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In 1747, Royal Navy surgeon James Lind took twelve sailors with scurvy aboard HMS Salisbury, divided them into pairs and gave each pair a different remedy while keeping their basic diet and conditions similar. The pair given oranges and lemons improved most dramatically. Small and unrandomised by modern standards, the experiment is remembered as an early controlled therapeutic trial.

James Lind, HMS Salisbury, 1747

HealthScienceHistory

The story behind the card

Scurvy, caused by a lack of vitamin C, brings bleeding gums, weakness and reopened wounds, and it killed huge numbers of sailors on long voyages; vitamin C itself was not identified until the 1930s. Lind's six pairs received cider, dilute sulphuric acid, vinegar, seawater, two oranges and a lemon, or a spicy paste with barley water. The fruit ran out after six days, but by then one of the citrus pair was fit for duty. Lind published his results in 1753, yet the Admiralty only made lemon juice a standard ration across the fleet in 1795. In the 19th century the navy switched to cheaper West Indian lime juice, which holds far less vitamin C.

Türkçe oku
1747'de Kraliyet Donanması cerrahı James Lind, HMS Salisbury gemisinde skorbüte yakalanmış on iki denizciyi ikişerli altı gruba ayırdı. Hepsi aynı yemeği yedi, ama her çifte ayrı bir tedavi uygulandı; en çarpıcı iyileşmeyi portakal ve limon verilen çift gösterdi. Deney bugünün ölçüleriyle küçüktü ve hastalar gruplara rastgele dağıtılmamıştı; yine de tıptaki ilk kontrollü tedavi denemelerinden biri sayılır.

Skorbüt, C vitamini eksikliğinden kaynaklanan bir hastalıktır; diş etlerini kanatır, bedeni güçsüz düşürür, eski yaraları yeniden açar. Uzun deniz yolculuklarında çok sayıda denizcinin ölümüne yol açtı; C vitamininin kendisi ise ancak 1930'larda tanımlanabildi. Lind'in altı çiftine sırasıyla elma şarabı, sulandırılmış sülfürik asit, sirke, deniz suyu, iki portakalla bir limon ve arpa suyuyla birlikte baharatlı bir macun verildi. Meyve altı gün sonra tükendi, ama o zamana kadar turunçgil verilen denizcilerden biri göreve dönecek kadar iyileşmişti. Lind sonuçları 1753'te yayımladı; Amirallik ise limon suyunu bütün filoda düzenli tayın hâline ancak 1795'te getirdi. 19. yüzyılda donanma daha ucuz olan Batı Hint misket limonu suyuna geçti; oysa bu suda C vitamini çok daha azdı.

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Background reading: James Lind
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