APPENDICITIS.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 5148, 6 July 1927, Page 1

APPENDICITIS.

WHITENED FLOUR A CAUSE.

DOCTORS ON DIET

Doctors and scientists who during recent years have been investigating the properties and activities pi tne four, vitamins — A, B, C ( D~ Widen play such an important part in tne wellbeing of the human body that they have been described as the “governors. of health’' have made such progress that they will soon be in a position to announce important discaver ies (says a London paper), it has been etaablished that: Vitamin A is responsible for ;jn eye disease known as xerophthalmia. Vitamin C is responsible for scurvj.

Vitamin D is responsible for rickets.

With regard to Vitamin B great ef* for.ts are being made to discover the part it plays in the daily life of every human being.

It has already been discovered that its. absence in sufficient quantities from the human dietary is responsible for beri-beri (a tropical disease), intestinal troubles, including appendicitis and serious heart affections, and it is believed that the present general use of white flour, from which Vitamin B is. excluded, is largely responsible for the increasing numbei of abdominal and heart complaints with which the medical profession is called upon to deal.

A manifesto published in the London Daily Mail, signed by 13 famous surgeons apd physicians', emphasised the importance of Vitamin B, ami particularly the necessity for the use of wholemeal flour and wholemeal bread.

Professor R. H. A. Plimmer, D.Sc., said that too much could not be done to impress upon the public the absolute necessity for the use of wholemeal flour. He' continued : . “Whitened flour is not a good food. To bleach it such poisons as nitrogenperoxide and chlorine are used, and although I doubt very much if there, is sufficient of either of these left in the flour to do any harm, medical officers are seriously concerned with regard to the cumulative effect. "We do not know exactly what Vitamin B is, but we do.know that if it is not present in sufficient quantities in food it leads to all sorts of intestinal troubles. One has only to look around and see the great increases, in recent years of abdominal cases, particularly appendicitis, due, I think, to the general use of whitened flour.

“It mijy be that lack of sufficient Vitamin B is also one of the causes of cancer —that we do not know. What we de, know is that people are eating too much white bread and too many sweets and. not getting enough Vitamin B. It, is a sweet-eating age—and there is no Vitamin B jn sweets. Chocolate eating by women may be doing more harm to their health than the use of cosmetics and the drinking of cocktails.

“It is certain that if people would only eat wholemeal flour and more dried peas and beans a'nd nuts the general health of the country would be vastly improved, We should also eat more potatoes, oatmeal, and whole barley.

“A point should be made of eating cereals such as whole- wheat for breakfast. There would be no need for anybody to stint themselves of what they like in '.the way of food if they, would, have wiholeine-al bread at every meal. Let th em see that their cakes and puddingjs are also made with wheatmeal flour and they will be astonished at the improvement in their health.

“The medical profession was watching with the greatest, possible interest the fiat of Mussolini prohibiting the us© of anything but wholemeal flour and wholemeal bread in Italy.”