The Banting System was a course of diet for reducing superfluous fat, adopted and recommended in 1863 by W Banting of London. The dietary recommended was the use of butcher-meat principally, and abstinence from beer, farinaceous food, and vegetables - a similar low-carbohydrate diet was 100 years later promoted by Dr Atkins as the Atkins Diet. Research Banting System
Cellulose is the cellular tissue of plants. It is a member of the carbohydrate family and is allied to starch. In plants, cellulose is normally combined with woody, fatty, or gummy substances. With some exceptions among insects, true cellulose is not found in animal tissues. Microorganisms in the digestive tracts of herbivorous animals break down the cellulose into products that can then be absorbed.
Cellulose is insoluble in all ordinary solvents and may be readily separated from the other constituents of plants. Depending on its concentration, sulphuric acid acts on cellulose to produce glucose, soluble starch, or amyloid; the last is a form of starch used for the coating of parchment paper. When cellulose is treated with an alkali and then exposed to the fumes of carbon disulphide, the solution yields films and threads. Rayon and cellophane are cellulose regenerated from such solutions.
Cellulose acetates are spun into fine filaments for the manufacture of some fabrics and are also used for photographic safety film, as a substitute for glass, for the manufacture of safety glass, and as a moulding material. Cellulose ethers are used in paper sizings, adhesives, soaps, and synthetic resins. With mixtures of nitric and sulphuric acids, cellulose forms a series of flammable and explosive compounds known as cellulose nitrates, or nitrocelluloses. Pyroxylin, also called collodion cotton, is a nitrate used in various lacquers and plastics; another, collodion, is used in medicine, photography, and the manufacture of artificial leather and some lacquers. A third nitrate, guncotton, is a high explosive. Research Cellulose
The adrenal glands are a pair of glands above the kidneys which secrete adrenaline and other hormones. Each adrenal gland consists of an inner part called the medulla and an outer part called the cortex. The adrenal medulla is the source of epinephrine, also called adrenaline, and norepinephrine, which affect a number of body functions; for example, they stimulate cardiac action, increase the blood pressure, and affect constriction and dilation of blood vessels and musculature. All these actions help the organism deal with acute emergencies more effectively and efficiently. The adrenal cortex elaborates a group of hormones known as glucocorticoids, which include cortisone and hydrocortisone, and the mineralocorticoids, which include aldosterone and other hormonal substances that are essential to the maintenance of life and to adaptation to stress. Adrenal secretions regulate the salt and water balance of the body, influence the blood pressure, affect lymphatic tissue, influence the mechanisms of the immune system, and regulate carbohydrate and protein metabolism. In addition to these functions, the adrenal glands also elaborate male and female hormones. Research Adrenal Glands
Hypoglycemia is a condition characterised by an abnormally low level of sugar in the blood. Symptoms of hypoglycemia include weakness, shakiness, nervousness, anxiety, and faintness and actual fainting. Patients may also show marked personality changes and may seem intoxicated. Hypoglycemia is the result of hyperinsulinism, or an excess of insulin , due either to an overdose of insulin - in the case of persons with diabetes mellitus - or to the body's overproduction of insulin. Insulin is instrumental in regulating carbohydrate metabolism; when hyperinsulinism occurs, glucose is sharply depleted in the process of conversion to glycogen in the liver and muscles and to fat in the adipose tissues. The most common type of hypoglycmia is reactive, or functional hypoglycemia and occurs particularly among persons under emotional stress. It is also due to overproduction of insulin, commonly three to five hours after meals. Its symptoms are milder than those suffered by insulin-dependent diabetics, and it can be controlled by lowering carbohydrate intake. Because reactive hypoglycemia has many of the classical symptoms of depression or anxiety, it is often wrongly believed to be the cause of underlying psychological disorders. Even when this physical condition is properly diagnosed, it is most often found to be incidental to, rather than the direct cause of, the patient's symptoms. Research Hypoglycemia
The pituitary gland (or hypophysis),is a gland within the brain concerned with regulating growth and regulating other ductless glands. The pituitary gland , consists of three lobes, the anterior lobe, the intermediate lobe, which in primates is present for only a short part of the life span, and the posterior lobe. It is situated at the base of the brain and has been called the master controlling gland of the body. The anterior and the posterior lobes of the pituitary secrete different hormones. The anterior lobe secretes various hormones that stimulate the function of other endocrine glands, for example, adrenocorticotropic hormone, or ACTH, which stimulates the adrenal cortex; thyroid- stimulating hormone, or thyrotropin, known as TSH; follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH), which stimulate the sex glands; and prolactin, which, with other special hormones, influences milk production of the mammary gland.
In addition, the anterior pituitary is the source of growthhormone, also called somatotropin, which promotes the development of body tissues, particularly of bone matrix and muscle, and influences carbohydrate metabolism. The anterior pituitary also secretes a hormone called melanocyte-stimulating hormone, which regulates the intensity of pigmentation in pigmented cells. In the 1970s scientists found that the anterior pituitary also produces substances called endorphins. These are peptides that act on the peripheral and central nervous systems to reduce sensitivity to pain. The hypothalamus, secretes an antidiuretic hormone named vasopressin, which is stored in the posterior lobe of the pituitary gland. The posterior lobe of the pituitary also stores another hormone secreted by the hypothalamus. This hormone, known as oxytocin, stimulates muscular contractions, especially of the uterus, and ejection of milk from lactating mammary glands. Not long ago it was found that secretion of three anterior pituitary hormones is under regulation of the hypothalamus: thyrotropin secretion is stimulated by thyrotropin-releasing factor (TRF), and luteinizing- hormone secretion by luteinizing-hormone releasing hormone (LHRH). Release of growthhormone is inhibited by somatostatin, which is also made by the pancreas. Research Pituitary gland
Carbohydrate is one of the three main classes of foods and a source of energy.
Carbohydrates are mainly sugars and starches that the body breaks down into glucose. The body also uses carbohydrates to make the substance glycogen that is stored in the liver and muscles for future use. If the body does not have enough insulin or cannot use the insulin it has, then the body will not be able to use carbohydrates for energy the way it should. This condition is called diabetes. Research Carbohydrate
Pectin is the name given to any of a group of complex carbohydrate derivatives produced in plants.
Pectins are white amorphous substances that yield a viscous solution with water; when combined in the proper proportions with sugar and acids, they form a gelatinous substance that is the thickening agent in fruit jams. Commercial pectin, obtained from apples or lemons, is used in preparing jam from fruits deficient in pectin. Research Pectin
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Banting System
