The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-02-02
lRY the Associated Press.)

tBY the Associated Press.)
Washington, u. c., Jan. 30.-Loom-
ing up- as grave enace to health
conditions in the South is the recent
ppearlnce Of q deadly disease known
90 medical scientists as "Pellagra."
This strange nlalady is q veritable
Ii in the Old World and the pos
sibility of It's becoming endemic in the
Southern States is by no means re-
mote. -.
For several centuries "Peilagra" is
known to have existed in the Old
World. but it's presence iii the South
has but recently been discovered. 1t
probably has existed for several years
in that section of the country, but
medical 4men have failed to recognize
its presence.
Now, however. this peculiar disease
has been diagnosed as true Pellagra
and the credit for its discovery in
the South belongs to Passed Assistant
Surgeon &. II. L~ayinder. of the Pub
lie Health and Marine Hospital Ser
vice. He has made q thorough lnNes-
LEGATION Of the disease and has but re-
Gently mad an exhaustive report on
his observations to Surgeon General
Wyman.
"Pellagra'' is . malady caused by
the eating of spoiled maize and pro-
duces in persons afflicted with it a
sort Of intoXicatiOn. IL disease gen
orally. occurs among the poorer
classes of the rural population who
subsist largely, or exclusively, on corn
most usually prepared by boiling corn
meal in salt water called '~polentia'
in tally. DIR. Lavinder states that in
pellagrous countries the corn is often
Of a. Door quality, gathered before
maturity and not properly cured and
stored. so that parasites more easily
develop upon it.
PellaEra is both an endemic and
epidemic disease, which occurs in
those who feed on diseased maize, and
is characterized by an erythena of the
skin, digestive disturbances. and ner-
yous disturbances. 1t may terminate
in such serious conditions as grave
cachexia, or insanity; it is periodic
in Its manifestations, and usually ap-
pears with the beginning OF spring
ameliorates during summer, and Ordl-
narily III winter the symptoms disap-
pear, to such an extent as Often tt
give the false idea of sc
long as the cause %ersists, however
it each year.
The disease usuail.T begins with
i, gastro-intestinal disturbances says
Assistant Surgeon Lavinder, FOLLOWED
shortly by the erytheTna of the skin
and in a brief while there is more CT
less involvement of the nervous -sys
TEN. It is a slowly advancing tOXer1la
the brunt Of which, in the end. Is
borne by the nervous system, and eaci
annual recurrence leaves a deeper ant
more indelible mari or the nlenta
and nervous COndltIOn OIL the SuIica'
err The great gravity and danger
of the disease, it is pointed out, lie:
in the MI of people affected. ant
in it's immediate and remote conse'
quences not only to individuals, bu
to the race-intellectual feetleness
lessened resistance, economic loss
physical deterioration, Of the race
etc.
An interesting theory advanced II,
DR.. Lavinder is that if tire cause 0
Pellagra be accepted as feeding Oh
spoiled maize, then the maize crol
Of the United States must in recon
years have undergone decided change
in some respect, for maize has Away
been very extensively used as food II
the Southern States, and Pe1lagra ma
not appeared in former years. Inf
is a subject which, he declares, VIII
require extensive investigation, shou1'
the disease continue to advance.
Concerning the ctioIogy of the dis
ease. it is said to be an in~toXicatlol
due to using as food Indian corr
(maize), which, under the mf!uenc'
of unidentifie4 parasitic growth
(fungi), has undergone certa''
changes with the production or on
OF. more toxic substances Of a cheril
cal nature.
In the preface of his report D1
Lsavindcr declares that there is req
son to believe that perhaps PellaSf'
may be quite prevalent in the Soutn
ern States, but is uHrecognized. With
in the past two or three years, 10
some reason or reasons unknown. TIL
disease has rapidly increased in mum
bers and extent Of territory AFFECTED