Page:Guide to health.djvu/46

34 A GUIDE TO HEALTH

that he who takes to himself more than his normal share of food, is depriving another of his legitimate share. Is it not a fact, that, in the kitchens of em- perors and kings, of all rich men, in general, much more food is prepared than is required to feed them and all their dependents ? That is to say, they snatch so much food from the share of the poor. Is it, then, any wonder that the poor should die of starvation ? If this is true (and this fact has be.en admitted by the most thoughtful men) it must necessarily follow that all the food that we eat be- yond our immediate need is food filched from the stomachs of the poor. And to the extent to which we eat merely with a view to pleasing the palate must our health necessarily suffer. After this pre- liminary discussion, we can proceed to consider what kind of food is best for us.

Before, however, we decide the question of. the ideal food for us, we have to consider what kinds of food are injurious to health, and to be avoided. Under the term "food", we include all the things that are taken into the body through the mouth, — including wine, bhang and opium, tobacco, tea, coffee and cocoa, spices and condiments. I am con- vinced that all these articles have to be completely eschewed, having been led to this conviction partly from my own experience, and partly from the experiences of others.

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