New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-05-12

don. has long maintained that abstaners have
greater endurance than flesh eaters, particularly
If they abstain also from other uric acid pro-
ducing foods such Che says eggs, beans,
peas. asparagus and mushrooms. His principal
theory is that uric acid is the factor in diet
which induces fatigue. Many OF his theories.
both to uric acid and as to the requirements
of proteid, have been overthrown. but his claims
for the advantages of a urir-free-or, at any
rate, a 1eshess-dietary have received much
confederation. The manner in which, according
to Haig. uric acid interferes with endurance Is
by making the blood collsemic' or vscous, where
by it becomes difficult for the heart to pump it
through the capillaries. Hence The hood press
ure increases. Observations actually show that
persons possessing great endurance often have
low blood pressure. This is true for instance.
among the subjects of the present experiment at
the sanatOrium.
"A more general theory than that of Haig is
that flesh foods contain in themselves fatigue
poisons' of various kinds, which naturally ag-
gravate the action of the fatigue poisons pro-
duced in'the body
Still another theory in favor of the use of
low proteid Is that mentioned by Professor
Chittenden in his Physiological Economy in
Nutrition and concerns the meta bolism Of pro-
ted. As is we'll known, fat and carbohydrate,
when consumed, give off merely carbonc acid
gas and water. both of which easily elimi-
mated. the one being gas and the other a liquid
Proteid. on the other hand. produces crystalline
waste products. of which uric acid is one. The
theory is that these midway products of meta
bolism in some manner produce fatigue. When
the problem of the physiology of fatigue and
its relations to food ingested is more fully
solved, il will only satisfy legitimate scen-
tific curiosity but viii point Enthusiastically TO
the optimum diet under various conditions. In
the mean time it may he said that, whatever
the explanation. there is strong evidence that a
low proteid. non-fiesh dietary is conducive to
endurance
The truth of this result has been long OBJ
scured through two unfortunate circumstances.
One is the vegetarian fauaticism. mentioned by
Caspar which has done much to defeat its own
ends From the premise, often bolstered up by
theological dogma. that flesh eating is wrong,
the inference is drawn that it must be I'M
hygienic This reasoning is utterly at vari-
ance with the methods of modern science TO
stamp those who use it as victims OF bigoted
prejudice and to prevent any genuine scientific
investigation. At present the tendency of such
Investigations as those of Chittenden. Mendel.
Foin Metchnkoff. Caspari. lie Fevre. Fauvel
and other have a distinct trend toward q flesh
less dietary. And yet such are the associations
Of the term vegetarian that many are loath
to grant even what is due TO the tenets Of veg
etarianism.' The proper scientific attitude is to
study the question of meat eating in precisely
the same manner as one would study the ques-
ton Of bread eating.
The second circumstance which has obsCured
the merits of a low proteid and non-lesh diet
is that many of those who have attempted ex-
perimentally TO give up flesh foods have made
themselves i'll. The reason formerly given for
this effect deficiency of proteid but in view
of the researches of PawloW and other recent
writer's may be fairly certain that such fail
a highly peptogenic food. 1t follows that when
it is suddenly or forcibly Gu: out of cne's diet
the stomach feels the lack of its accustomed
stimulus. There seem to be practical ad-
vantages in the method of reaching low pro-
ted diet adopted by Mr.. Fletcher consisting OF
thorough mastication The experiment last year
at Yale as well as other experiments have
shown that adherence 10 this practice leads 20
a gradual reduction in proteid and flesh foods
without any unpleasant or dangerous self-denial
on the part of the eXperimenter. II may well
be that those who, in spite Of thorough mastica-
ton, still have a craving for flesh foods. have
an actual physiological need which no other
foods-at least in the list Of foods employed by
them-is able To satisfy The question Of the
extent TO which flesh foods may be used ad-
Yantageously is still open. but there be
little question. in view of the facts which have
come light during the last few years that the
ordinary consumption Of those foods is exces-
siVe."