But, though this is not the common opinion of medical men, they all
agree that, in America, far too large a portion of the diet consists
of animal food. As a nation, the Americans are proverbial for the gross
and luxurious diet with which they load their tables; and there can
be no doubt that the general health of the nation would be increased
by a change in our customs in this respect. To take meat but once a
day, and this in small quantities, compared with the common practice,
is a rule, the observance of which would probably greatly reduce the
amount of fevers, eruptions, headaches, bilious attacks, and the many
other ailments which are produced or aggravated by too gross a diet.
The celebrated Roman physician, Baglivi, (who, from practicing
extensively among Roman Catholics, had ample opportunities to observe,)
mentions that, in Italy, an unusual number of people recover their
health in the forty days of Lent, in consequence of the lower diet
which is required as a religious duty. An American physician remarks,
"For every reeling drunkard that disgraces our country, it contains
one hundred gluttons--persons, I mean, who eat to excess, and suffer
in consequence.
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