JOURNAL OF THE

FRANKLIN INSTITUTE OF THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA,

FOR T H E PROMOTION OF T H E M E C H A N I C ARTS.

VOL. C LV I I , No. 3. 79TH Y E A R . M A R C H , I9o4

THE Frankl in Ins t i t u t e is not responsible for the state- ments and opinions advanced by con t r ibu tors to the Journal.

Methods of Studying the Effect of Preservatives and other Substances Added to Foods upon Health and

Digestion.*

Bv DR. H. W. ~VILEY, Chief of the Bureau of Chemistry, U. S. Department of Agriculture,

Honorary Member of the Institute.

Food exper imen t s have been conducted from remotes t antiquity, but pe rhaps not with all the scientific accuracy which character izes the exper imen ta l work of modern times. The first recorded food expe r imen t which I have been able to find is descr ibed in the Book of Daniel, first chapter, twelfth verse and following.

When Daniel was b r o u g h t into the royal household of the King of Babylon he was requ i red to eat the food pre- pared for the K i n g and the court . Th i s the p rophe t was not willing to do. T h e chief of the eunuchs, who had taken a great fancy to Daniel, was g rea t ly worr ied over the situa- tion and in formed the reca lc i t ran t Israel i te tha t the K i n g

A. lecture delivered before the Franklin Institute and the Central Branch, Y.M.C.A., in Association Hall, Philadelphia, Friday, October 23, r9o 3.

VOL. CLVII. No. 939. ~

I64 /~Vz'fey .- [J. F . 1,,

ters. I t is not claimed tha t these are subs tances na tu ra l to food and their addi t ion mus t therefore be posi t ively justified. Negat ive results are condemnatory . If these bodies do no good they have no reason of existence ; if t hey are in jur ious they should surely be prohib i ted; if they are beneficial under certain conditions, these condit ions should be ascer- ta ined and definitely fixed.

In a r rang ing for the experiments , in car ry ing them out, and in discussing the data, an earnest effort has been made to put aside every theory or personal inpression or prejudice connected with the subject. How m a n y t imes have I been asked: "Are the exper iments proving wha t you expected them t o ? " I can always answer this ques t ion negat ive ly because I had put aside, before beg inn ing the experiments , all expectations. Our object has solely been to ascertain the facts, to establish t hem if possible beyond cavil, to col- late them in what seems a scientific and reasonable manner , and at the end to draw such conclusions as j udgmen t , unin- fluenced by preiudice, would approve. Some of the above purposes, i t is hoped, will be fully accomplished, because we propose to set for th in detail the manne r in which the exper iments were conducted, to record all the facts observed jus t as they occurred, to tabula te the work in the most scien- tific manner possible, and thus present to competent experts a basis for conclusions. W h e n all this is done it is evident tha t different conclusions may be derived from the premises by different persons. W h a t e v e r our conclus ions may be, therefore, we do not claim for them any special virtue, bu t we do hope so to establ ish the facts on which they are based t h a t the necessi ty for a repet i t ion of the work may be re legated to the remote future. The enormous amoun t of work connected with such exper iment s and the great ex- pense which necessari ly a t tends them, render it ex t remely advisable tha t the work should be thoroughly done, wi th every possible regard for accuraeyl wi th e l iminat ion as far as possible of all sources of d i s turbance and error and wi th the es tab l i shment on as firm a basis as possible of the re- corded observations.

An outl ine of the method of mak ing the exper iments at

Mar., I9O4. ] ]~,.ffec! o f Preservatives on Hea/th, ct,'. ~65

this t ime will be useful in expla in ing the details of the work, so tha t when the full da ta are publ ished later, those who care to look into the m a t t e r can unde r s t and exact ly how they were obtained.

Fi rs t of all, it is ev iden t tha t no mere theor iz ing on the chemical and physical proper t ies of preserva t ives and color- ing ma t t e r s can be of much va lue in work of this kind. It is f u r the r ev ident tha t pharmacologica l exper iments made upon any o ther animals than man, valuable as they are, will not lead to abso lu te ly definite results. I t is well known that the d iges t ive organs of o the r animals are different from those of man ; tha t the processes of assimilat ion vary, and tha t what m igh t be innocuous to such an animal migh t in o ther c i rcumstances prove ha rmfu l to man, and vice versa. It was there fore concluded tha t the exper iments to be of full value should be made upon the h u m a n animal. Fo r tuna t e ly the D e p a r t m e n t of Agr i cu l tu re is r ichly provided with sub- jects for expe r imen t s if only thei r consent there to can be obtained.

