London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
City of London 1904
Report of the Medical Officer of Health for the City of London for the year 1904
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Most of the above was removed as "trade refuse" at the request of the
owners. The number of loads and weight of such material dealt with in 1904
and the two previous years were as under:—
Weight.
Year.
No. of Loads.
Tons.
Cwts.
Qrs.
1902 362 83 14 0*
1903 284 148 5 0
1904 316 200 15 1
* The loads were weighed during the last six months only of this year.
SALE OF FOOD AND DRUGS ACTS.
Of the 1,035 samples analysed under the Sale of Food and Drugs Act in
1904, 5.5 per cent. were found to be adulterated, as compared with 8.31 per
cent. in 1903.
The figures for 1904 and the three preceding years were as follows:—
| Year | 1901. | 1902. | 1903. | 1904. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of samples taken | 854 | 1,248 | 1,179 | 1,035 |
| Number of samples genuine | 742 | 1,138 | 1,081 | 978 |
| Number of samples adulterated | 112 | 110 | 98 | 57 |
For the purpose of comparison the following Table is given showing the percentage of adulteration in England and Wales since 1877:—
| Per cent. | ||
|---|---|---|
| Quinquennium | 1877-81 | 16.2 |
| 1882.86 | 13.9 | |
| 1887-91 | 11.7 | |
| 1892-96 | 10.6 | |
| „ | 1897-1901 | 9.0 |
| 1900 | 8.8 | |
| 1901 | 8.8 | |
| 1902 | 8.7 |
These figures are abstracted from the Annual Reports of the Local
Government Board.