WHEATMEAL BREAD.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2315, 13 August 1921, Page 4

WHEATMEAL BREAD.

In view of the fact that recently opinions have been appearing in the public-press on the above subject, differing from those expressed from time to time by the Health Department through the same channel, the following statement is made, based on the modern opinions of accepted authorities. To the general community bread is a food the nutritive value of which is of the greatest importance, forming as it does the ground uork of the diet. This is especially so in the case of growing children. The nutritional superiority of wheatmeal over white bread is an established scientific fact, proved by experiments upon many different species of animals, and by the observed effects upon human-beings. Professor Hutchison’s statement of the composition of white and brown breads has been quoted. This is accepted as far as it goes. As quoted, however, it is misleading, implying as it does that the natuie and proportions of the salts in wheatmeal and white (lour are piactically the same. No account is thus taken of the common salt added in bread-making, the nutritive value of which is very different from that of the’ highly-organised phosphates and other salts of the germ and outer layers of wheat. At least two-thirds of these natural salts are removed iii the milling of white flour according to Professor Hutchison’s own table, which is appended :

Whole Wheat. White Flour, Saifs 1.91 ' °- (i

While no doubt use may be made of Professor Hutchison’s published statements as in some way, perhaps, not supporting the use of wheatmeal bread, nevertheless his present opinion is best shown by the fact that lie is one of the signatories to a recent memorial presented to the British Minister of Health urging the importance to the community, and especially to the children, of a greater proportion of the wheat grain being included in bread.

Some of the newspaper correspondents on this subject arc evidently not aware that recent biological experiments have shown that mere chemical analysis fails to gAe a true estimate of the actual uutritive value of foods. For instance, the Medical Research Committee’s Report on Vitamines gives the vita-miue-conteut of wheatmeal products as ascertained hv biological experimenas as follows:

The number of crosses indicates as accurately as it has been possible to measure them the amounts of these essential substances. Experiments in the past bare been carried out mostly for the puipo.se of ascertaining the actual amount of the various constituents and their digestibility, and, having been of short duration, are misleading. In these experiments the presence or absence of the all-es-sential vitamines is not taken into account. The material absorbed from white bread during a brief experiment is not of so much consequence when it is realised that a diet of white bread and water causes death in an animal in a shorter time than when water alone is gir-c-jt, and that whole wheat bread sustains life and health for a considerable longer period.

it lias been proved by experiment recently earned out in England that object ions to uheatmeal oil the score oi' its imperfect absorption have been satisfactorily overcome by grinding to u uniform fineness, h’eform along these lines is being urged in an organised manlier in England at the present lime by Sir James Crichton Brown, Professor Hutchison—whose figures have been quoted above —and other leading medical and scientific people. It is, of course, possible to quote medical opinions published six 01 eight years ago, which may appear to 1,0 adverse to the present reform, but critics who do so arc referred to the more modern opinions of such authorities as Professor Starling, Professor E. By wland Hopkins, and Drs. Eddie, SimpsOii, and Benjamin Moore, of the research staff of the Biochemical Department of the Liverpool Schuol of Tropical Medicine, one of whom, Professor Hopkins, is briefly quoted :

“The superior value of whole wheat meal lies in the fact that it retains certain food substances whose presence allows our system's to make full use of the tissuebuilding elements of y the grain. All my work to date confirms my belief in the superior food value of whole wheat, bread. . . . The substan-

ces of unknown nature may need to be present in very small amount, but if the necessary minimum is not available, the utilisation of other constituents in tissue growth or repair is infallibly deficient. . . . In the process of converting the wheat grain to fine white flour these elements are lost or destroyed. It follows that no matter how much nourishment they might otherwise contain, our system cannot make the best use of such nourishment, owing to the absence of these elements necessary to their assimilation.”

Tn view of the facts as stated, the School Medical and Dental Divisions of the Health Department are urging this reform, having for its object, the elimination of some at any rate of the disease and suffering which is everywhere associated with, and by leading authorities attributed to- the artificial refinement

of food and other wrong methods of civilisation. The Department is, moreover, in a position to show that the people are awakening to the great importance of this matter, and that there is a growing demand for bread which may. more justly claim the title of the Staff of Life.

“A” Ij Vitnmine. Vitamine. Wheat Rcnu x x x x x Wheat hrau x x x Whole wheatmeal ■ • x x White Hour u