Fi rs t of all, therefore, a s t a t em en t was made of the object of the expe r imen t s and this was submi t t ed to a number of yo ung men connec ted with the D e p a r t m e n t who were gener- ally college g radua te s or s tuden ts engaged in scientific pur- suits, bu t at a low rate of compensat ion. The only induce- men t offered to these young men to engage thei r a t ten t ion and consent, in addi t ion to the cont r ibu t ions to the progress of science which they would make, was that of free board dur ing the period of the exper iment . This, indeed, must be considered as a very small reward for the s t renuous life which they were compelled to lead for so long a period. Never the less , large numbers of vo lunteers presented them- selves, far in excess of the actual demand. Each appl icant was reques ted to fill out the blank which fol lows:

Oescripliz,e blalzA, 1o be f i l led oul @ applicants/or Hy~ienic Tab&'.

i. N a m e and address.

2. Date of bir th.

3. Have you had a n y s ickness confining you to your room wi th in a year ? If so, state na ture and durat ion.

I 6 6 W i l e y .' [J. F. l. ,

4. Are you sub jec t to i n d i g e s t i o n ? If so, s t a te c h a r a c t e r a n d fre- quency .

5. Do you u se coffee, tea, or choco la t e w i t h y o u r m e a l s ? If so, s t a te at w h i c h m e a l s and wha t b e v e r a g e y o u prefer .

6. Do you use tobacco ? If so, s t a te in w h a t fo rm, a t w h a t t imes , and quan t i t y .

7. Do you use wine, beer , or o t h e r a lcohol ic b e v e r a g e s ?

8. Do you go to s tool r e g u l a r l y ? At w h a t h o u r s ?

9, At w h a t h o u r s do you u s u a l l y u r i n a t e ?

xo. At wha t h o u r s do you go to bed? H o w m a n y h o u r s do you u s u a l l y s leep ?

I t . Do you e n g a g e in a n y u n u s u a l or v i o l en t exe rc i se ? If so, w h a t ?

T h e objec t of the above b lank was to ge t an idea of the personal habi t s of the appl icant and especial ly to ascer ta in if he had been la te ly sub jec t to any serious disease or if he had any he red i t a ry t endency to disease. I t was also desir- able to know whe the r the appl icant was addic ted to t he use of tobacco or of alcoholic drinks, and if so, to wha t ex ten t . I had hoped to be able to secure a sufficient n u m b e r of appl icants who used ne i the r tobacco nor alcohol to make up the corps of cadets, bu t in this I was unsuccessful . Only a very small pe rcen tage of the appl icants used ne i the r tobacco nor alcohol. Since alcohol has a posi t ive food value, and it was desirable to e l imina te this beve rage f rom the hygien ic table, I finally decided to re jec t the appl ica t ion of all those who used even to a modera t e degree alcoholic beverages . I then deeided to accept, in so far as it was necessary to make out the number , the appl icat ions of those who used tobacco modera te ly .

It was decided at the beg inn ing tha t the n u m b e r at the expe r imen ta l table should be twelve, d iv ided into two classes of six each. I t was ev iden t ly imprac t icab le for a young man to cont inue for seven or e ight mon ths in so s t r enuous a life at so small a compensa t ion . T h e objec t of hav ing two classes was tha t one should be res t ing while the o the r was unde rgo ing exper imenta l t r ea tmen t , thus d iv id ing the t ime as near ly as possible equa l ly be tween the two. T h e num- ber under expe r imen t was subsequen t ly increased to four-

Mar., i9o4. ] Effegt o f Preservatives on Health, etc. x(~7

t e e n for s o m e s p e c i a l p u r p o s e s . T h e m e m b e r s of t h e t a b l e

h a v i n g b e e n s e l e c t e d , e a c h o n e w a s r e q u i r e d to s u b s c r i b e to

t h e f o l l o w i n g p l e d g e :

I hereby agree, on my honor, to follow implicitly the rules and regulations governing the hygienic table of the Bureau of Chemistry during the time that I am a member thereof. I agree, during my attendance at the table of observa- tion, to use no other food or drink than that which is provided for me, with the exception of water, and that any water not used at the table will be measured and reported daily as a part of the ration. I further agree that I will continue to be a member of the hygienic table for a period of at least six months, from December I, i9o2 , unless prevented by some illness, accident, or unavoidable absence, i agree to continue the regular habits of my life, to indulge in no unusual excess of labor or exercise, and if tobacco be used it shall be used at such times and in sueh amounts as will be agreed upon between myself and the Chief of the Bureau of Chemistry.

I further agree that I will not hold the Department of Agriculture, nor any person connected therewith, responsible for any illness or accident that may occur during my connection with the hygienic table.

