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USE
OF WATER IN THE BODY AND FOOD
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| Of the various constituents
that are found in the human body, water occurs in the largest quantity.
As a food substance, it is an extremely important feature of a person's
diet. Its chief purpose is to replenish the liquids of the body and to
assist in the digestion of food. Although nature provides considerable
amounts of water in most foods, large quantities must be taken in the diet
as a beverage. In fact, it is the need of the body for water that has led
to the development of numerous beverages. Besides being necessary in building
up the body and keeping it in a healthy condition, water has a special
function to perform in cooking, as is explained later. Although this food
substance is extremely essential to life, it is seldom considered in the
selection of food, because, as has just been mentioned, nearly all foods
contain water. |
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| Water supplies no energy
to the body, but it plays a very important part in nutrition. In fact,
its particular function in the body is to act as a solvent and a carrier
of nutritive material and waste. In doing this work, it keeps the liquids
of the body properly diluted, increases the flow of the digestive juices,
and helps to carry off waste material. However, its ability to perform
these necessary functions in the right way depends on its quality and its
safety. |
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 USE
OF WATER IN THE BODY |
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| KINDS
OF WATER |
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| MINERAL
WATER |
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| WATER
AND BEVERAGES |
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| SOLUTION
AND DIGESTION |
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| FOREIGN
MATERIALS IN WATER |
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| HEATING
WATER |
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| WATER,
IS A BODY REGULATING FOODSTUFF |
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| USE
OF WATER IN CLEANING AND IN PREPARING FOODS |
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| USES
OF WATER IN COOKING |
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| COOKING
WITH MOIST HEAT |
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USE
OF WATER IN THE BODY
A person might live for
a number of weeks without eating food, but he could live only a few days
without drinking water. Water has many uses in the body:
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Water is the greatest known
solvent. Because of this property, water is extremely important in the
processes of digestion.
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Water is a great carrier. Water
helps carry food materials to all parts of the body; and it aids in carrying
off the wastes of the body.
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Water assists in regulating
the temperature of the body. Because water is present in blood, and blood
flows from the warmer interior of the body to the colder exterior, the
water aids in distributing the heat of the body. The evaporation of perspiration,
which is largely composed of water, also aids in regulating body temperature.
It is thus readily seen that
water is needed to keep the machinery of the body working smoothly. The
uses of water may be summed up in the statement: Water aids in regulating
body processes. |
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WATER
AND BEVERAGES
Most foods contain water.
Not only moist foods such as milk and watermelon, but solid foods such
as potatoes and rice contain water. The water present in foods, however,
is not sufficient for the needs of the body. It is necessary to use water
as a beverage.
When one rises in the morning,
it is well to drink one or two glassfuls of water. From one to two quarts
of water, either as plain water or in beverages should be taken each day.
It used to be thought that water drinking during a meal was harmful. Scientific
investigations have shown that this is a mistaken idea. Water may be drunk
at mealtime. Indeed it has been found that it aids in the digestive processes,
provided foods are not "rinsed down" with it and provided very cold water
is not used. |
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SOLUTION
AND DIGESTION
The change of foods in the
body from insoluble to a soluble form is one step in digestion. Foods are
dissolved in the digestive juices of the mouth, stomach, and intestines.
Some foods such as salt and certain sugars are readily dissolved. Other
foods have to undergo changes before they will dissolve. Corn-starch, for
example, does not dissolve in cold water. It must be changed into sugar
(which is easily dissolved) in the process of digestion. Dissolving then
is an important step in the process of digesting. |
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FOREIGN
MATERIALS IN WATER
Since water is such a ready
solvent, it contains many foreign materials. In passing through the air
and in flowing through the ground, it dissolves many substances. Some of
these substances are harmless, while some contain disease bacteria and
are dangerous. Well water is frequently contaminated. It is often not safe
to use for drinking purposes unless boiled. |
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HEATING
WATER
When bubbling occurs below
the surface, water is simmering. When the surface is in motion and
steam is given off, water is boiling. The loss of gases makes boiled
water taste flat or insipid. This flatness can be overcome somewhat by
aerating
the water after boiling, by pouring it from one vessel into another and
thus mixing air with it. |
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WATER,
IS A BODY REGULATING FOODSTUFF
The body is nourished by
food and there are many different kinds of food. Moreover, most foods are
made up not of one substance, but of a number of materials. The chemical
substances of which foods are composed are called nutrients or foodstuffs.
There is the difference between the scientific and popular meaning of the
word foodstuffs. Foodstuffs is defined and used as a
scientific term in this
text. Water is a foodstuff. Each foodstuff has a certain function to perform
in the body. A few foods contain but one foodstuff, some contain several
foodstuffs, many contain all the foodstuffs. |
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Helpful
Tools
|
| Pastry blender is great
tool to have. You could actualy save time when cutting butter into flour
for preparation of pie and/or pastry dough. Make sure to choose one with
handle that is sturdy and comfortable to hold. The best are usually the
ones with diamond shape blades, sharp enough to prevent sticky clogs as
you work. Buy stainless steel with comfortable handle and also dishwasher
safe. More... |
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WATER
EXPERIMENTS
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EXPERIMENT:
THE DISSOLVING POWER OF WATER
Put 1/2 teaspoonful of salt in a test
tube, half fill it with water. Cover the mouth of the test tube with the
thumb, then shake the tube. Do the contents become clear? Set the tube
aside for a few minutes. Does the salt separate from the water?
When a solid substance, by mixing
with water, disappears in the water and does not separate on standing,
the solid substance is dissolved. The salt was therefore dissolved in cold
water, or it may be said that salt is soluble in cold water, or that water
is a solvent of salt. |
EXPERIMENT
A: PRESENCE OF GASES
IN WATER
Fill a
beaker half full of water, and note its temperature.
Heat
the water, and observe the changes which take place
What
appears on the sides and bottom of the beaker?
What
does water contain which is driven off by heat? |
EXPERIMENT B: SIMMERING AND
BOILING OF WATER
Continue to heat the water
like in Experiment A until the larger bubbles form and disappear at the
surface
of the water.
Note the temperature. Continue
to heat the water until bubbling occurs on the surface of the water.
Note the temperature.
What is indicated by the
larger bubbles? |
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Pie
à la Mode
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| A very attractive as
well as appetizing way in which to serve pie is known as pie à la
mode. This method of serving, which is often resorted to when something
extra is desired, consists in placing a spoonful or two of ice cream of
any flavor on each serving of apple or other fruit pie. Pie served in this
way is high in food value and is a general favorite with persons who are
fond of both ice cream and pie. |
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