New-York tribune., 1907-11-10
NEW CONSUMPTION CURE
English Doctor Would SaUe Tu-
berculOuS Goes for Patients Food.

A way of curing and obtaining immunity
from tuberculosis by eating the flesh of
animals already affected with bovine tubercu-
losis has been discovered. according to DR.. F. w.
Forbes Ross. at one time clinical assistant of
the North London Consumption Hospital and
civil surgeon to His Majesty's Guards Hospital.
DR.. Ross has written article on the subject
which appeared in yesterdays Medical Record"
and which, the editor of the Record says. is
entitled to respectful attention" Briefly stated
by himself, the theory Of the doctor is as fol-
lows:
ITO deliberately and wfully procure and use
as an article of diet for tuberculous persons
the raw flesh CbeeO of animals known to be
affected with tuberculosis with view to bring
ing about artifcially that which I firmly believe
occurs unobserved in nature and in actual daily
life among healthy persons"
According to the theory which the doctor ad-
vances in favor of this novel treatment the lean
raw flesh of such animals he mentions con
tains in it an antitoXin generated In the blood
which is capable of assisting tuberculous pa
tients in their fight against the disease.
To begin with. the doctor indorses the theory
OF Professor Koch. of Berlin that bovine tuber-
culosis is not transmissible to human beings
through the eating of flesh. He then goes fur
thcr and brings out instances which tend to
decided benefit He says:
..Those who habitually partake of meat in fair
quantity. athletes, and particularly those who
are In the habit of eating beef partly cooked
and raw. are not those who are commonly
found with tuberculosis. either in hospitals in
nrfvate homes or in sanitoria. In England
,cbere infants and young children are habitualy
fed on cows milk. we find that during the milk
feeding period Of life the tendency TO tuoerculo-
sis infection is very high.
Further investigation shows that the children
~ the poor are more liable than the children
of the rich Why is this? Because the children
~ the rich and the better off among the adde's
cents and adults get meat earlier and more
often than the children Of the poor and the
poorer adolescents and adults.
nv Ross then says that the two periods of
life when tuberculosis protrudes itself most
unon our notice are youth and old age and that
this is true because these are the two non
meat eating periods He alleges that between
these two periods those who are eaters of large
quantities of meat particularly that which Is
little. cooked are not prone to the disease. He
believes that under present conditions of supply
a large proportion OF the meat eating public
Of England partake from time to time of the
flesh of tubercular animal and so imbibe some
of the antitoxin that makes them immune to
consumption.
Dr. Ross quotes several examples TO prove the
truth of his theories. He calls attention to one
case where there was a family of five girls all
except one of whom died of tuberculosis. The
youngest of these thin and delicate when
a child but as the result Of an order from the
family physician, took to raw meat as a vice,
and used to eat slices cut from the family
Joint raw and uncooked whenever she could OBJ
tain it," Her sisters and brothers could not be
induced to eat raw meat. She is now thirty
years old and in good health. In all respects
except that of meat eating her conditions were
the same as those Of the rest of the family
The doctor also tells of a patient that he has
at present who shows a peculiar reaction when
ever he is fed the flesh of animal that is
presumably tubercular and no reaction when
fed on other flesh.
The physician recognizes the danger in the
milk of the affected animals, and suggests that
all tubercular cows be set aside in some large
herd somewhere to provide flesh for patients
who afflicted with consumption.