WHEN THE MOTHERS FAIL 27 



breast milk. Physicians generally have prescribed 

 a dietary for the sake of securing a sufficient flow of 

 milk, but very few of them have studied the relation 

 of diet to the quality of the milk, most of them be- 

 lieving that practically nothing could be done. The 

 work of Dr. Thomas Morgan Rotch, however, estab- 

 lishes the fact that, while the science of lacteal regu- 

 lation is in its infancy and a great deal of experiment 

 needs to be carried on and carefully studied, it is pos- 

 sible to materially influence the quality of the human 

 mother's milk by means of a careful regulation of the 

 diet.'^ Possibly the experiments of Jordan do not 

 represent the final judgment concerning the relation 

 of diet to milk in cows ; further researches along the 

 same lines may establish the fact of the influence of 

 nutrition upon the quality of the bovine lacteal fluid 

 as conclusively as Rotch has in the case of the human 

 mother. 



There are, of course, many familiar phenomena 

 which point to a very direct connection between 

 nutrition and lactation. It is well known that if 

 cows eat turnips, garlic, or onions, the milk is speedily 

 and directly influenced, so that the pungent flavor 

 can be tasted in the milk and butter. In like man- 

 ner, nursing mothers not infrequently find that 

 unripe fruits, or vegetables such as asparagus," 

 eaten, even in the, most moderate quantities, or 

 laxative drugs taken for medicinal purposes, affect 



