THE PREPARATION OF TIKITIKI EXTRACT FOR THE 
TREATMENT OF BERIBERI 
By A. H. Wells 
Chemist, Bureau of Science, Manila 
The results of investigations by Funk, 1 Fraser and Stanton, 2 
Chamberlain, 3 Wilcox, 4 and Cooper 5 6 have established the fact 
that beriberi is a deficiency disease. In the Philippine Islands, 
as in most tropical countries, the diet of the people is based 
upon rice. The investigations of the above-named authors, 
together with the findings of Braddon, 8 Highet, 7 Vedder, 8 and 
others have sufficiently demonstrated that beriberi can result 
from a diet consisting of polished rice, and that extracts of 
these polishings contain neuritis-preventing substances. The 
work of these authors has been of the greatest value in the 
Philippine Islands, where beriberi is very prevalent and is 
traceable in many cases to the use of polished rice, both domestic 
and imported. 
In the preparation of rice for the market the glume or husk 
is first removed, then the grain is polished, and made white by 
the removal of the pericarp layer. This pericarp layer also 
constitutes the polishings, or tikitiki. In the Philippines tiki- 
tiki is sold as a cattle food, the best grades bringing about 4 
pesos (2 dollars) per sack of 50 kilograms. 
1 Funk, Casimir, Journ. Phys. 43 (1911) 395; Journ. State Medicine 20 
(1912) 341; Trans. Soc. Trop. Med. 5 (1911) 86. 
2 Fraser, Henry, and Stanton, A. T., Lancet 2 (1912) 1005; Lancet 1 
(1909) 451; Lancet 2 (1910) 1755. 
3 Chamberlain, W. P., and Vedder, E. B., Philip. Journ. Sci. § B 6 (1911) 
251. 
4 Wilcox, W. H., Brit. Med. Journ. No. 3081 (January 17, 1920) 73. 
5 Cooper, E. A., Journ. Hyg. 12 (1912) 436. 
6 Braddon, Leonard, Trans. Soc. Trop. Med. and Hyg. 11 (1909) 212; 
The cause and Prevention of Beriberi, London (1907). 
7 Highet, H. C., Studies on Beri-Beri and its Prevention in Siam, Gov. 
of Siam, Bangkok, Siam (July, 1912). 
8 Vedder, E. B., Philip. Journ. Sci. § B 7 (1912) 415. 
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