PEESEEVATIVES. 181 



111 certain patients medicinal doses of boric acid give rise to 

 transient erythematous eruptions after relatively short periods, 

 especially in cases of kidney disease, where the drug is not rapidly 

 eliminated in the urine. 



Tunnicliffe and Rosenheim conclude that neither boric acid 

 nor borax given for twelve days in any way afiect the general 

 health or well-being of children. On the other hand, the author 

 has found a general consensus of opinion among medical men, 

 who are specialists in infant feeding, that the presence of boric 

 acid or its compounds tends to cause feeding troubles in young 

 children. 



Hehner, Weber, F. J. Allan, Cripps, Lefimann and Beam, 

 Liebreich, Halliburton, Chittenden, Mayberry and Goldsmith, and 

 Rideal and Foulerton have shown that neither boric acid nor 

 borax have any inhibitory effect on rennet action, or on salivary, 

 gastric, or pancreatic digestion, beyond that traceable to the 

 acid radicle of boric acid or the alkali of borax. 



They have, however, none of them ventured to claim that 

 their experiments in vitro have more than a partial bearing on 

 the question whether boric acid is injurious or not. 



Salicylic acid is in rather a different category ; it i.'s a well- 

 known drug, and, when taken in moderate quantity, has been 

 proved to cause injurious symptoms ; its use is forbidden in 

 France as a preservative ; it has an inhibitive effect on euz}Tnes. 

 AVik')- has found that it tends to produce slight digestive dis- 

 turbances. Formaldehyde is of considerable activity as a 

 chemical agent, and combines with proteins to form compounds^ 

 of a different nature. 



It has been found by Tunnicliffe and Rosenheim that formalde- 

 hyde, when given for fourteen days to children, diminished 

 phosphorus and fat assimilation, and in a delicate child it had 

 a chemically measurable deleterious effect on general assimilation 

 combined with a slight intestinal irritant action. 



Wik'v was obli>;ed to stop his experiments with formaldehyde 

 on account of the alarming symptoms produced. 



Rideal and Foulerton, Bliss and Novy, Pottevin, Halliburton, 

 Freudenreich, JIayberry and Goldsmith, Loew, Wiegle and 

 Merkel, and Cassal have experimented on the action of formalde- 

 hyde on artificial digestions, and all find some retardation of the 

 time of digestion. 



< ). and C. \V. Hehner have found that small amounts of 

 fluorides have a very considerable effect in retarding artificial 

 digestions. 



To sum up, it seems that while healthy adults can take small 

 doses of the preservatives usually employed in milk, there is 

 evidence that young cliildren are not unaffected. The practice 



