VALUE OF MILK

Southland Times, Issue 23182, 24 April 1937, Page 3

VALUE OF MILK

CHILDREN BENEFIT REPORTS OF MEDICAL OFFICERS There is not one food which fulfils all of the requirements of scientific nutrition, states a bulletin of the Department of Health. There is, in fact, only one food which even approaches perfection. If, therefore, you wish to enjoy a well-balanced diet, which will maintain health and a favourable resistance to disease you must obtain this most nearly perfect food, together with certain other foodstuffs, the combination of which complies with all the specifications for a correct diet. Before revealing the secret of the one most nearly perfect food, consider for a moment what such a food must do for you. It must contain protein to build your tissues and give bodily strength, it must have carbohydrates to furnish energy, it must possess minerals to form strong bones and teeth, and, finally, it must be liberally supplied with vitamins. These invisible _ chemical substances known as vitamins are of great importance to growth and the production and preservation of good health. The one food which comes nearest to having every one of these necessary elements is milk. Throughout the ages it has been observed that those races which have been the most vigorous and long-lived have subsisted largely on a diet composed of dairy products. Milk contains fat, protein and sugar, the fat rich in the growth and strength-pro-moting vitamins, the sugar and also the fat yielding the energy producing carbohydrate. Milk is likewise rich in such minerals as calcium and phosphorus which are essential to the proper formation of bones. If a mother has plenty of good milk in her diet before her baby comes that child will usually have good teeth. If the child receives plenty of pure milk during infancy its chances for growth and development are of the best. Vallie to Children Proved There is a wealth of testimony to the value of milk to the growing child, not merely in cases of sub-normal nutrition, but also for normal children whose diet would ordinarily be regarded as satisfactory, states the Chief Medical Officer of the Board of Education, England, in his latest report on the health of the school child. To quote from a few reports only: “I am sure the children have greatly benefited by having milk at school,” states Dr Corbett of Worcestershire. Dr Clark states: “The provision of milk in schools has resulted in an improvement in the health and mentality of the children taking it. It is one of the greatest steps ever taken for the improvement of the physique of children.” Dr Elizabeth Macleod informs us: “Teachers report that on the whole the school work has improved since children have received milk. Children granted free milk have improved very much in general condition and nutrition. Practically all show an approach to normal in carriage and gait and an obvious gain in mentality.” Another medical officer reports: “The benefit in some cases is very obvious and some teachers say that the children who fell asleep in class and who now receive free milk keep awake and are mentally brighter in every way.” Dr Hanson from Cornwall reports: “Although the amount of milk consumed per week is small it has an extremely beneficial effect upon the children. They are more alert mentally and physically. Milk meals are especially valuable in rural schools where children walk long distances.” These comments are typical of many others of medical officers and head teachers quoted in this report of Sir Arthur MacNalty. Such findings confirm the current opinion of the value of pure, fresh milk to the growing child. There is a real relation between milk and health and growth.