Scurvy, a disease that is most often associated with the Victorian era, is set to make a comeback and experts warn that it’s set to become more prevalent in the UK thanks to the cost of living crisis making accessing affordable fruit and vegetables difficult.
Speaking to the Big Issue, professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners said: “A poor diet increases a patient’s risk of developing a range of nutritional diseases – malnutrition, rickets, scurvy, vitamin and folate deficiencies which are becoming increasingly common – but can also exacerbate chronic conditions which a patient has already developed.”
She added that while food banks are an essential, brilliant resource, getting fruit and vegetables at them isn’t always possible: “This impacts in particular on Vitamin C intake as this is a water soluble vitamin required daily as it is not able to be stored in the body. Prolonged low intake will ultimately lead to scurvy.”
What are the symptoms of scurvy & how can it be avoided?
According to the NHS, symptoms of scurvy may include:
- feeling very tired and weak all the time
- feeling irritable and sad all the time
- joint, muscle or leg pain
- swollen, bleeding gums (sometimes teeth can fall out)
- developing red or blue spots on the skin, usually on the legs and feet, although this may be less noticeable on brown or black skin
- skin that bruises easily
If you or your child are at risk of scurvy and:
- feel very tired and weak all the time
- feel irritable and sad all the time
- have joint, muscle or leg pain
- have wounds that reopen or are not healing well
If you notice more severe symptoms such as:
- rash that does not fade when you press a glass against it – in scurvy, this may look like red or blue spots
- a sudden, severe headache unlike anything you’ve experienced before, even if it’s got a bit better now – it may have felt like you had been hit with something hard
- a stiff neck
- sensitivity to light
- blurred or double vision
- stroke-like symptoms – such as slurred speech and weakness on one side of the body
- loss of consciousness or uncontrollable shaking (convulsions)
- severe chest pain or difficulty breathing
- confusion or drowsiness
Call 999 or go straight to A&E.
Scurvy can be treated with fresh fruit and vegetables, or Vitamin C supplements, which can be prescribed by your doctor.