Discuss the history of scurvy and how a cure was discovered

Answer 1

Many of the vitamin deficiency diseases that have been virtually eliminated today were first recognized in Greek and Roman times, and ultimately led to the discovery of vitamins centuries later. One of the most prevalent was scurvy, a disease caused by lack of vitamin C and characterized by bleeding gums, tooth loss, and even death. The scourge of armies, sailors, and other travelers forced to do without vitamin C-rich foods for weeks on end, scurvy was recognized by Hippocrates, a Greek physician heralded today as the father of medicine.

A cure for scurvy was not recorded until the 16th century, however, when a beverage made of spruce needles or oranges and lemons was recommended. In 1753, a British physician named James Lind published a famous report recommending consumption of herbs, lettuce, endive, watercress, and summer fruits to prevent scurvy. By the early 1800s, sailors in the British navy had been dubbed "limeys" because they were required to drink lemon or lime juice daily. Although they still didn't know that vitamin C was the actual antidote, they did recognize that certain foods prevented and cured the illness.