South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-04-19
4 Decline in the
Death Ratet from
PeHdgra
isy Woods Hutchinson. VI. ID.


creasing loss OF life and waste of
resources on every hand. it is a
great consolation to md an excep-
ton, a bright spot in the gloom,
even if not OF the largest magnitude
This rare CLEAN of relief is furnished
by that serious disease of the south
ern states. pellagra, whose annual
death rate has just shown a falling
off of early 90 per cent, with saw
ing Of about 5000 lives.
Pellagra is a singular disease. and
there is nothing more, singular
about it than its history. known
for many centuries in southern Eu-
rope, particularly Italy and Ru-
mania, ana supposed TO be due TO
the feeding upon spoiled or mouldy
corn, il was regarded on this side of
the Atlantic as simply one of the
curiosities of medicine, and suppos-
ed 10 be practically unknown and
non-existent in this country.
So much so that at a revision of
the list Of causes Of death for the
United States census it was actually
proposed TO strike of the name OF
pellagra because no deaths were
caused by it in America, and there
would be no necessity to use it on
the death certificates.
But not long after this revision
some ten TO fifteen years ago, a large
group of cases of pellagra was dis
covered in a state insane asylum in
the middle west. at Peoria. Illinois.
This gave the picture" of the dis
ease TO American physicians and
PSYCHOLOGISTS scattered here and
there all over the country. particu-
larry in the south, and these were
followed into their family and home
communities, thus uncovering other
cases. The known field of the dis
ease spread and spread until finally,
TO everybodys unbOunded astonish-
ment, pellasra was discovered to eX-
list in tens Of thousands of cases in
this country. particularly in the
"Old SOUTH" Virsinia, the CarOlinas,
Georgia. etc.
Boards of health and special in
vestigating commissions took up the
problem ali through the south, un-
til it is now estimated that there
are at least $50, 600 pellagrins in the
United States.
Pellagra begins with the appear
ance of painful patches of thick red
dened. rougheneG skin upon the
face and hands and feet. From their
position these are usually put down
as bad cases of sunUurn until they
become chronic and painful. and in
deed, sunlight may have something
to do with their development, es-
pecially as they are most apt TO ap-
pear in the early spring. But they
continue TO ulcerate and spread for
weeks and even months indoors and
under protection of dark bandages,
$50 that the influence of light is
| probably not very great.
II is these thickened and infamed
patches of skin that gave the name
to the disease, for "pellagra" means
simply rough skin in Italian The
next symptom of the disease is a
chronic irritation of the stomach
and intestines; this usually comes
on a month or so after the skin
eruption in the spring and lasts all
/ through the summer. but tends, as
/ the skin patches also do, to diminish
and disappear in the fall and win
/ ter.
After the skin and stomach symp-
/ toms have repeated themselves for
/ three or four seasons, then the last
scene of the drama comes on, an in
tense toxic inflammation and rapid
\ breaking down of the brain and
nervous system, finally resulting in
/ insanity, delirium and death. The
/ insanity may run a rapid course 10
/ the end. but frequently lasts several
years, and in an earlier day the ma
! jority of pellagrins usually were first
recognized when they came into an
insane asylum, with the third and
| last stage of the disease.
1t is an extremely obstinate, I'M
manageable disease, and at first be-
/ lieved to be absolutely incurable,
/ but now that we see more cases in
! the earlier stages we find that "A
good many recover. The cause OF
/ the disease is probably a lack of
| certain life principles or vitamins
/ in the diet, due TO coarse. restricted
\ and mOnOlOnOuS lOOQS. CaSeS nave
| been cured by the addition 10 the
diet of liberal amounts of food that
are. rich in vitamins. such as beans,
milk and fish. While, on the other
/ hand. conditions very closely re-
\ sembling the disease have been pro
/ duced in the prisoners in certain
southern convict camps who we're
/ on the ordinary, coarse, mOnCtonOus
prison fare. while another large
group OF the prisoners, supplied
with beans. milk, etc. did not de-
velop a single case.
The marked decrease in the death
rate of the disease is probably due
/ to a more varied and better bal
anced diet, to more abundant work
and higher wages, and 70 the great
I Improvement OF general sanitary
and living conditions through that
/ section Of the country. Its interest
/ ing feature just AT this present
juncture is that the disease has
most unjustly and without any ade-
quate foundation been associated
! with the use OF corn as a food. And
! that it should have shown this most
gratifying decline 4 deadliness with