I t iS e v i d e n t t h a t i n e x p e r i m e n t s o n t h e h u m a n a n i m a l i t

i s n e c e s s a r y to r e l y to a c e r t a i n e x t e n t u p o n t h e h o n o r of t h e

p e r s o n u n d e r o b s e r v a t i o n . I h a v e e v e r y r e a s o n to b e l i e v e

t h a t t h e m e m b e r s of t h e h y g i e n i c t a b l e k e p t t h e i r p l e d g e s

f a i t h f u l l y . T h e y w e r e y o u n g m e n of h i g h s t a n d i n g , f ine

c h a r a c t e r , w i t h n o b a d h a b i t s , a n d t h e y al l t o o k a l i v e l y

p e r s o n a l i n t e r e s t i n t h e w o r k to w h i c h t h e y w e r e d e v o t i n g

t h e m s e l v e s . T h e y w e r e r e q u i r e d , as is s e e n b y t h e p l e d g e ,

to p u r s u e t h e i r d a i l y v o c a t i o n s i n t h e u s u a l way . I n t h e

c a s e of t h o s e w h o u s e d t o b a c c o , a s t a t e m e n t of t h e q u a n t i t i e s

u sed , t h e c h a r a c t e r of t h e t o b a c c o e m p l o y e d , a n d t h e t i m e s

a t w h i c h i t w a s t a k e n , w a s m a d e , a n d t h e y a g r e e d to con -

t i n u e t h e u s e i n e x a c t l y t h e s a m e w a y d u r i n g t h e e n t i r e

p e r i o d . A t t h e c o m p l e t i o n of a n e x p e r i m e n t a l p e r i o d , i n r e t i r i n g

f r o m t h e e x p e r i m e n t a l t a b l e a n d p a s s i n g to t h e r e c r e a t i o n

t a b l e , t h e c a n d i d a t e w a s r e q u i r e d to s u b s c r i b e to t h e fo l low-

i n g c e r t i f i c a t e :

I hereby certify oi1 my honor that during the period beginning . . . . and ending - - - - , I have not partaken of any food or drink (except water reported) other than that furnished at the hygienic table of the Bureau of Chemistry, and that I have accurately recorded all the items of food and drink received at the table.

I further certify that I have not engaged in any excessive or unusual

T'68 W i l e y ." [J. F. l.,

physical exercise ; that I have followed, in so far as possible, the regular tenor of my daily life in respect of work, exercise and sleep ; that I have observed to the best of my ability and recorded accurately the data relating to weight, temperature and pulse ; and that I have observed faithfully all the regulations connected with the experimental work at the hygienic table.

By t h u s p l a c ing the y o u n g m e n on t h e i r h o n o r , b y in ter - e s t i n g t h e m in the work, and by g i v i n g t h e m pe r iods of r e s t d u r i n g w h i c h t h e y we re at l i b e r t y to ea t m o d e r a t e l y at o t h e r t ab les t h a n those set in the B u r e a u of C h e m i s t r y , I s e c u r e d p rac t i ca l l y the r e su l t s wh ich wou ld h a v e b e e n o b t a i n e d b y an a bso lu t e con t ro l of a n i m a l s e x p e r i m e n t e d u p o n b o t h dur- ing the pe r iods of e a t i n g and t he i n t e r v e n i n g per iods .

I t m a y be asked : W h y w e r e so m a n y p e r s o n s s e l ec t ed ? T o th is I r e p ly t h a t t he i d i o s y n c r a s y of t h e h u m a n a n i m a l is v e r y marked . E x p e r i m e n t s m a d e u p o n a s ingle , or ev en two ind iv idua l s , are ap t to be v e r y m i s l e a d i n g b y r e a s o n of th is i d io sync ra sy . I w o u l d g l ad ly h a v e e x t e n d e d t h e exper i - m e n t a l work to t w e n t y , t h i r t y , or e v e n fifty, if i t had b e e n poss ib le to do the a n a l y t i c a l w o r k c o n n e c t e d w i t h such a l a rge n u m b e r . One of the ch ie f d i f f e r ences b e t w e e n the ser ies of e x p e r i m e n t s u n d e r c o n s i d e r a t i o n an d those p rev i - ous ly m a d e has b e e n in th is pa r t i cu l a r . W e h a v e exper i - m e n t e d w i th a m u c h g r e a t e r n u m b e r of s u b j e c t s an d for a m u c h l o n g e r pe r iod of t i m e t h a n a n y of t h e s imi l a r exper i - m e n t s t h a t h a v e h e r e t o f o r e been c o n d u c t e d . W e h a v e thus , to th is ex t en t , e l i m i n a t e d m o r e c o m p l e t e l y the e r ro r s d u e to i m p e r f e c t obse rva t i on , i m p e r f e c t con t ro l an d i d io sync ra sy .

T h e i n s t a l l a t i o n of t he k i t c h e n was in one of the r o o m s of the b a s e m e n t of the B u r e a u of C h e m i s t r y , w h i c h up to th i s t im e has been u sed as a s to re - room. T h e co o k in g was clone on two gas s toves and u n d e r the s u p e r v i s i o n of a cook cer t i f ied by the Civil Serv ice . T h e a r r a n g e m e n t of t h e k i t c h e n is s h o w n in the p r o j e c t i o n w h i c h I n o w t h r o w u p o n the screen.

