Evening star., 1926-04-29
FOOD AND HEALTH
BY wINIFRED STUART GIBBS.
Food Specialist.

For some time the impression has
prevailed that iron is necessary when
one Is run down" This would be
all very well except for the fact that
so many have clung to the idea that
iron should be purchased In bottles
from the drug store. Food iron is
much more effective. How shall we
get it?
One whose blood is low in red cor
puscles may concoct for himself
most attractive dietary if he will but
learn the foods that are rich in this
important element. The ordinary
diet list is apt to be dry reading;
will it not be more interesting to
think Of an iron rich diet as q whole,
dividing the foods into their separate
classes and planning the meals ac-
cordingly?
Breakfast, If it hegins with the
conventional fruit, offers q wide va
riety Of choice. Strawberries. fresh
and canned, come first. Raisins.
stewed and made into a sauce will
furnish their quota and are pleasant
change from prunes. Shredded pine
apple, particularly the fresh variety,
Is rich in food iron, as are blueber-
ries. blackberries. dates, figs, cram
berries and watermelon.
1t will be observed that we have not
paid particular attention to season.
Naturally, that would fall within the
housewives own province. With at
least 10 fruits ready to add to our
iron ration, it will be easy to have
variety.
The breakfast cereal may be either
oats or wheat. All of these are rich
in food iron. Next in the breakfast
plan comes the question of bread or
OF N1afi i,..a h. M
either in the form of mullins or toast,
will help to bring up the iron con-
tent of the diet.
Ii We replace our breakfast coffee
1~>st in part with a glass of milk
we shall have added so much more
of the blood making mineral.
Luncheon comes next. This meal
should be largely vegetable and the
main dish may be either in the form
of u hot cooked vegetable dish or
cream of vegetable soup. Natu-
rally, the latter will carry more iron
than the former, because of the ad-
dition of milk. The breads for
luncheon should be the same as those
for breakfast, and the desserts COM
posed OF one or more of the fruits
already noted.
Among the vegetables from which
either the hot dish or the soup Is
to be made are spinach, lettuce,
chard, asparagus, dandelion greens,
cabbage, sprouts, string beans, cell
cry, radishes, caulitiower, beans, egg
plant, tomatoes, peas, potatoes, beetS,
carrots, squash, turnips, onions and
pumpkin. 1t is quite easy to see that
one would have no difficulty in pro-
ducing a varied and attractive die
tary with these vegetables as the
basis.
Coming To dinner, whether or not
we have soup depends on the way
the luncheon has been planned. The
dinner soup may be made of lean
beef, which is also rich in iron.
other meats suggested are fish,
lamb and chicken. The dinner veg
etable Is to be chosen from the list
already given in the luncheon plan,
and will, Of course, depend some
what on what was served at noon.
The dinner dessert should also be
either of fruit or nuts. Almonds
and hazel nuts are the iron bearing
varieties.
We have purposely left the discus
sion of eggs until the last. When 1t
is desired to make the diet particu-
larly rich in iron leave out the white,
serving only the yolk. If there is no
indigestion. the whole egg may, 1t
is true, be served at breakfast. 1t
is the yolk that furnishes the iron.
II a luncheon dish is made of a COM
bination of egg yolk and macaroni.
for example. then the vegetable
dishes may be increased at dinner.
The children will De interested to
know that both molasses and maple
sirup help to bring up the iron ra-
ton.