Sowing for Physical and Spiritual Health by David Paulson; W. S. Sadler

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Sep 18, 1900

Sowing for Physical and Spiritual Health

By David Paulson; W. S. Sadler

David Paulson & W. S. Sadler

THE NON-NUTRITIOUS ELEMENTS.

WHAT PURPOSE THEY SERVE.

It is a part of the divine order that our diet shall consist partially of substances that can not be directly used to either build up structure or furnish heat and energy. The most important of these elements is known as cellulose, or woody substance, and is found more or less in the whole vegetable world. Its chemical composition is practically the same as that of starch; and it may be put through such a process in the laboratory that it can be made to yield glucose, a variety of sugar. The lower animals have the power of digesting a large amount of cellulose, and careful observation seems to indicate that, under certain conditions at least, human beings may digest a small amount.

One of the chief advantages of cellulose is that it serves as a mechanical stimulus to produce peristaltic action of the intestines. Herbivorous animals, which have a long intestinal tract, soon die when fed on a diet containing no cellulose; while carnivorous animals, on account of their short alimentary canal, do not, to the same extent, require this substance. The intestine of man is not so long in proportion to the length of his body as is that of herbivorous animals. Yet man requires a certain amount of cellulose to furnish the necessary bulk for his food. The muscular walls of the intestines, like other muscles, waste away if they have no work to do. If an arm is tied up for several weeks, it will become smaller than it was before. It is a universal law that God takes away those functions of the body which we fail to use. Lauder Brunton, an eminent English medical authority, said that there were three things which had killed off the American Indians,—syphilis, whisky, and fine flour. He also said that the reason American dentists are so much better than English dentists is because over in America they have discovered a method by which all the indigestible parts of the flour can be removed, consequently the teeth have nothing to do, and decay quickly. This gives the dentists much more opportunity to secure practice, and by this means they excel the English dentists, who do not have the same opportunity, on account of the more sensible dietetic habits of the people.

The popular tendency to eliminate from all the foodstuffs the woody fibers is undoubtedly one of the principal causes of the habitual constipation from which thousands suffer.

At the same time, the other extreme should be avoided—seeking to live on foods that contain little or no nourishment, and whose bulk is made up largely of indigestible elements.

VARIOUS SOURCES OF WOODY SUBSTANCES.

Surrounding every starch granule, is a little membrane of cellulose; and one object of cooking is to split these granules open, so that the digestive juices can gain access to the starch. In fact, cellulose constitutes the cell membrane of all plant cells. It is particularly abundant in such foods as vegetables and fruits, as will be seen by referring to the accompanying table.

PERCENTAGE OF CELLULOSE CONTAINED IN VARIOUS FOODS.

GRAINS.		FRUIT.
Wheat	1½	Fresh Apples	1½
Barley	4	Dried Apples	10
Oats	18	Apricots	5
FLOUR.		Blackberries	7
Graham	2	Cherries	5
Oatmeal	1	Cranberries	6
BREAD.		Prunes	5
Whole-wheat Bread	5	Raspberries	7½
White Zwieback	1½	Dried Raspberries	47
		Figs	12
NUTS.		VEGETABLES.
Walnuts	4½	Cabbage	1.8
Sweet Almonds	6½	Potatoes	.8
Peanuts	14	Asparagus	1
Cocoanuts	3	Dried Asparagus	17

Many vegetables contain so large a percentage of water that the actual amount of cellulose is much smaller than would ordinarily be supposed.

SPIRITUAL LESSONS FROM CELLULOSE.

As cellulose seems to serve no vital purpose in the food, the question may be asked: Why is it there? Yet experiments have demonstrated that a diet containing no cellulose to give it bulk, etc., results disastrously to the animals that are compelled to subsist upon it. While cellulose can not, at least to any great degree, be utilized by the body in the building of tissue or the manufacture of heat and energy, nevertheless, as previously shown, it is an article indispensable to the diet of human beings.

So it is in our spiritual experience; we are called upon to pass through many and varied experiences that are apparently wholly undesirable and unnecessary to the upbuilding of our moral nature, or for our spiritual nourishment. Trials, temptations, disappointments, reverses, and sorrows are all indispensable to our spiritual growth and moral development. Many of these things, while they do not directly enter into our moral make-up, are, nevertheless, necessary to enable us properly to recognize and utilize the valuable lessons and nourishment that accompany them. Many a gem of precious truth and many a bit of glorious experience come to the Christian inwrapped in an envelope of moral cellulose, which, in itself, seems of little use, but incloses something of inestimable value.

We have to crack the shell of the nut to secure the meat within, but we do not eat the shell: nevertheless it has served a most useful purpose in preserving in proper condition its contents for use. Our greatest victories are sometimes preceded by the hours of darkest experience. Many great and grand moral opportunities are surrounded by membranes of spiritual cellulose. Our most useful experiences are sometimes ushered in by what seems to us our most useless experiences. The day of great things is sometimes born of the day of small things.