Evening star., 1902-01-14

Soups. broths, fruit soups and slightly
sweetened drinks. with fruits. jellies and
porridge, all Of which contain from so to
9S per cent water. form very large part
Of the dietary for the sick. So little food
is contained in each mouthful of this class
Of dishes 1t is readily mixed with the nat
ural juices before more Is taken. and Is
assimilated quickly; the nutrition acting
more as a stimulant, will penetrate every
part of the system and encourage the
nerves to call for more. This is often the
cause Of the ravenouS and rapidly increas-
ing appetite displayed by the fever patient.
Beware at this period that you do not in
dulge the appetite with too great guam
tity of food at one time or at too frequent
intervals: and while the food must be sufh-
GENTLY rich In nutritive value, the natural
functions of the body are sluggish in sick
ness, and there must be no overworking of
such organs as the kidneys. Too much
fertilizing will kill plants just as surely as
neglect, and more home patients are killed
by this mistaken idea Of kindness than the
world dreams of. Nature has great re-.
storativesin perfect cleanliness, plenty of
fresh, pure air. sunshine, rest and quiet
sleep.
BY perfect cleanliness we mean not only
the outward condition of the body. but the
removal of the accumulation Of waste ma
terial in the system. To do this the blood
must be diluted in order to take up more
substance and hasten the recovery of the
patient. Remember that the cells are very
sensitive and more or less feeble and slug
&lSn, ana cannot take up out very limited
amount Of nourishment at time without
serious injury; therefore 1t is always wise
at such time to administer all forms OF
nourishment in liquid form, in small guam
titles.
Food Must BE Served Punctua1ly.
A patients food must be given as pune
tually as his medicine. 1t must not be
ready too soon and spoiled by waiting or
overlooking, or because it Is ready served
to the patient too soon, nor delayed until
the appetite Is gone.
When very light nourishment, such as
liquids. are served, they are given at more
frequent intervals than when the invalid
reaches a normal diet. There must be sufh-
cient time for rest, however, between the
feeding. It requires a close study to gauge
to a nicely In cases OF extreme debility
and exhaustion from ravages Of disease
just what amount OF food will increase the
strength of the patient while its assimila-
ton does not overtax the weakened powers
The condition Of the patient, nature of the
disease. age ETC., should enable the physi-
clan and nurse to determine the nature and
strength Of the nourishment given. also
frequency of feeding. And there should be
no deviation from the rules laid down by
the doctor. or experiments made with
dainties sent by kind but mistaken friends
II you have not sufficient confidence in
your medical adviser to trust to his knowl-
your physician rather than risk your sup
posed knowledge.
Some Don'ts.
Do not waken the invalids in order to
feed them.
Do not ask them what they would like
to have, or even hint as to what you intend
to give them.
Do not allow food to remain In the sick
room.
Do not use coarse, heavy china or cracked
or nicked dishes or discolored silver.
Do not have flowers in the sick room that
have rich, heavy odors; but place a dainty
bud or blossom on the tray, so that the eye
of the invalid will be attracted and inter-
est aroused by its freshness.
Do not let the odors Of any cooking PEN
citrate to the sick room.
Do not overload the tray with food or
overcrowd with dishes
Do not cook more than is needed for one
feeding, or reheat any foods except broths
and clear soups, which must be made in
considerable quantity; reheat these over
boiling water, not to allow them to
reach boiling point
Milk Food.
Milk Is frequently the only nourishment
allowed patient for weeks, especially In
typhoid fever. when it should be the only
nourishment given for twenty-one days. In
most cases the milk diet agrees nicely with
the patient. but when 1t Is found to disagree
the addition OF little limewater VIII cor
rect the difacuity II caused by acidfty OF the
stomach Some require less tat and there
fore the Ynilk should be SKINNED. Milk Is
not always uniform In quality, the amount
OF tat being much greater in some than
others; therefore when the digestion Is In
any way impaired it Is better to partially
skim milk from Alderney cows. which
yields the largest proportion of cream.
The white Of eggs is added to milk when
you desire to introduce condensed and
digestible form OF nutrients free from solid
matter. Gelatine Is also added to milk, not
so much on account of its food value, but
because 1t Is soothing, easily digested, and
diet
When fever patient has reached a nor
NAL condition that permits of more solid
food, the starch or grain foods. such as
rice, sago. arrowroot, tapioca and wheat
starch, these may be added to the milk,
giving very complete food.
Meat Preparations.
Boiled beef tea and broths should not be
given as food, fuel or nourishment. Boil
Ing destroys the value of the albumin or
fiesh-forming principle, having, however,
mineral salts and fiavorfng principle that
make it a valuable addition to the dietary
1t is a powerful stimulant and good ve-
hicle for conveying other substances into
the system, such as the starches and fats
Egg and sage are sometimes added to give
good hearty diet In semi-liquid form. But
not in fever cases. Steamed or rare beef
tea is made by preventing the aibuminoid
principle from coaguiating In the hot water
while heating. The tea is brought only to
steaming point and at once removed from
the stove The liquid is but slightly
changed In color, being shade darker like
ciaret- This should be reheated by placing
just enough for feeding In a small cup
and standing over boiling water until hot
enough to serve.
To Make Beef Tea.
Have pound OF fresh. bright-red, lean
steak from the round Free 1t from ali fat
and cut It very 1ne Cover II with pins