Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-02-14
BY J. II. KELLOGG, NJ. D., Ii. d.


ME COMPLAIN a great deal these
w days about the rapidly increasing
price OF bread and other wheat products
And yet how often do We stop TO con.
slider that, oven at the present high
prices, wheat In its various available
forms is the most economical nourish-
inent that VIC can procure? And yet this
is fact, because these foods contain
virtually all of the clements necessary
to sustain human life, and in a cheap
form.
Let us examine "A beautiful grain Of
wheat, First comes the outer covering
hard, woody casing When the wheat
has been milled this appears In the
| form Of scales, called bran. Beneath
this lies "a soft and easily pulverlzed
stratum, consisting Of "A number Of eel
| lular layers. Here are deposited large
quantities of vegetable ilbrin and fatty
.matter, Beneath this IL another layer,
| composed of gluten cells. Then we
come TO the center which comprises the
| bulk of the grain. and which Is made
| up chiefly of starch granulcs, with
small proportion Of gluten,
Thus we SEQ that the various life
/ sustaining elements are not uniformly
distributed throughout the grain but
I that each has special little apartment
/ reserved for itself.
phoSphates. and other salts arc pres
ont to some extent throughout tho ct.
tire grain. but arc chiefly found IN the
external part. Here also Is found q ~"
ruliar soluble, active principle called
/ "diastaSc,' which possesses the power
rs converting starch into sugar. The
dark color aud marked flavor of graham
bread is due to the influence Of this Gle.
mcnt.
Most Of us absorb tho beneficial clc.
mCntS IN tho wheat grain 10y eating bread
made Of wheat flour. \ hundred years
ago the modern milling processes that
produce our common white flour were
entirely unknown. But Within recent
| years the bolting machines and other
machinery for producing fine white -four
camo into general use.
\ noted English scientist recently
wrote In a British medical journal that
"thc decline in the national physique
and the prevalence Of dental diseases
are due tu the fact that the people OF
England, since the Introduction of white
Njcunesc flour thirty years ago, have
discarded the good old fashioned whole
meal bread"
/ the Germans, Scandinaviaus and Dutch.
/ for instance-stll adhere virtually TO
| the ancient manner Of wheat milling
There can be no doubt that the hardi-
hood Of the native peasant of these Coun.
/ tries is in great part attributable to the
highly nourishiug qualities OF their
"blacll bread"
In America, France and England.
while unfortuua1 tho bulk Of the
people subsist upon white bread. vet
many progressive individuals and insti-
/ tutionS are rcvcrtiug to the old dict
Bread is rendered more digcstiblc by
. toasting -- this process, If thoroughly
done. changes the starch into a form
that Is easily digcsted and absorbed into
the system. But the ordinary method
Of preparing toast--simply browning
| each side--toaSts only the surfaces of
tho slices, while the action of tile heat
upon the interior Of the slice renders
It quite as indie"stibe as new bread.
Add butter to the toast while IL Is hot
and we have all the dyspepsia producing
elements Of new bread and butter COM
hincd. Although considered to be the
dish par excellence for imvalids, nothing
could l." moro unWhOlcSome than such
toast 7" properly toast the bread, the
drying and browning should extend
throughout the entire thickness of the
slice.
or course, the vast quantity Ur wheat
eaten every year is not consumed on
tirely in the form of bread. Much is
eaten in the form Of cereal foods of
various kinds.
Within recent years the numerous
Wheat breakfast foods produced in
sanitary factories and untouched by hu-
man hands--havc completely revolution
lied tho family breakfast menu. Those
whose breakfast formerly consisted of
sausage or bacon and great stacks OF
pancakes are now enjoying the moro
hyglear rcpast OF fruit and cereal
breakfast food