Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-11-07
BANANAS AMONG
WHOLESOME FRUITS

. !
sets Institute of Technology
Perhaps no staple article of food is
more the subject of strange fancies
or acre misunderstood-mo over
praised for qualities which it does not
tpossess and blamed for defects not its
own-than that standby of the corner
fruit-stand, the banana.
Is it true that banana contains
as much nutritive value as a half
pound of steak Us it true that a
raw banana is as indigestible as a
raw potato, and thai it should always
be cooked before it is eaten?" rs It'll
true that the combination of bananas
and milk is poisonous?" An avalanche
of such questions, often ridiculous
as seen here, is sure to greet him who
is wise, or pretends to be wise, re-
garding the nature and uses of the ba-
mana, and nothing could indicate more
clearly the hay ideas which many peo-
pie hold regarding this valuable fruit
food. In spite of prejudice and mis-
understanding, however, the majority
accep. it's worth for the consumption
of the fruit has increased by leans
and bounds in this country. Less than
fifty years ago the first bananas Were
brought commercially to Boston. They
were great curiosity. Today it is es-
timated that seven billion are con?
sumed annually in the United States
an average. of nearly six dozen of
this fruit for each man, woman and
child in the land
The opportunity which the banana
affords is too good to be missed by
those who must practice economy of
time and purse. Nature has given US
III the banana, sanitary, sealed pack
I age containing a food which includes
all the elements Of an ideal foodstuff.
The banana is cheap; when properly
ripened it is easy to digest; moreover,
it contains sufficient "roughage' and
, constipating tendency of which many
, highly concentrated modern foods are
guilty Its flavor is bland and char
, acteristic, yet not sufficiently pro-
nounced to become tiresome. 1t can
r be used as a basic food in combina-
, ton with other more highly favored
foods. And there is not week of the
, year when it is out of season.
The banana is possessed of all these
good qualiti S, however, only when
; fully ripe. Do not chose bananas that
! look pretty rather than those that are
ripe The banana of a clear, lemon
, yellow color. which brings the best
, price in the market is most certainly
not yet ripe fruit. The pull poi such
+ banana is composed very largely of
starch, and while it is an eXaggera-
ton to say that it is as difficult of di-
gestion as the starch of a ra wpotato,
it is greatly improved in this respect
by permitting the ripening processes 20
proceed to the fullest extent. When
the bananas is perfectly rope, the
clear yellow peeling has changed to
brown or black and more Of the starch
in the pulp has been converted into SUI
gar. When the black peeling is re
moved, the pulp underneath is mealy
and white. Such bananas have a far
better flavor and aroma than the UNI
ripe yellow fruit. Fortunately for
those with slender purses, such ban
anas are considered almost worthless
by the dealer, and are sold at 10"
price
Whatever bad reputation the fruit
has acquired as regards its indigesti-
hility is due, undoubtedly, to the fact
that many people eat the unripe fruit.
Then there is the tendency to eat a
whole banana quickly without suffi-
cient mastication. Even when ripe
banana is properly masticated, there
will be a few people with whom it
will disagree. But such exceptions
are to be regarded as the results OF
personal idiosyncracies and not the
fault of the banana. There are many
people who can not digest strawber-
iries or cabbage. but that is no reason
why the rest of us should not eat
them. Under normal conditions the
ripe banana is one of the most easily
dIgested of foods. In the tropics, it
is widely used as food for even young
children. With milk, it is highly nu-
tritious and easily digestible
Another fact which may have given
rise to the fable regarding the diff
Guilty Of digesting the banana is the
strange attraction some children have
for the inside of the .peeling. This
should be scraped off before the fruit
is eaten. 1t contains certain sub