Chapter Iv Supply Data Useful So Far As Vitamines Are Concerned, but It

will be perhaps worth while to repeat here some of this data in more generalized form.

a. Sources of the "A" vitamine

Its most abundant sources are milk, butter, egg yolk fat, and the green leaves of plants usually classed as salads. Cabbage, lettuce, spinach and carrots contain this substance in considerable quantity. The germ of cereals is fairly rich in the factor, but the rest of the grain is deficient and white flours are therefore poorer than whole meals in this respect. Cooking temperatures have little effect on this vitamine and hence little attention need be paid to cooking temperatures as far as this vitamine is concerned.

b. Sources of the "B" vitamine

Its principal sources outside of yeast are the seeds of plants and the eggs and milk of animals. Meat contains relatively little of this substance but glandular organs such as the liver and pancreas are fairly rich in it. In the seeds the distribution is general throughout the whole body of the seed in the case of beans, peas, etc., but in the cereal grains it is largely restricted to the embryo portion and hence a high degree of milling tends to reduce the per cent of this factor in any highly milled cereal. White flour and polished rice are notable examples of deficiency of "B" vitamine due to this milling process. Fruits such as oranges, tomatoes, and lemons are good sources and there is a fair amount present in the apples and grapes and other common food fruits. Many vegetables show it in fair abundance, notably potatoes, carrots, and turnips, but the rule is not general for beets are extremely poor in this factor. Nuts are also good sources. Eggs, milk and cheese contain it in fair abundance. Cooking temperatures have little effect on this type if the temperature does not climb above the boiling point and if the cooking water is not "alkaline." In the latter case it becomes necessary to determine the extent of destruction and either eat enough to insure protection, or reform the method of cookery.

c. Sources of the "C" vitamine

Its richest sources are vegetables such as cabbage, swedes, turnips, lettuce and watercress; fruits such as lemons, oranges, raspberries and tomatoes. Certain of the vegetables such as potatoes have a substantial value in this respect, but meat and most prepared milks are low in antiscorbutic values. The susceptibility of this vitamine to drying, heat and alkali, make it necessary to scrutinize your cooking methods very carefully in order not to ruin a good source by a poor preparation of it for the table.