Page:The Road to Wellville (1926).djvu/42



E must now group the food materials in order to simplify the work of choosing each day’s food. As has been shown, the body needs certain materials every day and in definite amounts in order that all of its functions may be carried on smoothly and efficiently. These materials can be obtained only from the foods one eats, digests, and assimilates. Therefore it is imperative that food be selected so that these essentials will be provided in the right amounts and in the form that the individual can use.

Many factors, such as market facilities, season of the year, racial and religious customs, age, sex, and income, will determine the particular foods that can be chosen to furnish these materials. For that reason, the housewife needs a plan that is definite enough for her to follow and yet is flexible so as to allow these varying circumstances to operate.

Since most persons have a more or less fixed group of foods which they eat every day, it is important that these should be chosen with a view to furnishing a fairly large proportion of the essentials needed. The following plan for the day’s food assumes that certain staple articles will be used every day. With these as a basis, great latitude may be had in the selection of the other