What is Scurvy? Should You Be Concerned?

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This disease was supposedly eradicated years ago. Ancient sailors who subsisted on fish, molded cheese and molded bread, for the most part, developed this disease, because of an acute LACK of Vitamin C. And, then someone introduced sailors to limes. Symptoms include fatigue, spots on the skin, yellow skin, open wounds, and loss of teeth and finally death. A Scottish surgeon in the Royal Navy, James Lind, first proved that scurvy could be cured with citrus fruit. Not too long ago, a young college student developed scurvy, because SHE subsisted on cheese, crackers, soft drinks and cookies. It was discovered that she consumed less than one tenth of a milligram of vitamin C per day, leading to the illness. What can a person do to avoid developing this disease? One glass of orange juice per day will do it. You need 60 milligrams of Vitamin C per day. The average American diet is void of adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables, for the most part. Make sure your college student or any of your children get what they need in Vitamin C.