Wilson Nick, Nghiem Nhung, Summers Jennifer A, Carter Mary-Ann, Harper Glyn
Department of Public Health, University of Otago, Wellington, PO Box 7343 Wellington South, 6242 New Zealand.
N Z Med J. 2013 Apr 19;126(1373):12-29.
Amongst New Zealand soldiers in Gallipoli in 1915 there were reports of poor food quality and cases of scurvy. But no modern analysis of the military food rations has ever been conducted to better understand potential nutritional problems in this group.
We analysed the foods in the military rations for 1915 using food composition data on the closest equivalents for modern foods. We compared these results with other plausible diets and various optimised ones using linear programming.
Historical accounts provide evidence for poor food quality supplied to these soldiers. The nutrient analysis suggested that the military rations were below modern requirements for vitamins A, C and E; potassium; selenium; and dietary fibre. If military planners had used modest amounts of the canned vegetables and fruit available in 1915, this would probably have eliminated four of these six deficits. The results from the uncertainty analyses for vitamin C (e.g., 95% uncertainty interval [UI]: 5.5 to 6.7 mg per day), was compatible with the range known to cause scurvy, but the UI for vitamin A intake was only partly in the range for causing night blindness. To indicate the gap with the ideal, an optimised diet (using foods available in 1915), could have achieved all nutrient requirements for under half the estimated purchase cost of the 1915 military rations.
There is now both historical and analytic evidence that the military rations provided to these soldiers were nutritionally inadequate in vitamin C, and probably other nutrients such as vitamin A. These deficits are likely to have caused cases of scurvy and may have contributed to the high rates of other illnesses experienced at Gallipoli. Such problems could have been readily prevented by providing rations that included some canned fruit or vegetables (e.g., as manufactured by New Zealand at the time).
1915年在加里波利的新西兰士兵中，有关于食物质量差和坏血病病例的报告。但从未对军粮进行过现代分析，以更好地了解该群体潜在的营养问题。
我们利用现代食物最相近等效物的食物成分数据，分析了1915年军粮中的食物。我们使用线性规划将这些结果与其他合理饮食和各种优化饮食进行了比较。
历史记录为提供给这些士兵的劣质食物提供了证据。营养分析表明，军粮低于现代对维生素A、C和E、钾、硒和膳食纤维的需求。如果军事规划者在1915年使用适量的罐装蔬菜和水果，这可能会消除这六项不足中的四项。维生素C不确定性分析的结果（例如，95%不确定性区间[UI]：每天5.5至6.7毫克）与已知会导致坏血病的范围相符，但维生素A摄入量的UI仅部分处于导致夜盲的范围内。为了表明与理想情况的差距，一种优化饮食（使用1915年可得的食物）可以用不到1915年军粮估计采购成本一半的费用满足所有营养需求。
现在有历史和分析证据表明，提供给这些士兵的军粮在维生素C以及可能的其他营养素如维生素A方面营养不足。这些不足很可能导致了坏血病病例，并且可能导致了加里波利出现的其他高发病率疾病。通过提供包含一些罐装水果或蔬菜（例如当时新西兰生产的）的口粮，这些问题本可以很容易地得到预防。
