POSITION OF ALCOHOL 77 



Fifth. As ordinarily taken, alcohol is not intended as 

 a food, but for its exhilarating effect upon the nervous 

 system. Such use is always attended with the danger of 

 forming habits of excess. 



Sixth. Alcohol is not necessary to people in health, and 

 leads readily to habits of excess. In excess its effects are 

 far worse than excess of ordinary food. 



Seventh. Compared with ordinary food it is very expen- 

 sive. The amount of alcohol necessary to produce a given 

 amount of energy costs several times as much as the equiv- 

 alent amounts of fat and sugar in ordinary foods. 



Eighth. In small amounts, it increases the flow of 

 digestive fluids and may be beneficial in sickness or 

 disease. 



These results teach us that we may consider small 

 amounts of alcohol as true fuel food, even though it never 

 acts as a tissue builder. Further, its use in small amounts 

 does not necessarily mean immediate damage to our sys- 

 tems, that is, does not injure the tissues directly. Under 

 these conditions then it is not a poison, but a true fuel food. 

 The results, however, point still more strongly to the fact, 

 first, that its use is unnecessary, since other foods furnish 

 the same amount of energy at a much less cost and at the 

 same time are attended with none of the dangers of acquir- 

 ing habits of excess; second, that this habit which alcohol 

 encourages is a very real and great danger, and that on that 

 account its general use is to be discouraged. When we 

 indulge in too much candy we are made sick, and the sick- 

 ness tends to destroy our craving for such excess. When 

 we indulge in too much alcohol the effect is not only to 

 poison the system but to increase the craving. It is the 

 fearful effect of this habit and the excesses it encourages 



