A Treatise of the Scurvy

The Book

We know now that scurvy is caused by a prolonged deficiency of vitamin C, but in the mid 18th century, little was known about this disease that could overwhelm scores of sailors on any one ship. Lind selected twelve sailors on the Salisbury with scurvy, and allocated two men each to six different treatments for a period of fourteen days.

He later recorded in his 1753 book ‘A Treatise of the scurvy’, that the ‘most sudden and visible good effects’ were shown by the sailors eating citrus fruits. While Lind himself missed the significance of this observation, he is recognised for pioneering the concept of a ‘fair trial’, with a preference for observation over theory that set him apart from other practitioners of his era. You can read a fascinating account of his achievements here.