Men have died from time to time, and worms have eaten them, but not for love. The Ice Man was an early Copper Age man who died on a trek through the Alps 5,300 years ago. His well preserved body and equipment were found in 1991, frozen in an Italian glacier. Among the things he carried was a thong on which he threaded two pieces of Piptoporus betulinus , the birch polypore. Smoldering pieces of this fungus have been used to transport and start fires, and it was thought that the Iceman carried it for that purpose.
New evidence shows that the fungus was likely used as a medicine.
An autopsy revealed that the Iceman's colon was infested with Trichuris trichiura , parasitic whipworms that cause acute stomach pain, diarrhea, and anemia. P. betulinus is an effective remedy. It contains antibiotic oils that act on some mycobacteria, resins that attack whipworms, and agaric acid which is a powerful laxative. Ingesting P. betulinus would have brought the Iceman relief by killing most of the worms and then purging his system of the worms and their eggs. The election committee will present its slate and take nominations from the floor at the January meeting.