e the
attainment of full growth will weaken nerve power. Nalpasse[209]
observes that until fully developed the young are immoderately excited
by coffee; and Hawk[210] is of the opinion that to give such a stimulant
to an active school-child is both logically and dietetically incorrect.
Dr. Vaughn[211] advances this scientific argument against the drinking
of coffee by children under seven years of age:

In proportion to body weight the young contain more of the xanthin
bases than adults. They are already laden with these physiological
stimulants, and the additional dose given in tea or coffee may be
harmful.

In a study of the effects of coffee drinking upon 464 school children,
C.K. Taylor[212] found a slight difference in mental ability and
behavior, unfavorable to coffee. About 29 percent of these children
drank no coffee; 46 percent drank a cup a day; 12 percent, 2 cups; 8
percent, 3 cups; and the remainder, 4 or more cups a day. The
measurements of height, weight, and hand strength also showed a slight
advantage in favor of the non-coffee drinkers. If these results be taken
as truly representative, their indication is obvious. However, it seems
desirable to repeat these experiments upon other groups; at the same
time noting carefully the factors of environment, and other diet, before
any criterion is made.

As a refutation to this experimental evidence is the practical
experience of the inhabitants of the Island of Groix, off the Brittany
coast, whose annual consumption of coffee is nearly 30 pounds per
capita, being ingested both as the roasted bean and as an infusion. It
is reported that many of the children are nourished almost entirely on
coffee soup up to ten years of age, yet the mentality and physique of
the populace does not fall below that of others of the same stock and
educational opportunities.[213]

Pertinent in this connection is Hawk's[214] statement that young mothers
should refrain from the use of coffee, as caffein stimulates the action
of the kidneys and tends to bring about a loss from the body of some of
the salts necessary to the development of the unborn child as well as
for the proper production of milk during the nursing period. The caffein
of coffee also increases the flow of milk, but the milk produced is
correspondingly dilute and a later decreased secretion may be expected.
Furthermore, some of the caffein of the coffee may pass into the
mother's milk, thus reac