(Written at the time of the Food Conservation Campaign, 1918.

Hoover Food Dictator).

Conservation Always The Ideal

We have come to the time when "economy" is the watchword: conservation of men, money, food. Well had it been could such an impulse have been given prosperous civilized man without the appearance upon the stage of action of dire necessity in the shape of a gigantic war! Conservation of the health, of the resources of the race should always have been the ideal, but in the mad rush of a strenuous life we have thought that we could spare no time for petty economies, not even for those of body conservation and the things that would mean the most in the longevity and efficiency of the human race. After all it is in the time of stress that we come the nearest to reaching our ideals and, in suffering, has mankind ever reached the highest state of perfection. Sterling qualities, physical and mental, gain strength only through exercise and exercise comes in the face of resistance and trial.

The Old Standard

So today in the face of a great need, many will acquire depth and breadth of character and attain to ideals of living far out of the reach of the throng in times of prosperity and peace.

Eating for pleasure's sake has for so long been the only thought in supplying the body with food; for so long the sole ambition of the overworked housewife has been to supply her family with food that would "taste good" that often all else has been lost sight of. Life in so far as the housewife has been concerned has become sordid and ideals have been cheapened. Neither has her energy been conserved, the food supply, or the body strength and resources of those who day by day sat down to an overstocked board loaded with eatables far in excess of physical needs.

A New Vision

Today in the light of scientific advance and national need the mother in the home is blessed with a new vision. The needs of the hour, the demand for conservation both of food and of physical resources, lends a new interest to her plans. Her work is no longer a mere drudgery to please the varied tastes of a family demanding that their appetites be pampered three times a day, but she becomes master of a new situation: that of furnishing the table with a food supply adequate for body needs, balanced with such correctness that there is the least possible waste in the raw material, in its preparation, or in its ultimate utilization by the body; at the same time yielding the highest and most satisfactory results in physical health and strength.

The Home Dietitian

She is no longer merely cook; she becomes a dietitian whether she prepares the food with her own hands or directs its preparation by those under her. She is no longer content to leave the question of feeding her family with the ordinary cook, however experienced and competent, but personally supervises the important work of supplying those at her table with the food yielding the best results with the least possible waste. Thus she serves her country, is a blessing to her family and to the race.

Her immediate reward she will receive in seeing those in her care thrive and develop in a normal physical way, and in knowing that by her thoughtfulness and careful planning more has been left to maintain the great supply necessary to feed the world.

Economy And Health

"The heart of her husband will safely trust in her, and her children will rise up and call her blessed" and, no matter how narrow her sphere may seem to be, she will be doing her bit and this perhaps the most important service that can be apportioned to any in this time of need for every possible conservation of national resources. The need no longer so urgent, she will still appreciate the advantage of wise economy and will continue to direct her family in the way that will lead to the results most needed by the home and nation in time of peace, as well as in time of war.

True food economy in so far as the body is concerned is the partaking of the minimum amount of food necessary to fully supply the body needs and to keep one in health, with some reserve in the form of stored food as fat. Overeating, as we have learned, interferes with proper oxidation, and complete elimination. The blood thus becomes surcharged with wastes, the tissues overloaded and the circulation sluggish; the mind becomes clouded and many are the evil results. But with a proper food balance all of the body processes are carried on with freedom and alacrity, strength and poise, and resulting health, vigor and efficiency. "Economy in food does not signify ill health, but rather the reverse, as undoubtedly in times of peace and prosperity a very large number of people eat unsuitable food and more than is good for them." - Editorial Medical Record June 16, 1917.

How America May Feed The World

Because the suggestions of the present food campaign are so in harmony with the laws of scientific dietetics and so ever applicable and, helpful for any time in combating the "high cost of living," we will consider against the background of the Food Question as we have followed it in our previous chapters, the practical points in Food Conservation as emphasized in the setting forth of the needs of the present hour. The vital question is that of having enough food to go around. The problem would be solved were no one to eat more than necessary to adequately supply his physical needs. This alone would mean a saving in the total amount of food entirely sufficient to feed the world, even though America were the only source of supply. And what would it not mean in the added physical strength and efficiency of the nation, in the lessening of disease, in the increase of mental and moral power, in the advance of national enlightenment and onward stride of civilization.