


NUTRITIVE VALUE OF CEREAI, PREPARATIONS. 233 
claim that grape sugar is present is based wholly on a wrong 
interpretation of the malting process or else is a confession of 
the addition of commercial glucose to the product.’’ 
It might also be remarked that in the case of a few of the 
so-called ‘‘ predigested’’ preparations examined the grains had 
apparently not been put through the malting process, but be- 
fore being finally cooked a little malt had probably been added 
to give the peculiar flavor of malted preparations. 
Although the actual predigestion of food might afford some 
benefit to persons with weak digestive powers, it would offer no 
advantage to persons with normal digestion, who are fortunately 
still in the large majority. Digestive organs were intended to 
be used, and like all other organs are better for exercise. In 
fact some specialists even claim that one reason for indigestion 
is that the food is so thoroughly softened, and even partially 
predigested, by cooking that these organs are not given suff- 
cient work, and hence become sluggish, though this question 
has not been definitely decided by experiment. There is little 
doubt, however, that food materials that require no effort on 
the part of the digestive organs are not especially adapted for 
persons in health. Fortunately, such foods are not common. 
The so-called ‘‘ predigested’’ foods are not always all their ad- 
vertisements would suggest. Since they differ so little from 
other preparations, the ordinary individual may take them or 
not, as he chooses. 
COOKING CEREAL FOODS. 
In a certain sense some food materials may be said to be par- 
tially predigested by cooking. At least a part of the process 
of digestion consists in converting materials that are not soluble 
into others that are. The effect of cooking upon starch, which 
is not soluble, is to convert it into soluble material, and to that 
extent the cooking may be said to resemble part of the process 
of digestion. For instance, it has been found that when raw 
cereals were thoroughly boiled for at least an hour, the propor- 
tion of soluble carbohydrates present was decidedly larger than 
in many of the same cereals that had been malted; and the pro- 
portion of soluble carbohydrates in the latter was still further 
increased by boiling. 
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