teeth examined occasionally in order to detect such places before they
become large. On account of the expense, pain, and inconvenience there is
a tendency to put off dental work which one knows ought to be done.
Perhaps in no other instance is procrastination so surely punished. The
decayed places become larger and new points of decay are started; and the
pain, inconvenience, and expense are increased proportionately.

*The Natural Appetite* should be followed with reference to both the kind
and the amount of food eaten. No system of knowledge will ever be devised
which can replace the appetite as an aid in the taking of food. _It is_
_nature’s means of indicating the needs of the body_. The natural appetite
may be spoiled, however, by overeating and by the use of highly seasoned
foods, or by indulging in stimulants during the meal. It is spoiled in
children by too free indulgence in sweetmeats. By cultivating the natural
appetite and heeding its suggestions, one has at his command an almost
infallible guide in the taking of food.

*Preparation of Meals.*—The cooking of food serves three important
purposes. It renders the food more digestible, relieving the organs of
unnecessary work; it destroys bacteria that may be present in the food,
diminishing the likelihood of introducing disease germs into the body; and
it makes the food more palatable, thereby supplying a necessary stimulus
to the digestive glands. While the methods employed in the preparation of
the different foods have much to do with the ease with which they are
digested and with their nourishing qualities, the scope of our subject
does not permit of a consideration of these methods.

*Quantity of Food.*—Overeating and undereating are both objectionable from
a hygienic standpoint. Overeating, by introducing an unnecessary amount of
food into the body, overworks the organs of digestion and also the organs