Wartime Nutrition

Wartime Nutrition

During WWII there was a push to increase the nutrition of our citizens.  At the onset of the war, the government was finding the incoming recruits were coming into the military sadly malnourished. This was not a result of a lack of food, but a lack of knowledge as to the correct foods to eat.  The science of nutrition was still fairly new, but WWII brought a certain urgency to the understanding of, and the connection between, food and health. As new discoveries were made, they were passed on to the public, through classes on meal planning and conservation of foods, as well as literature and movie shorts.

The U.S. Gov't, in an effort to promote health and wellness, created films to encourage healthy eating. Here is Wartime Nutrition (1943), from the U.S. Office of War Information.

In the next video, nutrition is once again the topic, but with regard to our troops.  There is a look at the science of nutrition and how food is shipped and prepared to the troops.  Also, there is a discussion on how nutrition is involved in the creation of ration kits and its possible future application for civilian use.