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A description of the functions of the child's organism with special attention to the characteristics in which they differ from those of the adult forms the subject matter of this book. The general principles underlying the differences are discussed, and quantitative differences, expressed numerically where possible, are included.
The arrangement of the material is new and interesting. The author first discusses the transformation of energy, the ultimate goal toward which all life processes are directed. The three components that determine the energy requirement, that is, basal metabolism, specific dynamic action of foodstuffs and work, may be influenced by various factors: body surface, youth, growth, sex, proportion of breathing protoplasm, food intake, storage and exercise. Methods for estimating the nutritional requirements are briefly described.
The second section discusses fully the heat economy of the body: heat formation and control and the characteristics of heat regulation peculiar to the child under normal