Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-02
ENERGY AND FOOD
Importance of Keeping Body
Well N0uriShed.
EFFICIENCY AND EATING
Proper Feeding Makes Men Work
Better and Reduces Demand
for Alcohol.


In the International hygienic congress
held in Washington there were appar-
emily no features more emphasized in the
EXHIBITS and discussion than the impor-
tance Of preventive sanitation along all
lines where the public health is threat
ened. The value of such preventive
measures has already been demonstrated
in the case of the dissemination and de-
velopment Of tuberculosis. typhoid. hook
worm disease. the dust diseases of indus
trial life. the air pressure changes caus-
ing caisson disease, all OF which are es-
pecially disastrous to children as we'll as
to adult workers.
The Importance Of preventive teaching
and care Of the young was also demon
strated by exhibits and discussions of %
the prenatal care given to the child by
care Of its mother. CD the attention being
given to the proper feeding Of infants
and to the instruction given ignorant
mothers regarding the care Of the chill
dren in the periods Of most rapid physi-
cal development. which. IL defective. may
impair the child's efficiency in adult life.
CD the care and feeding Of school chill
dren. a. the medical inspection system i'm
schools and % the dental and oral by
giene service that in many places is
given free to those children who cannot
afford to pay for 1t. and 90 the instruc-
ton in eugenics. which was one of the
subjects most discussed i'm certain sec
tions OF the congress.
There is an old saying, Tell me what
you eat and / will tell you what you
are" and we are daily finding the truth
of it. Certain classes of food unques-
tiOnably affect the cheerfulness and gen.
eral moral characteristics of child or
adult. as we'll as his physical capacity
for work or study. Just as the finest en-
CINE cannot run without a sufficient and
proper supply of fuel, SO the finest brain
and body cannot long do effective work
without proper supply Of food fuel.
though it may do so for time.
Lesson in Fuel.
1t is said that after the SpanishAmeri
can war the chief engineer of the Span
ish flagship met the chief engineer of the
American flagship. and in a friendly chat
the American asked the Spaniard how
1t happened that with better and faster
ships. the four Spanish ships that came
out of Santiago harbor had not been
able to make use of their speed and get
away. To this question the Spanish en-
gfneer sadly responded to the effect that
it was because of the inferior coal sup
ply. The Americans had cut off all their
coal supplies elsewhere. and what they
could get at Santiago was OF such an in
ferior sort as to be nearly worthless in
such an emergency. In his opinion the
issue Of the war was virtually decided
when the coal supply of the Spanish
ships was cut off some time before.
This story merely illustrates the fact
shown in the exhibits that corporations
nowadays. such as the big life insurance
companies Of New York and elsewhere
are finding it worth while to provide
lunches for their employees in order to
gain by the increased efficiency of the
human machines on which their money
making processes depend.
The results of experiments in Europe
and, to some extent, in this country have
demonstrated that the best fed children
are as a rule capable of doing the best
tically free, sensible lunches to school
children results in increased efficiency
in study and better behavior.
The proper feeding of infants produces
stronger and better children and lowers
the rate of infant mortality which has
hitherto been Interestingly high in this
country.
Those who are contending with the
problem of alcoholism among their EN-,
ployes find that proper food, warmth and
sanitary surroundings will generally dis
pei the demoralizing craving for liquor
that is usually merely an indication OF
malnutrition somewhere in the system.
Men realize that 1t Is necessary to keep
the animals that assist them in their
work we'll fed. and 1t is rather surprising,
therefore. that they have not earlier re-
allied that the variable domestic condf-
tons which obtain in the homes Of their
WOrkmen often cause a man to set out
for his days work with an inadequate
supply of food fuel for the activities of
the day. To insure every workman at
least one nutritious meal in the middle of
the day is found to be a distinct eco
nomic advantage 1t was long ago found
in building railroads in England that men
supplied with liberal amounts of oatmeal
water to drink showed far more effective
energy for work than those who were
supplied with coffee to quench their
thirst. In providing free lunches for
school children or adults the dynamic
energies of different foodstuns should
therefore be taken into consideration.
The food provided should not only be
adequate in quantity. but in quality.
Food and Will Power.
For centuries men have been accus-
toned to think of their fellow-men. es-
pecially their employees. as psychological
agents whose ability to work depended
merely upon their will power, hence it
is disconcerting to find that even the will
power Of individuals and their ordinary
instinct Of self-preservation can be les
sened or paralyzed by an excess of car
bon dioxide in the blood. Since poor
ventilat ion or excessive labor with INSULT
cient rest periods and insufficient food
can cause such an accumulation of car
bon dioxide in the blood, the exhibits and
discussions showed that employers are
at last realizing the Importance Of good
air. wholesome surroundings, frequent
rest intervals and sufficient and proper
food as economic necessities for the eff
cheney of the work and the standard of
the workmanship.
The improved facilities for ventilation
and rest periods of the employees are being
more and more attended to, and the pro-
vision made for the care or pensioning
of old employees in some establishments
is also tending to lessen the fear of
poverty in old age which is the night
ingwOman.
1t is quite, possible that in the reaction
from the consideration of man as a
purely psychic being We shall overem-
phasize the importance of certain physi-
cal conditions. but the light of the knowl-
edge of the hygienic conditions of today
clearly indicates that from infancy to old
age the question Of hygiene and even
morality is to a large extent dependent
upon the food supply. The study of foods
and their nutritional effects in relation
to various forms of muscular. mental or
physical activities seems a science full of
possibilities for. the future benefit of the
race. Deprivation of proper food leads
to anarchy. murder and crimes Of law
lessness and violence. What We already
know plainly shows that, Just as the
proper feeding Of the masses is of eco
nomic Importance, SO the speculation in
foodstuffs. or unfair methods of increas-
ing the price of living, as we'll as the