Katharine Hope Coward

QUANTITATIVE ESTIMATION OF VITAMINS A AND D IN VARIOUS FOOD SUBSTANCES COOKED AND FRESH

involvement was not extensive. A further and greater number developed enteritis, some (particularly the older cases) were suffering from this complaint prior to operation ; in all, six died from this disorder. Nine died within a few hours of the operation, apparently without ever recovering from it. Four collapsed and died two or three days after operation, apparently from collapse of the lung-they had been thriving well. Three slowly and steadily petered out, dying some ten to fourteen days after operation. Although they had ceased vomiting, they continued to lose weight, and steadily went downhill. without showing any response to remedial measures. It was noticed that a few cases, apparently good operative risks, behaved in this manner; though now obtaining and retaining their feeds, they seemed totally incapable of absorbing them. Others, apparently bad operative risks, immediately and continuously improved from the time of their operation. In this connexion it was noticed that breast-fed children behaved well, but as the vast majority of these had been ill for a shorter period, this is a fact which is perhaps not so significant as might appear at first glance. One died in tetany four days after operation. In another case the stitches burst, and the child died two days later. Two much stress cannot be laid on the importance of the following two factors. (1) Routine examination of the ears, particularly in cases of raised temperature, fretfulness, and disinclination for food-that is, cases not behaving according to plan. (2) Having a diet scheme and adhering to it: the stupid and malicious practice of eternally changing the diet at the slightest provocation causes both the infant and his attendants to become dizzy. The early mortality was high (24 per cent. in the first sixty), but no case was ever denied operation, and many were moribund when subjected to it. Now that the cases are seen and operated upon early, most people realize that it is a simple, safe, and certain means of restoring the child to normal in the most rapid manner. In intelligent minds it is no longer the last desperate resort in a well-nigh hopeless condition. Generally speaking, the mortality in private cases is negligible ; in hospital cases it is now about 5 per cent., and there is no reason why this should not be further reduced.

Cod liver oil in the winter feeding of milch cows

1. Further confirmation is presented in support of the relationship between the presence of vitamin A in the milk and its supply in the food. 2. The influence of the supply of the vitamin A in the food on the quantity or fat content of the milk is uncertain, in any case it appears to be much less than that produced by turning the cows out to grass. 3. The increase of the vitamin A-content of the milk produced by feeding cod liver oil is not accompanied by a rise in the lipochrome pigments as is the case when the cows are turned out to grass. 4. Up to 4 ounces per day of a good quality cod liver oil produced no fishy flavour in the milk or butter of one cow, but further experiments appear desirable. 5. Stall feeding even when ensilage was used causes the winter milk to be lower in vitamin-content than summer milk; this is mitigated by such restricted grass feeding as is possible in the south of England.