Bulletin No. 84. U. S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Experiment Stations. Nutrition Investigations at the California Agricultural Experiment Station, 1896-1898.

Jaffa, M. E.

Edité par Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1900

A propos de cet article

Original publisher's green-gray paper wrappers with black lettering printed on front cover. No lettering on spine. 6" x 9." Thirty-nine pages, complete. Appendix in back. Pages are very clean and intact except for light age toning. Covers are clean and intact overall but have light age toning or browning and slight bumping to corners. A Very Good copy. A fascinating report about nineteenth-century scientific studies that looked into nutrition, the nutritive content of different foods, and how different food materials affect the human body. As noted in the beginning of the report, researchers studied the nutritive effects of different foods upon the human body by studying the University of California football team, a chemist and his family, and four infants. M. E. Jaffa, Assistant Professor of Agriculture at the University of California, writes in his Introduction, "These investigations include a considerable number of analyses of food materials, two dietary studies of adults (one with the family of a chemist, the other with a football team), four dietary studies of infants, one digestion experiment with an infant, and a metabolism experiment with an infant in which the balance of income and outgo of nitrogen was determined." Some of the experiments lasted for about a week while others lasted several weeks or months. Jaffa then briefly summarizes the purpose of food which is to maintain and refuel the body, "protect tissue from consumption," and preserve energy stores for future use. He notes the different caloric and food intake needs for individuals who are relatively sedentary (hence the inclusion of the chemist's family) and those who are relatively more active (hence the inclusion of the football team). There are several data tables printed throughout the report which list numerical metrics relating to the studies such as the amount of calories, water, fat, carbohydrates, and "ash" contained in different foods and the amount of protein, fat, and carbohydrates consumed by the individuals in the studies. Among the first numerical data listed are the nutritive metrics of different foods. Some of the foods that were consumed by the adults during the studies were beef, pork, canned turkey, a variety of seafood (such as codfish, canned salmon, canned oysters, and canned shrimp), eggs, butter, milk, cheese, a variety of cereals (such as barley, cornmeal, and flour), a various vegetables (such as beets, lettuce, and potatoes), nuts, and various fruits (such as apples, bananas, oranges, and canned peaches). The infants were fed foods such as milk and sugar and, later, beef juice, gruel, and prunes as they progressed in age. The researchers made a number of conclusions based on these studies. For example, they compared the food and caloric intake of the football team to that of a boat crew (presumably from a previous study) and were perplexed when the former ate more than the latter. The researchers considered boat work to be more strenuous than that of the football team and concluded that the football team was overfed. Other parts of the studies document observations such as one of the infants showing reluctance to eat and indigestion occurring with specific foods. The researchers also posit that changes in climate (hot versus cold environments) affect what one eats and how the food is digested. Another conclusion made in the studies is that there is virtually no difference in nutrition between brown- and white-shelled eggs.

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Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: Bulletin No. 84. U. S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Experiment Stations. Nutrition Investigations at the California Agricultural Experiment Station, 1896-1898.
• Éditeur: Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
• Date de parution: 1900
• Langue: anglais
• Reliure: Soft cover
• État de l'article: Very Good
• Catalogues du vendeur:
  • Science and Technology
  • Western Americana
  • Medical