EFFICIENCY OF FOODS 



In the first place the food must he wholesome and 

 nourishing in the highest degree possible. At one 

 time that dread disease scurvy used to be regarded as the 

 inevitable result of a prolonged stay in the ice-bound 

 regions, and even the Discovery expedition, during its 

 labours in the Antarctic in the years 1902-4, suffered 

 from this complaint, which is often produced by eating 

 preserved food that is not in a perfectly wholesome 

 condition. It is now recognised that scurvy may be 

 avoided if the closest attention is given to the prepara- 

 tion and selection of food-stuffs along scientific lines, 

 and I may say at once that our efforts in this direction 

 were successful, for during the whole course of the 

 expedition we had not one case of sickness attributable 

 directly or indirectly to the foods we had brought with 

 us. Indeed, beyond a few colds, apparently due to germs 

 from a bale of blankets, we experienced no sickness at 

 all at the winter quarters. 



In the second place the food taken for use on the 

 sledging expeditions must be as light as possible, remem- 

 bering always that extreme concentration renders the 

 food less easy of assimilation and therefore less health- 

 ful. Extracts that may be suitable enough for use in 

 ordinary climates are little use in the polar regions, 

 because under conditions of very low temperature the 

 heat of the body can be maintained only by use of fatty 

 and farinaceous foods in fairly large quantities. Then 

 the sledging-foods must be such as do not require pro- 

 longed cooking, that is to say, it must be sufficient to 

 bring them to the boiling-point, for the amount of fuel 

 that can be carried is limited. It must be possible to 

 eat the foods without cooking at all, for the fuel may 

 be lost or become exhausted. 



More latitude is possible in the selection of foods 

 to be used at the winter quarters of the expedition, for 



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