Regularity of meals. — More important than the number
of meals is regularity as to time of eating and amount of
food. Training for the digestive tract is just as important
as training the eye or the hand or the brain. We cannot
expect good digestions if we have a hearty luncheon to-day,
none at all to-morrow, and perhaps a scanty and hasty late
one the next day. To take food into the stomach between
meals is to demoralize the digestive system. Foods that
are excellent as part of a meal provoke headaches and bad
complexions, and many symptoms of a protesting stomach,
when taken between meals. The younger the perspn, the
more important is regularity. Little children soon suffer if
their meals are not " on the minute.'' Adults have more
difficulty in controlling their time, but if they have to be
late to meals, they should be more careful than usual to eat
slowly and to choose plain simple food that will digest easily.
Mental attitude toward meals. — Good food may be pro-
vided at the proper time and yet the members of a family
MENUS AND DIETARIES 307
may fail to keep well and happy unless they come to meals
in the right condition. Haste, chill, exhaustion, anxiety,
excitement, fretfulness, or anger may interfere with the
digestion of the most digestible of meals. Orderly table
service, good manners, and cheerful conversation are very
important factors in the success of a meal. Peace and joy
as well as " calories" are watchwords of good nutrition.
Balanced meals. — Having determined how many meals
to serve in the day and what 'their hours shall be, the next
question is how to choose and distribute the constituents of
the day's ration so as to promote digestibility and satisfac-
tion. A meal of piu-e protein, or fat, or carbohydrate would
not be relished, and would have some physiological disad-
vantages. Digestion is likely to be more complete on a
mixed diet. A meal of carbohydrate alone leaves the stom-
ach more quickly than any other kind, and one would feel
hungry before the next meal, though one might have had
plenty of fuel ; a meal of fat alone would leave the stomach
very slowly, and one would not have so good an appetite
for the next meal ; a meal of pure protein would stimulate
heat production without any particular advantages, except
possibly in very cold weather : it would be decidedly undesir-
able in hot weather. For these and other reasons it is best
to have the different foodstuffs represented in each meal,
and to see that no one contains an excess of fat, which tends
to retard all digestion. This is what is usually meant by a
balanced meal, but it may also include care that about the
same proportion of fuel is served at the same meal each day.
A meal does not need to be " balanced '' in quite the same
sense as a day's ration. The latter must have a definite
amount of fuel, a suitable proportion of protein, ash well
represented, some food for bulk, the whole selected with
regard for the physical condition, tastes, habits, and pocket-
books of those to be fed.
308 FOODS AND HOUSEHOLD MANAGEMENT
Page 201
Presented as published in 1914. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Regularity of meals. — More important than the number of meals is regularity as to time of eating and amount of food. Training for the digestive tract is just as important as training the eye or the hand or the brain. We cannot expect good digestions if we have a hearty luncheon to-day, none at all to-morrow, and perhaps a scanty and hasty late one the next day. To take food into the stomach between meals is to demoralize the digestive system. Foods that are excellent as part of a meal provoke headaches and bad complexions, and many symptoms of a protesting stomach, when taken between meals. The younger the person, the more important is regularity. Little children soon suffer if their meals are not " on the minute.'' Adults have more difficulty in controlling their time, but if they have to be late to meals, they should be more careful than usual to eat slowly and to choose plain simple food that will digest easily.
Mental attitude toward meals. — Good food may be provided at the proper time and yet the members of a family
may fail to keep well and happy unless they come to meals in the right condition. Haste, chill, exhaustion, anxiety, excitement, fretfulness, or anger may interfere with the digestion of the most digestible of meals. Orderly table service, good manners, and cheerful conversation are very important factors in the success of a meal. Peace and joy as well as " calories" are watchwords of good nutrition.
Balanced meals. — Having determined how many meals to serve in the day and what 'their hours shall be, the next question is how to choose and distribute the constituents of the day's ration so as to promote digestibility and satisfaction. A meal of pure protein, or fat, or carbohydrate would not be relished, and would have some physiological disadvantages. Digestion is likely to be more complete on a mixed diet. A meal of carbohydrate alone leaves the stomach more quickly than any other kind, and one would feel hungry before the next meal, though one might have had plenty of fuel ; a meal of fat alone would leave the stomach very slowly, and one would not have so good an appetite for the next meal ; a meal of pure protein would stimulate heat production without any particular advantages, except possibly in very cold weather : it would be decidedly undesirable in hot weather. For these and other reasons it is best to have the different foodstuffs represented in each meal, and to see that no one contains an excess of fat, which tends to retard all digestion. This is what is usually meant by a balanced meal, but it may also include care that about the same proportion of fuel is served at the same meal each day. A meal does not need to be " balanced '' in quite the same sense as a day's ration. The latter must have a definite amount of fuel, a suitable proportion of protein, ash well represented, some food for bulk, the whole selected with regard for the physical condition, tastes, habits, and pocketbooks of those to be fed.