The Ration Book Diet

[MPicciotto]

Not to play devils advocate but to actually encourage a broader discussion does your diet take into account non-rationed foods? Or in other words are you planting a Victory Garden and eating unlimited vegetables from it? Have you asked your butcher for some Ox tail? Though I doubt very much that you would be asking him for horse meat what about venison? These unrationed meats I understand are also leaner and tend to be healthier then the popular and therefore rationed cuts of meat. This then bring up a historical question. How many families tapped into unrationed food supplies to make full meals each week? We've all seen the pictures or read the stories about horse meat, fish, vegetables. But with limited gas available and the "suburb" just beginning to develop how many actually had access to these other foods? I've heard that fish was not rationed. But unless you were living near the coast or waterways I imagine your fish availability might be even more limited then rationed foods. Not everybody had a place to grow even a modest victory garden and those who did may have lived too far from the butcher to get in on the few unrationed cuts of venison or horse that came in before those closer bought them all up.

Just my thoughts.
Matt

 

[Mac Daddy]

Coca-Cola is my own weakness -- and having access to a free supply at work has really not helped my situation. My doctor tells me I shouldn't have it at all -- but, you know, if I have to live to be 80 without having a Coke when I want one, what's the point? So with this diet, I'm limiting myself to a six-ounce glass, on ice -- the standard serving for the first half of the 20th century --once a day. This has, by far, been the most difficult resolve to keep.

I found this to be the most insane thing on my travels to America, every portion size is so much larger. I found in most fast food places, our large is your medium. So often I found I had way to much food, and I am a big guy. The litre of cola was a bit much to, and the free refills. In Australia we have to pay each time we want a drink if we dine in at a restaurant. I am surprised we in Australia still came out as the fattest country.


I look forward to further progress reports.

 

[Miss Sis]

There is a book called 'The Ration Book Diet' by Mike Brown available on Amazon about British war-time eating and rationing. I have not read this myself so I can't say how good it is but he has written several other books about wartime subjects which have been quite informative.

I can recommend any of the books by Maugauritte Pattern such as 'We'll Eat Again' which have lots of recipes all from war-time Britain. They have details in the front regarding amounts of foods that were rationed and the books are split into several sections such as starters, mains, puddings and baking.

I have made several things and they are certainly interesting, if not always to modern tastes! (and I say that as someone who doesn't have a particularly sweet tooth)

 

[LizzieMaine]

Not to play devils advocate but to actually encourage a broader discussion does your diet take into account non-rationed foods? Or in other words are you planting a Victory Garden and eating unlimited vegetables from it? Have you asked your butcher for some Ox tail? Though I doubt very much that you would be asking him for horse meat what about venison? These unrationed meats I understand are also leaner and tend to be healthier then the popular and therefore rationed cuts of meat. This then bring up a historical question. How many families tapped into unrationed food supplies to make full meals each week? We've all seen the pictures or read the stories about horse meat, fish, vegetables. But with limited gas available and the "suburb" just beginning to develop how many actually had access to these other foods? I've heard that fish was not rationed. But unless you were living near the coast or waterways I imagine your fish availability might be even more limited then rationed foods. Not everybody had a place to grow even a modest victory garden and those who did may have lived too far from the butcher to get in on the few unrationed cuts of venison or horse that came in before those closer bought them all up.

Just my thoughts.
Matt

Well, a lot of folks took advantage of the black market to get foods off the ration -- nobody's ever really come up with a positive percentage, but certainly it was substantial. The enduring image of the crafty blackmarketeer didn't just spring up out of nowhere -- he was a genuine fixture of wartime life.

Around here, deer hunting was and still is a way of life for much of the population, and venison was very popular. My grandfather's filling station was a tagging facility, and there are plenty of family stories of swapping gasoline for deer meat, and what the OPA didn't know wouldn't hurt them. If anyone I know gets their deer this fall, I might see if I could wrangle a steak or two.

Variety meats ("offal") were also very popular -- heart, lungs, kidneys, brains, tripe whatever you could get whenever you could get it. We used to have heart meat and tripe fairly often when I was little, and I developed quite a taste for heart -- haven't had it for ages, though, and don't even know if you can even get it anymore.

