Evening star., 1924-01-18
Hot and Cold
By WINIFRED STUART GIBBS,
Food Specialist,

When is the best not the best:
All our lives we have been accus-
toned TO having tho words some
thing hot" as applied to food. con-
vey to our minds the last word in
satisfactcriness: hot soup" after a
chilling drive: hot tea" when we are
tired not milk when we are sleep
less.
Is this rule of holiness" like all
other rules. made to be broken?
Yes, provided we first apply the in
telligence test to our proposed shat
tering!
Unquestionably hot food is, in and
of itself, better than cold.
The child at school who studies
through the afternoon with only a
cold lunch as a background is dis
tinctiy handicapped; the hot and
Juicy steak is more appetizing, and
In double sense better food than a
bit of cold meat.
All this by way of clearing the
ground for our main contention.
which is that given certain condi-
tions, a meal of cold food prooerIv
prepared and chosen with due re-
gard to conditions and circumstances.
may be weapon in the hands of
a sensible person for the combating OF
indigestion.
Not the indigestion, mind you, that
comes from Inadequate food, but that
form OF the malady which is so often
the sequel Of our present-day ten
dency to excess, excess in the ex-
penditure of nervous force, in the
in crowding down one meal before its
predecessor has had time to finish its
allotted task lin getting itself di-
gested.
What, then, IS a sensible procedure,
when one has been overeating for
a number OF days; when the food has
contained an excess of fat; when the
cookery thereof has employed yet
other fat. to the further undoing Of
the original good qualities of that
sudden need for an increase OF mental
effort, one has eaten not wisely, but
too well2
Truly such circumstances call for
brown" in the sense that well-made
toast Is brown; menu athat offers
cold sliced chicken rather than heavy
fried or even roast beef. There Will
accompany the cold chicken the
crisply cracking cold of weil-washed
celery. the slice Of twenty-four- r-hour-
old bread, instead Of the hot roll of
our past indiscretions, and one will,
il he be wise in his day and genera
ton. spread the bread but lightly
with butter. The dessert of such
meal will partake of the nature of
cold sweet, bit OF fruit, plate OF
Ice cream, a dish of junket, leaving
the succulent hot pies and puddings
for another day.
And the reasons why such a pro-
gram may be helpful?
The reasons are scientific not fan-
ciful, nor even theoretical.
First, under the conditions noted
those of nervous tension. of over
eating, of overrich food. seVeral
things have happened; the stomach
has been taxed beyond the limits or
it's proverbially elastic patience the
liver has become Gisgruntled because
it's supply Of fat Is excessive and late
in arriving at its destinations; fntes-
tinaI digestion is interrupted, and
the bowels also are forced to join
the liver in its waiting game; In
short, the whole complicated me
chanicism Of digestion has been
thrown out Of its delicate ADJUST
ment.
distracted friends of ours, our stom-
ach and liver and other organs, rat
that Is more quickly taken UP than
would be the case Il 1t were IN the
form of heavy hot meats; the stale
bread does the Same thing with the
starchy food; the celery helps the
bowels by mechanical action all the
while 1t Is furnishing valuable min
eral salts for the whole system; the
grape Juice gives still other salts. and
the single cup of black and sugarless
coffee acts AS a stimulant without
adding any burdens OF digestion.