cb:reaIv F'oods. 129 



first, not only in the digestibility of the total organic matter, but 

 also with respect to the protein. The rolled oats rank next, and 

 the corn preparations and shredded wheat the lowest of all. 



One of the most noticeable differences in these cereal foods 

 is found in the digestibility of the protein when the cereal is 

 eaten with a simple diet. This difference is most marked in the 

 various wheat products, especially when the results are calcu- 

 lated to the cereal alone. Thus, while the protein of rolled 

 wheat is 85 per cent digestible, that of Force and Grape-Nuts is 

 76.1 per cent, and that of Shredded Whole Wheat only 57.7 per 

 cent. 



It is not claimed that the results given in the table for the 

 cereal alone exactly represent the proportion of these foods 

 which becomes available to the body when they are eaten under 

 ordinary conditions. No one subsists on these cereals alone, and 

 the conditions are therefore abnormal and the results exagger- 

 ated. It is fair to assume — and the assumption is quite in 

 accordance with the results of other experiments recorded else- 

 where — that most articles of food are more fully digested when 

 eaten with a mixed diet than when eaten alone. On the other 

 hand, there can be no doubt that these figures correctly indicate 

 the relative digestibility of the foods studied. The brands 

 named were chosen for these experiments merely because they 

 were well known articles and representative of the groups indi- 

 ■ Gated. 



McGill found (see table, p. 125) that the rolled wheat which 

 he examined contained only 2.6 per cent dextrin, while Force 

 and Grape-Nuts contained 14.5 and 24.9 per cent respectively. 

 These facts suggest that the processes to which these latter prod- 

 ucts have been submitted to render the starch soluble have at the 

 same time diminished the digestibility of the protein. 



This conclusion seems to be confirmed by Snyder in a study 

 upon the comparative digestibility of bread and toast.* He 

 found that the toasting of bread "changes the form and solu- 

 bility of the nutrients, particularly of the carbohydrates, to a 

 much greater extent than it does the percentage amounts. Dur- 



L 



* Minnesota Expt. Station, Bui. 74, p. 166. 



