Scurvy

Scurvy is a disease caused by a deficiency in vitamin C (ascorbic acid). The symptoms include poor wound healing, easy bruising, bleeding and swollen gums leading to the teeth falling out .

Scurvy was a major problem in navies prior to the 18th Century when the preservation of fresh fruit was not possible. It was not uncommon for losses to scurvy on ships to outnumber crew members killed in enemy action - Commodore George Anson took six ships and 2000 crew to the Pacific Ocean in the 1740s, and lost five of the ships and two thirds of his men

A Scottish surgeon called James Lind proved that scurvy could be treated by feeding patients citrus fruit in 1753 .

James Cook is often credited as being the first sea captain to eliminate scurvy in his sailors, principally by using sauerkraut (pickled cabbage), although the some people believe his success in doing this has been overstated not least because the vitamin C content of sauerkraut is minimal

Lack of vitamin C causes scurvy because ascorbic acid provides a hydroxyl group for the hydroxylation of proline residues to from hydroxyproline in the protein collagen. These hydroxyproline residues form hydrogen bonds between chains of collagen, holding them together. Thus in the absence of vitamin C, the collagen chains fall apart, which leads to the weakened connective tissue which causes the scurvy symptoms.