Fish was rationed on the same basis as meat, fat, and cheese, but if you had a fisherman in the family you could always get something off the ration. My grandparents lived just a throw from the town wharf, and it was very easy to go down there early in the morning and snag some mackerel -- trouble was, everyone else in town had the same idea, so supply had a hard time keeping up with demand. Myself, I haven't fished since I was six, and it's not allowed off the pier here because of pollution, so that option is out for me. Too bad, because nothing's as good as fried mackerel rolled in bread crumbs.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Very interesting concept! I don't know much about the rationing process (the "rationing rationale"), but did calculating daily caloric requirements come into it, and were they then averaging them out for the general population as part of how the allocations were arrived at? There was a good deal of interest in experiments along these lines from the early part of the century. The Scott Antarctic expedition conducted all sorts of experiments along the lines of fat/carb/protein ratios etc (sadly their daily ration vs their daily caloric requirements on the final trip to the Pole was sadly mismatched).

There was certainly some attention paid to this -- by the end of the thirties, people in general were very aware of calorie counting, and were becoming more educated on nutrition in general. The US paid very close attention to the nutritional aspects of rationing in the UK during 1940-41, and those observations worked into what eventually became the US system implemented from 1942 onward.

What's very interesting, I think, is just how much of the general public's understanding of nutrition had its origin in the war era. The first "recommended daily allowances" were introduced by the National Academy of Sciences in 1941, and the following year the USDA introduced the concept of "food groups" -- originally there were the "Basic Seven," which included green and yellow vegetables; fruits; potatoes; dairy products; meats, fish, eggs, and beans; bread, cereal, and flour; and fats. This was the culmination of the whole scientific trend in home economics that had started around the turn of the century, and gave people a whole new way to think about what they ate. The details have changed, but the structure is still very much what we're familiar with today.

The percentages of foods allowed under rationing were roughly guided by the recommended daily allowances, but there were other influences as well: it was understood that the nutritional requirements of the troops were more important than those of the civilian public, especially on the matter of fresh vegetables. Civilians would have to make do with what was left over after every serviceman had gotten his share, which was the main rationale behind the Victory Garden push -- if you didn't grow your own there was a good chance you wouldn't get any at all.

 

[Paisley]

Coca-Cola is my own weakness -- and having access to a free supply at work has really not helped my situation. My doctor tells me I shouldn't have it at all -- but, you know, if I have to live to be 80 without having a Coke when I want one, what's the point? So with this diet, I'm limiting myself to a six-ounce glass, on ice -- the standard serving for the first half of the 20th century --once a day. This has, by far, been the most difficult resolve to keep.

This thread might interest you:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=24678

I, too, have unlimited access to Coca-Cola at work--and I loved Coke. The fizz, the taste, the happy little burst of energy it gives you--I'm actually smiling just thinking about it. But it wrought havoc on my skin, and I stopped drinking it completely...and gone on living.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Sigh -- why must something that's so *good* be so bad for you? I don't think I'll ever be able to kick it completely, but I've cut way way back at least. I don't think I'm getting much of any sugar at the moment, other than whatever fruit sugar is in the tangerines I've been snacking on.

Currently I've lost another two pounds, and have yet to finish off my cheese or meat ration for this week. I think mostly that's because I've been so busy at work this week that I haven't had much time to eat.

 

[Naama]

Sigh -- why must something that's so *good* be so bad for you? I don't think I'll ever be able to kick it completely, but I've cut way way back at least. I don't think I'm getting much of any sugar at the moment, other than whatever fruit sugar is in the tangerines I've been snacking on.

Is it because of the sugar you're doctor said you shouldn't have it? Why don't just drink the zero/light version?



Naama

 

[LizzieMaine]

Is it because of the sugar you're doctor said you shouldn't have it? Why don't just drink the zero/light version?



Naama

It's my triglyceride level -- soda of any kind tends to elevate that, and then that bounces the cholesterol up. There's a bad history of heart disease in my family, and I'm getting to the age where I need to be worried about that. So, radical steps must be taken.

I've been drinking a lot of ice water lately -- that wasn't rationed, and it has the added benefit of being really cheap!

 

[Miss Neecerie]

Is it because of the sugar you're doctor said you shouldn't have it? Why don't just drink the zero/light version?



Naama

Just a note...technically the zero/light versions are healthwise no better for you...as the chemical sweeteners have their own ill effects.


Please note I drink the diet kind...but have cut way way back...for this reason...so bad for me...the -only- thing the diet version spares is calories.

 

[AllaboutEve]

Terrific idea Lizzie, much more interesting than most modern diets especially those awful cereal bars etc.

There was a tv programme here in the UK recently and they said that most British women actually went up a dress size during the war, however both of the presenters lost weight during making the programme so who knows??

