Healths improvement: or, Rules comprizing and discovering the nature, method, and manner of preparing all sorts of food used in this nation. Written by that ever famous Thomas Muffett, Doctor in Physick: corrected and enlarged by Christopher Bennet, Doctor in Physick, and fellow of the Colledg of Physitians in London.

The dignity and necessity of Bread.

BRead is a food so necessary to the life of man, that whereas many meats be loathed naturally, of some persons, yet we never saw, read, nor heard of any man that naturally hated bread. The reasons whereof I take to be these. First because it is the staff of life, without which all other meats would either quickly putrifie in our stomachs, or sooner pass thorough them then they should, whereupon crudities, belly-worms and fluxes do arise to such children or persons, as either eat none or too little Bread.

Again, Neither flesh, fruit nor fish are good at all sea∣sons, for all complexions, for all times, for all constitu∣tions and ages of men; but Bread is never out of sea∣son, disagreeing with no sickness, age, or complexion, and therefore truely called the companion of life. No child so young but he hath Bread, or the matter of Bread in his pap: no man so weak, but he eats it in his broth, or sucks it out of his drink. It neither enflam∣eth the cholerick, nor cooleth the phlegmatick, nor over-moistneth the sanguin, nor drieth the melancholick.

Furthermore it is to be admired (saith Plutarch) that Bread doth of all other things best nourish and streng∣then both man and beast; insomuch that with a little Bread they are enabled for a whole dayes journey, when with twise as much meat they would have fainted. Wherefore it was not a small threatning, when God said

he would break the staff of bread; without which our meat giveth no strength (as I said before) but either cor∣rupteth in the stomach, or is converted to slimy crudi∣ties; we may also remember, that of all compound meats it is the first of all mentioned in the Scripture, namely in the third of Genesis; where God threatneth Adam that in the sweat of his browes he should eat his bread. Again in the Lords Prayer we ask for all bodily nourish∣ment in the name of Bread, because Bread may be just∣ly called the meat of meats, as without whom there is no good nor substantial nourishment. The Italians have a Proverb, That all troubles are easie with bread, and no pleasure pleasant without Bread. Signifying thereby, our lives to consist more in Bread, then in any other meat whatsoever,

To conclude, when Christ would describe himself unto us whilst he lived, and leave a memorial unto us of him∣self after death: his wisdome found no Hieroglyphi∣cal character wherein better to express himself (the on∣ly nourisher and feeder of all mankind) then by the sight, taking and eating of Bread: so that I may boldly prefer it above all nourishment, being duely and rightly used, as agreeing with all times, ages, and constitutions of men, either sick or sound; which cannot be verified of any one nourishment besides.

Upon which and some other things, arose these questi∣ons and sayings,

Whether eating of crusts of Bread, and sinews of flesh, make a man strong?

Whether Ashes be Physick, and mouldy Bread clear the eyesight?

Mony and Bread never brought plague.

Bread and Cheese be the two targets against death.

Notes

• Plut. Symp. 7.