T h e d i n i n g - r o o m was one of the r o o m s se t a p a r t for the R o a d Mate r i a l L a b o r a t o r y which , h o w e v e r , cou ld be used for the d i n i n g - r o o m w i t h o u t i n t e r f e r i n g m a t e r i a l l y w i t h the work ca r r i ed on the re , w h i c h was done ch ief ly a t desks a r o u n d the sides. A n i l l u s t r a t i on of the d i n i n g - r o o m is

Mar. 19o4. ] Effect o f Preservatives on Healt/t, etc. I6 9

shown in the projections which are now thrown upon the screen.

The food of each member of the table under observation was weighed or measured ; the liquids, such as coffee, milk, tea and water, being measured and calculated to weight from the dens i ty of solut ions ; the solid foods being weighed upon a torsion balance sensit ive to a half a gram. The process of we igh ing is shown in the i l lustrat ion which is now projected on the screen.

A sample of the food furn ished at each meal was taken for analysis, immedia te ly placed in a bottle, s toppered and sealed with paraffin so tha t no mois ture could escape in the necessary interval of t ime before weigh ing and snbsampl ing of the sample could be accomplished. Foods which could be used in bulk, such as prepared cereals, etc., were sampled for each lot, thus reducing to some extent the labor of analyt ical work. The analyt ical work connected with the exper iments was conducted in the food laboratory, and i l lustrat ions showing the general character of the work as conducted are now projected upon the screen.

Not only did the analyt ical work include samples of all the foods used for each meal, bu t also samples of the urine and feces, which were careful ly collected and weighed for each of the members of the table and subjected to analysis. In short, an account was opened with each member of the table, exactly similar in character to a bank account. Each mem- ber was charged with all tha t was given him in food and credited with all which was re turned in the excretions. The balance represented the food consumed in the product ion of hea t and energy within the system provided the bodily weight remained constant . Thus an exact and accurate control was kept of each individual which would have made it impossible for him to have violated the rules by tak ing nour ishment in addi t ion to tha t given him, because all such addit ional nour i shment would have at once been detected by a d is turbance of the balance sheet. Each member of the observation table was weighed careful ly on a delicate bal- ance each day before dinner, since the de termina t ion of the weight of the body and its var ia t ions under the exper iment

170 Wiley : [J. v. 1,

are two of the most impor tan t of the data to be obtained. Each member of the table was furn ished with blanks, copies of which are projected upon the screen, with which to keep an account of the foods received, the meals at which they were eaten, to enter a reeord of his weight , of the tempera- ture before and af ter eating, of the pulse, a record of the beat ings of the heart , and all o ther data connected with the income and outgo of the food. One of these blanks was filled up for each meal and the daily blank filed. From these blanks a s t a t emen t of the foods consumed was made for the same period of observation.

In the beg inn ing of each experimental period there was first de te rmined how much of the food would be necessary to secure as nearly as possible an even weight of the body. This part of the exper iment was called the "fore-period," and lasted, af ter the manner of Daniel, for about ten days. At the end of this t ime the daily rat ion for each member of the table had been de te rmined and this was establ ished as the s tandard of the rat ion which we should have dur ing the remain ing portion of the exper imenta l period.

The " m i d d l e period " represented tha t portion of the t ime dur ing which each member of the table ate the rat ions pre- viously determined, toge ther wi th the added preservative, borax or boracic acid. This period extended general ly from ten to fifteen days.

This was followed by the "af ter-period," dur ing which the same rat ion as first de te rmined continued, but the pre- servative was wi thdrawn, the object being to restore the body to its normal condit ion in case it had been dis turbed by the use of the preservatives. The after-period, as a rule was ten days in length. Thus the whole period under obser- vat ion varied in each class from 30 to 40 days.

An i l lus t ra t ion of the quan t i t y of food eaten by a class under observation for one of the periods is shown in the photograph which is now projected upon the screen. The var iat ions in bodily weight dur ing a period of observation are most convenient ly represented graphically. Such a representa t ion covering one of the periods of observation is thrown upon the screen. I t bears the graphic lines show-

Mar., i9o4. ] Effect of Preservatives on Health, e/c. 171

ing the var iat ions in the weight of each member of the class for a full period, inc luding fore, middle, and after periods. I t also shows a combinat ion of these var ia t ions in a graphic line based upon the average weight of the members of the class at the t ime of en ter ing upon a period of observation, with the var ia t ions of the average weight by combining into one the individual var ia t ions in weight for each day. T h u s there is pract ical ly e l iminated from this graphic line the accidental variat ions due to idiosyncrasy and error of observation, and the general effect produced in the different parts of a period are shown by the var iat ions in this base line. A balance sheet showing the amoun t of food charged to each individual dur ing a period of observation, toge ther with the amoun t with which he is credited, showing the de- ficiencies or excess, is also thrown upon the screen. (During these projections the par t icular facts represented by each table and graphic chart were pointed out, without , however, d rawing any conclusions of a general nature re la t ing to the whole experiment.)

