The Virginia enterprise., 1909-04-23

sleep, but it requires a heavy meal in,
the morning with the digestion Of
which ones work must more or less
interfere.
Many eat light meal at noon, be-.
cause It Is not always convenient for
them to get at noon what they calf
"a square meal" It must be admitted
that If soup and meat and pie and half
a dozen other dishes are necessary to
a good meal, there is some force in
this argument Those who take this
position: think they must have SUBJ
stantial morning ;;meal, because they
cannot have another. square neal
till the evening. In cases where the:
time for lunch is,svery. short and the
afternoon's@Nork heavy, this may be
the best plan: Then fewsapples only
may be eaten even without leaving
ones post or while taking needed ex-
ercise in walking.
We know that violent emotion stops
digestion completely. Appetite always
leaves one on the advent of extraor.
dinary fear or JOY. Mental activity Of
any kind is evidently inconsistent with
good digestion. Now when one eats
a full meal in the morning and pro-
ceeds to work energetical!y, it is un-
reasonable to suppose that, for ill.,
stance, breakfast of fried eggs, pork
chops and fresh bread would be com.
pletely digested by IL or l o'clock,
when the noon lunch is taken. When
another meal is added to the burden
of the digestive system, followed by a
strenuous afternoons work, it is un-
reasonable to suppose that normal d.
gestive conditions should follow-or
good work. It is generally admitted
that the best brain work can be done
in the morning, and the eating of a
heavy breakfast retards brain work.
When the stomach is filled with
food, especially if it be of food difficult
to digest, there is flow OF. blood tQ
that organ with a corresponding flow
of nervous energy for the process OF
digestion. This necessarily implies a
depletion of the brain. The man who
eats breakfast Of pancakes, coffee
and bacon, must not expect to- do hia
best mental work.
have found hundreds who have &C.
cidentally discovered that they feel
better, work better.and altogether EN-
joy better health by. omittipg break.
fast. have found, that many, like
| myself, before they acquired a normal
appetite, often ate two >suppers, that
is, they felt hungry; ON returning, per
haps at II o'clock, from the theate1
| or church, but when they realized that
| eating then was injurious and stopped
it, they felt less desire for food the
following morning, showing that un
der certain, circumstances, the desire
for food is not a safe Indication of the
need of it (the desire being abnor
mali; for if one needed to eat-at II
| o'clock, that need would certainly not
be lessened by seven hours sleep. +.
I have talked with many who have
discontinued regular breakfast, at m,
suggestion, and never have l known
one to try it for a year and resume
the eating of three full meals day
The gain in health, the lighter feel
ing in the morning and especially the
great improvement in the capacity fol
work in the forenoon, have induced
them to make it permanent This last
mentioned advantage has always been
especially pronounced in the case: e1
literary workers. have however
known many who have tried the two.
meal plan for short time, but have
not adopted it permanently. The ad:
vent of the light breakfast focds,-has
done much to overcome the American
habit Of eating heavy mording. meal
The most. frequent objection, by
those who try omitting breakfast, is
! that they have a severe headache o,
a distressing feeling of emptiness dur
ing the forenoon, followed by raven
Gus appetite. If the digestive system
were normal such feelings would moi
exist, even after the omission of sew
eral meals, as experience with pro
tracted fasting proves. Natural hunge,
is persistent desire for food, not un
pleasant when there is a prospect o.
satisfying it, but it produces no head
ache, no pain. Abnormal appetite ma,
be suppressed by eating, but the alb
normal condition it indicates is no
thus changed. To eat very slowly, a
fixed hours, of few. articles, with lit
tie liquid and dry food, will aid il
overcoming abnormal appetite.
Having decided to adopt the two
meal plan, the best course is t
change gradually, as advised in al
other cases in which a change is t.
be made. Reduce the third meal IL
amount, gradually, till drink is finall!
substituted for solid food. Thus sup
pose you are in the habit of eating al
ordinary breakfast, eat only a few
slices of toast or little fruit O
cereal flakes, and reduce the quantity
gradually, till a warm drink Of cerea
coffee, weak cocoa or lemonade, sweet
ened with saccharine rather thai
sugar., is finally substituted.
Having adopted a definite course
pursue it systematically Fix Ill
mind the thought that the chang
you are making is good one
and entertain no regrets at no
having the accustomed depressing, dis
ease producing meal. Fix the min,
on something else than the meal
Don't stay in the dining-room; go ou
into the morning air, to the library o
the office. The necessity of catchin
an early train regularly has cure'
many of the habit of eating heav
breakfast.
The cases in which the two-mea
plan would not be beneficial are.