Food Control

Since the fundamental prerequisite of the research was an accurately controlled and definite knowledge both of the character and the amount of the food intake, Squad A was given a special "training table" in Woods Hall, the large mess hall of the college. Special waiters were assigned and representatives of the Laboratory staff were present at every meal and personally supervised all the food issued. The 12 men occupied regular seats at the table, which was pleasantly located in one corner of the dining room, with a minimum of confusion due to the passing of other waiters and other members of the college body. A psychological point that was not realized at the time, but developed later, was the desirability of avoiding the display of food served ad libitum at the other tables. We believe that if a private dining room had been used, it would have helped materially, for the lavish display of food within 5 or 6 feet of the dieting squad was at times distracting, to say the least. Convenient to the serving table were side tables for weighing, sampling, and keeping the records, and special utensils such as dishes for sugar, butter plates, etc.

Mr. Edward L. Fox was primarily in charge of the dietetic apportionment at the training table. His skill and diplomacy secured not only extraordinary accuracy in sampling and intelligent records, but he was persona grata with the entire squad during the research. During the diet-reduction period of Squad B, Mr. Fox had the intelligent cooperation of Mr. Harry Silverman of the Laboratory staff.

Kinds Of Food Served

To minimize labor in the preparation of special foods or combinations of foods, and yet maintain the variety and palatability of the food supplied, it was decided at the outset to serve to the squad practically all articles of diet regularly served in the dining room at any given meal. Slight deviations from .this rule occurred occasionally when substitutions were made for a part of the regular menu, or infrequent additions, but in general the quality of the food was not altered. The curtailment of the diet was therefore wholly in the quantity served and not in the kinds of food. In other words, the men were served the same food, but were given what might be termed "half portions." The food in Woods Hall meets the strictest sanitary requirements for care in preparation and service, is well cooked, and is relished by the entire student body. The whole undertaking is a most successful undergraduate cooperative venture.

Methods Of Weighing And Apportioning

The portions of food served to subjects were either weighed at the time or measured in carefully calibrated vessels or dishes. There were no estimated weights. To provide representative samples of the entire meal for analysis, two enamel dishes holding approximately 1 liter were labeled respectively "thirteenth man" and "fourteenth man." An equivalent weight of such food materials as were served to the individual members of the squad was placed in each of these dishes; the samples thus represented the kind and amount of food actually served to the members of the squad. Certain staples, such as butter, jelly, sugar, etc., were generally omitted since repeated analysis had shown their uniformity in composition.

At the beginning of the research, to simplify matters, all the men were served exactly the same quantity, so the amounts apportioned to the thirteenth and fourteenth men, respectively, represented exactly that served to each member of the squad. Subsequently, additions were made to the basal ration in certain cases, particularly when the loss in weight was too rapid or when the loss in weight was as large as was desired and the period of feeding for weight maintenance began. In general, however, the selection of food was such as to make the basal diet essentially the same for all the men, the supplementary amounts being usually supplied by standard materials such as sugar, butter, etc. When a special dish was served and one or two members of the squad were unable to eat it, weighed portions of the food were sent to the Nutrition Laboratory, where special analyses were made for subsequent calculation of these necessary deductions.

The food samples were practically all collected in quart fruit jars and sealed with a rubber ring and glass top. One jar would contain one or two meals, according to the amount of food served per day, but each meal was given a separate number and the samples in the thirteenth and fourteenth pans designated as"o" and "b."1 This system of sampling in duplicate was followed throughout the entire 4 months of the observation.

The jars for the samples were shipped at frequent intervals in cases so constructed as to provide against breakage. One of the most annoying features in the whole investigation was the inordinate delay-in the express delivery between Boston and Springfield. Considering the unusual demands put upon the express companies, the irregularity in train service caused by extra heavy shipments of munitions and coal, and the extraordinarily severe winter of 1917-18 in New England, we should perhaps be congratulated on receiving all the samples. Occasionally samples would be received in a condition of incipient fermentation owing to delay in transit, but in no instance did the fermentation reach such a stage as to justify us in believing that an appreciable loss of energy had taken place. Another difficulty was the fact that with relatively large amounts of milk and occasionally cocoa, samples were sometimes frozen; occasionally the freezing resulted in breakage of the glass bottle. Fortunately in no instance were both samples a and b destroyed by the breakage of the bottle from rough handling in shipment or from freezing.1

1 See table 30, p. 266.

All of the energy in the food consumed by the squad was supplied at the table, with the single exception of chewing gum. It was soon found that chewing gum was much desired by a large number of the squad. At first it was considered that this could be permitted ad libitum, but later we became aware of the fact that each stick of chewing gum contained 2 grams of soluble carbohydrate, corresponding to an energy content of approximately 8 calories. It therefore became necessary for us to record accurately the amount of gum used by each subject, and the subjects were asked to report three times daily the amount of gum chewed. This statement of gum used forms an integral part of our system of records.

Approximately once every two weeks the men were allowed to eat two meals uncontrolled, usually the dinner and supper on the Sundays following their return from a series of respiration and psychological experiments made at the Nutrition Laboratory in Boston. The kinds and approximate amounts of food eaten at these meals were reported by the men each time. As these reports were entirely uncontrolled, they have only an approximate value. This biweekly freedom, though slight, was much enjoyed by the men and appeared to be psychologically desirable. When one considers that these men were under observation day after day, almost from hour to hour, for a period of 4 months, it will be seen that a certain degree of relaxation, other than that secured at Christmas and Thanksgiving, was absolutely necessary. The reports of the meals made by the men are reasonably clear and certainly serve to give an approximate estimate of the amount of protein and energy of the food eaten.

In addition to the controlled meals at the regular diet table, every visit to Boston resulted in at least two controlled meals there, one at a local restaurant which provided a special table for the 12 men and served a prescribed menu. Here again the portions for the thirteenth and fourteenth men, respectively, were placed in pans and subsequently analyzed. Since the diet used on the periodic visits to Boston at this restaurant was substantially the same for every visit to Boston, the control was admirable on the probable value of protein and energy in the diet served the subjects at the restaurant.

1 Usually samples a and b were shipped in separate boxes.

Each morning of these Boston experiments, a standard simple breakfast was served in the Laboratory. The diet for this breakfast also remained unaltered throughout the entire period of experimenting and was frequently analyzed and its composition checked. The preparation of the breakfast was left in the careful hands of Mr. Henry W. Fudge of the Nutrition Laboratory staff.

Occasionally it became necessary for the men, particularly late Sunday afternoon, to eat a light lunch away from the training table. This lunch always included some standard material, frequently a standard brand of cake chocolate and sweet cake or cookies; samples of these were weighed, analyzed, and carefully controlled.