Alcohol: A Dangerous and Unnecessary Medicine, How and Why: What Medical Writers SayAllen, Martha Meir
Science
Alcohol: A Dangerous and Unnecessary Medicine, How and Why: What Medical Writers Say
Allen, Martha Meir
Alcohol -- Physiological effect; Temperance
"Liquid Peptonoids 23.03 alcohol; maximum amount recommended
will yield less than one ounce of nutriment per day, and the
equivalent of 3.50 oz. of whisky. Hemapeptone 10.60 alcohol;
Hemaboloids 15.81 alcohol; the maximum dose recommended yields
about 1/4 oz. of nutriment, and the equivalent of about 1-1/2
oz. of whisky daily. Tonic Beef 15.58 alcohol; doses recommended
yield about 1/2 oz. nutriment daily, and the equivalent of one
ounce of whiskey. Mulford's Predigested Beef 19.72 alcohol;
doses recommended yield about 1-1/4 oz. nutriment daily, and the
alcoholic equivalent of about 6 oz. of whisky. There were
"Foods" for the sick examined which were non-alcoholic, but
their nutritive value was about nothing in comparison to their
cost."
The Committee on Pharmacy of the American Medical Association reports on
the following foods thus:--
Carpanutrine 17.3 alcohol; Liquid Peptones (Lilly & Co.) 22.0;
Nutrient Wine of Beef Peptone (Armour) 21.5; Nutritive Liquid
Peptone 23.0; Panopepton 18.5; Peptonic Elixir 18.8; Tonic Beef
16.1. The report on these says: "There are no fatty substances
present in these products; their food value from this point of
view is, therefore, _nil_."
A prominent physician of Philadelphia said of these "Foods" in the
Journal of the A. M. A.:--
"I have long been convinced that many a patient has suffered
severely when preparations such as these were being used, and
that not a few of them have died, chiefly of starvation. * * * A
very important disadvantage of these foods is their alcoholic
content. Even in the small doses customarily used, the quantity
of alcohol is often irritating to the stomach, and may be
disadvantageous in other ways."
The Committee on Pharmacy also reported on cod-liver oil preparations.
They said: "A preparation claiming to represent cod-liver oil which does
not contain oil in some form is fraudulent. Waterbury's Metabolized
Cod-Liver Oil and Hagee's Cordial of Cod-Liver Oil are cited as
examples. It is claimed by the manufacturers that the latter represents
33 per cent. of pure Norwegian cod-liver oil, but in neither of these
preparations did the tests made by the committee show any oil. Analysis
revealed sugar, alcohol, and glycerine, none of which is contained in
cod-liver oil."
Vinol is advertised as Wine of Cod-Liver Oil, but is admittedly without
oil, and according to analysis contains 18.8 per cent. alcohol.
Wampole's Tasteless Preparation of Cod-Liver Oil showed 20.05 per cent.
of alcohol.
Cod-Liver Oil is considerably out of date now as a prescribed remedy
because physicians have found that it impairs appetite. Cream and fresh
butter and olive oil are advised instead.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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