Alcohol : its Action on the Human Organism. (Stationery Office-
2s. 6d. net.)—The Central Control Board in November, 1916, appointed an expert Advisory Committee to consider the physio- logical action of alcohol. The provisional conclusions of the Com- mittee are stated in this interesting little book. Lord D'Abernon sums up the physiological view as follows :—
" (a) That the main action of alcohol (apart from the effects of its continued excessive use) is confined to the nervous system ; (b) that alcohol is narcotic rather than stimulant in action ;
(c) that its nutritional value is strictly limited; (d) that its habitual use as an aid to work is physiologically unbound ; and (e) that the ordinary use of alcohol should not only be moderate, but should also be limited to the consumption of beverages of adequate dilution,
taken at sufficient intervals of time to prevent a persistent dele- terious action on the tissues."
The ComMittee hold aloof from the social, economic, and moral issues involved.
Previous page
