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Show WHAT EAT and VMV Nutritious Values of the Explains How Our Most Satisfying Food Fruit Helps to Maintain Health at All Ages. By C. HOUSTON GOUDISS 6 East 39th Street, New York City. BEFORE the discovery of the vitamins and before we knew so much regarding the body's mineral requirements, interest in-terest in food was centered around proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Fruits which in general supply little protein and fat, and widely varying amounts of carbohydrates, received scant consideration as a source of essential nutrients. But with our steadily in- creasing knowledge of vitamins vita-mins and of the importance to the body of a long list of essential es-sential mineral elements, fruits have assumed a commanding com-manding place in nutrition. And those who follow the primary pri-mary rule of a well balanced diet and serve fruit twice daily have been reicarded with increased health and vigor. In addition to their minerals and vitamins, fruits are valued because be-cause of their bulk or cellulose which helps to insure regular regu-lar health habits. -- The Most Economical Fruit Many homemakers consider that fruits as a class are among the more expensive rw"w''!j items included in V the food budget. t 1 But that state" t "t SJV ment is far too genii gen-ii 1 eral and indicates I I a lack of inform a-I a-I " $ tion concerning the comparative nutri-kw nutri-kw tf? tive values of the F I different kinds of I I fruit- For example, rn ,iX ijj it has been said of the delicious and economical banana, that it gives more nutritive as well as money value than almost any other food. Fruits, in general, are frequently fre-quently divided into two classes; they are known as flavor fruits when they contain 80 per cent or more of water and as food fruits when the water content is less than 80 per cent. Bananas are a food fruit of the first order! Ripe bananas are rich in carbohydrates carbo-hydrates and furnish the body with splendid energy values, with a minimum tax on the digestive system. --Double --Double Fuel Value When fully ripened, this fruit provides quick energy because a certain amount of its sugars are almost immediately absorbed by the body. On the other hand, several sev-eral hours must elapse before the remaining sugars are completely assimilated. Thus, eating bananas provides a continuous supply of energy for a considerable period. They not only help to promote rapid recovery from fatigue but also furnish a continuing supply of energy which keeps one from becoming be-coming hungry again too soon after a meal. The edible portion of one average-sized banana weighs about 3Vi ounces and provides 100 calories. It takes almost the same weight of white potato to yield the same number of calories. -- Bananas a Protective Food Bananas take an important position posi-tion among the protective foods, because they are a good source of four vitamins, A, B, C and G, and contain a total of 11 minerals. They leave an alkaline-ash fol-l fol-l lowing digestion. Fully ripened bananas are easily easi-ly digested and are mildly laxative. laxa-tive. A Valuable in Child's Diet ocuianus uebeive a prominent place in the child's diet from infancy in-fancy to maturity. Some baby specialists prescribe mashed and strained ripe bananas as one of the first solid foods to be introduced intro-duced in the infant's diet. The ripe banana is considered to be especially valuable at the time when sugar is withdrawn from the formula and the baby is given whole milk for the first time. The calories in the bananas take the place of the calories previously received from the sugar, and thus weight gains are steadily maintained. main-tained. -- Help Children Gain Weight Because of their high caloric value, plus their content of minerals min-erals and vitamins, bananas may well be used regularly throughout childhood. Bananas and milk make an excellent ex-cellent food combination because the milk supplements the fruit with protein, fat, minerals and vitamins. This combination is often used as a supplementary lunch for underweight children, and carefully conducted studies have indicated its usefulness in helping youngsters to gain weight. Almost all children like the taste of bananas and they do not seem to tire of this bland and pleasing fruit. And though the banana is regarded as a solid food, it can, if desired, be mashed and whipped into liquid form and combined with milk to make a healthful and nourishing beverage. A Ideal for the Elderly If elderly individuals are to maintain top health, fruits should be given a prominent place in their diet. But many fruits are avoided by individuals past middle mid-dle age, either because their acid taste is displeasing or because they present difficulties in mastication. masti-cation. Ripe bananas, however, practically melt in the mouth. Being Be-ing easily digested, they are a fortunate choice for elderly persons, per-sons, providing necessary energy values with a minimum of digestive diges-tive effort. --Most --Most Versatile Fruit Bananas are always in season and are usually most inexpensive. It is desirable, of course, that only fully ripened bananas be eaten raw. That is because their constituents con-stituents vary with the degree of ripeness. Bananas are picked when they are green and hard, and the carbohydrate car-bohydrate content is almost entirely en-tirely starch. As they ripen, the starch is converted into easily digested di-gested sugars. In fully ripened bananas those in which brown flecks appear on the yellow skins the starch has almost entirely disappeared and the flavor has been developed to its highest point. The all-yellow banana is also ripe enough for eating and it is likewise firm enough for cooking. Partially ripe bananas those which are yellow with a green tip may be cooked and served as a vegetable or as dessert. Considering their availability, ease of digestion, high food value and economy, bananas deserve to be classed as one of the staple foods in every well planned dietary. B WNO-C. Houston Goudiss 1938 21. |