. 



The best grades of tea-seed oil are used to some extent for food 

 purposes in China and have been found as an adulterant of cabbage 

 oil. The Chinese use poorer grades for burning and for soap making. 

 That used in the tests here reported was a commercial product of a 

 pale yellow color and bland flavor. 



The fitness of this by-product oil for food has been questioned on 

 the ground that, as saponin has been found in it, it may be harmful. 

 Hooper ^° reports 9 per cent saponin in tea seed and states that some 

 is always dissolved by the oil. Weil " states that oil made by extrac- 

 tion contains no saponin. The oil used in the present experiments 

 was examined for saponin in the Pharmacological Laboratory, Bu- 

 reau of Chemistry, with negative results. 



The experiment was begun with three subjects, who ate some 40 

 to 50 grams of the oil per man per day. Owing to the accidental loss 

 of some of the feces in the case of two subjects, complete data are 

 available from only one person. The available results are summarized 

 in Table 3. 



Table 3. — Data of digestion experiments loith tea-seed oilin a simple mixed diet. 





Subject. 



Digestibility of entire ration. 



Digesti- 

 bility of 

 tea-seed 

 oil alone. 



Experiment No. 



Protein. 



Fat. 



Carbo- 

 hydrate. 



Ash. 



1004 



J.F.C 



Per cent. 

 47.2 



Per cent. 

 88.2 



Per cent. 

 98.4 



Per cent. 

 42,1 



Per cent. 

 91.2 







The daily food of the subject for whom the expei^imental data are 

 complete, provided on an average 9 grams of protein, 50 grams of 

 fat, and 204 grams of carbohydrate, and its fuel value averaged 

 1,300 calories. The average amount of tea-seed oil eaten daily was 

 49 grams. The subject remained in his usual good health and suf- 

 fered no noticeable physiological disturbances. This was equally 



^Tharm. Jour, and Trtms. [London], 3. s<n-., 25 (1895), No. 12S2, p. 605. 

 "Arch. I'harm., 239 (1901), No. 5, pp. 365. 



