observations indicated that, if the food is not sufficient for both
mother and offspring, it is Nature's plan to protect the young and
leave the mother's wants incompletely satisfied. On the other hand,
when an unnecessarily large amount of nourishment is taken, the
excess is stored partly in the young, and partly in the mother's
body.

There can be no doubt that the results of such observations upon
animals are applicable to human beings. Everyone familiar with the
practice of obstetrics knows that women who gratify enormous
appetites during pregnancy, especially if they also fail to take
exercise, give birth to large children. On the other hand, it is said
that children born during times of famine are frequently delivered
prematurely, or, if mature, they are small and puny. A similar though
much less marked contrast exists between the babies of the working
classes and the well-to-do, and clearly indicates that the weight of
the baby varies directly with the food of the mother.

The quantity of the food is more influential than its quality, though
the latter is also a factor in determining the size of the child. An
excessive amount of starch or sugar in the mother's diet is stored as
fat in the child. On this account it is reasonable to eat sparingly
of candy, cake, and other sweets; but further attempts to reduce the
weight of the fetus by discrimination against different articles of
food are not advisable.

The various theories that have been advanced with a view to reducing
the size of the child are impracticable; some of them, rigidly
carried out, would actually jeopardize the health of both beings. All
of them are designed to make the infant's bones soft and to diminish