DIETETICS FOR
NURSES

BY

FAIRFAX T. PROUDFIT

INSTRUCTOR AND CLINICAL DIETITIAN, MEMPHIS GENERAL
HOSPITAL, AND ST. JOSEPH’S HOSPITAL, CONSULTING
DIETITIAN, MEMPHIS ASSOCIATED CHARITIES, AND
PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING ASSOCIATION,
MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE

SECOND EDITION
Completely Revised

NEW YORK
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
1923

All rights reserved

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Copyright, 1918 and 1922,
By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.

———

Set up and electrotyped. Published November, 1918
Second Edition completely revised and reset
Published, July, 1922

Press of
J. J. Little & Ives Company
New York, U. S. A.

Dedicated
to the
Great Army of Nurses
in the Service

PREFACE TO SECOND REVISED EDITION

The old order of things is passing. The keynote of to-day’s work is prevention, rather than cure, children are taught to eat correctly that they may grow into the strong, healthy men and women which are needed to make any nation great. This instilling of good health habits must rest upon the nurse, the nutrition worker, the physician and the home-maker. Close coöperation is necessary among these workers and a definite understanding of the way to accomplish the best results, in this respect, must come from the training of those who are undertaking this all important work.

The present revision of this text is the outgrowth of several years of close attention to the progress, changes and adjustments which are being made daily in this important subject of nutrition. The changes made in this revised edition are all in the line of constructive teaching. The material has been reorganized that no time may be lost in a search for the proper word to illustrate a definite point. The method of project teaching used in this edition, is not a new one, although the name may possibly be unfamiliar to some. Every good teacher recognizes the value of motivation as a means of getting an idea “across.” The revision of this text was undertaken with the idea of leading the student to think for herself and to put into practice the scientific facts learned in class room and ward.

The author is indebted to many of her colleagues for the encouragement and constructive criticism which enabled her to make the changes which will, it is hoped and believed, materially aid the student nurse in the study of Dietetics. She also wishes to express her appreciation for the many helpful suggestions made by her co-workers in this respect, especially to Misses L. H. Gillett and L. Willson for valuable criticism and to Miss H. Buquo for assistance in the preparation of the manuscript.

F. T. P.

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION

No other science has so much to do with the general welfare of mankind as the study of food and its effects in the human body. When we use the term “dietetics” as representing “the effect of the food in the human body,” we do so in a very broad sense, for the subject is a big one, requiring comprehensive terms to express it.

The problems of nutrition are many. Food alone is no small subject and a still greater one is the utilization of food materials in such a way that the body may gain the greatest value with the least expenditure of vital forces. These problems are discussed in this text and the methods of overcoming them are given in the simplest possible language. For this purpose the subject of nutrition has been divided into groups: (1) a comprehensive study of the sources of food, its composition and nutritive value; (2) the effect of food in the body under normal conditions, as in health; and (3) its behavior and effect when conditions in the body become abnormal, as in disease. In this way much of the non-essential material is eliminated from the course of study and only that included which it is necessary for the nurse to understand and which she will constantly use both in the hospital and later on in the practice of her profession. The simple methods of study presented in this text are given with the idea of avoiding confusion in the mind of the average pupil nurse by fitting in the course with her other studies rather than by making it stand out as a separate subject. In this way she will be able to see at a glance the connection between the body processes and the materials which are used to carry them on. Thus her study of physiology, anatomy and bacteriology go hand in hand with that of dietetics, each bearing a distinct relationship to the others.

CONTENTS