Scurvy

Scurvy, disease of human beings caused by a prolonged deficiency of vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, in the diet. It is characterized by progressive bodily weakness, spongy and inflamed gums, loose teeth, swollen and tender joints, and a tendency toward ecchymosis, or absorption by the tissues of blood from ruptured blood vessels. Anemia often occurs as a direct result of such hemorrhage. Lack of vitamin C in the diet prevents the formation of connective tissues that hold the body's structures together, such as tendons, ligaments, bone, dentin, and cartilage. The disease may appear in adults after about six months of complete lack of vitamin C.

Scurvy became prevalent when sailors began to spend months at sea without fresh vegetables, and in such cases it was usually fatal. In 1795, lime juice was issued to all British naval vessels on the recommendation of the Scottish physician James Lind, who knew that the Dutch had employed citrus fruits for several hundred years; scurvy soon began to disappear among British seamen. Oranges and lemons, higher in vitamin C content than limes, have supplanted limes as antiscorbutic agents.