﻿62 
  

  

  Report 
  on 
  the 
  Metabolism 
  of 
  Female 
  Munition 
  Workers. 
  

   By 
  M. 
  Greenwood, 
  C. 
  Hudson, 
  and 
  A. 
  E. 
  Tebb. 
  

  

  (Communicated 
  by 
  E. 
  H. 
  Starling, 
  F.R.S. 
  Chairman 
  of 
  Food 
  (War) 
  Committee. 
  

  

  Received 
  April 
  29, 
  1919.) 
  

  

  Introduction. 
  

  

  The 
  research 
  described 
  in 
  this 
  report 
  was 
  planned 
  on 
  the 
  following 
  

   lines 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  In 
  October, 
  1918, 
  portable 
  Haldane 
  analysers 
  and 
  other 
  apparatus 
  were 
  

   installed 
  in 
  the 
  Research 
  Sub-section 
  of 
  the 
  Welfare 
  and 
  Health 
  Section 
  of 
  

   the 
  Ministry 
  of 
  Munitions, 
  and 
  the 
  three 
  authors 
  carried 
  out 
  a 
  considerable 
  

   number 
  of 
  determinations 
  upon 
  themselves, 
  both 
  with 
  the 
  object 
  of 
  acquiring 
  

   or 
  regaining 
  familiarity 
  with 
  the 
  experimental 
  technic 
  and 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  

   determine 
  what 
  form 
  of 
  respiratory 
  apparatus 
  would 
  be 
  most 
  suitable 
  for 
  

   use 
  in 
  the 
  study 
  of 
  factory 
  conditions. 
  Ultimately, 
  a 
  system 
  was 
  evolved 
  

   which 
  conforms 
  to 
  the 
  rules 
  afterwards 
  laid 
  down 
  for 
  the 
  guidance 
  of 
  

   investigators 
  by 
  the 
  Metabolism 
  Research 
  Sub-Committee 
  of 
  the 
  Royal 
  

   Society 
  Food 
  (War) 
  Committee. 
  

  

  Having 
  acquired 
  the 
  necessary 
  experience, 
  it 
  was 
  decided 
  to 
  proceed 
  on 
  

   the 
  following 
  general 
  lines 
  : 
  — 
  Permission 
  having 
  been 
  granted 
  to 
  make 
  

   observations 
  in 
  a 
  national 
  projectile 
  factory 
  in 
  the 
  north-east 
  of 
  London, 
  

   we 
  arranged 
  to 
  make 
  measurements 
  upon 
  women 
  engaged 
  on 
  the 
  various 
  

   operations 
  of 
  the 
  factory, 
  while 
  attention 
  was 
  coincidently 
  directed 
  to 
  the 
  

   cooling 
  power 
  of 
  the 
  air 
  in 
  the 
  workrooms 
  ; 
  or, 
  more 
  exactly, 
  in 
  each 
  

   experiment 
  on 
  a 
  worker, 
  the 
  cooling 
  power 
  of 
  the 
  air 
  was 
  ascertained 
  in 
  a 
  

   position 
  as 
  near 
  as 
  possible 
  to 
  the 
  worker 
  during 
  the 
  experiment, 
  that 
  is 
  to 
  

   say, 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  in 
  view, 
  practically 
  in 
  an 
  identical 
  position. 
  The 
  

   respiration 
  apparatus 
  used 
  was 
  a 
  modification 
  of 
  the 
  Douglas 
  bag 
  combined 
  

   with 
  a 
  face 
  mask 
  (approved 
  by 
  the 
  Metabolism 
  Research 
  Sub 
  -Committee) 
  . 
  

   and 
  needs 
  no 
  special 
  description. 
  

  

  The 
  measurements 
  in 
  the 
  factory 
  were 
  made 
  by 
  A. 
  E. 
  T. 
  and 
  C. 
  H., 
  who 
  

   were 
  also 
  responsible 
  for 
  the 
  gas 
  analysis. 
  M. 
  G. 
  and 
  his 
  statistical 
  

   assistants 
  have 
  reduced 
  the 
  analytical 
  readings, 
  the 
  method 
  being 
  that 
  

   described 
  in 
  Cathcart's 
  recent 
  paper.* 
  

  

  As 
  advised 
  by 
  the 
  Sub-Committee, 
  air 
  analyses 
  (of 
  the 
  room 
  air) 
  have 
  been 
  

   made 
  at 
  frequent 
  intervals 
  to 
  check 
  the 
  efficiency 
  of 
  the 
  apparatus. 
  In 
  a 
  

  

  * 
  'Journal 
  Royal 
  Army 
  Medical 
  Corps,' 
  November, 
  1918. 
  

  

  