Page:Food and cookery for the sick and convalescent.djvu/37

Rh In cases of impaired digestion, fifteen or twenty minutes is recommended for rest after each meal. Where a light breakfast is taken, a lunch should be indulged in in the middle of the forenoon. There are frequently found people of small stomach capacity who seem to require food at frequent intervals in small quantities; whereas if a meal is taken which would serve the needs of the average person, gastric disturbances follow.

Appetite has a marked effect on gastric digestion, and it is often necessary to stimulate the appetite. Attractive surroundings (plants, flowers, music, singing birds, etc.) are provided in institutions where money is not the first consideration. The sanitariums and hospitals in Germany are far in advance of ours in this respect. Good cooking plays a far more important part than surroundings, and it is the duty of the cook to stimulate the appetite by appealing to the sense of hearing, smell, sight, and taste.

While the stomach plays but a small part in digestion, the digestibility of foods is calculated by the length of time they remain in this organ. The average meal leaves the stomach in about four or five hours. The following table will be found of value in considering the ease or difficulty with which certain foods are digested.

Eggs, soft cooked (2) 1¾ hours

Oysters, raw (3) 1¾ "

Milk, one glass 2 "

Graham Crackers (square) 2 "

Rusks 2 "

Beef, raw (3½ oz.) 2 "

Eggs, raw (2) 2¼

Cauliflower 2¼ "

Bread, stale (2½ oz.) 2⅓ "

Potatoes, baked (2) 2 to 2½ "

Sweetbread 2 to 3 "