nsive items of a
ration are meats, butter, and canned fruits. The difference in
composition and nutritive value between various cuts of meat is small,
being largely physical, and affecting taste and flavor rather than
nutritive value. Expensive cuts of meat, high-priced breakfast cereals,
tropical fruits and foods which impart special flavors, add little in
the way of nutritive value to the ration, but greatly enhance the cost
of living. Ordinarily the cheapest foods are corn meal, wheat flour and
bread, milk, beans, cheese, sugar, and potatoes.[7] The amount of animal
and vegetable foods to combine with these to form a balanced ration may
be governed largely by personal preference or cost, as there is little
difference in nutritive value. The selection of foods on the basis of
cost and nutritive value is discussed in Chapter XVI.

253. Food Notions.--Many erroneous ideas exist as to the nutritive
value of foods, and often wholesome and valuable foods are discriminated
against because of prejudice. Skim milk is usually regarded as
containing little if any nourishing material, when in reality it has a
high protein content, and can be added to other foods to increase their
nutritive value. The less expensive cuts of meat contain more total
nutrients than many of the more expensive ones. Beef extracts have been
erroneously said to contain more nutrients than beef,[51] and mushrooms
to be equal in value of beefsteak; chemical analyses fail to confirm
either statement. The banana also has been overestimated as to food
value, and while it contains more nutrients than many fruits, it is not
the equal of cereals, as has been claimed.[82] Cocoa, although a
valuable beverage, adds but little in the way of nutrients to a ration
unless it is made with milk. The value of a food should be based upon
its composition as determined by chemical analysis, its digestibility as
founded upon digestion experiments, and its palatability and mechanical
structure. Food notions have, in many instances, been the cause of
banishing from the dietary wholesome and nutritious foods, of greatly
increasing the cost of living, as well as of promulgating incorrect
ideas in regard to foods, so that individuals and in some cases entire
families have suffered from improper or insufficient food.

254. Dietary of Two Families Compared.--A dietary study often reveals
ways in which it is possible to improve the ration in kinds and amounts
of food, and sometimes