The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-11-22
Frederick Haskin's [ letter
Learn to Eat.

Washington, D. c., Nov. I'll
Weight as an index to health is at
! last being appreciated. While New
, York is trying to reduce some of
its latest ladies to pleasant curves,
cities in different parts of the coun-
try are beginning to take an inter
est in their too thin and too fat
children.
The fat ladies reduction class is
an interesting experiment Nutri-
ton classes for school children
have been carefully tried out and
are found practical and successful.
AS result they are attracting
wide attention. Not only are pro
gressiye cities installing these
classes in their schools, but the en-
tire state of New Hampshire has
been organized to fight malnutri-
ton in its children. DR.. William r.
p. Emerson, expert on child nutri-
ton, is visiting San Francisco, Los
Angeles, and other cities at their
request to hold institutes and ex-
plain methods of reducing the
large number of cases of this dis
ease.
That malnutrition is a disease,
that it is an insidious drain on the
strength of many people who are
unaware that they are physically
below par, is the opinion of nutri-
ton specialists. They have found
by tests that about one-third of the
children in the average school are
per cent or more underweight In
other words, many children are not
growing at the normal rate. The
result is a droopy condition of mind
and body instead of alertness.
Nor is our adult population free
from this underweight condition.
No organized effort is being made
TO bring the adults of a city I'D to
normal weight. 1t is interesting to
note, however. that at a normal
school where the students teachers
were weighed and measured all but
seven in a class of 200 were under
weight Z per cent or more.
Another surprising fact, which
experiments have shown, is that
malnutrition occurs with about
equal frequency in homes of rich
and poor, white and colored, for
eign-born and native stock.
MalnutTition is not, generally,
caused by lack of food On the table
Many a woman is underweight be-
cause she worries and loses sleep
over grocery bills, just as children
have been found to stop gaining be-
cause they worried over examina-
ton marks or uncomfortable
clothes.
Causes of Underweight.
The most frequent contributing
causes of malnutrition are found to |
be bad diet, physical defects, bad
habits, and, in children, lack of !
home control. Each case is COM |
pick and each case is different |
With the children the condition is |
by organizing small |
classes and giving each member /
individual instructions as well as !
the class talks on health. A doctor !
and trained nutrition worker pre-
side over these classes. Each mem |
Der of the class is put into health |
training" just as college students !
train for an athletic event.
Rochester has established So nu-
triton classes as an integral part !
of the school system with nutrition |
workers and school doctors work
ing under the department of physi-
cal training Chicago has had
classes for three years.
Washington is starting on its
second year with u demonstration
classes Experiments made last
year convinced the Washington
school officials who were interested
Of the value of the work The city
hopes that congress will soon make
It possible for a nutrition class TO