This period in the life of an individual from the time he starts to school at five or six until he graduates from college at twenty-one or twenty-two is one in which there is great activity both of the body and of the mind. It is the period of growth in which the body goes through great changes not only in building up the bodily tissue itself but in the development which eventually produces the adult man or women. During this period the youth is more dependent on a regular supply of food every day than is the adult. His activity is so great that the supply of fuel must be constant and steady. At the same time he must have a larger proportion of those foods which contain the best building material for body structure. This is particularly important in the type of protein material, since those proteins that are found in milk, eggs, and meat are of greater value than those that are found in the cereals and pulses.

There are certain signs betokening good health which means a suitable diet. The first of these is a steady gain in weight and height. A movement is now on foot by the Federal Bureau of Education for the weighing of all school-children at least twice during each year so as to keep track of the gain in weight. Where this has already been done, it has been found that a surprisingly large number of our school-children are below weight according to the standards set by the experts. Another sign of good health is sound sleep and plenty of it. This must always be taken in close connection with proper diet in order to insure gain in weight. A child should also have a reasonable appetite, not too large nor too small. The lad who could and did eat eleven shredded wheat biscuits for breakfast could hardly be said to have a reasonable appetite. A child who is well and strong will have a firm flesh and rosy skin, and will be generally good-natured.

Good supply of food nec-essary for growth

Signs of good health

The food should increase gradually in quantity as the years go on and the body requirements become greater and greater. The bulk of the diet should still consist largely of cereals, vegetables, and fruit. These may be varied from day to day but it is very important that no school-child should be allowed to start off to school in the morning without having eaten a substantial dish of cereal, preferably of a cooked variety. Meat should be had in moderate amount, seldom more than once a day, and other foods such as fish and cheese may be substituted for it. Milk should still be used; at least a pint a day for the older children and three cups for the younger ones. No tea, coffee, nor strong cocoa should be allowed, especially during the high-school period when girls in particular seem to have a craving for these. It is to be remembered that these drinks are stimulants and will have a harmful effect upon the organism of a girl at just this time.

The young people should be encouraged to eat plenty of vegetables and fruit. It would be well if fruit were available for them between meals, as it would be of far greater benefit for them than would be the candy, college ices, ice-cream sodas, or rich cake which are constantly resorted to by the ever-hungry student. Rich cake, pastry, and fried foods should be avoided and candy can only safely be used immediately after meals, not between meals.

The right food

During the adolescent period the young people are very apt to show vagaries in their likes and dislikes about their food. This is where early training will have its strong effect. If eating has always been considered a part of the day's business to be carried out with a definite aim in mind, that of building up strong, healthy bodies, very little trouble will be met with at this time. If on the other hand, the girl and boy have been allowed to pick and choose pretty much as they pleased without respect to the value of the foods themselves, they are quite apt not to get the kind of food the body most requires during this period of great growth. It requires great care on the part of the homemaker to see that it is impossible for the young people to have a one-sided diet, even though they do not eat everything that is served. This means careful planning so that the groups of foods will be represented at the meal in more than in just one form. Breadstuff's may be served in a variety of ways so that the cereal content of the meal will still be high. Cinnamon buns, date or raisin bread, currant rolls, and other forms of bread may well be used. Desserts may also be varied in such a way as to avoid monotony and yet introduce valuable building material into the diet. Instead of serving an ordinary rice pudding, it can sometimes be made with chocolate, or with molasses, and apples baked in it, and the much-despised cornstarch pudding can be dressed up by being served with stewed figs, ginger, and whipped cream, or peaches or other raw fruit. In this way milk can be introduced into the diet unobtrusively.

Vagaries harmful

From the time when the children can have their heartiest meal at night with the rest of the family, the luncheon is always the biggest problem. This is just as true in the colleges as it is in the home where the children are still either in the grammar school or in the high school. If the child has to take his midday meal with him, just as much care should be given to the planning of the lunch-box as though the meal were to be eaten at home. All the food groups should be represented in such form as can be carried in a lunch-box and still be appetizing when taken out several hours later. In order to protect the food as much as possible, sandwiches and cake should be carefully wrapped in paraffin paper. Little dishes can be used to carry such foods as a baked custard or a baked apple or even stewed prunes. By using a thermos bottle soup or cocoa or even cold milk can be taken to supplement the lunch in the box.

There are many fillings which can be put into the sandwiches to provide protein or vegetable material. Thinly sliced cold meat of different kinds, hard-boiled eggs, cheese, the puree of pulses or peanut butter will be of the first class, while lettuce, celery, sliced tomatoes will be of the second. If a meat sandwich is taken, lettuce can be taken separately, carefully washed and wrapped in paraffin paper. There is more danger of neglecting this important group of foods in the lunch-box than any of the others. Fruit should be included every day, either as an apple or orange, or as a few dates and figs. These latter will also provide the sweet which is so greatly craved by young people. In making sandwiches try to use a variety of breads as much as possible, oatmeal or graham instead of white, for in these the young people can obtain more iron and other salts than they can from white bread.

The problem of lunch

Many of our preparatory and high schools which have the long session are making it possible for the boys and girls to have a hot meal at school. This is, of course, the ideal way if these meals are carefully supervised. A choice of dishes must be served; yet among this variety the dishes should be so planned that it would be difficult for the young people not to get the right kind of a dinner. A soup of some sort, either on a milk basis or a rich broth with vegetables, should be among the choice each day; so should a hot dish of some kind, like macaroni and cheese, stew, baked rice, and tomato. Some vegetable either as such or as a salad should be present in the menu, and a pudding and fruit as a choice for the dessert. From such a list it would be hard for a boy or a girl not to get a suitable lunch.

The colleges have a little different problem. Most of their young people return directly to work and are allowed a comparatively short time to eat lunch. For this reason the lunch must consist of such foods as can be served quickly and will be easily digested. If a milk dish is present in one course or another, it serves as a good basis for this midday meal. This dish, whether it is soup or a creamed dish or in the form of a dessert, should be supplemented with attractive breadstuffs and vegetables, either hot or as salad.

The school lunch