The Waterbury Democrat., 1936-03-10
WOMAN,S REALM +
 Your Children
By Olive Roberts Barton


 A lady asks me to explain Q state- ment quoted in one of my articles to the effect that hunger iS physio- logical and appetite is psychological. Just what does it mean, she in- quires.
 Before I try to explain the little I know, or anybody knows, about appetite, one thing has struck me most forcibIy about childcare. More mothers worry about the amounts their children eat, or don't cat, than almost any other prob lem in this business of family rais- ing. And there are more theories rife about it,today, I am sure, than ever before.
 Hunger b the body crying for food, 2 contracted and paining stomach, and feeling of weakness, fatigue and illness.
 Appetite is one part hunger, of course, because need of rcpleniBh- ment uSually sends out symptoms such as flow of saliva and q feel ing of emptiness. However, appetite iS 70 largely governed by thought, it is spoken of aS psychological.
 Concentration Curbs Hunger
 Writers, scientists, musicians, or anyone doing creative work, will go on finishing what they have be- gun, or walt for q pauBing place, without thought of food. Conccn- tratcd on something else, they have no appetite. Not until real hunger begins to poster them do they wake to the realization that food iS in- dicatcd.
 Remove such an one from his desk or workghip or laboratory, and at eight, one and Six he will want food, and plenty of it, If hc is well. Habit and regular hours do much to government appetite, but thiB also Is now known to be true, that memory of other pleasant meals" make uB hungry.
 Some mothers cannot understand why their children are 70 picky and will only eat say xix articles out of twenty possibilities. Joan won't touch carrots, Hugh Ash, Elsie makes q face when celery iS offered and Joseph hates cggB.
 This b not because they are different, but because memory of their first taste of the food, or something else, has turned their minds "pBychologically" against variety.
 Begins Food Variety Early
 Now, food specialists urge mothers of healthy children to begin break ing them in quite early to tiny tastes of this and that, not in harmful quantity but Just enough 10 that flavor becomes familiar and b accepted. From that, habit b born.
 Another psychological angle b thiS' aB appetite is largely memory of pleasant things that have gone before, 50 will it bc partially mind- ful of unpleasant things, too.
 Once I caught it pretty hard because dared to Bay that attrac- lively prepared meals and pretty dishes might help boost appetite. All right. I've seen children refuse potatoes boiled in their jackets and served on cracked plates, settle down and gobblc up the same pota- toes, pellcd and Bcrvcd on blue plate with white birds. One should n't coax or beg or threaten q child to eat. But vision, smell, taste and memory arc strong agents in their way and cannot be utterly disre- gardcd.
 If child reaches the "hunger" stage hc win eat If he doesn't then he needs q doctor. The thc- ory of take-it-away in a few niin- utcs if he won't cat" has cured many child. But if he pcrBistg week after week in refuging. ho needs q good golng-over to find causes. When reasons arc "psyBio- logcal, he needs help.
 Copyright, 1030, NEA Service, Incl