The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-04-16
A PAPER BY PROF. ATwATER.
On the Nutritive Value of Alcohol
Advises HaDitual Abstinence.


! On the Nutritive Value of Alcohol
Advises HaDitual Abstinence.
Prof. w. O. Atwater read a paper at
the meeting of the Middletown Scien-
tific association the other evening on
| "Nutritive Value of Alcohol and the
| Temperance Question" In speaking of
alcohol as nutriment he summarized the
I results of experimental inquiry, of
which the most has been carried out in
Europe. This shows that alcohol has
definite though limited nutritive val
ue. 1t cannot serve the body for the
building and repair Of tissue but is
used as fuel. He referred to the ex-
periments on this subject which have
been going on for some time at Wes-
leyan university of which an account,
given before, the Middletown Scientific
association last June has given rise to
considerable discussion.
Ten experiments in which alcohol
made part of the diet are now ready
for publication These are compared
with similar number of experiments
in which no alcohol was used The diff
ference between the two kinds of diet
was that of a part of the fat, sugar and
starch of the one was replaced by the
isodynamic or chemically equivalent
amount of alcohol, about two and one
half ounces per day in the other. The
results confirm those previously re-
ported in showing that the alcohol was
burned in the body, and its latent en-
ergy was transformed into either heat
or heat and muscular energy as was
the case with the fat, sugar and starch
which it replaced. The balance of nj
trogen and carbon in the body was
maintained, that is, the body held its
own as well with one kind of ration as
with the other. To put it in another
way, the replacement of part of the
carbonaceous nutriments by alcohol
made no practical difference in the eff
feet of the food so far as the expert
ments showed.
Reference was made to misapprehen-
sions regarding these statements which
have been widely circulated. The ex-
periments are purely scientific They
do not show the effects of habitual or
excessive use of alcohol as a beverage
Their purpose and nature are such that
they give no evidence regarding it's
pathological or toxic action. They
simply show that the limited quantity
of alcohol that has been taken with 9TH
er food materials in the diet of healthy |
men for periods of few days was al
most completely burned in the body and
yielded certain amount of energy, and |
this energy was used by the body. Ex-
actly the ways in which the body |
makes use of the energy future exper-
iments must determine.
In unauthorized statements regarding |
these experiments the inference has |
been drawn that two or three and one
half ounces of alcohol per day. the
taken in these experiments, |
can be used habitually without injury. |
Nothing in the experiments gives any
whatever for such conclusion.
It has been said that the experiments
included studies of the results of alco-
hol as brain food. This statement is
entirely without foundation.
In referring to the action of alcohol
as fuel for the body the speaker en-
ohasized the fact that experiments with
different conditions bring different re-
suits. This is true regarding the action
IF alcohol as it is with sugar, starch
and fat. Especial stress was laid up
IN the fact that the results of these
experiments represented no discovery
1t all. They are entirely in harmony
with those Of other investigators The
speaker repeated the statement which
ne had previously made: 80 far from
'egarding the results Of scientific ex-
oeriments as showing that the mod
rate use Of alcoholic liquors is gener-
lily to be recommended, I myself be-
ieve that the more advisa BILE course is
labitual abstinence. Especially do /
emphasize the Importance of abstinence
or young persons Alcohol is an ex-
,ellent thing for people in health, and
specially for young people, to let
lone"