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The total number of attendances made by the Health Visitors at the Centres
in 1925 was 381. At the Municipal Centre, 5,160 attendances were made by a
number of mothers, including 46 expectant mothers, and 501 children, of whom
284 were under one year, 65 between one and two years old, and 152 aged 2.5
years on the date of their first attendance. At the Mary Ward Centre 1,004
attendances of Holborn mothers and children were made by expectant mothers
and 72 children, of whom 37 were under one year, 5 from one to two years, and
30 between two and five years.
The attention of mothers of bottle fed infants is drawn to the necessity
of supplying Vitamin.C in the diet by the giving of fruit juice daily in suitable
quantities; orange juice is used, as a rule. During the shipping strike in the early
autumn when oranges were dear and of inferior quality, while English tomatoes
were comparatively cheap, plentiful, and at their best, the use of tomato juice
was advised, and a special poster made to replace the usual one advocating
orange juice. Mothers however preferred to pay the higher price for the oranges
even when they could not easily do so, rather than try the new suggestion;
they are equally conservative when advised to try the juice of raw swede turnips,
which are at their best and most plentiful when the oranges are dearest.
In addition to the Thursday afternoon classes for mothers there have been
lectures and demonstrations on Cookery.
In November, the National Clean Milk Society provided a course of four
lectures on Milk and its Food Value, and a demonstration on the cooking of
dishes in which milk is an important ingredient.
In December, arrangements were made for two demonstrations by Miss
Petty, of the Food Reform League, in methods of conservative cooking of
vegetables and the preparation of wholesome and inexpensive dishes.