I must say I have always been taken with the notion of a wartime ration diet myself, I wonder how it works out time-wise though. I'm not sure that I'd have the time to be as creative as the housewives of the 40s/50s were. I have a great article in a Housewife magazine about a woman that makes a piece of mutton last a whole week. It sounds pretty horrid but it's very impressive. I'll dig it out later and scan it in.

 

[Paisley]

There was a tv programme here in the UK recently and they said that most British women actually went up a dress size during the war, however both of the presenters lost weight during making the programme so who knows??

It's possible to lose weight and get bigger. It happens if you lose muscle and gain fat, because fat weighs less by volume than muscle.

Sufficient protein and exercise help you put on muscle. Lots of carbohydrates (I see that grain and cereals are unlimited in the rations) and too little exercise will put on fat.

BTW, it's not vintage, but I just checked out a recipe book I really like: Eating for Life by Bill Phillips. The recipes are tasty, easy to prepare and balance protein and carbs. My favorite recipe so far is the one for french fries. I was surprised at how little oil (1/2 tablespoon) it takes to make fries out of one potato. Tasty!

 

[Lady Day]

I've been drinking a lot of ice water lately -- that wasn't rationed, and it has the added benefit of being really cheap!

Ooh, could you drop in a squirt of lemon, or even tangerine for added flavor

LD

 

[MPicciotto]

It's possible to lose weight and get bigger. It happens if you lose muscle and gain fat, because fat weighs less by volume than muscle.

And the opposite is true too. Even though I've dropped off from my maximum waist size by 6 inches I'm only about 15lbs or so from my max weight. As I lost fat I traded it in for muscle.

Matt

 

[Foofoogal]

http://www.night-thunder.com/whydrinkwater.html

 

[Inky]

Lizzie I am following your progress with great interest. Please keep up posted as to how the changes are affecting you and your family.

As to eliminating soda, that was harder for me than giving up smoking. I gave up soda nearly 3 years ago. First by switching from fully loaded Coca-cola (at least a six pack a day) to diet Dr. Pepper, then ice tea, which I still drink occasionally, then Crystal Light and then eventually watered that down to water, which I drink all day long. I still will have a random Crystal Light fruit punch now and again, but I find iced/hot tea or iced/hot coffee to be my favorite choice when it's not water. It was tough to do but worthwhile to my health in the long run.

I have also had success not drinking water up to 15 minutes before my meal and then not for 30 minutes after. This I learned because of my gastric bypass surgery in 2007, and it's done so as not to push food too quickly through the stomach and stay full longer. I started doing this practice two months before my surgery and with no other changes, managed to lose 13 pounds prior to surgery, which i have to attribute to that practice.

It was a hard habit to make, we're so used to drinking fluids with our meals, but it does make sense to stay full longer.

Good luck on the Ration diet, I'm pondering implementing a little something like that for the hubby

 

[Absinthe_1900]

Well, a lot of folks took advantage of the black market to get foods off the ration -- nobody's ever really come up with a positive percentage, but certainly it was substantial. The enduring image of the crafty blackmarketeer didn't just spring up out of nowhere -- he was a genuine fixture of wartime life.

During W.W. II my Dad worked for a "Vending Machine/Juke Box Co." ("Youse guys need one of our juke boxes in your bar") that among other side ventures, printed ration books and stamps, and offered hard to find goods that "fell off of trucks" passing through the area.

 

[Ada Veen]

There is a book called 'The Ration Book Diet' by Mike Brown available on Amazon about British war-time eating and rationing. I have not read this myself so I can't say how good it is but he has written several other books about wartime subjects which have been quite informative.

I have actually read this book, and found it very interesting. I'm quite a fan of traditional foods (I have even made my own butter ). Health wise, I think portions were far more sensible then, and the wartime restrictions on fats and sugars were beneficial. However, fruits were difficult to get many times, and lard did make up quite a high proportion of Brits' diets in the early 20th century, and there certainly was not the variety we have now - particularly in winter and early spring.

 

[ShoreRoadLady]

I've been drinking a lot of ice water lately -- that wasn't rationed, and it has the added benefit of being really cheap!

Have you tried carbonated mineral water, possibly with some juice mixed in? It helps satisfy *some* of the must-have-soda cravings.

I helped myself to a lot of soda a couple weeks ago, and my skin definitely paid the price. I can get away with a little bit on occasion, but not a lot, and not often.

 

[Dr Doran]

Interesting project. Since my wife cannot cook much, whenever I go away she's slimmer because she eats cereal, cereal, cereal, and fruits rather than fettucine alfredo and Caesar salad.

Maybe we'll try this. I'm at about 217 lbs now and I wouldn't mind going down to 200.