Milk – A National Problem: scientific research instruments in professional education in São Paulo (1940 - 1955)

Abstract

The focus of the present paper is on work MILK – A National Problem, written by the doctor, journalist and professor Francisco Pompêo do Amaral, which earned the National Academy of Medicine 1955 award, and was then published by José Olympio Editora in 1957. The reason of our interest is the presence of memory hints relevant for the history of chemistry and dietetics, such as scientific instruments and iconographic and bibliographic documents deposited at Memory Center, Carlos de Campos State Technical School, São Paulo, Brazil. To elucidate the process of management of this work, we describe the studies conducted from the 1940s onward at Superintendency of Professional Education of the State of São Paulo, involving the dietitian staff, namely teachers at course for “Food Assistants or Dietitians”, which was the be first devoted to diet and nutrition in Brazil, established by Pompêo do Amaral in 1936. The aforementioned studies mention dietary surveys conducted with students at the female and male professional institutes of São Paulo, as well as teaching practices recorded in books and scientific journals from 1940 to 1955, which provide information on the use of scientific instruments in chemical laboratories via the iconographic records of the Institutes and exhibited at Diet and Nutrition Visiting Technical Reserve.