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The group of dietary factors, the vitamin B complex, is included in the larger class of water-soluble vitamins because, like all vitamins, they are required by the body in small amounts and because the individual chemical compounds are soluble in water although the degree of solubility varies from the sparingly soluble riboflavin to the readily soluble choline. These are the main characteristics common to the individual vitamins because their functions in the living cell may differ greatly and their chemical structure may vary from the simple configuration of nicotinic acid to the more complex molecular structure of thiamine and riboflavin. The vitamin B complex is usually differentiated from the other water-soluble vitamins, such as vitamin C and related factors, on the basis of the source material used in early isolation work and the kind of experimental animals employed for the assay. No attempt will be made to cover in this

The magnitude of the literature that has been published concerning the metabolism of different forms of iron makes it impossible to attempt a complete review of the subject in this short paper. A discussion of much of the early work is also unnecessary in light of the more recently established facts, which lead to an explanation of much of the contradictory evidence presented in the earlier papers on hemoglobin formation. Those who believe that inorganic iron cannot be utilized and that only organic iron is available for hemoglobin formation find little support for their view in the recent work. Experimental work in both laboratories and clinics has shown that inorganic iron salts when fed under proper conditions can be utilized for the synthesis of hemoglobin. In 1928 Hart, Steenbock, Waddell and Elvehjem1demonstrated that inorganic iron, such as ferric chloride, when accompanied by traces of copper can be used

In a recent study by Elvehjem, Peterson and Mendenhall1on the hemoglobin content of the blood of seven hundred and fifty infants varying in age from birth to 5 years, it was shown that the average value for children from 6 months to 2½ years of age was between 11 and 12 Gm. per hundred cubic centimeters. Since these children were from different kinds of homes it was impossible to determine whether the low figure for hemoglobin at that age was a normal condition or was due to a dietary deficiency. A definite answer can be made only when a study is made of children known to be receiving ample supplies of blood-forming elements. In this report we present values for hemoglobin obtained with children receiving, in addition to their regular diet, known amounts of iron and copper salts. The children studied were healthy infants brought to the Dudgeon

Although the supplementary value of copper with iron as a necessary catalytic agent in the formation of hemoglobin in experimental animals is generally accepted, some investigators feel that this has not been proved satisfactorily for infants. Since we found that approximately 21 per cent of the infants brought to the child health centers of Madison, Wis., during the past year tended to become anemic during their first year of life, the problem of the most efficacious method of treating anemia seems to be one of utmost importance. This report compares the effect of iron alone as a therapeutic agent with that of iron supplemented with copper. In a recent paper, Elvehjem, Siemers and Mendenhall 1 showed that iron plus copper therapy caused an increase in the hemoglobin content of the blood from between 9 and 11 Gm. to 12 and 13.5 Gm. per hundred cubic centimeters. However, Mackay 2 reported

The "Corpus" of Hippocrates not only lists many drugs, mainly of vegetable origin, but gives considerable space to a discussion of the regulation of the diet. However during the evolution of medical treatment much greater emphasis has been placed on drugs than on nutrition. This is not surprising, since as man sought food to satisfy his hunger he encountered a variety of substances which had a more or less immediate effect on the normal functions of the body. Many of these were prepared or concentrated so that they could be used to alleviate suffering or to combat disease. The recognition of specific nutrients in the prevention of disease was impossible until a little over a hundred years ago because until that time all foods were assumed to supply a single universal nutrient. It is only within recent years that all the nutrients necessary for optimum nutrition have begun to be

Studies of anemia in infants await the establishment of a normal hemoglobin curve for children. A survey of the literature reveals that investigations on this subject are not only few but conflicting in results. There seems to be general agreement, however, that the hemoglobin level is very high at birth and that it falls rapidly during the first few weeks of life. A level somewhat lower than the average adult value is soon reached and remains fairly constant throughout infancy. Average values given by different workers for any particular age during this period vary from about 50 to 100 per cent of an arbitrary adult male standard. It is not surprising to find such wide differences, because the standards which have been used vary from 13.8 to 17.2 Gm. of hemoglobin per hundred cubic centimeters of blood. Results for children based on a standard established for adults are misleading. Figures

Education is a human experience, and methods of training are many and varied. Medical education, perhaps better than any other field, illustrates the progress of teaching through the years—how new ideas and methods developed and how the best of them were carried forward and augmented by later ideas and methods. History of Medical Education Dr. William S. Middleton traced this history some years ago, when he was dean of the University of Wisconsin Medical School, from its origin in the priesthood of antiquity to the modern medical school. In the evolution of Greek culture, medicine was eventually separated from the priesthood. The first medical school at Alexandria, founded by Alexander of Macedonia, trained such notable medical figures as Herophilus, Erasistratus, and Galen. With the Roman conquest of Egypt, the school at Alexandria was disbanded, and it fell again to the church to bridge the gap until the establishment of the

Recently, Mellanby (1946)1has shown that when white flour is bleached with nitrogen trichloride, known as the "agene" process, a toxic product is produced which will induce running fits when the flour is included in rations fed to dogs. Earlier, Arnold and Elvehjem (1939)2prepared a heat-processed dog food of wheat flour and meat scraps which consistently caused running fits when fed to dogs. Wagner and Elvehjem (1944)3were able to produce running fits in dogs when commercial wheat gluten was included in the ration. By increasing the amount of gluten fits could be induced in proportionally shorter lengths of time. This work confirmed an observation made by Parry,4while working here, that this canine disease was caused by some toxic product in the wheat protein. The condition called running fits, or "canine hysteria" as used by the English workers, causes dogs to become hypersensitive to

Grain products have always been an important component of the American diet. Flour and bread have been the subject of much discussion, but comparatively little attention has been given to other prepared cereal foods. Many of the prepared cereal foods now on the market have been processed in order to improve flavor and palatability with the consequence that some nutritional value is lost. Some of the manufacturers have undertaken the restoration of the vitamin content to that of the whole grain cereals from which they are made. Since the individual whole grains vary in their vitamin content, and since the vitamin content of enriched cereals is generally labeled in terms of the minimum daily human requirement, it is often difficult for the physician to compare one cereal product with another. As an aid to persons interested in the nutritive value of these products and as a guide to manufacturers, the

This group of dietary factors is classified as the water soluble vitamins because, like all vitamins, they are required by the body in extremely small amounts and because the individual chemical compounds are soluble in water although the degree of solubility may vary greatly from the sparingly soluble riboflavin to the readily soluble ascorbic acid. These are the only characteristics common to the individual components because their functions in the living cell may differ greatly and their chemical structures may vary from the simple configuration of nicotinic acid to the more complicated molecular structure of thiamine and riboflavin. Based largely on the source material used in early isolation work and the kind of experimental animal employed for the assay, the water soluble vitamins are generally subdivided into the B vitamins and vitamin C, together with related factors. No attempt will be made to cover in this short summary the vast