Abstract
Department of Public Health, Tohoku University, School of Medicine, Sendai, Miyagi About prohibition on breeding cloven-hoofed animals, an interview survey was conducted for 22 inhabitants of S town in Miyagi Prefecture in June, 1975. And, to examine its influences for dietary habits, an enquete survey was conducted for school-children of S middle-school in November, 1975.
(1) This prohibition of breeding cloven-hoofed animals has been stayed in this small community since olden time, but it revived again to the people's mind by the failure in breeding cows or goats in the period after the 2nd World War. There is another taboo, which is a prohibition of planting an onion (Allium fistulosum L.). These two taboos are originated from myth being relevant to the native god in this community.
It is very interesting that there is, nevertheless no prohibition of consuming meat or milk of cloven-hoofed animals and an onion (Allium fistulosum L.).
(2) By an enquete survey, food preference, habitual frequency of food consumption, actual frequency of food consumption, actual frequency of food consumption in the last 7 days, and supplyconsumption relations of farm products were inquired for 50 kinds of food-stuffs which are usually eaten by local people.
Dietary habits of 9 school-children living in this small community, where the breeding and planting taboos exist, were compared with those of 228 school-children in the rural communities of S town.
The school-children in a taboo-existing community like and consume much more the food concerned with those taboos, such as pork, onion, liver, goat milk and mutton than the whole rural schoolchildren.
