Girl School ds 60 Carter Theatre Camp mo 72 Western Theatre Camp a2 75 Camp No. 27 (Three rooms)? 190 51 Camp No. 5 49& Si New World Theatre Camp 13,000 99
Total 15744 we Of these 408 refugees examined 154 were men, 49 women, 107 boys, 78 girls and 20 were infants. Those examined were selected at random as they appeared for vaccination. Symptoms of avitaminoises were carefully looked for, especially Bl deficiency. Whenever cases of beri beri were noticed, history and duration of illness in particular were obtained.
The following were the types of nutritional diseases, eye diseases and lesions found in the 408 refugees examined.
Subacute Beri Beri 3 Mild Beri Beri H Border line cases 106 Subelinieal A. Avitaminosis 6 Rickets Subclinieal Scurvy 1
Trachoma 20 Pellagra Conjunctivitis 48 Skin Diseases 180
There is very little- danger of Subacute and Mild Beri Beri cases developing into the acute type, rather does the danger lie in these conditions acting as complications to other diseases.
Conditions of the Camps.—The best camp was found in the Girl School. "The rooms are clean and the inmates move about in the School compound. The rest of the other camps investigated are taxed to the limit with refugees, allowing about s bed space per person. The air is foul, and the place is dark and poorly ventilated.
Diet in the Camps,—Eleven samples of rice obtained from various camps were investigated for the degree of polishing and the amount of talc. The rice is partially polished and contains very little talc. The usual method of cooking rice is adopted by all.
The food served for the refugees consists. of rice and a little salted vegetable, 3 meals being served daily. In one Ningpo Camp sweet bread ud wheat bread instal of rice is iven, The New World Theatre Camp gives rice and salted vegetable to the healthy; milk and biscuits to the sick and the babies, The diet of the refugees is therefore deficient in some nutritive elements, consequently, fresh cases of beri beri, scurvy and other nutritional diseases are to be expected if the diet remains unchanged.
Suggestions.—Owing to the very large number of refugees in each camp and the absence of information regarding the per capita allowance for food which the various relief organisations are willing to defray, suggestions for improvement are rather difficult, particularly if every essential food element is to be in-chided. The following suggestions based on minimal daily requirement will however diminish the risk of an ott-break of nutritional diseases:
1. As the rice samples collectéd>so far contain very little talc.
be cooked without washing and consumed without danger to health. If Washing is necessary to remove the odour of long stored rice, then it should be washed with running water only. Stamping the with hands as a process of avoided.
2. Six ounces of green beans or three ounces soya bean, 3. Soya bean sprout or sweet potato 4 ozs, and if possible fresh leafy vegetables should be included.
4. Cases of subclinical A. avitaminosis may perhaps require drachm doses of cod-liver oil The most useful n of combatting general deficiency disease at the present juncture would be the issue to camps in bulk of crude cod recent typhoon, The Italian vessel was me Hongpeng, driven ashore near the Funnel steamer
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.