Cyproheptadine (cyp.), an antagonist of histamine and serotonin, has been reported to stimulate appetite and a sequent increase in body weight, when applied the asthmatic and other patients.
But among a number of animal reports of experiments in rats, cats and dogs, there are some in which the authors conclude that the experimental animals have no evidence of any increase appetite or weight gain, though there are some others where the experimental animals have shown some evidence.
And in the latter cases, cyp. is reported to have effect on lateral and veritromedial hypothalamus of the rats and the cats.
And so, in order to examine these observations more thouroughly, a study was undertaken in four groups of rats.
1. The healthy rats weighing from 50 to 100 g received cyp. in dosage of 0.1 mg/kg/day, 0.2 mg/kg/day, 1 mg/kg/day, 2 mg/kg/day, 4mg/kg/day separately.
The data on weight gain and the increase of appetite shows that they had no effect.
2. The rats was injected with CCl₄ (0.05 ml/100 g or 0.1 ml/100 g) receiving cyp. in dosage of 2.5mg/kg/day.
The data on weight gain and the increase of appetite shows that it had no effect.
After injection the weight of rats fell sharply.
But after several days, appetite and weight gain was increased especially in the group of receiving cyp.
3. The rats were injured with the operation of the abdormen 2 cm long receiving cyp. in dosage of 2.5 mg/kg/day.
The data on weight gain and appetite shows that it had no effect.
4. The rats were injured with the exstilpation of one adrenal receiving cyp. in dosage of 2.5 mg/kg/day.
Few days after the operation, weight and appetite increased slightly in the group of receiving cyp. than controls.
Authors think the effect of cyp. on the patients suffering from bronchial asthoma, neurosis, etc. are derived from the sedative and psychological actions of cyp.

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Nutritional intakes in farmer households were investigated and compared in different age groups. The investigation periods were 3 consecutive days in the middle of July, 1968 to 1970. The subjects were 314 males and 393 females of 20 years old and over in the 296 families of 4 regions in Nagasaki Prefecture (see Fig . 1 and Table 1, 2). They were divided into groups at the intervals of ten years. The food consumed was measured by weight, and the data obtained were analysed as follows :
1. Nutritional intakes in the different age groups were compared in Table 4. Between the groups up to age 49 there was no significant difference in the average nutritional intake. The group in their 50's showed significant difference in some nutrients consumed, and the group in their 60's in most of the nutrients consumed. The decreasing tendency of intake according to ageing could be detected in females sooner than in males.
2. The calory proportion of protein, fat, and carbohydrate consumed showed no significant difference between the age groups (see Fig. 3). Animal protein in total protein revealed no change in proportion either (see Fig. 6). The Fig. 4 and 5 mean, however, that the calory proportion of protein intake in 70's-group is higher than that of the family.
3. The proportion of actual nutritional intake to the Recommended Dietary Allowance is shown in Fig. 2. The intake of calory, protein and some other nutrients went over the R. D. A. However, vitamin A and B₂ were not sufficient, showing the same trend as seen recently in the National Nutrition Survey in Japan. With the youngers most of the nutrients consumed went over the R. D. A. due to their high calory intake. With the elders their calory intake decreased due to their lower calory consumption. Accordingly the total protein and animal protein intake declined quite frequently under the R. D. A. Thus, nutritional problems to be improved were revealed in the elder farmers.

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1. The threshold value of perception of dark adaptation in school children, college women and residents in rice field area was improved significantly when they were dosed with a mixture of vitamin (thiamine, riboflavin, B6, pantothenic acid, nicotinic acid, ascorbic acid and vitamin A) and the value remainefd subnormal when the dose was lacking in thiamine, riboflavin, ascorbic acid, vitamin A or pantothenic acid.
2. The threshold value in some of them became normal when the mixture of vitamin was given together with milk or methionine. The fact shows that their diet is in shortage of animal protein.
3. After dosing methionine and watersoluble vitamin to junior college women there was a significant improvement of dark adaptation but the threshold value did not return to normal until vitamin A was supplemented. The addition of methionine increased the excretion of creatinine in almost all college women as well as in the aforementioned residents in rice field area. The results of urinary analyses indicate that addition of vitamin A together with watersoluble vitamin and methionine resulted in a marked increase of urinary ethereal sulfate.
4. It was suggested that the degree of improvement in dark adaptation after the supplementation with vitamin A to a subject who has received adequate watersoluble vitamin and methionine would represent a measure of relative saturation of the body store as to vitamin A. And if his ethereal sulfate percentage in total sulfate does not reach 25% he might be diagnosed to be deficient in vitamin A.

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The interaction between starch and sucrose ester of fatty acid was revealed, in a previous paper, to vary with the degree of substitution in the sucrose molecule. This paper is to explore relationship possibly existing in such interaction by describing the dependency on the structure of fatty acid moiety, i. e. its length of carbon chain and its degree of unsaturation.
Various sucrose esters were prepared using caprylic, lauric, stearic, oleic, linoleic and behenic acids as fatty acid moiety. Amylographic behavior, gel strength and swelling power of potato starch containing either one of these esters at 4% level were determined.
The gelatinization temperature of starch was found to vary by fatty acid constituent of the sucrose ester added to a constant mono-ester level, becoming higher in the presence of sucrose ester of longer chain and/or more saturated fatty acid. The fatty acid constituent of sucrose ester added to a constant mono-ester level was found to affect also both the rate of the increasing gel strength after gelatinization and the rate of diminishing swelling power of the gelatinized starch with the days elapsed, starch gel containing sucrose ester of longer chain fatty acid being harder to retrograde. These facts support the interpretation that the interaction being exercised between raw or gelatinized starch and the added sucrose ester is much directly dependent on the structure of the fatty acid moiety rather than on HLB of the ester.

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The district, where the present investigation has been carried out, is the largest slum in Japan, so called Airin-chiku or Kamagasaki, and located at Nishinari-ku in Osaka city. The area is 0.62 km² and the population is about 50, 000. Most of the residents are day manual laborers living alone at a small room, 1.7 m², of the poor apartment house. The authors examined 41 volunteer subjects of them to clarify the nutritional status in this district.
The daily intake of the nutrients was observed by the simplified method of nutrition survey, a kind of the questionnaire methods, as follows : total calorie 1, 774.4 cal, protein 52.4g, animal protein 25.4g, fat 31.5 g, iron 8.8 mg, vitamin A 940.9 I.U., vitamin B₁ 0.56 mg, vitamin B₂ 0.73 mg, vitamin C47.2 mg. Their nutritional status was the poorest in comparison with the results of other nutrition surveys in our country.
Most of the subjects drunk much alcohol everyday and 38% of their caloric intake was provided by alcohol.
The high prevalence rates of anemia and serum GOT·GPT abnormality were found in this district. It was suggested that the high prevalences were derived from the poor nutritional status and the high intake of alcohol.

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This report is a result of trial to establish a semi-structured set of questionnaires for approaching personal dietary histories by the interview technique. The medical school students living in Sendai city, born and grown in varying places in Japan, were selected as the interviewer. They were requested to answer many questions as follows : the particular food, diet or dishes met first in Sendai city; the kind of food, diet or dishes in their youth which they discern particular in their life histories ; the kind of food that they dislike ; the special food, diet or dishes at the feast (familial or communal) ; personal socio-economical backgrounds and others.
The data obtained imply that their food habits have been influenced by food availability in their residential place, and suggest that the food habit is an integral part of individual's personal experiences.

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