Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1888-03-14
NO PHYsIC WITH OUR FOOD.
A PHOSPHATE BAKING POWDER THEORY TIL
Is DANGEROUS IF NOT RIDICULOUS.

A PHOSPHATE BAKING POWDER THEORY THAT
| Is DANGEROUS IF NOT RIDICULOUS.
That is rather dangerous proposition, put
forth by the manufacturers of some of the pat
ented or proprietary articles of food, that their
products possesses superior wholesomeness
because they contain drug of some particu-
lar medicinal property. Phosphates. alum,
lime. arsenic. calomel ETC., have their places as
specifics for diseases, and are invaluable med
ical remedies, each in its place. But they are
not cure-alls. The physician who should pre-
scribe either calomel, or strychnine, or rhu-
barb three times a day to man, woman and
child, sick or well, because either of such
drugs is a well known remedy for some GER
| tain disease, would receive but little honor
| from the fraternity and less practice from the
community.
! No man will controvert this statement yet
we find manufacturers of baking powders
claiming superior hygienic virtues for their
productions and urging their continuous use
because they are alleged to carry the phosphate
used in making them Ia cheap substitute for
| cream of tartar. procured from the bones of
dead animals) into the food, although well
aware, as they must be, OF the fact that with
the constant use of such article this drug must
| pass into our systems daily, no matter what
may be our physical condition or require
ments, or whether or not we may be suffering
| from some aim emit wherein the use of such
| drug would be positively detrimental. Both
| alum and phosphates are useful medicaments
| in certain diseases; but they should no more
be taken Unfortunately day after day and
without the prescription of physician, than
arsenic, aconite or calomel; indeed. there are
conditi ons of the system. particularly with
xrla
be loath to permit the use of lime phosphates
even as a medicine.
The fallacy of this claim of the manufacture
ers of phosphate baking powders will be ap
parent to all when the fact, we'll known to
ply sicians, is stated, that in average health
and with ordinary food the body gets more
phosphates than are required or can be assim-
Hated. as is evidenced by the fact that they are
constantly being expelled in the secretions,
both solid and liquid; likewise the statement
that it is necessary to add phosphates to the
baking powders to restore to the flour those
which have been lost in the milling, for it is
true that fine flour as at present made actual
ly contains larger percentage of phosphates
than the grain of wheat ITSELF
The object of baking powders is not to pro-
vide the body with a medicine, but simply to
vesiculate or make light the mixtures of flour,
so as to render it when baked easy of mastica-
tion and perfectly digestible. The most cele-
brated experts in the business have worked
for the perfection of an article that should do
this mechanically, adding to or taking from
the flour nothing, nor in any way effecting a
change in its properties or constituents. When
this has been done the perfect 1eavening agent
has been discovered. The anufacturers of
the Royal Baking Powder have succeed in this
SO far as to make q leavening agent that vesc-
ulates and raises the loaf most perfectly, and
without changing the properties of the flour,
while the residuum from it has been reduced
to a minimum. The acid employ ed, however,
to produce this result is not phosphate, but
the acid of highly refined cream of tartar,
which the health authorities agree, renders
that powder perfectly pure and more reliable
and healthful than any other. The recent Of
fetal tests show, on the .other hand, that the
best the phosphate baking powder makers
can do is to produce an article that is one
third or more residuum or impurity.
We want our food pure; especially do we not
wish to take alum. lime and phosphates with
it at the dictum of manufacturers who may
find it cheaper to claim virtue for the impu-
rites than to remove them.