Just what ingredients of the food serve for nourishment of the brain
and nerves, and how they do that service, are mysteries which have not
yet been solved. Brain and nerve contain the elements nitrogen and
phosphorus, which are found in protein compounds but not in the true
fats, sugars, and starches, which contain only carbon, hydrogen and
oxygen. We naturally infer that the protein compounds must be
especially concerned in building up brain and nerve, and keeping them
in repair. Just how much food the brain worker needs is a question
which has not yet been decided. In general it appears that a man or a
woman whose occupation is what we call sedentary, who is without
vigorous exercise and does but little hard muscular work, needs much
less than the man at hard manual labor, and that the brain worker
needs comparatively little of carbohydrates or fats. Many physicians,
physiologists and students of hygiene have become convinced that
well-to-do people, whose work is mental rather than physical, eat too
much; that the diet of people of this class as a whole is one-sided as
well as excessive, and that the principal evil is the use of too much
fat, starch and sugar. It is well to remember that it is the quantity
of food digested which builds the body, and more injury is likely to
result from over-eating than from a restricted diet, hence the value
of having food cooked so as to aid digestion. The following dietary
standards may be interesting to the more advanced pupils, housewives,
etc.:--

STANDARDS FOR DAILY DIET OF LABORING MAN AT MODERATE MUSCULAR
WORK.

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| | | Nutrients in Daily Food.