The above are i l lustrat ions of the character of the work which has been accomplished in the s tudy of the effect of preservatives, coloring matters , etc., in so far as the experi- ments have now extended. W h e n you consider the great amoun t of t ime required for each chemical operation, the vast total number of weighings of the food for the control of the work, the equal ly great ma thema t i ca l labor of tabulat- ing, computing, averaging, and s tudy ing the data for a period covering seven months , you can have some realizat ion of the magn i tude of the work which has been under taken and that part of it which has already been accomplished. The table itself, with its steward, cook, waiter, members, and direction, required the cont inued services of e ighteen per- sons, who had to work wi thout in termiss ion twetve hours a day, hol idays and Sundays included, for the whole period. In the chemical work e ight chemis ts with qui te a number of aids were employed dur ing the whole time. The tabula- t ion work, which is not yet completed, has employed five or six expert computers for a period of two or three months and much is yet to be done. The actual cost of the food

~72 II'ik_v: [J. F. I.,

consumed dur ing the seven months has var ied bu t l i t t le from $i2 per mon th for each individual . W h e n it is con- sidered tha t we could not use the scraps and pieces, as is done in o rd inary domest ic ki tchens, but tha t we had to select the homogeneous par ts of the food, this is not an extrav- agan t figure.

C~NCLUSIONS D R A W N FROM EXPERIMENTS WITI t BORAX IN

REGAI,~D 1"() ITS EFFECT UPON I i E A L T H ANI) DIGESTION,

I shall not unde r t ake to give here a r~sum~ of the litera- ture re la t ing to expe r imen t s conduc ted with borax and boric acid, but will con ten t myself by c i t ing the conclusions drawn from some of the more i m por t an t observa t ions which have been made.

I will begin with the conclusions of Ch i t t enden and Gies, publ ished in the Americatz fourlzal of Physiology, volume l, i898. T h e exper imen t s were conduc ted upon full-grown dogs, r ang ing in weight f rom 17 to 25 pounds. For the details of the exper iment , the or iginal paper is cited. T h e au thors draw the fol lowing conclus ions :

Moderate doses of borax up to 5 g rams per day, even when cont inued for some time, are without influence upon proteid metabolism. Nei ther do they exert any specific influence upon the general nutr i t ional changes of the body. Under no circumstances, so far as we have been able to ascertain, does borax tend to increase body-weight or to protect the proteid mat ter of the tissues.

Large doses of borax, 5--m gram~ daily, have a direct s t imula t ing effect upon proteid metabolism, as claimed by Gruber ; such doses, especially if con- tinued, lead to an increased excretion of ni t rogen th rough the urine, also of sulphur ic acid and phdsphoric acid.

Boric acid, on the other hand, in doses u p t o 3 g r a m s p e r day, is practically without influence upon proteid metabol ism and upon the general nutr i t ion ot the body.

Borax, when taken in large doses, tends to retard somewhat the assimila- t ion of proteid and fatty foods, increasing noticeably the weight of tile feces and their contents of ni t rogen and fat. Wi th very large doses, there is a tendency toward d iar rhma and an increased excretion of mucus. Boric acid, on the contrary, in doses up to 3 grams per day, is wholly without influence in these directions.

Borax causes a decrease in the volume of the urine, changes the reaction of the fluid to alkaline, and raises the specific gravity, owing to the rapid el iminat ion of the borax t h rough this channel . Under no c i rcumstances have we observed any diuretic action with ei ther borax or boric acid. The latter agent has little effect on the volume of the urine.

Mar., I9o4. ] l~ffect o f Preservatives on ttea/t/t, etc. I73

Both borax and boric acid are quickly eliminated from the body through the urine, twenty-four to thirty-six hours being generally sufficient for their complete removal. Rarely are they found in the feces.

Nei ther borax nor boric acid have any influence upon the putrefactive pro- cesses of the intestines as measured by the amount of combined sulphuric acid in the urine, or by Jaffe's indoxyl test. Exceedingly large doses of borax are inactive in this direction, not because the salt is without action upon micro- organisms, but because of its rapid absorption from the intestinal tract.

Borax or boric acid, when given in quantities equal to i '5-2'o per cent. of the daily food are liable to produce nausea and vomiting.

Owing to the rapid elimination of both borax and boric acid, no marked cumulative action can result from their daily ingestion in moderate quantities.

At no time in these experiments was there any indication of abnormality in the urine ; albumin and sugar were never present.

