The Washington critic., 1888-06-26
BEER AND DIGESTION
what DIR. Hare of the University OF
Pennsylvania Says About 1t.

DR.. II. A. Hare, demonstrator OF expert
mental therapeutics and instructor In physl'
cal diagnosis In the University Of Pennsyl,
vania, says the physician is frequently puzzled
when prescribing for convaescent as to
which alcoholic beverage of a mild and pleas
ant character he can recommend with the
least fear Of "upsetting' the stomach. The
writer has, therefore, attempted to decide
this question.
Before passing to a direct consideration of
the methods employed and the results OBJ.
tanned II Is necessary that a few physiological
and thorapeutioal points be brought forward.
Every one knows that alcohol retards diges-
tlon in the test tube, but aids II in the
stomaCh and while these facts seem some
what paradoXical, they are, in reality, per-
fectly logical, for the following reasons
In the test tube we have a given quantity of
digestive fluid on which the alcohol may act,
and we cannot have any increase In the quan.
tity of that fluid, because II Is surrounded by
glass walls, In the stomach the alcohol acts
quite as much on the digestive ferment as it
does on the test tube, hut IL also, by the pres
enCe of that viscus, ,eNctes the gastric glands to
such an extent that an excess OF gastric juice
Is secreted sufficient to Counterbalance any
anti'digestNe influences. In other words
the action OF the spirit on the living tissue Is
greater than its action on the digestive fer
ments.
Theoretically, alcohol should never be used
In indigestion or In conditions OF gastric weak
ness; practically, every physician of expert
ence or education gives alcohol under just
these circumstances, and, very properly, too,
stead of the weaker. In typhoid fever we
give brandy or whisky in the first stages al.
most solely for the purpose of increasing
digestion.
II is also known, by those interested In such
matters in the profession, that beer aids dl.
gestion but little, or at all, by means OF its
alcohol, since that constituent Is present in
so diluted a form and in such small quantity
that II can neither aid digestion to any extent
by acting on the coats of the stomach nor
retard Il by influencing the digestive fluid I.
IL should not be forgotten that while all aloo-
holic fluids theoretically retard gastric diges.
tion, that Beer does so much less thanibrandy
or whisky owing to It's small amount Of alco-
hol, and while, as has already been shown,
this fact rather obtains against its practical
| use, that this is overcome by the carbonic
acid and bitter principles Of the beer, which
| stimulate, excite and act as bitter tonics ON
| the gastric glands.
Beers, to be wholesome, should, therefore,
| contain CarbOnio acid and bitter principles to
| fair degree, the alcohol taking a subservient
| and almost useless role so FAR as digestion Is
concerned,
To sum up the results of these experiments
| we find that the beers examined varied In
| their action as much as fifty-nine minutes
| and that while most beers do not retard di.
| gestion In all probability In the stomach, that
| others, such as those mentioned in the first
| part Of the table, aid digestion. very materi
| ally.
| Thus. In the case of the BERGNER & EN-
| GEL BREWING COMPANY'S Tannhaeuser Il
| will be noted that even in the test tube the
average delay In gastric digestion equaled but