GROWTH FACTORS AND NUTRITION

Growth factors and nutrition

Worse still is the amount of nutrition that is lost from our food through processing before we actually get to eat it. Professor Francis Potenger conducted a famous experiment into the effects of food processing. Taking two groups of kittens, he fed one group on fresh meat, the other on an exclusive diet of canned (processed) cat food. In time, the kittens in both groups grew to maturity and produced litters of their own. With each succeeding generation, the cats fed on fresh food flourished, their fur was glossy and sleek, their behavior lively and alert. The cats in the canned-food group, on the other hand, suffered a gradual physical and mental deterioration, growth was stunted, they became increasingly psychotic and unsociable, and eventually they were unable to reproduce. Of course, our diets are much more varied than those used in this controlled experiment. We eat a diversity of meats, dairy products, and vegetables. Nevertheless, Potenger’s experiment suggests that no matter how nutritious or tasty our food seems, we most likely are not receiving everything we need for a healthy, balanced lifestyle.HUMAN GROWTH: