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166
1898]
Their consumption, according to Notter & Firth, spares not only
proteid food, but also fat. They lessen the need of fat by being a
source of energy in the body, and thus when present in a diet poor in
fat, they diminish the oxidation of fat in the body.
It is generally thought, too, that fat is formed directly from carbohydrates,
and the weight of evidence is in this direction, but whether
it is formed directly or indirectly, there is no doubt that the consumption
of carbo-hydrates results in the formation of fat within the body.
Much more could be written on this subject, but enough has been
said to prove that these two large constituents of separated milk are
indispensable in our food, and that between them they actually supply
fat to the system when consumed.
Apparently, unconsciously, the working classes seem to have
discovered the fact, and hence the enormous sale in its condensed
form of separated milk. To retard this sale would be to deprive the
labourer and artizan of a convenient, nutritious, and most excellent
food; one that does not readily decompose, and which, when the can is
opened, can be kept for a few days without decomposition taking place.
One, too, which, owing to its sweetening properties, lessens the amount
to be paid for sugar, for use with tea, coffee, cocoa or puddings.
Looking on separated milk in this light, it is not too much to say
that, while admitting it is not a suitable food for infants, who require
fat to generate heat, it is a most excellent and nutritious food for the
human adult, as well as for the growing youth, especially when partaken
with meals at which butter, margarine or dripping are consumed.
The food of the people is a matter of utmost consequence to the
Medical Officer of Health, and, therefore, it is as much his duty to see
that good foods do not come under a ban as to watch that bad foods or
unwholesome foods are not offered for sale. That condensed separated
milk is a good food is beyond doubt, because its composition is almost
identical with that of bread, whose moisture has been reduced to the
proportion contained in separated milk.