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Food Values and Adulterations: Nutrients

The question of modification of diet NUTRITIVE INGREDIENTS (OR NUTRIENTS) OF FOOD Food as purchased contains- Proteid.

Edible portion. e. g., flesh of meat, yolk and white of eggs, wheat, flour, etc.

Refuse. e. g., bones, entrails, shells, bran, etc.

Water.

Nutrients.... Fats.

USES OF NUTRIENTS IN THE BODY e. g., white (albumen) of eggs, curd (casein) of milk, lean meat, gluten of wheat, etc.

Fats... e. g., fat of meat, butter, olive oil, oils of corn and wheat, etc.

Carbohydrates... e. g., sugar, starch, etc.

Mineral matters (ash) e. g., phosphates of lime, potash, soda, etc.

PROBLEMS OF THE DIET Forms tissue.

Are stored as fat. .........

Are transformed into fat ...

Proteid.

Carbohydrates.

Mineral matters.

All serve as fuel to yield energy in the forms of heat and muscular power.

Share in forming bone, assist in digestion, etc.

Digestibility. - Many experiments have been made to learn the comparative value of different kinds of food as affected by their digestibility and by various processes of cookery. Some of the earliest and most famous of these were made by Dr.

Wm. Beaumont, U. S. A., between 1825-33. His subject was a French- Canadian trapper, a man whose stomach had been torn open by a gunshot wound but had healed, leaving an opening closed only by a valve which developed over it. By pressing this valve inward the contents of the on the grounds of digestibility, is of importance only in some kinds of disease. It should then be referred to the attending physician. It is true that some kinds of foods do not agree with certain individuals. But this is a matter which does not admit of general rules. It can be settled in each case only on the basis of experience. Each person must learn what kinds of food yield him nourishment with the least discomfort and must avoid those which do not agree with him.

The value to persons in good health of special diets consisting exclusively of vegetables, fruits and nuts, or of an exclusive diet of uncooked foods is often grossly exaggerated. The ordinary mixed diet has been shown by scientific tests to be by far the most wholesome and economical. As general rules, however, it may be said that carbohydrates-especially in the form of sugar-are more completely digested than proteids and fats; and that the proteid of animal foods-as meat, fish, milk and eggs is more digesti-. ble than that of vegetable foods.

Economy in Diet.-The needs of individuals differ, but it has been estimated that an average man at moderately active labor-as a farmer, carpenter or mason-should have about one-fourth of a pound of available proteid each day, and sufficient fats and carbohydrates, in addition, to bring the total fuel value of the whole diet up to about 3000 calories.

A man at sedentary employment would require only one-fifth of a pound of proteid, and other nutrients enough to produce a total of only 2700 calories of energy. A woman under similar conditions would need about eight-tenths as much food as a man. Children require lesser amounts, varying with their ages.

The proportions usually stated are about seven-tenths for a boy from the ages of 12 to 14; six-tenths from 10 to 12; five-tenths from 6 to 9, and four-tenths from 2 to 5 years of age.

Girls require slightly less nutrient than boys of the same age, but in practice the difference is negligible.

The cost of the amounts of different nutrients required varies greatly with the different kinds of food at ordinary prices. For example, onefourth of a pound of proteid from a sirloin of beef at 25 cents a pound would cost 40 cents. The same amount from a shoulder clod of beef at 12 cents a pound would cost 19 cents, and from a piece of beef stew meat at 5 cents a pound only 9 cents; yet the actual value of each in the diet would be identical. The table on the next page of the comparative cost of digestible nutrients and energy in different food materials at average prices, prepared by the Department of Agriculture, is very useful and suggests many similar comparisons.

The most common errors in food economy are (1) the needless waste of expensive foods, (2) the use of a one-sided diet, (3) waste of food from over-eating, (4) table waste, and (5) neglect of the value of refuse. Many housekeepers buy the more expensive kinds of meat and pay higher prices for vegetables and eggs out of season, from a mistaken belief that such foods are enough more nutritious to be worth what they cost. In point of fact equal amounts of nutriment could be obtained from other foods at very much lower price. The result is a great waste of money. The maxim that "the best is the cheapest," as popularly understood to apply to high prices, is not true of food. The larger part of the price of the costlier foods is paid for appearance, flavor or rarity. While often more pleasing to the palate and sometimes more easily cooked or of finer flavor, the dearer articles are no more digestible or nutritious than the cheaper ones. The plain, substantial standard food materials-like the cheaper cuts of meat and fish, milk, flour, cornmeal, oatmeal, beans and potatoes-are as digestible and nutritious and as well fitted for the nourishment of persons in good health as are any of the costly materials.

A one-sided or badly balanced diet is one in which either proteid or fuel ingredients are in excess. If we eat too much meat and too few vegetables, the diet will be too rich in proteid and may be harmful. Or, if we eat too much pastry and other food rich in fats and sweets, the diet furnishes too much energy and too little building material. The result is injurious to health as well as false economy. Waste from over-eating is perhaps not common except among persons of sedentary occupationsbrain workers, as distinguished from hand workers-but table waste is al- FOOD VALUES AND ADULTERATIONS COMPARATIVE COST OF DIGESTIBLE NUTRIENTS AND ENERGY IN DIFFERENT FOOD MATERIALS AT AVERAGE PRICES [It is estimated that a man at light to moderate muscular work requires about 0.23 pound of proteid and 3,050 calories of energy per day.] Amounts for 10 cents.

Cost Cost of Price Kind of food material per pound of 1 1,000 Total pound calories weight pro- energy of food Carbo- Proteid a (a) teid mate- Fat hy- Energy drates rial Cents Dollars Cents Pounds Pound Pound Pounds Calories Beef, sirloin. 25 1.60 25 0.40 0.06 0.06 410 Do. 20 1.28 20 .50 .08 .08 515 Do. 15 .96 15 .67 .10 .11 685 Beef, round. 16 .87 18 .63 .11 .08 560 ...

Do... 14 .76 16 .71 .13 .09 630 Do. 12 .65 13 .83 15 .10 740 .......

Beef, shoulder clod. 12 .75 17 .83 13 .08 595 Do. 9 .57 13 1.11 .18 .10 Beef, stew meat. 5 .35 7 2 .29 .23 Beef, dried, chipped 25 .98 32 .40 .10 .03 ....... ..... 795 1,530 315 Mutton chops, loin. 16 1.22 11 .63 .08 .17 890 ......

Mutton, leg... 20 1.37 22 .50 .07 .07 445 Do. 16 1.10 18 .63 .09 .09 560 Roast pork, loin. 12 .92 10 .83 .11 .19 Pork, smoked ham. 22 1.60 13 .45 .06 .14 Do.... 18 1.30 11 .56 .08 .18 Pork, fat salt. 12 6.67 3 .83 .02 .68 ....... ..... 1,035 735 915 2,950 Codfish, dressed, fresh. 10 .93 46 1 .11 220 ....

Halibut, fresh. 18 1.22 38 .56 .08 .02 265 ....