Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1910-03-25
Home Course
In Domestic
Science
H.-SelectiOn of Food.
By EDITH G. CHARLTON.
In Charge of Domestic Economy Iowa
State College.
Copyright 1910 By American Press
Association

/" HE wise selection OF food, to SUIT
the individual needs Of each
member Of the family. requires
the consideration Of at least
these three questions:
I. Is the food nutriuousT
2. Is the food comparatively easy to
digesty
3 Is the food reasonable in cOst7
The subject is so important that II
should engage the heart and bead as
well as the hand Of the woman who
presides over a family. II is sufficient
ly important too. to demand some
thought from every individual who
values his good health and general
well being. II has been frequently
stated by physicians and philanthro-
pists that three-fOurths of the sickness
in the world. One-half the drunkenness
and a large percentage Of the crime
have had their beginning and their
cause in poor food and bad cooking.
This being the case can there be any
topic Of greater value for our lesson
this week than the very old question
What shall we eatf"
First / should like to impress upon
nv readers that we eat to live rath-
er than live to eat" that, while there
should be genuine pleasure in the sim
Die act Of eating, this pleasure ought
TO be experienced when the food Is OF
simple variety. The pleasure is a GER
tainty when the food has been care
fully and appeuzingly prepared and
when hunger is a companion at the
meal. The appetite which relishes
only expensive foods and foods out OF
season is abnormal and is certain to
bring disaster to its pOssessor. This
disaster may be an attack Of rheuma-
tism or some form OF dyspepsia. or II
may be a depleted bank account.
What Food Is.
In order to fulfill its Office food must
either build and repair tissue or It
must give heat and energy to the body,
and It should do these things at as lit
tie unnecessary expense OF physical
energy as possible. According to its
function all kinds Of food are divided
into FIVE classes. These are the tissue
building foods. the fat foods. starches
and sugars. mineral matter and water.
Each one Of these classes has its par
ticular duty to perform for the body
and therefore has its especial place on
the daily bill OF fare. ANY food mate
rial. no matter how simple and well
known or how rare. contains two or
more OF these Eve classes. A few OF
the standard materials contain all FIVE
classes.
For instance. what do we find in
loaf Of bread? A great deal Of starch
and some gluten from the iour, a little
fat from the -four and more If 1t has
been added in the making. some min
eral matter and about 30 per cent Of
water. Meat also has fat, mineral
matter and a substance found in the
lean part which is called proteid and
which is the tissue building property
of the meat. The elements which com
pose these different classes Of food cor
respond with the elements in the body
hence their necessity II is chiefly
from the food which we eat that we
obtain those elements which are nee
essary for the support Of life and the
functions Of the body.
The Duty of the Five Classes.
Now that we have seen what an i'm
portant place in life our daily food oc-
cupies let us endeavor TO learn TO
which class or classes certain com
monty used foods belong The tissue
building foods. or the proteid foods.
are not numerous. but SO important
are they that life cannot be sustained
for any length Of time without them.
This class of food has been given the
name proteid. a word meaning first
or ''pre-eminent." because it alone OF
the five classes is able to build tissue
and to repair the daily waste Of the
cells Of the body. The proteids alone
contain nitrogen, and nitrogen is one
of the elements necessary to life. The
following table Classics some Of our
common foods according to their prin-
cipal constituents. also gives their
source and use in the body;
SOURCE AND USE OF THE CHIEF FOOD
CONSTITUENTS.
Meats Use In THE