184 STORRS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 
Moreover, these cereal foods are commonly eaten with sugar 
and milk or cream, hence it seemed the more appropriate to eat 
them in this way in these experiments. 
It might be objected that, since cereal breakfast foods as 
a rule are eaten with only one meal of the day, and frequently 
form but a small part of the total ration, experiments in which 
they are eaten as a considerable part of each meal for three 
meals a day would not give reliable results regarding their 
availability because the conditions would be unusual. ‘That is, 
it could not be definitely stated that the availability as thus 
determined would be the same as for the same material eaten 
under the usual conditions, as part of a mixed diet. It has 
been pointed out that a simple diet of bread and milk has been 
found to be about as completely utilized as a more varied ration. | 
It may also be stated that a number of experiments have been 
made, in this country and in Europe, in which the diet has 
become exceedingly monotonous, and was eaten only with 
difficulty, yet the digestion of the food was not affected, and the 
coefficients of availability were found to be practically the same 
as those for more varied rations under normal conditions. It is 
therefore believed that the results obtained in the series of 
experiments here reported are reliable. 
Description of food materials.—For these experiments three 
breakfast foods in very common use were chosen. All three 
were claimed by their makers to have wheat as a basis, though 
combined with other materials. The goods were bought from 
a local grocer, in the sealed packages in which they were sent 
from the factory. In each case the material obtained was 
believed to be representative of goods of the same brand sold 
in other markets. | 
‘‘Force,’’ prepared by the Force Food Co., of Buffalo, N, 
Y., is claimed by the manufacturers to contain ‘‘the whole of 
the wheat scientifically combined with barley malt.’’ 
‘“Malta Vita,’’ manufactured by the Pure Food Co., of Bat- 
tle Creek, Mich., is also claimed to be a preparation of wheat 
and barley malt. It closely resembles ‘‘ Force’’ in appearance 
and general character. 
‘‘Grape-Nuts,’’ manufactured by the Postum Cereal Co., of 
Battle Creek, Mich., is claimed to be a combination of wheat 
and barley, prepared by special treatment. 



