EFFECT OF RESTRICTION OF INORGANIC SALTS IN THE DIET ON ORGAN GROWTH

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Abstract
A deficiency of inorganic materials in the diet manifests itself in 2 ways on the development of the organs. (1) A short period of sub-normal growth is followed by regression in weight, and finally the organs may weigh less than those of normal rats of similar body weight. The heart and spleen are examples of organs thus affected. (2) Some organs whose rate of growth is at first abnormally accelerated by the absence of dietary salts later undergo a shrinkage, i.e., the kidney, the testes, and the adrenals. The possible relation of adrenal hormone to the regulation of salt metabolism is pointed out on the basis of the correlation of changes in size of the adrenal and shifts in the distribution of water in blood and muscle.