The next s tudy to which I call your par t icular a t tent ion was made by Dr. Oscar Liebreich, professor in the Univers- ity of Berlin. The results of the exper iments were published as a bul let in in I899. Dr. Liebreich made an exhaust ive s tudy of the l i te ra ture on the subject up to the t ime of the conduct of his experiments. These exper iments were made upon dogs, rabbits and guinea pigs. In general, the con- clusions drawn from the s tudy of the l i tera ture and experi- ments of other authors, and from his own with animals, as set forth by Liebreich, are favorable to the use of borax in small quant i t ies in food products. He summarizes the whole of the ma t t e r in the following language :

Now, though severest criticism of medical observations, and experience won from experimental research, justify the conclnsion that borax and boric acid are innocuous as preservatives of food, this assertion of course can only be valid within certain limits, a restriction which, however, applies to all victuals and drugs ; for we know that medicines, admixturesof food, and even aliments, when taken injudiciously or in excess, cease to be wholesome and suddenly become injurious substances. And, moreover, if harm could be done by borax and boric acid used in the preservation of food, the immense quanti- ties ~hich have already been swallowed woukt have aroused the attention of medical meu, particularly as boracic preservation is openly practised (as nlav be seen by the butchers ' trade journals) and has been uureluctautly accepted by the working classes.

For the preservation of meat, boric acid is used in quantities of ~5 to !6 per cent. ; of this a great part is lost in watering the meat, particularly in the smoking process, for instance, so that we may estimate ~ per cent. as the maximum amount which reaches the system. Experience has proved that I2 decigrams (i"2 grams) of boric acid or borax, if "aken in food daily, even for a considerable time, does not affect health injuriously. Even quantities

~74 lVi/cy . [j. F. 1.,

twice as large have not been proved injurious, scientific investigation having decisively demonstrated that these doses are far below the limit where dele- terious action commences.

Whoever studies the numerous experiments of different investigators with care will end in taking the view of certain authors, a view which has been mentioned above in this discussion, viz., that borax and boric acid, far from being injurious to the human system, are really wholesome substances. But a far greater number of observations will be required before this can be con- el usively p roved

Elaborate exper iments with borax upon men were con- ducted by the Imperial Board of Hea l th of Germany, under the supervision of Dr. E. Ros t and others, and the results publ ished as Official Documents from the Hea l th Office, Volume xix, Section I, in i9o2. An elaborate review of the l i terature, wi th eritical comments thereon, is found in this publication. Two men were selected for the experiment, for the details of which the original publicat ion is cited. I)r. Rost 's conclusions are d is t inct ly unfavorable to the use of borax as a preservat ive medium. He discovered local effects in the reddening, inf lammat ion and ulcerat ion of the s tomach and the immedia te ly ad jacent port ions of the digest ive canal. He also discovered the production of diarrhoea when doses of borax were not too small. Both with dogs and in the case of five grown men he found tha t the adminis t ra t ion of borax or boric acid to the extent of 3 grams per day produces a d iminut ion in the bodily weight . He found tha t the complete separation of boric acid from the body was eff~cted very slowly, and tha t for many days, and with persons suffering from kidney trouble for many weeks, traces of the borax in the sys tem were dis t inct ly detected.

An in teres t ing paper on " T h e Influence of Boric Acid and Borax upon the General Metabolism of Children," wri t ten by Professor Tunnicliffe, of London, and Dr. Rosen- heim, was publ ished in the aro*trJzal o f Hygiene, I9oi , where full details of the exper iments can be found. The authors draw the following conclusions from their work :

l~oric Acid.--(1) Small doses, up to I gram per diem, continued for some time, exert in heal thy or delicate children no influence upon proteid metabol- ism. The assimilation of the proteid food was improved in one healthy child.

Mar., i9o4. ] E~:ct o f Preservatives o:t Hca#/z, e/c. I7~

(2) The phosphorus metabol ism was unaffected in all cases. The assimilation of phosphorus was in all cases improved. (3) The assimilation of fat was not affected. (4) The b3dy weight increased in all cases. (5) The quant i ty of feces was not affected. Their ni t rogen and phosphorus percentage was sl ightly decreased. (6~ No inhib i tory effect upon intest inal putrefaction couht be demonstrated.

t¢ora.v.--(I) Continued doses of 1" 5 grams have no influence in heal by or delicate chi ldren upon proteid metabolism. The proteid assimilation was unaffected in hea l thy childreu, s l ightly depressed in the delicate child. (2 The phosphorus metabolism was not affected in heal thy or delicate chi ldren. The assimilation of phosphorus was improved in all cases, the anlount being least marked in the case of the delicate child. (3) The fat assimilation was improved in the case of the others. (4) The body weight was increased in all cases; the increase was most marked in the ease of the delicate child. (5! The weight of dry feces and thei r ni t rogen and phosphorus percentage remain unaltered. (6) Borax tended ra ther to increase intest inal putrefaction.

/doric Acid and/¢orax.--Both boric acid and borax were quickly elimL 1rated, no cumulat ive action being therefore probable. (2) Nei ther boric acid nor borax in any way affected the general heal th and well-being of the children.

