Food is not simply a physiological fuel. It is a social phenomenon. In between we eat on average three meals a day and are subjected to a great deal of pressure on what we should eat, from manufacturer and advertisers, from experts and quacks and from custom and habit. Nutrition is a topic of conversation on which the average person can hold an opinion much as he holds opinions on nuclear weapon, the environment or taxation. Yet nutrition is unique among such controversies because the attendant opinion can be acted on at the individual level. A resident of Europe or North America cannot escape the threat of nuclear warfare, environment decay and certainly taxation. But they can change their diet any way they please without seeking permission, either by making an informed decision based on a sound understanding of nutrition, or by whim.
Nutrition controversies are not new. The Greek philosophers linked the four elements of cosmos – air, fire, water and earth – with four humors of man – blood, bile, phlegm, and black bile. Individual foods were assigned to humors. Accordingly, Hippocrates recommended pepper combined with honey and vinegar, for the treatment of feminine disorders. The ancient Chinese also held diet high in their medical kit-bag.The old Chinese expert said: Experts at curing disease are inferior to those who warn against disease. Experts in the use of medicines are inferior to those who recommended a proper diet. The Egyptians believed the gut to be the root of all illness and sought considerable relief from the usage of figs.
Such early views on diet were theoretically arrived at by careful, logical thought. The first experimental evidence linking diet and disease was the relation between the incidence of scurvy aboard sailing ships and the lack of fresh fruit and vegetables. In the ensuing centuries, scientist employed the present day approach of experimentation to understand digestion, salivation, respiratory metabolism and the biological need for certain nutrients such as minerals, vitamins, amino acids and essential fatty acids. This quest extended well into the present century.
Nutrition and Diet
