The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1876-03-18
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The Need ef Acids.

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when much fnt pork is eaten there
will always be a demand for pickles or
vinegar, says the report Of the Massachu-
setts Board Of Health. The demand for
acid is genuine call Of the system, but
there isno especial call for the strong
acids, such as raw lemons and pickles, il
one has from day to day the proper supply
Of moderately sour fruit. Half Of the
doctors would find their occupation gone II
apples were freely used us an article Of
food. Fruit has never done us the good
i might have done, because it has been
eaten at improper hours, between meals,
or in the evening 1t has actually been
turned into foe to good digestion by the
process Of picking and preserving. The
Old-fashioned pound for pound" preserves
are too sweet to serve the purpose of acid
fruit, and too rich to have the nourishing
effect Of juicy. sweet fruit. They are sim
ply sweetmeats, to be eaten with caution.
Canned fruit is excellent, but fresh fruit is
best, whenever it can be obtained. The
good effect Of fresh fruit is often spoiled
by the excess ofsugar used with it. When
there is a craving for sour food, for pickles
or for lemons, it is generally a strong
Indication that the system has real need
Of acids, and lemons or vinegar are some
times the best medicine to cure bilious
ness and restore failing appetite. A
year ago | saw child pass through one
of these poor spells. He lost his appe-
tite, and could not bear the sight or
smell of food until he caught a sight Of
a dish of dried apple sauce, and then he
was possessed with desire for some Of
the juice This seemed to refresh him,
aud he ate, for his next meal, bread
soaked in the juice of stewed dried apples.
After that canned tomato, cooked with
bread, helped forward the cure Before
this i'll turn he had, for few weeks lived
almost entirely without fruit, contrary to
his usual habit. 1t is common mistake
to use fruit at the table only in the form
of sauce at the evening meal, or encased
in rich crusts as pie for dinner. In the
latter case, the III effect Of the dainty pie
crust is often greater than the good effect
of the fruit inside the pie. As for the
fruit sauce on the tea table, it is better
than heavy supper of meat, but there is
some sense in the old saying that "Fruit
is golden in the morning, silver at noon
aud lead at night. Perhaps any kind of
fruit or vegetable may be used to excess,
or in too large proportion as compared
with the rest Of the diet Certainly acids
shoulds be used in moderation, especially
the strong kinds. Because the juice of. q
lemon may be an excellent cure for bill
liousness or fatulence or other disease, it
by no means follow that school girls can
thrive upon their daily use. In former
days, when pale and slender maidens were
in fashion it was not very uncommon for
silly girls to try and reduce their weight
and ruddy hue by frequent sips of vinegar,
and many feeble woman and many an
carly death has been the result of such
tamperine A variety of vegetables and
fruit, well cooked and eaten as appetite
calls for them, will satisfy the natural de-
mand for both sour and sweet food.