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.

CHAP. XXXII. (Book 32)

Of the quality of Meats. (Book 32)

* 1.1 HIppocrates and Galen bids every man both in health and sickness, beware what kind of meat he most commonly useth; for like food like flesh, like meat like nourishment.

[And therefore we find that some have Quails sto∣machs, and may eat poyson: A Woman by custome drank the juice of Hemlocks usually. Gal. lib. 3. simpl. medic. cap. 18. And a Maid fed usually (by custome) up∣on Napellus Spiders, and other poysons, Caelius lib. A. L. 11. cap. 18. Mithridates the younger used continually a counterpoyson made of poysons, in so much that when he would have poysoned himself (being by his son Phar∣naces vilany betrayed to Lucullus) he could not do it, and therefore killed himself by the help of a Frenchman, Plin. lib. 23. cap. 9.]

* 1.2 All which cautions are particularly set down by Hippo∣crates and Galen, though scatteringly and by peices in se∣veral places▪ that I need not add to his own words; which I have aphoristically set down in these sentences follow∣ing, because no man ever did the like.

* 1.3 1. Let every man take heed, what quality his meat is of; for custome begetteth another nature, and the whole constitution of body may be changed by Diet.

2. We should take those kinds of meats which are best for our own particular bodys, for our own particular age, temperature, distemperature & complexion. For as every particular member of the body is nourished with a several

juice: so labourers and idle persons, children and stri∣plings, old men and yound men, cold and hot bodies, phlegmatick and cholerick complexions must have di∣vers Diets.

* 1.4 3. Young, hot, strong and labouring mens stomachs may feed of meats, giving both an hard and a gross juice, (as beife, bacon, poudred-flesh and fish, hard cheese, rye∣bread and hard egs, &c.) which may nourish slowly, and be concocted by degrees; for if they should eat things of light nourishment (as veal, lamb, capons, chickens, poacht-egs, partridges, pheasants or plovers, &c.) either their meat would be too soon digested, or else wholy * 1.5converted into choler. Contrariwise milk is fittest for young children, tender flesh for them that are growing, and liquid meats for such as be sick of sharpe diseases.

Furthermore if any mans bowels or body be too dry, a moist diet of suppings, and boild meats yeelds him a remedy, but if it be too moist, all his meats and diet must tend to driness.

* 1.6 4. Sweet meats are unfit for young children and young men, and hot. stomachs; for they corrupt chil∣drens teeth, and turn most into choler in young mens stomachs, but they are good for old men and cold com∣plexions; yea hony it self agreeth with them.

* 1.7 5 Bitter meats engender choler and burn blood, giv∣ing no general nourishment to the whole, howsoever they be acceptable to some one part.

* 1.8 6. Sharp spices (which I have particularly named be∣fore in the fifth Chapter of this Book) are most unfit for tender bodies, whose substance is easily melted and en∣flamed, howsoever strong men may eat them with gross meats.

* 1.9 7. Soure meats and sharp together (as limons, orenges, citrons and vinegar) offend cold stomachs and sinewy

parts: but if they be cold and astringent (as sorrel, quin∣ces, cervisses and medlers) they are not so offensive, nay they are profitable to all stomachs being eaten last, unless the body be subject to fluxes.

* 1.10 8. Meats oversalted how dangerous they are, infla∣mations, leprosies, sharpness of urine, and great ob∣structions hapning to such as use them much, do suffici∣ently declare, agreeing with none but strong bodies; as Sailers, Souldiers, and husbandmen, accustomed to * 1.11hard labour and much toiling.

* 1.12 9. Fatty meats are not good but for cold and dry stomachs; for in sanguine and cholerick stomacks they * 1.13are soon corrupted, in phlegmatick stomacks they pro∣cure loosness and hinder retention: Only they are fit for men naturally melancholick, giving to them a kindly warmth, and also a most convenient and proper moi∣sture.

* 1.14 10. All meats should be given very hot to cold and raw stomachs; but cold meats to cold stomachs are ve∣ry hurtful. Pityllus had so cold a stomach (saith Suidas) that he made a sheath for his tongue, to swallow down his pottage scalding hot: and Eunapius reporteth the like of Proaeresius the Sophister; yea I my self have known a Shropshire gentleman of the like quality.

* 1.15 11. When any man is sick or distempered, let his meats be of contrary quallity to his disease: for health it self is but a kind of temper gotten and preserved by a convenient mixture of contrarieties.

Now in what degree most particular meats be hot, cold and dry or moist, is sufficiently declared above in the fifth Chapter, where I have largely set down the differencies of meat both in kind, substance, temperature and tast, where∣unto I refer you.

12. Above all things take heed that you eat not

through hunger of a meat, which either naturally or acci∣dentally * 1.16you loath; for as the pleasing meat is best con∣cocted (yea though it be somewhat of the worst kind) so meats loathed, turn into wind, belchings, vomitings and cruel gripings, because the stoamch doth not affect * 1.17them. But what meat is fittest, and most agreeable to every mans tast, humour and nature; rather proper expe∣rience doth teach us, then any mans judgement can di∣rect us.

13 Let a strong and good stomach tast of all things, * 1.18but not feed upon them as nourishments; yea, it is good in health to tast every thing, least we refuse that in sick∣ness which perhaps we shall have most cause to feed on: * 1.19as it hapned to Titus the Emperour, whose over-nice feed∣ing and bathing hastned his death.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Hipp. de sal Di. Galen com. in aph. so. lib 1.
• * 1.2

  Gal. com. 4▪ de vict. rat. in ac. cap. 10.
• * 1.3

  Gal. com in aph. 50. lib. 1. Gal. com. in ap▪ 12. l. 1. & com. de sal. diaet. c. 7▪ & com. 5. in 6. epi▪ c. ••. & com. in aph. 3. lib. 3.
• * 1.4

  Gal. com. in aph. 18. lib. 2.
• * 1.5

  Gal com. 2. de vict. rat. in. ac. cap. 36.
• * 1.6

  4. de fac. simp. cap. 7.
• * 1.7

  4. de simpl▪ fac. cap. 19. &. 5. e∣jusdem. cap. 25
• * 1.8

  Gal. de alim. fac. l. & ca. ult.
• * 1.9

  Gal. 2. de vict. rat in ac.▪
• * 1.10

  Gal. 3 de fac. alim. & 3. de loc. af••. cap. 6.
• * 1.11

  Gal. com in ap. 18. lib. 2.
• * 1.12

  Gal 5. de. al. f••▪
• * 1.13

  Isa. de univers. & parti. diaeta.
• * 1.14

  Gal. com. in aph▪ 3. lib. 3.
• * 1.15

  Gal. com in. aph. 3 l. 3.
• * 1.16

  Gal com. in aph. 38. lib. 2.
• * 1.17

  Gal. com. 4. de vict rat. in. ac. cap. 89.
• * 1.18

  Hip. de sal. vict. rat.
• * 1.19

  Pl. desan. tu••n.