Smyrna times., 1899-08-16
ALCOHOL IN TEXT BOOKS.
ANSWERING A CHARGE THAT TEXT BOOKS
ARE INACCURATE.
The Recent Experiments of Professor At
water on the Food Value of
Alcohol.
Correspondence to the Times.

Alcohol.
Correspondence to the Times.
The recent experiments of Prof. At
water are of great interest to physiolo-
gists and chemists since they throw
much light upon one of the doubtful
questions of physiological chemistry
or pharmacOlOgy, that of the metabo-
hsm of alcohol in the body.
1t is mistake, however, to think as
some people apparently do, that the re-
suit of these experiments should
change the teaching in the schools in
regard to the use of alcohol from hy-
genie point of view. The schools
teach that the use of alcoholic liquors
as "a beverage is not 'justifable under
the laws of hygiene. The results of
Prof. Atwater's experiments do not
contradict this teaching.
These experiments merely show that
the body can derive some energy from
alcohol. This does not in itself entitie
alcohol to be placed among the food
substances in the hygenic sense of the
term, which is the sense in which the
schools and people in general use the
term food. If it did, such a violent
poison as muscarine, the active principle
of the poisonous plants of the mush-
room family would have to be classed
with the foods, since it also is oxidized
in the body with liberation of its con-
tanned energy.
10 class a substance among the foods
we must know that the sum total eff
fects of its use are beneficial to the
body. Muscarine is not food be-
cause its poisonous effects offset the
benefit of the energy which it liberates.
Alcohol has poisonous effects as Prof.
Alwater himself admits, The question
as to whether it can be considered as
food depends entirely upon whether its
beneficial effects are greater than its
poisonous effects. Prof. Atwater's ex-
periments do not prove this. Until
this is proven the burden of the proof
is against those who would include al
cohOl in the list OF food substances.
For scientific experiment so far. ex-
periments upon large bodies of men in
the ordinary conditions and vicissi-
tudes of life, in the armies and in ex-
ploring expeditions where labor and
exposure have to be endured, indicate
that when the regular moderation
quantity of alcohol is taken, the harm
full effects Offset the beneficial ones and
that the drinker is made less fit rather
than more fit to work.
And stronger still is the reason
against speaking as Prof. Atwater
does, of alcohol as food in the same
sense as sugar. For people generally,
will interpret this to mean that it is a
food equally to be recommended with
sugar and ordinary hygienic foods.
And this as Prof Atwater will agree is
an entirely false idea and one calcu-
lated to do much harm. For while we
WITHOUT
risk OF poisoning, to get energy from
alcohol we run great risk of poisoning,
and to get any amount such as would
be necessary to support life in ordinary
conditions, we must take enough al
cOhol to poison ourselves seriously.
(By poisoning is meant some harmful
effect upon the functions of the body. }
The above dangers in the use of
alcohol, also the possibility of the for
nation of the alcohol habit, make its
use as beverage unjustifable even if
there were no other arguments against
it. 1t is unfortunate that the alcohol
question has been brought upon this
technical ground. The question of the
hygienic status of the use of alcohol
does not depend upon the technical
question of the definitions of food
and of a poison. The controversy
upon this point has produced state
ments upon both sides which have
given rise in the public mind to great
misconception of the truth.
Both sides in this technical contro
versy will agree in regard to the mair
question, that children should bt
taught to look upon alcoholic liquor.
as dangerous substances, to be avoided
from considerations of health and gen
eral welfare.
And in the present light of our ex
perience and of scientific investigation
the school books must continue to ex.
clude alcohol fr. tie list of sub
stances desirable as foods, and t,
teach the avoidance of this substanc,
as a good hygienic rule.
HI. F. HEwEs, M. D.
Boston, Mass. July 5, 1899.
A Mother Tells How She Saves
Her Lite Daughters Life.
II 4ha e - 4