Health Notes

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 234, 22 December 1927, Page 13

Health Notes

MILK A VALUABLE FOOD HOW TO CARE FOR IT (Contributed by Department of Health.) Milk is unquestionably one of the most important foods which man requires. Authorities agree that it is the best single fobd. Its exceptional value is due both to the quantity and variety, as well as to the quality of its nutrient constituents. It is well-nigh unique among foods, as it contains in itself all the components of a complete dietary, and is produced in nature solely for the purpose of serving as a food. -It has in substantial amounts representatives of the three essential tj-pes of foodstuffs, proteins, carbohydrates and fats. In addition, it is particularly rich in mineral matter, and is by no means lacking in vitamins or “accessory food factors.” Moreover, these same nutrient constituents are present in an especially valuable form. The proteins of milk—casein, lact-albumin, etc.—are of high quality and are sufficient in themselves to supply the nitrogenous needs of the body. The chief minerals of milk, lirqe and phosphorus, which are indispensable for the building up of growing tissue, especially bones and teeth, are present in a readily usable form. The vitamins present are particularly valuable in promoting growth. Finally, milk is palatable and easily digested. Milk alone is not a perfect food for adults. It is designed for the growing organisms, and for this reason contains large proportions of proteins and mineral matter. It is, nevertheless, particularly well adapted for use by adults to supplement other foods and in particular to make good any deficiency of building materials in the diet. It is frequently referred to as “a protective food,” owing to the capacity it has. when used in combination with other foodstuffs, of either animal or vegetable origin, of guarding against the deficiency diseases. Certain writers claim that the races and nations of men which have done most in the development of the world and have shown the greatest physical strength ! and vigour are those which have de- | pended to the largest extent on milk i and dairy products for their food. ; Therefore, the importance of a plentiful and wholesome supply of this ar-

ticle of diet cannot be over-estimated. Milk, however, is an excellent medium for the multiplication of many kinds of bacteria, including a number

of those which produce diseases in man. It is therefore important that milk be safeguarded against contamination with disease germs. The requirements to this end are exceedingly simple, easy of application, and can be put into operation without undue expense. The principles involved simply require rules of cleanliness to be enforced. Healthy stock, cleanly methods of milking, and the use of absolutely clean utensils are essential. Cooling the milk immediately it has been drawn and strained and maintaining it cool during transportation and storage are necessary measures.

The care of milk in the home is not the least important of the measures for disease prevention. It is obvious that a food so valuable and so vulnerable as milk deserves all the care that can be bestowed upon it, especially as, from the very nature of its composition, it is particularly fitted to be a breeding ground for organisms. Indeed, the evidence is strong that in so far as milk may be a vehicle of disease, the home is probably the most dangerous place of infection. Fortunately the principles and precepts to be observed in the proper domestic care of milk are few and simple. They may be summed up in the statement that the milk must he kept cool and covered up. and that all receptacles containing it must be thoroughly cleaned before and after use.

Handle milk carefully in your home. It should be kept in the coolest place available, preferably in some simple form of home-made dust-proof cooler. Access of dust should be avoided, chiefly by ensuring that the house is as free from dust as cleanliness can make it. The milk should always be put in clean vessels; a jug which has held milk should be rinsed out first in cold water and then washed in hot water and soda, and for babies’ milk it should certainly be finally scalded with boiling water and placed upside down without drying on a rack to drain. A good method of protecting milk in jugs or bottles is to make net covers of white material known as “mosquito netting” cut large enough to cover the mouths of the different receptacles. To the edge of these circular pieces of glass beads should be sewn, the weight of which will tighten the net over the edge. Finally, what every householder should remember is that the source of danger is not so much the dropping of germs into the milk out of the air as 1 gross contamination by dirty hands, dirty vessels and utensils, and *by gross purveyors of infection such as tha hcrusa u*