At the close of weaning, at about the beginning of the second year of life, the child should be taking five meals daily, arranged about as follows:

7, 10 A. M., nap, 1, 4 P. M., nap, 7 P. M., night's sleep.

A hint as to the nature of the diet may be obtained from glancing at the table of dentition on page 208. During the second year, the child has good incisors but the canines and first molars (fourth teeth from center) are not in commission till the middle of the year and the second molars not until about the end of the year.

On account of the dentition, the child should not, in the most literal sense, bite off more than it can chew. There are also purely chemic reasons for restricting the diet mainly to milk, eggs and cereals, including various preparations of wheat flour, such as bread, crackers, light sugar and ginger cookies etc. Only enough meat should be allowed to furnish haemoglobin, say 25 - 50 grams a day. The child should also reject the fiber after mastication and sucking of the juice. Soft, pulpy fruits, such as oranges, apples (especially baked) should be given as dessert, and a little sugar candy and simple puddings may also be allowed. The various condiments, table beverages, and complicated dishes should be interdicted. Some children crave and thrive upon bananas, and although these are not digested till the intestine is reached, they are nourishing, mainly by furnishing starch and sugar, but also a little protein. Milk or cream may be poured over the slices.

It is not only cruel but physiologically absurd to make a young child swallow gristle, tough meat, coarse vegetables, pie crust etc., and it is advisable not to urge too strongly the use of yolk of egg, fat meat, bread crusts, or other articles to which the child objects.