VI. FOOD ACCESSORIES; ALCOHOL AND 

 TOBACCO. 



In ordinary diet we eat many things which merely add 

 to the enjoyment of eating. These substances are to be 

 regarded not as foods but as food accessories. They in- 

 clude the condiments (pepper, mustard, etc.), the flavors, 

 the stimulants (tea, coffee, etc.), and the narcotics (tobacco 

 and opium). Some of these substances are harmless, some 

 are beneficial, and others positively injurious. Some are 

 harmless in small quantities, but become distinctly inju- 

 rious in larger amounts. None of these food accessories 

 is absolutely necessary to the body, though few people are 

 willing to eat food entirely without flavor. 



Condiments and flavors. — Most of these substances 

 have a directly beneficial effect either in making the food 

 more palatable or in stimulating the flow of the fluids 

 which digest food. Some hasten the absorption of the 

 food into the blood. They are harmless if not used to 

 excess and not used to disguise foods whose natural flavors 

 would indicate their unfitness for use. A few, such as the 

 salts and the sugars, have a food value also. Used in 

 excess, they may result in overstimulation of the digestive 

 fluids or the cultivation of habits of use which destroy the 

 normal appetite. The continual use of highly seasoned 

 food destroys the appetite for natural flavors. 



The members of this group may be classified as follows : 

 aromatic condiments (vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.), 

 peppers, alhaceous condiments (garlic, onion juice, mus- 



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