Scurvy – Historical Background and Prevention

[CharlesHarris]

Scurvy – Historical Background and Prevention
http://leda.law.harvard.edu/leda/data/658/Mayberry.html

ABSTRACT:

Scurvy killed more sailors than all battles, storms and other diseases combined from the 16th to 18th centuries. This paper has given a medical examination of the necessity of vitamin C, an explanation of the physical progression of scurvy, described the effects of scurvy throughout history, and outlined the pursuit of a cure and eventual elimination of scurvy. Today, scurvy is a rare disease that is entirely preventable. Thanks to the efforts of a number of pioneering researchers, we now better understand the importance of diet and necessity of vital nutrients.

Interesting facts:

…. between the years of 1500 and 1800, scurvy was the leading cause of naval death, killing more sailors than all other diseases, disasters, and battles combined.[173] During the Seven Years’ War for example, Britain records indicate that 184,899 sailors were in service.[174] Of those, 133,708 died from disease (largely from scurvy) and only 1,512 died in combat.[175] These numbers illustrate the enormous toll scurvy took on the navies of Europe, killing orders of magnitude more men than battle.

The American Civil War illustrated….that scurvy was land as well as a sea problem. Prior to the Civil War, scurvy was the most common disease in the U.S. Army.[231] For a country whose borders and army were ever increasing, cost, perishability, and logistics of supplying a proper diet to troops in the wilderness proved almost impossible.[232]

….Scurvy also had secondary health effects….. Since scurvy effects the healing of wounds, the disease led to increased mortality rates for those wounded in combat.[241] In spite of bettering medical techniques and medical supplies, the portion of battlefield wounded who died continually increased throughout the war.[242] This increase in death rates for the wounded almost exactly mirrored the increases in scurvy rates recorded.[243]

….After a scurvy outbreak among Union troops during the Peninsula campaign of 1862, the public became aware of the disease and the general problem of proper nutrition in the armies.[252] Civilian groups began organizing event and food drives to support troops at the front.[253] The primary focus of these efforts was to collect potatoes and onions, both moderate suppliers of vitamin C.[254] At this point, citrus was known to be the best source of vitamin C, but oranges, lemons, and limes spoiled to quickly to be of much use if sent to distant troops.[255] one sign posted in Chicago read “Don’t send your sweetheart a love-letter. Send him an onion.”[258]

Most cases in the United States occur in poor urban populations, alcoholics and the elderly.[108] Individuals who smoke or have illnesses such as cancer or renal failure are also prone to scurvy.[109] Today, elderly poor men develop vitamin C deficiencies more than any other group.[110] In fact, as many as 20% of poor, elderly men may have low amounts of vitamin C in their system, although actual scurvy rates are much lower.[111] Even in elderly, poor men, the rates of vitamin C deficiency are highest among those who are confined to their homes, chronically sick, or institutionalized.[112] Overall, scurvy is extremely rare in developed countries due to improved diets and vitamin supplementation.[113] However, cases still occur and medical personnel must be prepared to diagnose and treat this once deadly disease.

[Jonas]

A large bottle of 500mg Vitamin C tablets should be part of everyone's preps...

[Scythe13]

Pine needle tea, and lots of it. Yummy and anti-scurvy.

[Highlander]

No excuse for Scurvy in this day and age,..... but both the Pine needle tea, and the vitamins are good

[David075]

If I recall right this was the reason lime cordial was invented , the sailors could have the benefits of lime in there diet long after the fruit had gone off.

[Sunna]

do the needles from all uk pine trees work ? , even the common one in almost every back garden .

good read thanks

[Highlander]

(29 September 2013, 11:17)Sunna Wrote: do the needles from all uk pine trees work ? , even the common one in almost every back garden .

good read thanks

yes

[CharlesHarris]

Spruce!

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/01...pruce-beer

"Ancient Scandinavians and their Viking descendants brewed beer from young shoots of Norway spruce, drinking the beer for strength in battle, for fertility and to prevent scurvy on long sea voyages," according to the second edition of the Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America.

Indeed, the British Navy practically required spruce beer as a scurvy treatment, particularly after 18th century experimental nutritionist James Lind published his observations of sailors' recoveries. Spruce beer became a part of daily life for sailors, as Capt. James Cook's 1784 Voyage to the Pacific Ocean describes:

"Two of our men were employed in brewing spruce beer; while others filled the water-casks, collected grass for the cattle and cut wood. ... Besides fish, we had other refreshments in abundance. Scurvy-grass, celery and portable soup were boiled every day with the wheat and pease; and we had spruce beer for our drink. Such a regimen soon removed all seeds of the scurvy from our people, if any of them had contracted it. But indeed, on our arrival here, we only had two invalids in both ships."
While it's true spruce contains vitamin C, recent scholars have cast doubt on just how much of the nutrient would have remained in the brewed version to counteract the disease.

"Vitamin C concentrations in foods are now known to be dramatically altered by, for instance, boiling and drying. Specifically, when made by fermentation, spruce beer contains no vitamin C," according to John K. Crellin's book, A Social History of Medicines in the Twentieth Century: To Be Taken Three Times a Day.

Even so, for centuries beer drinking of all kinds was considered a better alternative than water, which tended to be contaminated.

This recipe for spruce beer appeared in the first American cookbook published, American Cookery: Or the Art of Dressing Viands, Fish, Poultry and Vegetables, by Amelia Simmons, published in 1796:

"For brewing Spruce Beer. Take four ounces of hops, let them boil half an hour, in one gallon of water, strain the hop water, then add 16 gallons of warm water, two gallons of molasses, eight ounces of essence of spruce, dissolved in one quart of water, put it in a clean cask, then shake it well together, add half a pint of emptins [baker's yeast], then let it stand and work one week, if very warm weather less time will do, when it is drawn off to bottle, add one spoonful of molasses to every bottle."
Spruce tips as food and medicine were also widely known to Native Americans and the American colonists.

[Scythe13]

Got back earlier from walking the dogs with the wife. Today's tree that she learned about, and I learned more about was the good old Elm. While walking we saw a beast of a Hawthor! I commented that mum used to say the red fruits were poisonous. She seemed to agree with my mum on this. When we got home, I got one of my books out and gloated over my correctness. But then felt embarrassed that I'd forgotten something so well worth knowing! As you've already figured out this is a lovely story, it's in the scurvy section, so there must be a connection.

Hawthorn fruit has 7x the Vitamin C of oranges. So that pretty much means having 3-5 berries a day will stop scurvy.

[MaryN]

Hawthorn certainly is not poisonous - eating a few too many berries might give you an upset stomach - but it can be used in jams and jellies (great to go with cold meats). Did you know it has uses for the treatment of certain heart conditions?