SECTION I
FOOD AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE
Preliminary Course of Lectures and Laboratory Work
CHAPTER I
FOOD
The value of a knowledge of food and its effect in the human body cannot be overestimated. In health, this knowledge leads to higher standards, since by pointing out the errors in one’s mode of living, good health habits may be established, which will, undoubtedly assure the individual of a better nourished and a more vigorous body.
There is no question as to the value of health either from the standpoint of comfort or of economy. And the knowledge which will enable one to spread the good work intelligently cannot but raise the standards of living throughout the entire community.
In taking up the study of dietetics, the student is introduced to some of the fundamental principles governing the health and well-being of a people, since dietetics includes a study of food and its relation to the body.
The relationship between right food and good health is very close; how close is being demonstrated constantly in experimental fields of scientific research.
To be able to judge whether the food one eats daily is giving the best possible value from a physiological and economic standpoint, requires a definite knowledge of food, its source, composition and nutrient value, as well as its relation to the body in health and disease.