There was recently an_Sxeresting article in the "Journal of the Royal Statirtical Society" in which the author examines the numerous social surveys of Rowntree, Bowley, the Merseyside, Sheffield, and adjusts the diets in the B.M.A, Report and revises all the calculations to bring them into line with the Ministry of Health's Advisory Committee's pam~- phets on milk and with the standards laid down by the international experts in their Report on "The Physiological Bases of Nutvition." He then shows that in his view the cost in July, 1936, of the net minimum diet for children aged 1—6 years, was 3s. 10d.; and for children aged 6—14 years, 5s, 5d.; and that a nan, wife with a child of 4 and one of 10, would have to spend 21s. 9d. per week on food. This revised nutt nm standard is above those of previous surveys, and for the above-named fstnily "the revised estimate exceeds former stand ards by amounts varying from 6s, 2d. to 75 6d, weekly, and the excess of the revised standard increases with the humber of children." Tis urgent that we should acquire fuller official me formation about the living conditions of the masses and there will have to be material alteration in the comly accepted minimum dietary. The League scientific committee, consisting of men of world-wide reputation. of different nationalities, are unanimously agreed on the require-nuts for a healthy diet. Their report was circulated to learned societies in n.ost countries to fee whether owing to climate or other cause the should be any variation in principles laid down by hem, The standard has been accepted with but little change. It is most important that these national learned bodies should also be represented on the National Nutrition Councils for it would be unwise for these Councils to set out a separate basis of physio~ logical requirements.—Confusion would be inevitable if there were two standards in the same country. In Britain, the Minister of Health has wisely put Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins, Professor Mellanby, Sir John Orr, and Professor Cathcart on his Nutrition Council.
National Nutrition Councils ought to have the right of initiating investigations and of publishing their views, This does not mean that they should have executive powers, Far from it. But if a Government or Minister reserved the right of suppressing any inconvenient recommendation made by this council, or if the Council could only act if and when advice was sought, and further, if its members had not the power publish their views, the value of these bodies would inevitably be largely diminished, might even be nullified, We also accomplished one most useful task. Our delegates included Dr. Stiebeling, from Washington, and other experts who, in Scandinavia or Czechoslovakia or elsewhere, had made surveys. They sat round a sub-committee for Ahree days. At the end we were*able to produce an agreed basis for surveys of family budgets, dietaries, etc. which should enable Governments in future to have statistics and classifications arranged in similar groupings and under identical headings. Obviously data which are comparable are twice as /useful those which are compiled' on un-fated bases.
For Peace or War?
After the last Assembly the League Secretariat sent an officer to make an extended tour through many countries in Europe to collect information and stimulate activity. In some cases he was unable td awaken interest when explaining the importence of nutrition in child Welfare. Put in a few instances, as soon as he pointed out that sound nutrition would produce—stronger soldiers for war, the whole official attitude altered! Sad, isn't it? Yet are we Sure that we ourselves are quite blameless? Do not many M.P.'s and public men accept without protest the disquietingly high percentage of children who have some preventable ailment or defect (not present at birth) at the tender age wien they enter the elementary—schools? And do not these same persons wax indignant and become active.on learning of the large number of men rejected for the army through physical unfitness?
Recognition of the importance of nourishment is already having far-reaching restilts. Recently, T visited a modern central school in a south-
In most countries the Councils include officials from these various departments. It is clear that an inter department committee of civil servants might be almost ineffective if the Government or the Ministers marily concerned were obstruc-ni uninterested or reactionary nutrition. So it seems essential National Nutrition Councils include an adequate number of independents, members who would represent consumers, the interests of the poor. or even middle classes, to whom cheap food is, a matter of vital For instance, Women's Organizations could advantageously be represented Such members would feel freefand be able to press for an unbiased and sympathetic consideration of matters of policy affecting the cost of living of millions.
The tendency of producers, when industrial or agricultural, is naturally to think more of themselves than of consumers. Where a protectionist policy exists the temptation is inereased- A Council of civil servants and of representatives of Agriculture or Commerce might in certain cases fail as a Nutrition Council.
Malnutrition is frequently due to ern county with an airy canteen where over 400 children daily received a mid-day meal (paid for). Every up-to-date "Local Education Authority when erecting new schools or adapting existing buildings should bear this aspect_in mind, My League Committee goes out of existence after September next, but the nutrition movement has only just begun. I hope that the fruitful conference held at Geneva this winter will be not the first and. last, but the first of recurring annual meetings at which methods and experiments can be compared, and where the more backward country can learn from the work achieved elsewhere.
One of the things which attracted me when I was originally invited to preside over this Committee was the ation of the fa aching benefits {additional to those of improved health and welfare) which might follow the future adoption of up-to-date nutrition standards.
If people eat more, world agriculture must benefit. Further, if governments intend to see that adequate quantities of the right (health-giving) foods are available for the less well-to-do sections of their people, they must import
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.