§ Sir E. Graham-Littleasked the Secretary of State for Air how many men have been invalided from the Air Force since the outbreak of war on account of digestive disorders; and, inasmuch as these disorders are principally caused by dietetic faults, if he will inquire into the dietary of the Air Force with a view to avoiding these results?
§ Sir A. SinclairIt would not be in the public interest to state the actual figure, but the number of men invalided from the Royal Air Force since the outbreak of war on account of digestive disorders is about 17 per cent. of all those discharged for all diseases. As I explained in the reply which I gave the hon. Member for Stratford (Mr. Groves) on 15th July, 1941, the dietary of the Force is under constant and expert investigation. Laboratory and field tests of the vitamin content of foodstuffs both before and after cooking, and of their digestibility and nutritive value, have been undertaken and improvements made in the light of the knowledge gained. In general the diet of the R.A.F. is well balanced and there is no deficiency of any essential ingredient.