Proximate Principles of the Human Body.
| lbs. | ozs. | grs. | |
| 1. Water, composed of oxygen and hydrogen gases | 111 | 0 | 0 |
| 2. Gelatin, of which the walls of the cells and many tissues of the body, as the skin and bones, are principally composed | 15 | 6 | 0 |
| 3. Fat, which constitutes the adipose tissue | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 4. Phosphate of Lime, forming the principal part of the earthy matter of the bones | 5 | 13 | 0 |
| 5. Fibrin, forming the muscles and the clot and globules of the blood | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| 6. Albumen, found in the blood and nerves | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| 7. Carbonate of Lime, also entering into the composition of bone | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 8. Chloride of Sodium, common salt | 0 | 3 | 376 |
| 9. Fluoride of Calcium, found in the bones | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 10. Sulphate of Soda | 0 | 1 | 170 |
| 11. Carbonate of Soda | 0 | 1 | 72 |
| 12. Phosphate of Soda | 0 | 0 | 400 |
| 13. Sulphate of Potash | 0 | 0 | 400 |
| 14. Peroxide of Iron | 0 | 0 | 150 |
| 15. Phosphate of Potash | 0 | 0 | 100 |
| 16. Phosphate of Magnesia | 0 | 0 | 75 |
| 17. Chloride of Potassium | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 18. Silica | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 154 | 0 | 0 |
These compounds, in passing away from the body, form many others, which may be here left out of consideration as not forming a necessary part of the fabric of the human body.
None of these constituents of the body remain permanently in the system, and whilst the old particles are being removed new ones are supplied by the food. It is calculated that in this way a quantity of material, equal to the weight of the whole body, is carried away every forty days. So that we may be said to moult or cast away our old body and get a new one every forty days.
The materials for the food of man, and containing the above elements, are derived from the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms. The vegetable kingdom, however, is the great source of food to man and animals, as it is in the cells of the plant that the elements undergo those chemical changes which fit them for food. The animal can only supply what it obtains from them, and the substances supplied by the animal kingdom as food are identical with those obtained from plants.
The Food Collection is arranged as nearly as possible in the order of the following Classification, commencing at the western end of the lower gallery.
Class I. Alimentary or Necessary.
Group 1. Mineral Substances.
Examples: Water; Common Salt; Ashes of Plants and Animals.
Group 2. Non-nitrogenous force-producing Substances, incapable of forming Flesh or Muscle.
Examples: Sago, Arrowroot (Amylaceous); Sugar, Figs, Dates (Saccharine); Animal and Vegetable Fats and Oils (Oleaginous).
Group 3. Nitrogenous Substances capable of producing both Flesh and Muscle.
Examples: Eggs (Albuminous); Wheat, Flesh (Fibrinous); Peas, Cheese (Caseinous).
Class II. Medicinal or Auxiliary.
Group 1. Containing Alcohol.
Examples: Beers, Wines; Spirits.
Group 2. Containing Volatile Oils.
Examples: Spices and Condiments, as Cloves, Nutmegs, Pepper, Horse-radish, &c.
Group 3. Containing Acids.
Examples: Apples, Oranges, Rhubarb Stalks, Vinegar.
Group 4. Containing Alkaloids, which act upon the nervous system as stimulants or sedatives.
Examples: Tea, Coffee, Cocoa; Tobacco, Hemp, Opium.