P r o f . V i c t o r C. V a u g h a n a n d M r . W i l l i a m H . V e e n b o e r ,

o f t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f M i c h i g a n , h a v e c o n d u c t e d i n t e r e s t i n g

e x p e r i m e n t s w i t h b o r a x a s a n a n t i s e p t i c , a n d r e v i e w e d a l s o

t h e w o r k o f o t h e r i n v e s t i g a t o r s o n t h e s u b j e c t , t h e r e s u l t s

o f t h e i r i n v e s t i g a t i o n s b e i n g p u b l i s h e d i n Amcrfi:a:z 3fe, h~zlz~ of March i5, t9o2. From the results of their work they draw the following conclusions:

( I ) The use of borax or boric acid as a preservative in but te r and cream in the quant i t ies specified in the recommendat ions of the Engl ish Commission is justified bo th by practical results and by scientific experimentat ion.

(2) The dust ing of the surfaces of hams and bacon which are to be trans- ported long distances, with borax or boric acid, not exceeding I 5 per cent. of the weight of the meat, is effective and not object ionable from a sanitary standpoint .

13) Meat thus dusted with borax or boric acid does not become slimy be- cause the preservative thus used prevents the growth of aerobic, peptonizing microorganisms.

Dr. Liebreich published a second bulletin in I9O2, detail- ing additional experiments with men and animals and deal- ing particularly with the report of the Imperial Board of Health of Germany before mentioned. This second publi- cation of Dr. Liebreich sought to establish, by experimental data and otherwise, the conclusions given in his first

176 Wiley ." [J. F. I.,

publication and contained in addit ion thereto an exhaust ive crit ique of the report of the Imper ia l Board of Hea l th .

T h i s bul let in of Dr. L iebre ich was a n s w e r e d in an ex- h a u s t i v e brochure ent i t led " Boric Ac id as a Preservat ive ," and printed as an official d o c u m e n t of the Imperia l Chan- cel lor in I9O3, in w h i c h Dr. R o s t s u m m a r i z e s the resul ts of the critical s tudy of Dr. Liebreich's i n v e s t i g a t i o n s and g i v e s a r e s t a t e m e n t of the c o n c l u s i o n s es tabl i shed by his o w n work in the following l anguage :

Boric acid is a preserva t ive of small d i s infec t ing p o w e r and can pro tec t food f rom decompos i t ion only by the use o f p ropor t iona l ly la rge quant i t ies . I t is decep t ive in its charac te r in tha t it at once bo th increases t he we i gh t of t he wares offered for sale and also makes it possible for t he flesh wi th wh ich it is m i x e d to hold a la rger quan t i ty of water t h a n is possible w h e n the flesh is p ick led wi th sal t or smoked. E v e n a stil l l a rger addi t ion of th is preserva- tive does not be t ray i tself to t he person consuming it, e i ther t h r o u g h the taste or t h r o u g h the odor. I t has a d i rect in jur ious effect in t ha t oll the one h a n d it p roduces a lower ass imi la t ion of mea t foods by the h u m a n body, and on the o the r h a n d it so inf luences the nut r i t ion of man as to p roduce a d iminu t ion in bodi ly weight . I n th i s connec t ion it should also be no ted tha t t h e comple te separa t ion of bor ic acid f rom tile h u m a n body requi res a very long per iod. W h a t has been said of Loric acid is essent ia l ly t rue also of borax.

Dr. Charles F. Dight, of Minneapolis, has publ ished a pamphle t ent i t led " A S tudy of the Effect of Borax and Boric Acid on the H u m a n Body," dated I9o2, in which he reviews the work of previous invest igators and details his own exper iments conducted with pigs. For the details of the work the pamphle t cited can be consulted. As a result of his work he reaches the following conclusions :

Now, the decisive tes t of a n y t h i n g is in the tr ial of it. The test of borax and boric acid, as m a d e by various feeding aud o the r expe r imen t s fol lowed up by a f te r -dea th examina t ion , and these s u p p l e m e n t e d by the the rapeu t ic use of borax and boric acid, give answer wi th t he ful lest ce r ta in ty as to the i r effect in modera te amoun t s upon the an imal body, and jus t i fy the fo l lowing conclusions:

(l~ Tha t borax exe r t s no specific ac t ion upon the an imal body. (2) That any effect it exer t s is because of and by vi r tue of i ts mi ld

a lkal in i ty . (3) Tha t t h e sum total of its effects upon diges t ion is not ha rmfu l . (4) Tha t it exe r t s no ill effect upon the ing red ien t s of t h e blood. (5) Tha t it does not act as an i r r i t an t to the t issues genera l ly or locally,

nor cause pa thologica l conges t ions .

Mar., 19o4.1 E~'ect o f PreserzmliT,es on Health, etc. 177

(6) That by its use nutrition is not impaired. (7) That it does not increase proteid metabolism. (8) That it is not cumulative within the body. (9) That borax in moderate amount, 2 grams or more daily, exerts 11o ill

effects upon the adult body. (IO) That in proportion of o'5 per cent. it preserves fresh sweet meat from

putrefaction for long periods of time, exteuding into months; while smaller quantities, even to o'r per cent. or less, have been shown in practieal useflo preserve for periods of less duration.

