Individual Project

Jayvee R. Marjes
2013-13902
Section THY
Francisco Santos

A Filipino Chemist: Francisco Santos

Being a scientist is not as easy as cleaning up an entire house. A scientist must use his/her knowledge to help his fellowmen in all sorts of things. He should make inventions for the benefit of others. He should discover cure for the unknown diseases that has spread all throughout the country, and other similar things.

For my project, I will present a Filipino Scientist who worked hard to discover a cure for a certain disease and shared this discovery for the benefit of others; which was a sign of a true scientist. And this scientist was no other than Dr. Francisco O. Santos.

“Francisco Santos was known for his contributions on the field of agriculture and chemistry. With his expertise on his fields, he studied the chemical composition of local food here in the Philippines to help protect Filipinos from diseases and help them to have an excellent diet” (Bellis).

“Dr. Santos was born on Calizon, Bulacan on June 3, 1892. He finished Bachelor of Arts on 1912 and Masters of Science on 1919 at the University of the Philippines. He took his Doctorate Degree at Yale University on Biochemistry. He was then known as a national scientist for his influences on nutrition and his thoughtfulness for the health of Filipinos, especially on places of poor medication” (Wikipedia).

Dr. Santos was the one who advocates the use of fruits and vegetable as source of vitamins and minerals. Through his concern with the Filipino diet and his hard work, he came up with a solution, getting vitamins from local Philippine foods. For me, it was a very practical and efficient way of sustaining health for the Filipinos. Since Philippines is an agricultural land, this plants will be an easy access for all of the people especially for the farmers and the fishermen.

During his time, the disease “beri beri” was a very common disease. This is a disease in which the body does not have enough thiamine or vitamin B1. “Dr. Santos established the anti-beriberi content of sweet potato and demonstrated the food value of this crop” (Bato Balani).

            Because of his discoveries in the field of nutrition, Dr. Santos received a number of awards including the Distinguished Service Medal for outstanding contribution in the field of nutrition among Filipinos, 1955. “He is also a recipient of the Andres Soriano award in chemistry, 1956; and the University of the Philippines Alumni award, 1979” (DOST).

It must have been a very difficult but fulfilling discovery for Dr. Santos; because his own discovery was used all over the world. He was such a great scientist. To discover such thing requires a lot of time, dedication, and hard work. And Dr. Santos proved it. It goes to show us that hard work, inspiration and determination will let us achieve things that we thought we won’t.

Work Cited

Bellis, Mary; Filipino Chemist – Francisco Santos;
            http://inventors.about.com/od/filipinoscientists/p/FranciscoSantos.htm; March 6, 2014

Wikipedia; 6 May 2013; http://tl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_Santos; March 6, 2014

Bato Balani; Francisco O. Santos;
            http://personalmemoir.wordpress.com/2009/06/12/257/; March 8, 2014

DOST; Francisco Santos;
http://www.nast.ph/index.php?option=com_profile&id=94&view=details&template=nast3&Itemid=19