FLESH. The softer tissues of the animal 3dy, as the muscle and fat, but excluding the uids, bones, skin and hair. Viewed as food, is composed of the proteids, myosin, musclin, yoglobulin and myo-albumin, together with zrying amounts of fats, salts and nitrogenous etractive substances, and about 75 per cent f water. Of the three classes of foodstuffs immon to the human economy, meat supplies Lost of the proteid and fat, while the vegetable ingdom supplies the carbohydrates. The pro :ids are more properly the tissue-building ele lents, while the fats and carbohydrates are tore readily oxidized, and supply the body pith energy. Proteids must be taken as such, ince the human economy cannot cause conver ion of the other sorts of food into proteids. 'he minimum of these various substances for he proper preservation of life has not been ositively determined, but approximately the verage healthy man requires 100 grams of at,0grams of carbohydrate, and 100 grams f proteid per diem. The necessary amount of .roteid material can be obtained from the vege able kingdom, and there is no doubt that some ystems are better suited for this diet; but he opinion is that a mixed diet, con aining a certain amount of meat, is more read ly taken care of. The meat proteids are isually more quickly and completely digested. vegetariansdo not agree with this view, :ontending that the use of animal flesh for :ood is not requsite to health, and involves :ruelty and brutality toward helpless creatures.
The nitrogenous extractive substances, cera ine, the xanthin bases, and the like, are also of ralue to the system because of their power of !xciting gastric secretions and stimulating cir ailation. The various meat extracts contain a arge proportion of these substances, and most )f them have little else. An overabundance of neat very frequently causes a nervous, irri :able condition. This is less true of the so :ailed white meats, a difference not to be ex plained on the ground that the white meats contain less of the extractives, since the op posite is the case. As a general rule the diet )f the well-to-do in America is entirely too high in the amount of albuminous foods. These constant errors find their expression in the well-nigh universal complaint of dyspepsia and so-called uric-acid disturbances. Such intoxi cations are almost sure to follow if more ani mal food is taken than can be digested and absorbed. Putrefaction of the unabsorbed food takes place, with generation of toxic sub stances and absorption of them into the general circulation. (See Foon). Consult Blvth, 'Foods) (1909); Cocroft, 'Foods, Nutrition and (1912).