(11) That putrefaction onee begun is not arrested by it nor its further progress eheeked.

(12) That it is not a deodorant, removing from or concealing in putrefying meats, the offensive odor.

(13) That all of this is true of boric acid also, except that any effect it exerts is by virtue of its mild acidity.

/I4) That boric acid may be taken in larger quantities than borax without harm.

(15) That borax and boric acid, like anything naturally good, may be- come harmful When taken in excess.

T h e a b o v e c i t a t i o n s wi l l b e s u f f i c i e n t to s h o w t h e d i s - c r e p a n c y w h i c h e x i s t s a m o n g t h e r e s u l t s o b t a i n e d in ex-

p e r i m e n t a l w o r k w i t h t h i s m o s t i n t e r e s t i n g b o d y . T h e e x t e n d e d u s e of b o r a x a n d b o r i c a c i d in f o o d p r o d u c t s ,

e s p e c i a l l y in m e a t s , m i l k , a n d b u t t e r , m a k e s t h e m p e r h a p s

of g r e a t e r i m p o r t a n c e f r o m a h y g i e n i c a n d l e g a l p o i n t of

v i e w t h a n a n y of t h e o t h e r p r e s e r v a t i v e s in c o m m o n use . T h e g r e a t d i f f i c u l t y of c o n t r o l l i n g e x p e r i m e n t s of t h e k i n d

w h i c h h a v e b e e n d e t a i l e d , t h e i d i o s y n c r a s i e s of t h e i n d i -

v i d u a l on w h o m t h e y h a v e b e e n t r i e d , a n d t h e d i f f e r e n c e

b e t w e e n t h e a c t i o n o f t h i s p r e s e r v a t i v e on t h e h u m a n

d i g e s t i o n a n d t h a t of t h e l o w e r a n i m a l s , is s u f f i c i e n t to ac- c o u n t for t h e g r e a t e r p : t r t o f t h e d i s c r e p a n c i e s w h i c h h a v e

b e e n m e n t i o n e d . J u s t to w h a t e x t e n t t h e d a t a w h i c h w e h a v e o b t a i n e d in o u r o w n w o r k w i l l c o r r o b o r a t e t h e v i e w s

of o n e of t h e o t h e r s c h o o l s o f e x p e r t s r e m a i n s to b e s e e n .

I m a y c lo se , h o w e v e r , w i t h a f e w g e n e r a l s t a t e m e n t s , n o t

c o n c l u s i o n s d e r i v e d f r o m m y w o r k b u t b a s e d u p o n a c a r e f u l

s t u d y of t h e w o r k of o t h e r s .

F o o d s c a n b e p r e s e r v e d f o r a r e a s o n a b l e l e n g t h of t i m e in m o s t c i r c t l m s t a n c e s w i t h o u t r e s o r t i n g to a n y c h e m i c a l

p r e s e r v a t i v e of a n y k i n d . S i m p l e s t e r l i z a t i o n , w h i c h c a n b e a p p l i e d t o m o s t f o o d s , is t h e m o s t e f f e c t i v e a n d t h e l e a s t

VOL. CLVII. NO. 939" I2

17 8 HYilcy. [J. F. l.,

object ionable of all forms of food preservation. There may be occasions of emergency or exigency in which the use of a chemical preservative is rendered imperat ive. The short period over which such an emergency would extend would not seriously endanger the hea l th of the consumer were he to eat food for a brief period conta in ing any one of the principal preservatives in common use.

I t may be, further, a wise policy not to inaugura te abso- lute prohibi t ion agains t all preservatives, bu t it cer ta inly is t rue tha t wherever for any reason a preservat ive mus t be used the package of food conta in ing it should be clearly marked so tha t the purchaser and the consumer may be fully informed regard ing the mat ter .

Preservat ives which even in small quant i t ies when taken over a long period of t ime produce deleterious results should not be used in any case where it can be possibly avoided, and they should be permi t ted only in those cases of exigency and emergency where food cannot be properly preserved by any other means.

Nat ional and State legislat ion should be b rough t into ha rmony in mat ters re la t ing to preservatives and colors so tha t laws may be uniform, based on sound hygienic and business principles, free of any tendency to prosecute or annoy, and supported by an en l ightened public opinion, both on the part of the producers and consumers of food.

I have thus endeavored to set before you the general principles and some of the details of operat ion of the experi- ments conducted, and will close by saying tha t the complete detai led work of the first series of experiments, it is hoped, will soon be ready for publication. Then the second series of exper imental work will be begun, following the same general method as tha t which has been outl ined. I believe tha t you will agree wi th me that it is only by such an exact, painstaking, and long-continued labor as tha t which has been out l ined tha t we can reach any safe and las t ing conclu- sions in regard to the par t icular effects of preservatives, coloring mat ters , and other substances added to food, upon heal th and digestion.