Scurvy
Scurvy is a disease that often afflicted sailors on long voyages. It still affects children frequently today. This disease is also known as Moeller's disease, Barlow's disease and Cheadle's disease. Scurvy is easy to prevent by eating fruits (especially citrus) and green leafy vegetables like spinach and broccoli.
Symptoms
Scurvy begins gradually with feelings of generalized weakness and exhaustion. As it progresses, bleeding gums appear as the lack of vitamin C makes the capillaries very fragile. Other symptoms may include subcutaneous hemorrhage, pain in the joints, fatigue, nausea, bruising, loosening of teeth, dry skin and hair, poor healing of wounds, and liver spots. Scurvy may also be associated with anemia and stiff joints.
Causes
Scurvy is caused by a lack of vitamin C in the diet. This deficiency can be made worse by stress. Stress can prevent your body from assimilating enough vitamin C. Eating enough foods containing vitamin C can go a long way in preventing this deficiency, even if you do have stress. Eat foods like tomatoes, broccoli, turnip greens, spinach, cauliflower, bell peppers, and cabbage. Fruits like citrus, strawberries, guava, kiwi and cantaloupe are also high in vitamin C.
Cautions
Scurvy can often be mistaken for rickets, rheumatism or paralysis. If scurvy progresses far enough, capillaries may rupture and cause extensive hemorrhage. Formula-fed infants are more at risk for infantile scurvy than breastfed infants, especially if the formula is based on cow's milk. Cow's milk has less than half the vitamin C found in women's breastmilk. Processed milk loses even more vitamin C.
Herbal Treatments
Internal Applications
- Indian gooseberry this herb has the highest known quantity of vitamin C of all foods. Eat the fruit regularly throughout the day. It can also be taken as a powder mixed with sugar.
- Lemon mix the juice of one lemon with a teaspoon of honey. Add this to a glass of slightly warm water and mix well. Drink this twice a day. Other fruits are helpful for scurvy as well. Oranges, grapefruits, limes, strawberries and kumquats also are high in vitamin C.
- Mango use powdered mango added to your food to increase your intake of vitamin C.
- Scurvy grass this herb was used traditionally by sailors since it grew by the seashore in Scotland, England and Ireland. It was eaten fresh or made into a tonic drink.
- Jaundice berry the leaves of this herb are anti-scorbutic. Prepare a decoction of the leaves by boiling 15 grams of dried leaves in 500 ml of water. Reduce the liquid by one third. Take 150 ml of the decoction per dose. Alternatively, you can take 2 to 4 ml of the berry juice to treat scurvy.
- Dandelion this gentle tonic herb is also used to treat scurvy. Take a tea or capsules to help remedy this deficiency.
- Stinging nettle this highly nutritious herb can help with vitamin C deficiency. Take 3 spoonfuls of juiced nettles every morning to help.
- Watercress take the juice of watercress daily. It can also be mixed with mustard greens and other garden cresses to increase your intake of vitamin C.