HEALTH OF CHILDREN.

Otaki Mail, Volume XXVIII, 15 November 1920, Page 4

HEALTH OF CHILDREN.

(Published under authority; of Education Department.).

It is commonly; assumed that fruit t is an unnecssary, adjunct" to the diet. On the contrary it is ,an important j food, and it may be generally said that j . n child whose daily diet does not in- I elude a certain amount of fruit is not being adequately fed. The value of , acid fruit in cleansing the teeth alter meals anil counteracting decay alone would give fruit an important^ place iu j our list of foods." lint there are other j ways in which fruit contributes to I health. ' as;-' 'l'! Fruit is rich' in certain vitamines or vital elements of nutrition which are.jj essential to health and bodily growth- ( Insufficiency of certain vitamines is| frequently a serious fault in the die! of children, consisting as it often does almost wholly of artilicially refined foods. The fresh juice of oranges and lemons has saved battalions of troops from contracting that dread disease, scurvy. Fruit has a stimulating—one might ' almost say a disinfecting—power upuu the digestive tract, it helps to pre-vent-stagnation, to promote normal urlivity of She digestive organs, and to maintain the lining membrane in a healthy condition. It is becoming in creasingly recognised in the treatment oi certain disea:;;. oi children that to restore the 'digestive lining of the stomach and bowels to a healthy slate it is essential to include in the diet a good proportion of food requiring ! vigorous mastication and a certain amount oi -fresh raw food such v fruit, i In all eases of artificially fed ini fant'i, i't is important to give a little ! orange or apple juice daily, eomrnenc- j j ing with about 10 drops any time ai'tei : the first month and increasing very I At this age it should be ■ given in the interval between nicais. ' After a year old :> little baked apple may be given at the end of a meal, and at IS months the average child should gradually learn to nibble a j! little raw apple. Unless there is sonic )' reason to the contrary a small piece !( of raw apple or orange should be given f at the end of each meal, and this j should be ii general rule from two i years upwards. In the case or oranges the juice only should be taken. The reason why stone fruits such as plums sometime.-, cause digestive trouble is that they are often eaten ■with their skins unwashed. As such fruit offers n great attraction to flies it is frequently in a very unclean condition. It -mould invariably be washed, and for young children the skin should be peeled off. The most generally useful fruit is the apple. A greater demand would result in cheaper apples, and judiciously used they would effect an ennrm- • oris reduction in dental disease and an Incalculable increase in health. There are scientific grounds for the old adage, "An tipple a day keeps the doctor away."