A man's appetite is not always a safe guide. Artificial surroundings in childhood make the normal appetite the exception rather than the rule. Few children are taught, by parents, teachers, or preachers, the importance of restricting the appetite. The seeds of intemperance sown by those who prepare food for the family table bring a larger harvest than does the work of all the devil's agencies in saloons and tobacco shops combined. Millions of dollars are worse than wasted by the conversion of food materials into strong drinks to satisfy appetites perverted by wrong habits of eating. Why are our schools and churches more interested in the maintenance of a worn-out, traditional educational system, and an abstract, impractical religion, than in some of these vital teachings? We look to legislation to cure degenerate appetites for which we are largely responsible through false education in home and school and church. Starving ones of earth are deprived of food when we convert it into strong drink; the process requires the time and strength of a great army of workers; and transportation facilities now used for carrying whisky, tobacco, and other body- and mind-destroying substances, might be used in transporting the foods we waste. It is estimated that we waste enough in our kitchens to feed ten million people. "Blessed art thou, O land, when ... thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!"
Dr. Osler has said that "pie north of the Mason and Dixon line, and hot bread south of it, have done more harm than alcohol." The best breads contain the whole grain; they are well baked, require considerable chewing, resist the pressure of the teeth, and save dental bills. Thorough mastication neutralizes an abnormal appetite.
Rich pastries, harmful condiments, tea and coffee,--narcotics recognized as extravagant, harmful, and useless beverages,--are being discarded for the sake of both health and economy. Remove the cream and the sugar from tea and coffee, and they have no food value.
Use the coffee mill to grind wheat, rye, and corn, that you may enjoy the vitamines, the mineral salts, and other elements often removed by the manufacturer.
Many people prominent in social circles are eliminating all lunches served between regular meals and eaten for merely social purposes. Such lunches impose a burden on the body and the purse. Wealthy and influential women are setting a good example by going to market in person, in order to make intelligent and economical purchases for their tables, and by carrying their supplies home, in order to save the added cost of the delivery system. People are beginning to realize that by such economical methods, they can serve their country, the world, and themselves.