CARE OF FOODS 295 



months, as a protection from flies. Raw fruits and vegetables 

 should be carefully washed before being eaten. 



Care of Dishes. — Home life for some people is ^' an endless 

 washing of dishes." But carelessness in dishwashing may mean 

 the spreading of disease. Dr. Broadhurst of Teachers College, 

 New York, recently made a series of tests with several hundred 

 glasses and cups smeared with saliva and found that hand washing 

 without rinsing does not remove all the bacteria. Some of the 

 bacteria are not destroyed unless boiling hot water is used. Dishes 

 should first be washed with hot, soapy water, then dipped in a sec- 

 ond pan of boiling hot water, and finally wiped with a clean, dry 

 towel. At the time of the influenza epidemic during the World War 

 an investigation was made of 66,000 men, half of whom ate from 

 plates which were washed in boiling water, the other half from 

 mess plates which were washed carelessly by the men. The influ- 

 enza rate was 51 per 1000 among the men who ate from properly 

 washed dishes and 252 per 1000 among the men who ate from mess 

 plates. These facts show plainly the need of proper washing of 

 dishes. 



Insects and Foods. — In the summer our houses should be pro- 

 vided with screens. All food should be carefully protected from 



During the summer all food should be protected from flies. Why? 



flies. Dirty dishes, scraps of food, and garbage should be quickly 

 cleaned up and disposed of after a meal. Insect powder (pyr- 

 ethrum) will help keep out ^' croton bugs " and other undesirable 

 household pests, but cleanliness will do far more. Most kitchen 



