Collected Papers of Wallace Hume Carothers on High Polymeric Substances (Mark, H.; Whitby, G. S.; eds.)

Abstract

The purpose of this book is to "offer its readers a thoroughly adequate and up-to-date view of the essentials of nutrition." The book is written for the reader who has had no previous training in science. Anyone who has endeavored to interpret biochemical research for lay audiences will appreciate the admirable manner in which the authors have handled this difficult task. Chemical formulas and complex chemical definitions and explanations are conspicuous by their absence. The book, which evidently is designed for the freshman college student, contains 21 chapters covering most of the usual topics of interest to students of nutrition. These are treated, however, from the viewpoint of practical application. A few representative chapters are as follows: I. The Nutritional Improvement of Life; V. How to Meet the Energy Need and Have the Body Weight You Want; VI. How to Meet the Need for Protein; XI. Food Costs and Food Values; XXI, How to Make Nutritional Knowledge More Effective, etc. Each chapter is followed by thought-provoking "exercises" and "suggested readings ." In the opinion of the reviewer, most of the latter cannot be read to advantage by the type of reader for which the book is intended. Other chapters deal with the essential facts of digestion , food composition, function of food ingredients, mineral elements , vitamins, etc. Naturally, discussions of metabolic changes are omitted. The appendix is divided into five parts giving, in greater detail, information to supplement the text. An adequate subject index comprises the last 15 pages. The reviewer feels that the discussion of statistical methods could be omitted without detracting from the use of the book. The style is simple and understandable and will appeal to those who have had no formal scientific training; the book should be in every high-school library. It is the hope of the reviewer, however , that college teachers will not be tempted to use this excellent book as an excuse for even less formal chemical training of college students who are contemplating a college course in nutrition .