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Definition: scurvy from Philip's Encyclopedia

Disease caused by a deficiency of vitamin C (ascorbic acid), which is contained in fresh fruit and vegetables. It is characterized by weakness, painful joints, and bleeding gums.


scurvy

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
deficiency disorder resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in the diet. Scurvy does not occur in most animals because they can synthesize their own vitamin C, but humans, other primates, guinea pigs, and a few other species lack an enzyme necessary for such synthesis and must obtain vitamin C through their diet. Vitamin C is widespread in plant tissues, with particularly high concentrations occurring in citrus fruits (oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruits); tomatoes, potatoes, cabbages, and green peppers are also good sources of this vitamin. Scurvy results in the weakening of capillaries, which causes hemorrhages into the tissues, bleeding of the gums, loosening of the teeth, anemia, and general debility. In infants there is also interference with bone development. Severe phases of the disorder can result in death. Scurvy is treated with large doses of vitamin C. Modern methods of transporting and preserving foods have made a diet rich in vitamin C available everywhere…
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Full text Article Scurvy

From Gale Encyclopedia of Public Health
Scurvy, seen in secondary stage as bleeding...
Scurvy is a condition caused by a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in the diet. Signs of scurvy include tiredness, muscle weakness, joint and muscle aches, a rash on the legs, and bleeding gums. In the past, scurvy was common among sailors and other people deprived of fresh fruits and vegetables…
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Full text Article scurvy

From Library of Health and Living: The Encyclopedia of Nutrition and Good Health
A disease caused by severe deficiency of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Scurvy has been described since ancient times. Long sea voyages of the 15th through the 17th centuries frequently decimated the ranks of sailors. As early as 1593, a British admiral demonstrated that lemon juice cured the disease. A…
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Full text Article Scurvy

From Human Diseases and Conditions
SOURCE: Office of Dietary Supplement, National...
Scurvy is a disease that occurs when people do not get enough vitamin C (also called ascorbic acid) in the diet over a period of weeks or months. Some of the effects of scurvy are spongy gums, loose teeth, weakened blood vessels that cause bleeding under the skin, and damage to bones and cartilage, …
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Full text Article scurvy,

From The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea
a disease caused by vitamin C deficiency from the difficulty, during the days of sail, of preserving fresh fruit and vegetables. It usually became apparent after about six weeks on salt provisions, and was a common ailment when long voyages of exploration by sea began in the 16th century. The first…
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Full text Article scurvy

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
deficiency disorder resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in the diet. Scurvy does not occur in most animals because they can synthesize their own vitamin C, but humans, other primates, guinea pigs, and a few other species lack an enzyme necessary for such synthesis and must obtain…
| 311 words
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Full text Article scurvy

From The Oxford Companion to Food
a disease caused by lack of vitamin C. It affects connective tissue: symptoms include sore gums and loose teeth, ulcers on the legs, and lethargy. It takes several months without the vitamin for the first signs to appear. The disease can be quickly cured by eating foods containing the vitamin. …
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Full text Article Scurvy

From Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine
Mouth of a person with scurvy, vitamin C...
Scurvy is a condition caused by a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in the diet. Signs of scurvy include tiredness, muscle weakness, joint and muscle aches, a rash on the legs, and bleeding gums. In the past, scurvy was common among sailors and other people deprived of fresh fruits and vegetables…
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Full text Article Scurvy

From The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Human Paleopathology Full text Article Metabolic diseases
Hematoma, subperiosteal, organized....
Definition and chemical mechanism Scurvy (adjective: scorbutic) is a condition caused by lack of vitamin C (C) resulting in defective collagen (and osteoid) synthesis with consequent skeletal growth retardation and hemorrhagic phenomena. While the tissues of most animals can produce C (now known to…
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Full text Article Scurvy

From Black's Medical Dictionary, 43rd Edition
A disease caused by deficiency of vitamin C (ascorbic acid – see APPENDIX 5: VITAMINS ) rarely seen in developed countries except in people on poor diets, such as vagrants. Ascorbic acid is a water-soluble vitamin derived from citrus fruits, potatoes and green vegetables. Nowadays woody haemorrhagic…
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Full text Article scurvy

From The Macquarie Dictionary
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