THE STOMACH'S PROBLEM.

North Otago Times, 3 December 1910, Page 4 (Supplement)

THE STOMACH'S PROBLEM.

—-f—,. One of the greatest questions disturbing the minds. of- physiologists both past and present is that of the stomach's digesting powers. It is I asked why the stomach does not digest itself. It is well known that I gastric juices have the' power to diI gest the tissue of which the stomach lis made. One of the things actually manufactured by the body, secreted i in the glands near the stomach and j poured into it, is hydrochloric acid, j a powerful agent that will eat up I almost anything; Why it does not 'eat the stomach up is problematical. It is known that a stomach from a dead animal or man can be. digested by a living man. It has been found also that when a man is killed accidentally and his stomach is in the process of digesting, if the body be kept warm, his whole stomach will he digested and possibly too adjacent organs, as liver, pancreas, I etc. From this it was argued that j~the "principle oi life" kept the process from going on in the living beI ing. However, this has been proved Iby Professor Laurence Hodges to be untrue,'

A living frog was put in an unconscious condition and his leg inserted through a small hole in a dog's, stomach, the dog being alive and well, It was found that the frog's leg was wholly digested in the protcess, although living. So the last. J reason conceivable was proved in- | capable of explaining the 'phenomen- ! on. About the only conclusion left is that the stomach does gradually actually eat itself up; but that it is being constantly rebuilt. However, as this experiment is hard to perform and.as no results have so far ; been announced In this direction, we , arc .left in a state'of absolute ignorj ance, and all we can-do is to be4e- ! voutly thankful to Providence that '■ our' stomachs dp not digest ■ them- ' selves except in the ordinary course of. human events: . . ; j