Evening star., 1925-01-20

The Bureau of Health Education Of
the District of Columbia is contln-
uing its efforts to secure legislation
by Congress for the protection of the
milk supply of the District against
d iseaSe bacteria
This effort dates back more than
90 years, yet the District has never
been given a law requiring sanitary
milk. Today there is a bill prepared
by Health officer DR.. Fowler, which
has passed the Senate and is held by
a subcommittee Of the District COM
mittee of the House. 1t is alleged by
the Bureau of Health Education, in
its appeal to medical influence and
to the mothers of Washington, that
Washington is the only large city
in America without d milk law, and
that, in consequence, the standards
of the average milk sold in the city
are lower than in nearly all cities Of
its class. The assertion is made that
the opposition arises from outside
dairies, men who market milk here.
and whose herds are located in Nir-
ginia, Maryland and other regions
beyond all inspection by Washington
authorities-even located as distant
as Wisconsin, whence cream and
butter are shipped to the Capital.
This structure upon the purity of
our milk does not apply to all dairies
peddling milk in the city. The Health
Department rates all dairies and
samples OF their milk every month.
It's ratings show that for last month
there were 90 dairies rated above so
per cent, five rated between 20 and
80. eight between so and 20, four
between so and 90, eight between 40
and so and one between 80 and 40.
Yet there Is no law 10 stop even d
dairy rated as only one-third sani-
tary from peddhng its unpasteuriZed
and supposedly impure or even
diseased milk. Such milk is sold at
or 3 cents a quart lower than
high grade milk, and finds a ready
sale among the poor, where it
is used for feeding babies. Some
of the hospitals are found by the
Bureau of Health Education to be
using milk which contains an in
credible number of bacteria, and
using it unboiled and unpasteurized.
A decade ago DR.. Rosenau, director
of the hygienic laboratory of Harvard
University, collected samples of milk
from all the hospitals of Washington
and found that they contained from
100000 to III, 100000 bacteria per
cubic centimeter. The Washington
Milk Conference adopted as the max
imum of safety 100000 bacteria per
cubic centimeter. Certified milk con-
tains not to exceed 10000 bacteria per
cubic centimeter.
X X x
Great changes have come about in
the knowledge of food in the last
decade, yet some of the older physt-
clans are said to cling to the old idea as
concerning the feeding of raw milk
to babies. They contend, according
OP he
of Health Education, that pasteuriZed
and boiled milk fed to babies give
them ricketts, and Barlow's disease
hence only raw certified milk is safe
In answer to this one of the highest
authorities of the Department OF
Agriculture - bacteriologist OF
Worldwide reputation, but who re-
quests that his name be not quoted
because he would be flooded with cor
| respondence, and Is too busy to dis
| cuss the matter with individuals-de'
| clares:
when an animal is fed upon the
milk of another species such small
| differences as have been found In th'
| nutritiye values of raw and boilee
| milk have been in favor Of the boilet
| milk. Bariow's disease and ricket:
| are shown not to be due to the us'
| Of boiled milk, but probably to al
undue amount of farinacious food too
early in life"
| X
| This same eminent bacteriologts
| saws that, since boiling milk In tn
1 open tends to destroy its vttamines es
the utamines should be supplied b!
the feeding of proper amount o
orange or lemon juice, grapefruit
| Juice or the juice of tomatoes-evei
| canned tomatoes. He states that but
ter is rich in vitamines, while oleo
margarine contains absolutely none
He Joins with other bacteriologist
and physicians in declaring the dan
| ger of feeding to babies any raw
| milk, since even the most CAREFUL!
handled raw milk Is liable to be in