(no subject)

[theweaselking]

The most interesting article on scurvy you will read today.

via jwz - basically, on how scurvy was cured in the 18th century and then *still* killed a whole lot of people in the 19th and 20th because people never understood *why* the cure worked, and made bad assumptions about what *should* work rather than testing what *did*.

Comments

[thette.livejournal.com]

Huh. Interesting. Thanks!

[snakey.livejournal.com]

Friend of mine got scurvy living in a squat a few years ago. /randomfact

Same girl got quinine poisoning from drinking too much tonic water with her gin. I think she's collecting historical illnesses....

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

I came down with scurvy, once.

I'd been carefully and selectively *not eating* any of the food I didn't like, and supplementing it with food I did like, without letting my parents know. And then my gums started bleeding.

[jerril]

Friend of mine gave himself scurvey one summer. Decided he was going to sit in the basement all day drinking soda and eating chips while playing video games. His parents basic attitude was "Well, we told you for the last 16 years this is a really stupid idea, can't stop you now. We'll be here to laugh at you while we take you to the doctors in September."

And lo and behold there were there to laugh at him while they drove him to the doctors. Mostly so the doctor could laugh at him too, since the problem was pretty obvious.

[kierthos.livejournal.com]

*nod* I mean, hell, you take a Vitamin C tablet every couple of days (heck, probably as little as once a week), and you're fine.

Of course, I solve it the tasty way. Orange juice. :)

[skwidly.livejournal.com]

Neat article! FBed!

[camelai.livejournal.com]

Wow, this is really interesting and cool. Thanks!

[lightinchains.livejournal.com]

I like how they switched from Italian Lemons to West Indian Limes for political reasons without ever checking that it would, y'know, work.

I'm so glad that something like that would never happen nowadays.