CHAPTER  XXXm


FOOD  SANITATION

Milk  is  a  food  that  is  in  a  class  by  itself,  owing  to  its  lia-
bility to  undergo  changes,  develop  unwholesome  products,  and
become  a  spreader  of  disease  germs.  It  may  endanger  public
health  to  such  an  extent  that  the  supervision  and  control  of  its
production  and  distribution  is  exercised  by  boards  of  health
without  question.  But  the  same  kinds  of  changes  and  infections
that  affect  milk  may  affect  other  foods  also.  Various  depart-
ments of  national  and  state  governments  are  undertaking  cer-
tain phases  of  food  super\'ision  largely  on  economic  grounds;
and  the  departments  of  health  of  the  larger  cities  are  extending
the  work  for  sanitary  reasons.  The  control  of  the  sanitary  con-
ditions of  foods,  drinks,  and  confectionery  that  are  offered  for
sale  is  under  the  jurisdiction  of  a  local  board  of  health,  and  the
details  of  the  supervision  are  within  the  scope  of  lie  activities
of  health  officers  and  public  health  nurses.  The  word  "food"
is  used  in  the  general  sense  to  include  drinks,  confectionery,  and
other  substances  which  are  ordinarily  taken  into  the  stomach.
The  conditions  which  may  affect  the  wholesomcness  of  food
may  be  considered  under  four  headings:  1,  the  state  of  the  food
itself;  2,  the  methods  of  preserving  the  food;  3,  the  health  of
persons  who  handle  the  food;  and  4,  the  sanitation  of  the  places
in  which  foods  and  drinks  are  sold.
The  conditions  of  food  itself  which  may  affect  health  are
(1)  its  purity  or  freedom  from  adulteration,  (2)  its  state  of  fresh-
ness or  decomposition,  and  (3)  the  presence  of  poisons  or  disease
germs.
