Milk is particularly well adapted for use in many diseases because it is easily digested, comparatively unirritating, and, when used exclusively, lessens abnormal fermentation in the intestines. No single food is so valuable to the sick. It occupies a unique position, for it is easily administered and it combines in itself the qualities of a beverage and of a food. It is a bulky food, however, because it contains so much water. When a patient is confined to his bed, three or four pints daily will maintain life and sometimes even increase his weight, but a person in health, engaged in active work, will need twice this amount.

The milk cure, or an exclusive milk diet, has been recommended for very many diseases. It is carried out systematically at certain health resorts, especially in Switzerland and Germany. Its applicability in pathologic states is discussed in the second part of this volume. When milk forms the only article of diet, it should at first be given in quantities not to exceed from one-third to one-half glass every second hour. After two or three days, two-thirds of a glass can be given at a time, and later a whole glass, or about eight ounces. It should be drunk slowly, or sipped. It should be taken with perfect regularity during the day, and two or three times at night. As many as twelve glasses (three quarts or liters) are usually prescribed for use in twenty-four hours. Constipation is not an unfavorable indication when milk only is taken as food. It means that the milk is well digested and well absorbed, and it can be counteracted by mild laxatives. Vomiting and diarrhea, however, indicate indigestion and malassimilation. At first, patients upon a milk diet lose flesh, but when they take the maximum quantity, they hold their own or gain. They often feel drowsy. The tongue is thickly covered by a white or yellowish-white pasty coat and a disagreeable mawkish taste is often complained of.

The urine is increased in quantity. The output of uric acid is lessened. Indican and compounds of similar origin disappear.

If milk was the only food a person took, its bulk would be uncomfortably large, providing enough was taken to furnish 2500 or 3000 calories, for 100 grams (three and one-third ounces) furnishes 69.2 calories or units of energy and approximately 3.3 grams of protein. Therefore, as the only food for a person it is only adapted to those who are at rest in bed. For others it can be made a more perfect ration by adding sugar to it or by giving with it a little bread or crackers.

The milk cure is persisted in for six or eight weeks ordinarily. It is not suddenly discontinued, but milk is given in gradually lessened amounts, and other easily digested foods are substi-stituted for the quantities withdrawn.

It is sometimes necessary to modify the flavor of milk when it is used as an exclusive food or as the chief article of diet, as the taste of it is not agreeable to every one. Warm milk is preferred by many, and is particularly well borne by the stomachs of most persons. A little salt and pepper are sometimes added to milk to modify its taste.