A manual of practical hygiene for students, physicians, and health officers / By Charles Harrington.
- Harrington, Charles, 1856-1908.
- Date:
- 1914
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: A manual of practical hygiene for students, physicians, and health officers / By Charles Harrington. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University Libraries/Information Services, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University.
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![If there were any truth in this common belief, we should expect naturally to find men of commanding intellect among those whose diet consists mainly of fish, but, as is well known, such people are of a low order of intelligence, though not by reason of their diet. In spite of the large amount of nutriment contained, fish has not the same satisfying properties that belong to meats, but it is an exceed- ingly valuable food, and in many parts of northern countries is the principal animal food. The flavor of fish is influenced greatly by the nature of the food supply and by the content of fat. Generally speak- ing, salt-water fish from deep water, where the current is strong, are better than those from shallow, warm, and quiet water, and both salt- water and fresh-water fish taken from rocky and sandy bottoms are prefeiTed to those from muddy bottoms. Condition is dependent upon a variety of circumstances. Some fish are regarded most highly during their spawning season (shad and smelts), while others are looked upon with disfavor at this period. Fish caught by the gills in gill nets die slowly, but decompose rapidly, and such are of inferior flavor and value. Fish taken from the water alive and killed at once remain firm and retain their flavor longer than those allowed to die slowly. Digestibility.—So far as is known, the digestibility of fish and meat is about equal, but, as is true of meats, different varieties of fish are differently digestible. Thus, those which contain the greatest per- centages of fat, as salmon, eels, and mackerel, are the most difficult of digestion. The processes of drying, smoking, salting, and pickling lessen digestibility, and fish so treated are, in consequence, less suited to the needs of invalids and dyspeptics. The mollusks are regarded generally as most digestible, while the crustaceans are believed to tax the digestive powers much more than any other animal food. Many persons are unable to digest them in any form, and others who sufi^er no inconvenience, so far as digestion is concerned, are obliged to prac- tise self-denial, because of idiosyncrasy, which manifests itself in dis- tressing eruptive disorders of the skin, dizziness, and other nervous .symptoms. Lobster and crabs are much alike, but the former is less likely to disagree. The claws of the lobster are more tender and deli- cate than the tail, which is firmer and much closer grained. Shrimps are rated generally as more difficult of digestion than lobsters and crabs, but with many they are borne more easily. The mollusks are more digestible in the raw state than when cooked. The comparatively tough part of the oyster, the adductor muscle, is very trying to some persons, and for such it is best removed and rejecter]. Keeping Qualities.—Fish flesh differs very greatly from meats in kfM^piiig qiialiiiiT. Wliile the latter are improved uj) to a certain point by hanging, fish should be eaten while fairly fresh, since decompf)sition .sets in vary qui(;kly. Home varieties, as halibut, cod, liad<lo(^k, and turbot, may be kcjjt a week or more when ])roi)erly cared fi)r, while others begin to deteriorate almost iiiimediately. So long as the flesh](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21219667_0041.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
