Dinner and Digestion.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 24 April 1914, Page 8

Dinner and Digestion.

Never disturb a' man when he is eating. Not only does it irritate him, but it actually interrupts his digestion. No man who knows anything about dogs will ever disturb an animal at his meal. To carry away a dog when he is gnawing a bone is cruel as well as dangerous. A cat that is worrying a mouse will scratch and bite if interrupted. Eating is not only a physiological process, but is a psychological experience as well. It is even more so in human beings than in animals. To digest food a copious flow of gastric juice is necessary. Animals have a far greater flow than men ; that is why they can so much more .easily digest food that has scarcely been chewed. In man the flow of gastric juice must be stimulated" by the smell and taste of his food even more than by its presence in his stomach, though there are some viands, such as soups, that are valuable principally because of their stimulating effect upon the flow of the digestive fluids. Food that has not a savory taste and odour lias little effect in stimulating the gastric flow • the result is that lit is not digested. Nothing is a better accompaniment to a meal than lively, cheerful conversation. But he who introduces at the table an unpleasant, topic or starts an argument that may arouse animosity or be pur- i sued too earnestly is not fit com-'j pany for man or beast. He is im- j perilling the digestion of every one present. Digestion is the most important of all functions of the human body, and anything that tends to disturb it, as every interruption does, is a serious offence against health, comparable with deliberately exposing a man to infection by diphtheria or tuberculosis. Music is a pleasant accompaniment to a meal, but music that is blatant or discordant is the parent of indigestion. The epicure seeks a place as far from the music as possible. The epicure loves to enjoy his meals, because he loves to enjoy perfection and its corollary, perfect health.