Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1908-12-24
THE SIMPLE DIET

would have us do. Habit IL has been
said, is second nature, and nowhere
is this more true than in eating-the
Oldest habit. But If Improvement is
desirable it must be most desirable in
eating. which underles all life proc
esses; and yet change should be made
only after careful consideration, and
then with all due elaboration
Beef is digested chiefly in the stom-
Rch by the action of the gastric fluid.
When reduced to a fine pulp by mas
tication before entering the stomach
1t tends to pass out before being prop
erly digested, for the pylorus tends to
open when the food is sufficiently re-
duced by the movement of the stom-
ach and the action of the gastric fluid.
Hence many authorities say that meat
should be bolted as the dog swallows
his meat in large Jumps. This is
scientifically correct, but the very OPP
posite is true of bread and potatoes.
Flesh digests in from three to five
hours; rice remains in the stomach
about one hour. When flesh and rice
are eaten at the same meal, there is
conflict. The meat and rice are com
pletely mixed by the movement of the
stomach. If now the homogeneous
mass is retained four hours, the rice
undergoes fermentation If the meat
IS carried into the intestines within
two hours its digestion must be imper-
feet failing to receive the proper sup
ply of gastric fiuid--an error which
cannot be fully corrected by further
digestion in the intestines.
Much as this important phase of die
tetics has been neglected by the med
zeal profession inyalids are never
put upon bi-diet, much less upon
mixture of several foods, however cas-
fly digested. Beef is one of the COM
monest invalid diets, because it is al.
most pure proteid, digesting easily in
the stomach Rice, IS per cent,
starch, is common invalids diet, but
meat and rice would not be prescribed
TO be eaten together.
Proteid foods (meats eggs beans
etc. 3igest principally in the stom
ach; carbonaceous foods fruits, po-
tatoes, cereal foods, etc), principally
in the intestine. When these classes
of foods are mixed, there is a conflict
which must have a disquieting effect
upon the nervous system.
It is natural to suppose that a
hungry animal under natural condi-
tons would confine itself to one kind
of food Neither man nor the pig is
naturally omnivorous. Acorns are the
natural food of the pig, which, like
man becomes prey TO an almost in
finite variety of diseases when he be-
comes by force of circumstances ON
nivorous. A high authority on the dis
eases of the pig says that they are due
to its being fed upon the waste hui
man foods from our tables
Pavlov, the Russian physiological
oh mist has shown that the system
adapts itself to the digestion of the
food while it is in the mouth, the
character Of the digestive fluids Sc
creted varying with the food. How
bewildered Il must be by a ten-course
dinner offering perhaps 50 different ar
ticles Of food!
Considering these facts, we must
conclude that serious injury is done
TO the system by eating variety of
foods at the same meal. Perhaps we
may find here the hitherto unaccount-
able reason for the shortness of hui
man life And If this be the cause we
must find all the noted cases Of Ion
gevity among those people whose diet
is the simplest. Metchnikoff has
found the largest percentage of cen
tenarians among the Hungarian peas
ants, living largely on black bread.
Among the Irish peasantry living
chiefly on potatoes, centenarians are
numerous. The noted cases of Ion
gevity in England were all among the
peasantry, living on very simple diet.
The most noted OF centenarians, Cor
naro, the Venetian, prolonged life 60
years by restricting HIS diet TO a uni
form quantity of eggs and unferment-
ed wine, almost exclusively.
Several monodiet tests recently
made under the writer's direction
showed, as would naturally be expect.
ed, II the principles above stated are
true remarkable results. Edgar Brobst.
foundryman. eating only beans for
so days gained eight pounds in
weight working Sundays, TWO nights
and several evenings extra during the
period On 40 days diet Of oatmeal
there was a gain OF three pounds and
better general conditions OF health.
Dr. Landone OF Los Angeles. Cal. re-
ported : gain IN weight living m pac
tins for ten days. On returning to
his former mixed diet Brobst lost four
pounds in ten days. (An exclusive diet
OF beans would be Injurious. and in no
case is a one-sided diet Of beans, pea
nuts, meat or graham bread adyis-
sble)
Necessarily the infants food must
contain all the elements essential to
life and growth: but these are harmo
rF~Vufw rG. ~ a.